Topical authority is Google's measure of how comprehensively your site covers a subject. Sites with strong topical authority rank better for related keywords.
What Is Topical Authority?
Topical authority is built by creating comprehensive content around a subject, covering all the subtopics and questions your audience might have.
How to Build Topical Authority
- Create pillar pages for your core topics
- Build supporting content that covers subtopics
- Use internal linking to connect related content
- Update and expand content as the topic evolves
- Cover topics from multiple angles and intent types
The Vertical → Pillar → Child Page Model
A structured content hierarchy helps you build topical authority systematically:
- Verticals: Your highest-level content categories
- Pillars: Core topics within each vertical
- Child Pages: Specific articles targeting individual keywords