Reading Path · Founder
The Founder Path
Five pieces in order, for a founder preparing to ship a real brand and a real site. This sequence moves from the substrate (what makes a website believable) through the brand authority layer (how AI engines decide what to cite) to the operating discipline that compounds.
First Impressions in 50 Milliseconds
Start here. Before message, before features, before pricing — the brain decides if your brand is credible in a half-blink. Internalize the substrate.
The .com Authority Premium in AI Search
Why your domain decision is your most consequential brand decision. AI engines now cite brand .coms 4-7x more than path-on-platform URLs.
Owned Channels vs. Platform Tenancy
Map your distribution into owned vs. rented. Set a 12-month target. Every founder needs this audit in year one.
AEO (Answer Engine Optimization) Primer
How to be cited in ChatGPT / Perplexity / Google AI Overviews answers. The discipline that replaces SEO as you knew it.
Signal Density Over Time
The cadence problem. Why one campaign per quarter loses to four pieces per month, every month, for twelve months.