Optimize Your About Page for AI Answers: A Template That Gets Cited

Hook: Your About page is getting ignored by AI — here’s how to fix that fast

Most small businesses and buyers operations teams pour time into product pages and blog posts, then treat the About page like a brochure. In 2026, that costs you citations, knowledge panel visibility, and the tiny quoted blurbs AI assistants use when people ask “Who is X?” This guide gives a step-by-step About page template optimized for entity recognition, structured data, and AI citation — so search engines and assistants are more likely to quote your brand.

Why About pages matter for AI answers in 2026

AI assistants now summarize across the web and prioritize concise, verifiable facts tied to recognized entities. In late 2025 and early 2026 we’ve seen two clear trends:

• AI systems increasingly surface short, named-source quotes (e.g., “Brand X: ‘We built this to solve Y’”) — if your About page provides clear, citable micro-facts, you get quoted.
• Search engines and assistants use knowledge graphs and entity databases more than single-page ranking signals. That means consistent, structured identity data (names, founding dates, leadership, social profiles, sameAs links) converts into knowledge panel triggers and higher trust in AI summaries. See an SEO audit checklist for structured-data validation that helps knowledge graphs pick up your facts.

Bottom line: Optimize for entity recognition (not just keywords) and you increase the chance an assistant will cite your brand as an authoritative source.

How AI citation works — quick primer

AI citations are drawn from signals that confirm an entity’s identity and authority. The most important signals in 2026:

• Stable facts: Short, verifiable data points (founding year, location, leadership names, product categories).
• Structured markup: JSON-LD schema (Organization, AboutPage, Person, FAQPage) that exposes those facts to crawlers and knowledge graph builders — and if you automate metadata updates, see how metadata extraction tools can keep your JSON-LD fresh.
• Authoritative mentions: Press coverage, social profiles, and high-quality links that map your entity across the web.
• Concise, quotable sentences: Snippet-sized lines that an assistant can extract without extra parsing.

Step-by-step About page template for AI citation (the 7-part structure)

Use this structure as a block-by-block template. For each block I include the purpose, what to write, and the schema you should add.

1) Title & entity headline (10–20 words)

Purpose: Make your canonical entity name and primary descriptor obvious in one line.

What to write: "[Brand Name] — [Primary category] that [unique benefit]." Example: "BrandDesign — Brand and logo systems that scale growth for SMBs."

Why it works: AI models favor the first sentence as the identity anchor. Keep it simple and factual.

2) One-sentence elevator (one quotable sentence)

Purpose: Provide the single line an assistant can quote without context.

What to write: A simple, verifiable sentence that includes a founding year or defining fact. Example: "Founded in 2018, BrandDesign helps small businesses build consistent brand systems that increase conversions."

3) Quick facts grid (6–10 short microfacts)

Purpose: Give machine-readable facts in bite-sized rows — ideal for knowledge graphs.

• Founding year: 2018
• Headquarters: Austin, TX
• Core services: Brand strategy, logos, design systems
• Team size: 12
• Business model: Subscription + project work

How to present: Use a two-column list or definition list. Machines love terse key-value pairs.

4) Short origin story (150–300 words)

Purpose: Humanizes the brand and supplies narrative facts that corroborate microfacts.

What to write: A tight narrative that includes who founded the company, when, why, and one early milestone (award, client, breakaway moment). Use clear dates and names.

Audiences form preferences before they search. Show consistent authority where decisions are made — across social, PR, and AI answers.

5) Leadership bios (50–120 words each)

Purpose: People equal entities. Named leadership with titles and short bios feeds Person entities into knowledge graphs.

What to write: Name, title, one-line credential, and one line about role/focus at the company. Link to LinkedIn or a public profile via sameAs where possible.

6) Core offerings with outcomes (100–200 words)

Purpose: Connect service names to concrete outcomes and metrics. AI assistants love numbers.

What to write: For each service, include a 1-line descriptor + a 1-line measurable outcome (e.g., "Logo System — Reduced brand update time by 40% for clients").

7) Trust signals & citations

Purpose: Give machines and humans verifiable third-party evidence.

• Press mentions with links (use full citations and dates)
• Awards and certifications (yeared)
• Client logos + case study links
• Social proof: follower counts (date-stamped) and verified handles

Schema & JSON-LD: The technical heartbeat

Adding JSON-LD to your About page tells crawlers exactly what each block means. Below is a compact sample you can copy and adapt. Insert it into the head or right before the closing <body> tag.

'<script type=\'application/ld+json\'>
{
  "@context": "https://schema.org",
  "@type": "AboutPage",
  "mainEntity": {
    "@type": "Organization",
    "name": "BrandDesign",
    "url": "https://branddesign.us",
    "logo": "https://branddesign.us/logo.png",
    "foundingDate": "2018",
    "founders": [
      {
        "@type": "Person",
        "name": "Alex Rivera",
        "sameAs": "https://www.linkedin.com/in/alexrivera"
      }
    ],
    "sameAs": [
      "https://twitter.com/branddesign",
      "https://www.linkedin.com/company/branddesign"
    ],
    "contactPoint": [{
      "@type": "ContactPoint",
      "telephone": "+1-555-555-5555",
      "contactType": "customer service",
      "areaServed": "US"
    }]
  }
}
'</script>

Note: Use single quotes around the script in the example if you paste directly into some CMS editors. Replace placeholders with real values. If you have multiple named leaders, include them as Person objects for stronger entity linking.

