In this episode of Chat With Sean, I’m joined by Jason Barnard - one of the leading thinkers on brand authority, entity optimisation, and how AI systems understand people and businesses.

We explore how search and AI engines build “digital identities”, why namesake confusion is becoming a serious reputational risk, and how brands and individuals can proactively control how they’re represented across Google, knowledge graphs, and AI assistants.

Jason explains why websites still matter even as traffic declines, how AI models act as advocates at the moment of decision, and why most businesses are fighting the funnel in the wrong direction. We also dive into personal branding in an AI-first world, entity homes, governance audits, and why relying on third-party platforms like LinkedIn or Wikipedia can be risky long-term.

Topics covered include:

- Brand narrative control in search and AI

- Entity homes and single sources of truth

- Namesake confusion and AI misattribution

- Why websites still matter in an AI world

- Bottom-of-funnel marketing strategy

- How AI engines influence buying decisions

- Governance audits and control of brand data

- Personal branding in ambient AI environments

- Marketing predictions for 2026

Connect with Jason - https://www.linkedin.com/in/jasonmbarnard/