Google’s ‘Non-Commodity’ Push Isn’t New

Google has confirmed what is obvious to many: unique content grounded in the writer’s views and experiences will outrank press releases, rote descriptions, repetition, and similar.

“Non-commodity” is the search giant’s term in its newly released AI visibility guidelines for one-of-a-kind content. At its Marketing Live conference last month, Google’s Senior Vice President Nick Fox similarly advised against publishing “generic” content.

Regardless, the terms signal the AI-fueled direction of organic search. The visibility guidelines appeared in a May 15 Search Central post:

Be sure that you’re writing non-commodity content that your readers will find helpful and reliable. Commodity content (for example, something like “7 Tips for First-Time Homebuyers”) is often based on common knowledge, which could originate from anyone, and typically adds little unique insight for readers. In contrast, non-commodity content (such as “Why We Waived the Inspection & Saved Money: A Look Inside the Sewer Line”) provides unique expert or experienced takes that go beyond common knowledge and the ordinary.

Before that, at an April Search Central Live event in Toronto, Danny Sullivan, Google’s Public Liaison for Search, shared the “7 Tips” example above, along with two more.

EEAT Returns

There’s nothing new here. Google has long emphasized content containing unique experiences and expertise. For years Google has instructed its human evaluators to assess a site’s “Experience, Expertise, Authoritativeness, and Trustworthiness” and has likely included an EEAT component in its “helpful content” ranking algorithm.

Yet AI-driven, zero-click search results apparently require new terminology.

Another definition of “helpful,” “non-commodity,” and “non-generic” is content that generative AI cannot easily summarize or recycle without attribution.

Examples include:

• Unique analysis of your customers’ buying trends,
• Personal tests and experiments,
• Original surveys,
• Customer use cases or stories.

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Readers First

But readers sometimes seek “commodity” content, such as announcements from favorite brands, product releases, personnel changes, and related.

If your target audience wants it, definitely publish it. Focusing on direct traffic, after all, is the best optimization tactic. Commodity content is valuable if it helps your users.