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Remember when controlling your online presence meant building your own website, securing your key social platforms, attaining a Wikipedia page and getting a few well-crafted pages to rank on Google’s first page?
Those are all still important, but they are no longer enough. The rise of AI-powered search tools like ChatGPT and Perplexity is beginning to change how people discover and learn about brands and executives — and traditional digital presence strategies need to keep pace.
You need to optimize page 0
In the traditional search paradigm, reputation management focuses on controlling the first page of search results. Companies and executives can maintain a carefully curated image by optimizing properties, such as a company website, LinkedIn profile, Wikipedia and perhaps a few strategic press mentions.
AI has introduced “page zero.” Instead of scrolling through results, users now use prompts to ask for specific responses: “Give me the Pros and Cons of this product”; “What’s the CEO’s track record in terms of growth?”; “What is it like to work at company Y?”. AI models synthesize answers from across the internet, pulling from sources that might never have made it to page one of traditional search results.
Page Zero is where you need to operate, track, analyze and control how AI models answer specific prompts and queries.
Related: How Generative AI Is Changing the Game for Content and Creativity
When AI fills the void, you might not like the story
The fundamental truth in this new landscape is stark: nature may abhor a vacuum, but AI rushes to fill it with whatever narrative it can construct — accurate or not. While AI systems excel at connecting dots and generating plausible-sounding stories when faced with limited information, they don’t necessarily prioritize the narrative you’d choose for yourself. This makes silence not just obsolete but potentially dangerous.
Consider this: When someone asks an AI about your brand’s challenges or controversies, the AI will find an answer — whether you’ve addressed these topics or not. The solution isn’t to avoid difficult topics but to proactively provide context that AI models can reference when responding to these inevitable queries.
Success in this new environment requires a fundamental shift in approach:
1. Consider framing challenges as part of your journey
Instead of avoiding difficult topics, look for opportunities to transform them into elements of your growth story. Share how challenges have shaped your current direction, what you’ve learned from past obstacles, or how industry difficulties have influenced your innovation strategy.
For example, rather than letting AI discover and interpret your company’s pivot, proactively explain how market insights led to strategic evolution. When discussing challenges, focus on the lessons learned and the strengthened foundation they helped build. This approach provides AI with constructive, accurate context while demonstrating transparency and resilience.
2. Build depth, not just breadth
Rather than spreading thinly across many platforms, focus on creating comprehensive, authoritative content that AI models can draw upon. This includes:
- Detailed professional profiles that provide context beyond basic biographical information
- Thought leadership content that demonstrates expertise and industry understanding
- Clear positioning on industry issues and challenges
Related: Why Entrepreneurs Still Need To Leverage People (Even With AI)
3. Maintain strategic professional visibility
While complete transparency isn’t necessary, maintaining some strategic visibility is crucial. To achieve this, professionals should create detailed and verified profiles on key platforms. Engaging in thought leadership by publishing articles or participating in industry podcasts and discussions that align with one’s expertise can further enhance visibility.
Additionally, it’s important to ensure that professional affiliations and credentials are well-documented, as this contributes to a credible and authoritative presence in one’s field.
Ongoing planning considerations
Effective reputation management necessitates advanced tools to monitor how AI represents your brand. Regular digital audits are essential to gaining a clear understanding of AI’s interpretations of your information.
Additionally, periodic intent mapping can help address common questions about you and your company, ensuring that your brand is accurately and positively represented in the digital landscape.
Privacy and transparency can coexist
Even with privacy as a goal, the AI era needs a counterintuitive approach: provide enough authoritative information for AI models to use. Supplying clear, relevant content ensures AI systems rely on reliable sources rather than less authoritative or incorrect information. Decide what content you want people to see, and if aiming for minimal presence, be intentional about what information to share. This maintains control over your narrative while giving AI models the authoritative material they need.
Takeaways
The AI-driven landscape requires a new digital presence strategy — one that recognizes there is no hiding from AI. The best approach is to shape your digital footprint thoughtfully and proactively.
Success means providing enough verified, high-quality information to satisfy AI’s pattern-matching and question-answering capabilities while maintaining appropriate professional boundaries. In this new world, the best defense isn’t invisibility — it’s strategic, controlled visibility. This ensures that when AI models talk about you or your brand, they’re working with the narrative you’ve carefully crafted.
