Google remains a leader in search partly because it seeks out new ways to make its core service better for users. Since anyone can publish content to the web, having mechanisms in place to ensure it comes from reputable sources is a sensible goal to pursue. Rel=author and rel=publisher are two such mechanisms that help make content and publishers on the web establish trust. While they sound similar, they are two very different things.
What is the Difference Between Rel=Author and Rel=Publisher?
Rel=Author
These are both schema tags, but they have different purposes. The rel=author was adopted by Google as a means for content creators to link their Google Plus profiles with the content they created on the web. The basic underlying theory is that users will have an easier time finding and recognizing great content in search results. Google can also have an easier time finding good, relevant content when it is tied to reputable producers.
With authorship, you can:
• Have your profile image appear next to your content in search results
• Protect your content from being copied to a certain extent
• Potentially increase your click-through rates
• Establish yourself as an authority through search
Rel=Publisher
The publisher tag allows entities to verify that they are who they say they are by linking their Google Plus brand page and their website. Anyone can set up a Google Plus brand page using your business’s name.
The rel=publisher tag has other benefits, as well. When you have a verified account, your plus brand page may show up in search results for your brand name with a unique profile widget in the margin of Google SERPs. People interested in your brand can follow you right from search results.
“What it does get is a check mark next to the brand’s official URL on the Page cover image, showing that the connection between the Page and its official website has been verified. The name verification is bestowed by Google at some point if the page has had some unspecified level of good activity, engagement, and follower growth.”
Where and When to Use What
Both individuals and organizations can use either of the two tags, but they should be used in the correct way. The publisher tag is for linking your site and your Google Plus profile as a whole, and it really only happens once. Because it is mainly a verification method, it doesn’t matter much that it is connected to any particular page or piece of content.
Conversely, the authorship tag should be placed in the byline of your content. Be careful about which content you attach it to, though. Some webmasters go crazy and attach it to a bunch of different pages on their sites. It may be true that you authored your “about us” or “contact us” pages but, that isn’t really the purpose of the relationship. It is meant to identify high-quality and useful content. If people keep seeing your image in search next to your privacy policy, they will learn quickly not to click on it.
Rel=Publisher
This tag can go somewhere on your site one time. Try and put it on your home page. You can configure it as a visible link (i.e. <a href=”your-google-plus-profile?rel=publisher”>Me on Google Plus</a> or as an invisible link (without hypertext). You can also put it in the header of your website where it will be hidden anyway.
Both the rel=author and rel=publisher tags are good ways to link your brand and your content to you out on the World Wide Web.