On Tuesday I wrote about how 37% of consumers now start their searches with AI, how ChatGPT added GPS, and how Zillow launched a conversational search mode. All of it pointed to the same thing: AI is building a picture of you from every platform it can find, and if those platforms don't agree, you disappear.
Here is a workflow to audit this and some I've run this same process on my own profiles and on dozens of agents in my course. Budget about 20 minutes. You need a laptop and your phone.
STEP 1: Search like a buyer, not like an agent
Graphite's data shows the average AI search prompt is 10+ words and conversational, so don't type "best agent in [city]." Open ChatGPT, Gemini and Claude and type what a real buyer would type. Run these four prompts across all of them:
"We're relocating to [your market] with two kids and need to find a four-bedroom home under [your price range]. Who should we talk to?"
"I'm a first-time buyer looking at condos in [your neighborhood]. Which agents actually know that area well?"
"My mother needs to downsize from her house in [your market]. Can you recommend an agent who's patient and knows the senior market?"
"What can you tell me about [your full name] as a real estate agent in [your market]?"
The first three test whether AI recommends you when someone describes a real scenario. The fourth tests whether it can find you by name. Write down who shows up and pay attention to what AI says about those agents. What did it cite? Reviews? Bio language? A specific blog post? That's the information AI is pulling from, and it tells you exactly what your competitors have that you might not.
Then ask one follow-up on any result where someone else was recommended: "Why did you recommend that agent over others in the area? What sources did you use?"
Most agents stop at the first search result. The follow-up is where you learn what AI actually reads and cites, which makes Steps 2 through 4 much more targeted.
STEP 2: Pull up your five profiles side by side (3 minutes)
Open these in separate tabs:
Your personal website
Your brokerage bio page
Your LinkedIn profile
Your Zillow agent profile
Your Google Business Profile (search your name + "real estate" in Google, click your listing)
Your Realtor.com profile (if you have one; if not, use whatever fifth directory you show up on)
You're going to compare them against each other. Don't read them in depth yet. Just get them open.
STEP 3: Check your identity consistency
Go through each profile and write down these four things:
Your name. "Matt Spangler" and "Matthew J. Spangler, ABR, CRS" look like different people to AI. Pick one version, use it everywhere.
Your market. "Short Hills" vs. "Millburn/Short Hills" vs. "Northern New Jersey" splits you into multiple agents. Use the name your clients actually search.
Your specialty. "Residential real estate" and "luxury homes in the $1M+ range" are two different stories. Pick the most specific version and match it everywhere.
Your photo. Same headshot across all five. Different photos from different years make it harder for AI to confirm you're one person.
STEP 4: Audit your reviews and testimonials
Pull up your reviews wherever they live: Google, Zillow, Realtor.com, your website, saved client texts. Read the last ten. "5 stars, highly recommend" gives AI nothing to cite. "Helped us buy a 4-bedroom in Cranford, knew every house on the market, walked us through inspection" gives AI a town, a skill, and a service. Count how many of your ten have that kind of detail.
If it's fewer than half, fix it. Next time a client thanks you after closing, text them something like: "If you have a minute for a Google review, mentioning [the town] and [what you helped with] would really help me out." People want to help. They just don't know what to write. And if your best testimonials are sitting in texts or screenshots, get them published somewhere AI can read them.
STEP 5: Fix the fastest ones now (2 minutes)
Start with your Google Business Profile bio and your Zillow bio. Both are editable in under five minutes. Match your name, market, and specialty across both, then do LinkedIn. If those three are consistent by the end of this weekend, you're ahead of about 90% of agents.
BONUS: Ask AI to check your work
After you update, paste your Website, brokerage page, Google bio, Zillow bio, and LinkedIn summary into ChatGPT or Claude with this prompt:
"I'm a real estate agent. Below are my bios from 5 platforms. Tell me if they present a consistent picture of who I am, what I specialize in, and where I work. Flag anything that conflicts or is vague."
I'm thinking about running a 1-day weekend workshop to go deep on this topic with agents. If that's something you'd want, reply "yes" and I'll send you more info when it's ready.
-Matt
