Transforming a personal brand from a scattered jumble of content into a coherent, Google-friendly “knowledge panel” isn’t magic; it’s architecture. Too many local service businesses have reviews here, a press mention there, and some ancient blog posts buried who-knows-where. From a search engine’s perspective, that’s just a pile of rocks. Your goal is to build a structure.
Why your personal brand looks like rubble
If you’ve been in business for a while, you likely have:
- Happy customer reviews on Google and Facebook
- Articles, interviews or podcasts you’ve appeared on
- Photos and social media updates that showcase your work
- Relationships with other professionals, masterminds and industry associations
Individually, these pieces don’t tell Google anything meaningful about you. Google’s Knowledge Graph rewards connected information. Until your citations, reviews and relationships are tied together, you won’t see a knowledge panel when someone searches for your name or your business.
Building the topic wheel
The video walks through a “topic wheel” framework. Think of it as your own digital Colosseum: each brick is a citation (a review, an article, a podcast), and the spokes are the relationships and topics that tie them together. A landscaper in Bloomington, Indiana, for example, should show:
- Expertise in landscaping and tree service
- Strong ties to other local contractors, business owners and mastermind groups
- Proof that the business does at least $2 million annually and has 200+ reviews averaging 4.5 stars or more
When these signals are connected, Google can confidently assemble them into a knowledge panel. That’s when prospects see a crisp summary of who you are, what you do and why you matter—right on the search results page.
Do you meet the criteria?
We usually see success with local businesses that:
- Generate $2 million or more in annual revenue
- Have at least 200 online reviews with an average rating of 4.5 stars or higher
- Maintain a consistent presence in their community and industry
If that sounds like you, the ingredients are already there; they just need to be structured.
Ready to build?
Stop stacking random rocks and start constructing your brand’s digital Colosseum. When you organise your citations and relationships into a topic wheel, you give Google (and your customers) a clear picture of your expertise. Want help claiming or expanding your knowledge panel? Click the link below and let’s schedule a chat.
A little backstory
Jack Wendt and I didn’t dream up the topic wheel in a boardroom — the idea hit us while we were wandering through the Colosseum in Rome. Surrounded by ancient arches and bricks that have stood for millennia, we realised your personal brand needs the same kind of engineering. Scattered stones make ruins; organised stones make a monument. Your brand deserves the latter.