Writing tips to maximize entity recognition

• Use canonical names consistently: Avoid alternate brand spellings on the About page. Use the formal name, and include common variations in a separate 'Also known as' microfact if necessary.
• Write short, factual sentences: Assistants prefer one-fact-per-sentence for reliable quoting.
• Date and quantify: Add founding years, employee counts (approximate), revenue ranges (optional), and client counts where appropriate.
• Link to external authority: Use sameAs links to verified social profiles and, when eligible, Wikipedia or Wikidata entries. Those links tie your entity into the global knowledge graph faster.
• Structured FAQ: Add an FAQ block with typical buyer questions and concise answers. Use FAQPage schema to increase the chance these answers are surfaced as rich snippets or assistant cards.

Practical checklist (publish-ready)

1. Write the 1-line identity sentence and the 1-sentence elevator.
2. Create the quick facts grid with 6–10 items.
3. Draft a short origin story and 2–4 leadership bios.
4. List core offerings with measurable outcomes.
5. Add trust signals (press, awards, client case links).
6. Insert JSON-LD: AboutPage + Organization + Person + FAQPage where applicable — consider automating updates via tools covered in metadata automation.
7. Include sameAs links to social profiles; verify handles (and consider platform-specific features like cashtags and LIVE badges where relevant).
8. Run Google Rich Results Test and a schema validator / SEO checklist; fix any warnings.
9. Cross-link: link primary services, pillar pages, and 2–3 case studies from the About page.
10. Monitor: add tracking (Utm for linkable mentions) and set up a daily/weekly alert for new mentions.

Advanced strategies for 2026 and beyond

These techniques reflect happenings across late 2025 and early 2026 — more AI summarization, combined social/search discovery, and an increased premium on cited facts.

• Publish short, dated micro-press items: Small press updates (quarterly milestones, funding, hires) are highly citable. Treat them like micro-articles on your About page with their own permalinks — repurpose short video updates or clips using tips from how to reformat doc-series for YouTube.
• Map your entity graph: Maintain a simple internal spreadsheet of entity relationships (people, products, affiliations, partners). When an AI seeks context, consistent relationships increase your chance to be picked. See examples in tools and product roundups for lightweight implementations.
• Use adaptive JSON-LD: If you publish a new case study or award, programmatically add or update JSON-LD via your CMS so the Knowledge Graph sees fresh facts.
• Digital PR to feed entity signals: Coordinate PR and social campaigns to include the same canonical phrasing and links back to the About page. Consistency across channels is a multiplier — cross-promotion techniques like cross-promoting content and social badges can help amplify canonical phrasing.
• Claim/maintain your Wikidata entry: If your brand meets notability, a Wikidata item can significantly improve knowledge graph visibility. Use it to hold canonical identifiers (foundingDate, officialWebsite, sameAs).

Testing and measurement

After publishing, validate and measure:

• Run Google’s Rich Results Test and Schema Markup Validator — fix warnings.
• Monitor Google Search Console for impressions and 'About' queries that surface site links or knowledge panels.
• Use the Knowledge Graph Search API and third-party monitoring tools to watch when your entity is referenced.
• Track AI citation via branded-query monitoring: search common assistant prompts in private/incognito and record if your brand is cited. For inspiration on author workflows and measurement, read a veteran creator interview about workflow and outreach.

Mini case study (realistic example)

In late 2025, a boutique branding firm added a concise About page following this template: one-line identity, quick facts, JSON-LD, and a few dated press blurbs. Within three months they saw:

• Knowledge panel mentions on branded queries increased 45%.
• AI assistant citations for “Who is [brand]?” queries rose by 30%.
• Referral traffic from press and social to the About page doubled with higher time-on-page. They also turned short social outputs into small print assets following workflows like from daily pixels to gallery walls.

That realignment — from brochure to structured entity profile — changed how the brand appeared in assistant answers and search results.

Common pitfalls to avoid

• Too much marketing language: Assistants favor verifiable facts over promotional fluff.
• Inconsistent names or dates: Mismatched founding dates or variant brand names confuse knowledge graph mapping.
• No JSON-LD or broken schema: Schema errors are worse than none — validate before you publish.
• Missing external identifiers: No sameAs links to verified social profiles or Wikidata slows entity discovery.

Quick templates you can paste

One-line identity

"[BrandName] — [Category] that [outcome in plain language]."

Elevator sentence

"Founded in [year], [BrandName] helps [audience] [core benefit]."

Quotable mission line

"We design repeatable brand systems so growing teams can scale without re-doing identity work."

Wrap-up and action plan

AI assistants and search engines in 2026 reward clear, structured entity data. If your About page is a paragraph of blur and a team photo, you’re missing the opportunity to become a cited source. Follow the 7-part template above, add JSON-LD, validate, and coordinate with PR and social to amplify canonical phrasing. Small changes — consistent names, a few microfacts, and validated schema — multiply your chances of being quoted.

Call to action

Ready to turn your About page into a quoted source? Download our free About Page JSON-LD generator and template pack, or book a 30-minute About Page audit with our branding team at BrandDesign. We'll validate your schema, tighten the copy into quotable facts, and map the quick PR moves that trigger AI citations.

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