Looking at Job Growth from a Pay Perspective

The latest news about jobs and employment looks great. Not only is there zero sign of a recession, but more and more people are finding jobs. Unfortunately, there’s a nuance to this good news, a storyline that really isn’t being talked about: Pay.

While the latest unemployment numbers continue their historically low streak (the 3.6% reported in October is still the lowest numbers we’ve seen in the United States in half a century), it’s important to look at wage growth, a number that, perhaps surprisingly, is completely flatlining. In 2017 and 2018, hourly earnings across the country rose 2.7% and 3.3% respectively, but in 2019 there has been almost zero growth, something that has some economists worried.

In fact, not only have the wage numbers not moved in 2019, but they’ve actually gone down as of October. This means that, while there are plenty of jobs to do, employers aren’t offering an increase in compensation - and that’s across the board. While economists would suggest that the “low unemployment rate should mean that workers are scarce and that employers should need to start paying them more”, the opposite is actually happening in our country right now.

So, regardless of which way you lean politically, voters will need to consider the reality of having plenty of jobs (something that is currently taking place) with the need to increase pay (something that, as of now, remains elusive).

Will This Google Formula Really Help Grow Your Business?

In today’s world, even a beautiful, well-functioning website and a great product aren’t enough to equal guaranteed success. According to Google, which acts as the success-gatekeeper for almost all modern businesses, in order to get found online your business needs to possess a quality (or, more accurately, a formula) known as EAT. An acronym for “Expertise, Authoritativeness, and Trustworthiness”, EAT has been a major part of Google’s Search Quality Evaluator Guidelines (which has been in effect since 2013).

Unfortunately, most businesses have never heard of EAT or, at the very least, have never paid much attention to what it really means. This formula, as simple as it sounds, is one of the key determinants to a website’s and, therefore, a business’s success. In short, the more “EAT” you have, the better your website will perform, and the more likely it will get found in those coveted first page spots.

If you are not currently doing everything possible to convey to your customers that you are a trusted expert with loads of authority, then there’s a good chance you’re not ranking as well as you could be with Google. And, before you ignore this EAT formula because you honestly could care less about Google or its rankings, consider this: The more EAT you’re able to bring to every aspect of your business, not just online, the better it will perform overall.

That’s right, Google really is onto something about encouraging businesses to focus on its EAT formula.

No matter what your business is or where it lives in space, it’s paramount that you’re able to take a skeptic and convert them into a sale. Since the beginning of business, this has been central to success. So, in order to go from a virtual unknown to a trusted entity, you really do have to convey expertise, authority, and trustworthiness. No matter how many stickers or badges you plaster in your space or on your website about the certificates you have or the accolades you’ve won, true EAT success is more nuanced.

Real trustworthiness, it turns out, comes from consistency, which stems from the confidence you get from being an expert authority. This consistency, in terms of business, is synonymous with cohesion, meaning that from page to page, store to store, sign to sign, post to post, you’re focusing on the same message, delivering your underlying core promise again and again.

Knowing that, the primary focus for your business, whether you want to meet Google’s EAT standards or just become more successful in your niche, should be knowing 100% what your brand’s core promise is. And, once you do, ensuring that everyone within your business delivers it day-after-day, regardless of their role. So much more effective than any cheap marketing trick or even high paid SEO tactics, delivering on your brand’s promise consistently and across platforms is the best way to genuinely earn your EAT - and all of the business you’ll get with it.