A knowledge graph is a way of representing and organizing information about the world in a form that people and machines can easily understand and use. It centralizes knowledge management by making sense of data from internal and external sources in a way that works like a map. Brands can use that map to uncover new insights and opportunities.
It also gives brands a unified, comprehensive format to communicate with search engines and AI. This helps brands build trust with these search platforms and surface their brand information when it aligns with customer intent.
Think of a knowledge graph as a giant treasure map
All of your company, brand, product, service, location, and customer information is captured in the knowledge graph, much like marks drawn on a map. The relationships and connections between all of those entities are captured there, too. Think of these relationships like dotted lines that show how to follow the map effectively or use context clues written on the map.
Some of that information might come from structured data like NAP data or local listings. Some of it might come from the unstructured data in your social media images, videos, and text. Still more might reflect what customers are saying about you in reviews on third-party sites (and how you respond to those reviews).
In the age of AI search, knowledge graphs also help brands with knowledge management by making their data accessible to AI-powered search platforms.
Imagine multi-location healthcare Brand B has a knowledge graph with the following data in it:
An entity identified as "birthing centers"
An entity identified as "post-partum care"
A dotted line between the two entities labelled "with/for"
An entity identified as "Houston"
A dotted line connecting all three entities labeled "in/near"
The knowledge graph contains more structured data like all its birthing centers and hospital locations with maternity wards. Brand B also pulled in semi-structured data like a list of FAQs that answer questions like, "Are birthing centers covered by insurance?" and "Do you have lactation consultants?"
Brand B even publishes unstructured content in blog and social posts featuring tips for selecting the right birthing center, writing a flexible birth plan, and eating well as a nursing parent.
Now, imagine a patient conducting an unbranded search on their preferred AI search platform: "Help me find a birthing center near Houston, TX that also provides post-partum support. My insurance is with Kaiser." Because Brand B is using a knowledge graph to manage and distribute its public facts (structured data) and enhanced content (unstructured data), it has a single source of truth for all that information. This approach to knowledge management makes Brand B's content easy to distribute to all the sites, apps, and platforms that AI search references (and that patients search on).
The more places AI finds Brand B's data and sees that it's consistent, the more likely AI is to prioritize it, then pull from it in generative search responses. In turn, Brand B's knowledge graph gives them the opportunity to offer patients the right information, surfacing their brand no matter where the patient searches for it.
Knowledge Graph makes it easy for AI search to pick up what your brand is putting down
Yext Knowledge Graph helps brands organize, manage, and share their data so both traditional search engines and emerging AI search experiences can access it and share it in response to a search query.
Knowledge Graph operates on a headless content management system (CMS) with graph technology. Thanks to a robust connector system, brands can crawl, push, and pull data flexibly on a specific schedule, on-demand at the touch of a button, or via API integrations. By linking related entities (e.g., locations, products, services) in a single Knowledge Graph, data updates cascade automatically across all touchpoints. Semantic search pulls data from the knowledge graph so AI can answer questions in coherent, conversational, and relevant responses.
This makes it easy to manage your content and ensure it will publish appropriately on the different platforms you share it with.
Future-proof your brand visibility
Brands that use Yext's Knowledge Graph outpace competitors with knowledge management solutions that still rely on static, siloed, unstructured data. Yext's Knowledge Graph helps brands stay visible as new AI and search trends emerge, too. With a flexible, connected data foundation, brands can future-proof their success and stay ready for evolving and emerging search platforms. Learn more about the Knowledge Graph.