Entity SEO and knowledge graphs
Entity SEO means making your organization, people and products unambiguous things that search engines and language models can recognize and connect. Use one consistent name and description, a canonical “home” URL per entity, Organization and Person markup with sameAs links, and consistent facts across profiles, directories and reference sites.
Why entities matter for answers
Google’s Knowledge Graph (2012) was built to understand “things, not strings”, drawing on sources such as Freebase and Wikipedia.[1] Bing asks publishers to define entities clearly and consistently.[2] If an engine cannot tell which “Local Blitz” or “Simon White” you are, it cannot confidently cite you.
The entity home
Pick one URL that is the authoritative description of each entity (an About page, an author page). Point every other mention there. This site’s author page, Simon White, points to the canonical profile at simonwhite.wiki. Practitioner practice
Consistency checklist
| Signal | Where | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Name | Site, markup, profiles | Same legal or brand name everywhere |
| Description | About page, social bios, directories | One-sentence definition reused |
| @id | JSON-LD on every page | https://example.com/#org |
| sameAs | Organization and Person markup | LinkedIn, X, YouTube, Wikidata |
| Founders and staff | Person markup, bylines | Linked with worksFor and founder |
| NAP | Business Profile, directories | See local AEO |
Wikidata and Wikipedia
Wikidata is a free, collaborative knowledge base that anyone can edit;[3] entries must be supported by references. Wikipedia requires notability shown by independent coverage,[4] and editing about yourself or a client is a conflict of interest that is strongly discouraged.[5] Earn coverage first. See third-party presence.
Test what engines know
- Search your brand name; check for a knowledge panel and whether facts are right.
- Ask ChatGPT, Perplexity, Gemini and Copilot “What is [brand]?” and record errors (see measuring AI visibility).
- Fix the source of each error: your site, a profile, or a directory.
Frequently asked questions
What is an entity in SEO?
A uniquely identifiable thing (a person, organization, place, product or concept) that a search engine can recognize and connect to facts.
Do I need a Wikipedia page?
No. Most businesses don't meet Wikipedia's notability rules. Consistent profiles, structured data and independent coverage matter more.
What is sameAs?
A schema.org property listing URLs that identify the same entity, such as official social profiles or a Wikidata item.
See also
References
Pages accessed September 28, 2026 unless a date is given. See all sources and our editorial policy.
- ^ "Introducing the Knowledge Graph: things, not strings (Amit Singhal)". Google (The Keyword). Published May 16, 2012.
- ^ "Bing Webmaster Guidelines". Microsoft Bing Webmaster Tools.
- ^ "Wikidata: Introduction". Wikidata (Wikimedia Foundation).
- ^ "Wikipedia: Notability". Wikipedia.
- ^ "Wikipedia: Conflict of interest". Wikipedia.