Google Authorship is every business's fantasy: a quick way to improve online visibility and influence while driving clicks and conversions – all without spending a single dime. Given these heady credentials, it’s no surprise that Google Authorship is quickly becoming the fastest way for companies to improve SEO, increase click-thru rates, build their personal brand, and improve lead generation. And with Google’s long-talked about “Author Rank” system finally on the horizon, Google Authorship is an absolute must for small and mid-sized businesses.

Is your business taking advantage of Google Authorship? Here’s what your company needs to know right now.

Google Authorship Is More Than A Byline And A Photo

Sure, the nice byline and pretty photo attached to your content in Google search results are an obvious benefit for building your personal brand. But Google Authorship is much more than a visual system of quick online recognition; it’s part of a concerted strategy to improve your content ranking. When you connect your Google Authorship account with your Google+ profile, this creates a verified connection between the content itself and you, the creator of this content. This verified connection helps Google to quickly identify quality, human-created content and distinguish this content from the mountains of spam cranked out by content farms. Consequently, your content is more likely to rank highly in search results.

When it comes to improving click-thru rates, a nice Google Authorship photo certainly doesn’t hurt, either. Study after study proves that when it comes to online content click-thru rates, visuals, like Google Authorship photos, matter. Heat maps of search engine results consistently show that the top portion of search results containing rich snippets (e.g., Google Authorship information) receive the greatest visual attention. Getting noticed is the first step to improving click-thru rates.

Google Authorship Will Supercharge Your Content Marketing

With content marketing the hottest trend for 2014, thousands of pieces of content are getting cranked out every hour and dumped into cyberspace. All your content creation is effectively worthless, however, if no one actually finds this content and reads it. Within search results, content tied to verified online profiles now ranks higher than content without such verification. This translates into more users naturally clicking on the top verified results, which is key for getting your content in front of the right people at the right time.

Most importantly, your business won't have to be a major corporation for its content to rank highly in search results. In fact, since many big companies have been slow to adopt Google Authorship, small to mid-sized businesses have a clear advantage here.

Google Authorship and Author Rank: An SEO Powerhouse

“Author Rank” is the idea that an author can build brand rank and trust based on the content they publish online. The more content you publish in a specific niche that is consistently +1’d and shared, the higher your content will rank. This, in turn, signals to Google that you are an authority on this subject, which in turn improves your author rank.

While Google has not “officially” the confirmed the role of Author Rank in determining search results, SEO insiders speculate that it’s only a matter of when, not if, Author Rank will be a significant factor. When it comes to SEO, the marketing industry is already speculating that Author Rank may ultimately be more disruptive than previous algorithm updates. If your business is not already building its credibility through Google Authorship, your content could take a serious hit in the search results.

Summary

Increasingly, the true cost of remaining anonymous online is irrelevance. Google Authorship is key to not only making sure that your content is seen by the right people, but also generating new leads. Thanks to Google Authorship’s built-in credibility, your company can spend less time cultivating trust with prospective clients and more time selling your clients on your services. After all, these clients will already see your business as an industry thought leader. Now, you just need to close the sale.