💥 Did Someone Crack HCU?

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So, I was scrolling Twitter this morning and came across something interesting.

It’s this tweet from a guy who works at Moz.

He’s talking about a HCU theory of his that he thinks has some real validity.

More on that in a moment.

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Real Theory? Common Sense? or Moz Pro Ad?

I’m always skeptical when someone makes a bold claim that essentially requires you to sign up for their service/tool/etc.

If you looked through that tweet then you see a lot of mention of something called Brand Authority and a BA score.

I feel like I keep up with all things SEO but I’d never heard of this. The webpage about it was published in August 2023 and updated today.

I got Claude to summarize that page and hit me with the key points -

• Brand Authority is a score (1-100) developed by Moz to measure a brand's total strength.

• It helps understand brand power for more effective SEO and digital marketing strategies.

• Brands significantly influence search engine results and rankings.

• Strong brands often receive expanded listings, Knowledge Graph results, and rich features in search results.

• Brand strength can dramatically impact click-through rates from organic search results.

• Brand Authority is calculated using various factors, including branded searches and product/service recognition.

• The score is non-linear, with higher scores representing exponentially stronger brands.

• Brand Authority complements Domain Authority to provide a more comprehensive view of online presence.

So, in essence this really comes down to….. build a brand that people search for.

Not exactly something new on the scene, but apparently Moz has a way to score it. And you get 3 free scores without needing to pay for Moz Pro.

While I do think scoring it and using that DA:BA ratio mentioned in the tweet to come up with HCU probability is interesting, I also feel like maybe we all knew that being a brand insulated you from HCU for the most part?

And at the end of the day, we all know HOW to be a brand, but here’s what Claude pulled from reading that Moz article -

How to Improve Brand Authority

1. Increase brand awareness:

   • Invest in marketing campaigns to get more people talking about your brand

   • Create shareable, valuable content that promotes brand recognition

2. Develop strong product branding:

   • Create memorable names for products or services (e.g., AMD's Radeon, Ryzen)

   • Ensure consistent branding across all product lines

3. Optimize for branded searches:

   • Create content around your brand name, products, and services

   • Encourage users to search for your brand specifically

4. Invest in digital PR:

   • Aim for mentions and coverage from high-authority websites

   • Focus on viral potential to increase word-of-mouth influence

5. Balance online and offline presence:

   • For strong offline brands, invest in improving online presence and SEO

   • For strong online brands, work on increasing real-world brand recognition

6. Create and promote branded terms:

   • Develop unique terminology associated with your brand

   • Encourage adoption of these terms in your industry

7. Leverage SERP features:

   • Optimize for sitelinks, knowledge panels, and other brand-specific SERP features

   • Create content that's likely to appear in "Latest from [Your Brand]" sections

8. Focus on niche branding:

   • Even if you're not a household name, become well-known in your specific industry or niche

   • Develop strong associations between your brand and key products/services

9. Monitor and benchmark:

   • Regularly check your Brand Authority score

   • Compare your score with competitors to identify areas for improvement

10. Integrate brand-building with SEO:

    • Remember that building your brand creates new search terms and volume

    • Align your SEO efforts with overall brand strategy

So, what do you think? Was it just a clever ploy to sell you on a Moz Pro account?

Or is there some real substance here?

Coming up…

Upcoming topics: more tips and ideas on Etsy and KDP, how it’s going with my chatGPT fiction ebook and the AI music thingie, and growing an ecomm site.

If you have a topic you want covered just reply and let me know.

Stay awesome,

Shawna

P.S. If you’re looking for high level discussions or tips on things like local SEO and Rank & Rent, I highly recommend Jacky Chou’s Advise community. I’ve been in it for several months and there’s tons of value in it, including a SOP for local SEO.

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