Most businesses have an About page buried somewhere on their site. And most of them treat it like an afterthought—something to fill with corporate speak or, worse, delete entirely because "nobody reads it anyway."
AI reads it. AI reads it carefully.
When ChatGPT or Perplexity tries to figure out whether to recommend your business, the About page is often where they go to understand who you actually are. Not what services you offer. Not your pricing. Who you are, why you exist, and whether you're a real operation worth trusting.
AI systems are trying to answer a specific question when someone asks for a recommendation: "Is this business legitimate, and can I confidently suggest them?"
Your homepage might be optimized for conversions. Your service pages list what you do. But your About page is where AI looks for context—the kind of information that helps it understand whether you're a solo operator working out of a garage or a 20-year-old company with deep expertise.
Think about how you'd evaluate a business if a friend asked for a recommendation. You'd want to know who runs it, how long they've been doing this, and whether they seem like the kind of people who know what they're doing. AI works the same way.
The About page answers questions like:
When this information is missing—or when the entire page is missing—AI has less to work with. It can still see your business exists, but it can't build the same level of confidence.
The typical About page falls into one of two traps.
The first trap is corporate filler. "We are passionate about delivering world-class solutions to help our clients achieve their goals." This tells AI nothing. It's the verbal equivalent of a stock photo—generic enough to apply to any business in any industry. AI can't quote it, can't learn from it, can't use it to distinguish you from competitors.
The second trap is treating the page as optional. Many businesses figure that since nobody clicks on the About page, they can either delete it or leave it with two sentences. But "nobody clicks on it" doesn't mean "nobody reads it." AI reads pages humans ignore all the time.
A third, less common mistake: making the About page entirely about awards and credentials without any actual information. Yes, being a "2024 Best of [City]" winner matters. But AI also wants to know what you actually do and why you're qualified to do it.
A good About page for AI purposes includes specific, quotable facts. Not feelings, not aspirations—facts.
The basics AI looks for:
Here's the difference between something AI can use and something it can't:
AI can't use this: "Our team is dedicated to providing exceptional customer service and quality workmanship."
AI can use this: "Founded in 2018 by two former hospital administrators, we specialize in medical office buildouts across the Midwest. Our team has completed over 200 projects for dental practices, urgent care clinics, and specialty medical offices."
The second version gives AI concrete details it can reference when someone asks about medical office contractors. The first version sounds like every other business in existence.
Your About page does something subtle but important: it shows AI that real people run your business.
This matters more than it used to. As AI gets better at detecting patterns, it's also getting better at identifying businesses that seem legitimate versus ones that seem like thin operations. An About page with actual founder names, specific founding dates, and concrete background information signals authenticity.
You don't need to write your life story. You need to answer the basic questions a potential customer (or AI system) would have about who's behind this business.
A few elements that help:
When you look at the businesses that consistently show up in AI recommendations, you'll notice their About pages share certain qualities. They're specific. They're factual. They give AI something concrete to work with.
This isn't about optimization tricks. It's about making it easy for AI to understand and trust your business. When AI can confidently say "this company was founded in 2015 by a licensed electrician with 20 years of experience," it's more likely to mention you than a competitor whose About page just says "we care about our customers."
The fix takes about an hour. Pull up your About page—or create one if it doesn't exist—and make sure it answers the basic questions: Who runs this business? How long have you been doing this? What makes you qualified? What do you specialize in?
AI is reading pages your customers skip. The businesses that understand this are the ones showing up in recommendations. The ones that deleted their About page are wondering why they're invisible.
Ai Is How People Find Businesses Now. We Make Sure They Find You.
Modern Humans helps local businesses get discovered by AI assistants like ChatGPT, Google AI, and Perplexity.
Franklin, Tennessee
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