Let’s Talk About:
Helping Google, AI, and your customers understand exactly who you are, what you do, and why they should recommend you.
The Internet has changed.
Marketing is no longer enough.
AI doesn’t recommend companies because they advertise.
It recommends companies because it UNDERSTANDS them.
That requires something new… I call it:
Business Knowledge Engineering.
Because businesses that are
understood become businesses
that are recommended.
That’s true whether someone is asking Google, ChatGPT, a friend, or a coworker.
What I’ve Learned About Businesses
After working almost 3 decades with businesses across more than 40 industries, from local companies to Fortune 500 organizations, I’ve noticed something…
Most businesses don’t struggle because they lack expertise. They struggle because the people who need them don’t fully understand them.
- Sometimes that’s a positioning problem
- Sometimes it’s a messaging problem
- Sometimes it’s a systems problem
- Sometimes it’s a visibility problem
But almost always, it’s a knowledge problem… because, the better a business is understood, the more likely it is to be trusted, recommended, and chosen.
That’s what Business Knowledge Engineering is all about.
What is Business Knowledge Engineering?
At its core, Business Knowledge Engineering is the process of organizing, connecting, and communicating your company’s expertise so customers, Google, and AI understand exactly who you are, what you do, and why they should recommend you.
And the disciplines behind it aren’t new. Knowledge engineering, knowledge management, information architecture, positioning, systems thinking, and semantic search have existed separately for decades.
Business Knowledge Engineering brings them together to solve one practical business problem: making organizational expertise easier for people and machines to understand, trust, use, and recommend.
But, it’s NOT about publishing more content.
It’s about creating better knowledge.
Better knowledge creates better understanding.
Better understanding builds trust.
Trust leads to recommendations.
And recommendations create growth.
Why It Matters
Businesses used to compete for attention.
Today they’re competing for recommendations.
Every day, customers ask Google, ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini, Perplexity, and other AI systems questions like:
- Who’s the best?
- Who do you recommend?
- What’s the difference?
- Who specializes in this?
- Who can I trust?
Those systems don’t recommend businesses
because they have the best advertising.
They recommend businesses they understand.
That means your website, content, reviews, documentation, case studies, products, services, and customer experience all contribute to one thing:
How well your business is understood.
That’s the real competitive advantage.
Business Knowledge Engineering is the discipline of making sure that understanding is accurate, complete, and easy for both people AND AI to discover.
What It Looks Like in Practice
Business Knowledge Engineering isn’t another marketing tactic.
It’s a completely different way of looking at your business.
- Sometimes the answer is marketing.
- Sometimes it’s positioning.
- Sometimes it’s documentation.
- Sometimes it’s operations.
- Sometimes it’s customer experience.
- Sometimes it’s something nobody
thought to look at.
The goal isn’t to fix the symptom.
It’s to improve understanding.
Because businesses that are easier
to understand become businesses
that are easier to trust.
And businesses that are easier
to trust become businesses that
are easier to recommend.
What People Are Saying
(or, “What People Were Saying Before Business Knowledge Engineering Had A Name”)
Ann Boyum
You taught me how to prioritize and focus on ONE thing until it’s done verses trying to do three/four things over the course of months/years.
Brad Fallon
Lee Collins did a great job running my company and managing the turnaround plan. He’s smart, technical and a very good marketer – as in one of the few people who can actually write great copy that really sells.
Kristen Joy
Looking at my numbers from this year, it’s very obvious when we started actively working together. Your Repeat Profit Systems ROCK!
Darrin Mish
I owe this current roll that I’m on, at least in part, to you. You are a blessing! Thanks Lee
Laura Wright
Do yourself a favor and explore working together with Lee Collins – it could change your life.
John Longmore
Lee Collins, I think this a great concept and it really is easy to put into practice. I personally recommend it, and you, to all my clients!
Imran Rahman
Stephanie Frank
Using the offline strategies alone I’ve been able to increase my business leads! Thanks Lee Collins and team!
Rebecca Matias
One of the best investments I have ever made. Lee Collins takes your success personally, and unleashes his whole personal and business acumen in every conversation.
Kristen Joy
Looking at my numbers from this year, it’s very obvious when we started actively working together. Your Repeat Profit Systems ROCK!
Brandon Fredrickson
Richard Weiler
Joseph Michael
We might have another record breaker on our hands! Thanks Lee!
David Samaha
Jim Krautkramer
Rhonda Knight Boyle
Ann Boyum
You taught me how to prioritize and focus on ONE thing until it’s done verses trying to do three/four things over the course of months/years.
Jeffry Civey
Joel Comm
Lee Collins really did a great job helping with AdSense Secrets 6 launch. I am grateful.
Kristen Joy
Frank Kern
Lee Collins? The dude is just crazy weird smart.
Rick Dearr
David Ahn
Harry Daniel Price
You were extremely patient with me even when business didn’t work out, and taught me great integrity early on. Thank you, Lee Collins.
Felicia Slattery
Are you kidding?? Lee Collins is probably the first coach I’ve worked with who has more than delivered what he promised.
Darrin Mish
I owe this current roll that I’m on, at least in part, to you. You are a blessing! Thanks Lee
Leslie Wise, MD
Justin Mandel
Thanks Lee. You did some real solid good for us here. Got me out of a major jam that I had no other way out of under the circumstances.
Bob Yeager
Dan Morris
You gave me opportunity to become a better curriculum developer. Very grateful.
Larry Loik
Thanks for your help with the Las Vegas event, Lee!
Brad Fallon
Craig Compton
I'm Lee Collins.
Most people know me as a marketer, but I've always been more interested in understanding how businesses work than simply promoting them.
For nearly 30 years, I've helped companies organize ideas, solve difficult problems, improve systems, and turn expertise into competitive advantage. Sometimes that meant marketing. Sometimes operations.
Today, I call it Business Knowledge Engineering.
Along the way I've served as an Air Force communications systems engineer, Fortune 500 VP, Fractional CMO, Director of Operations, board member, and consultant across more than 40 industries.
Every one of those experiences taught me the same lesson:
Businesses don't grow because they know more.
They grow because others
understand them better.
I'm Lee Collins.
Most people know me as a marketer, but I've always been more interested in understanding how businesses work than simply promoting them.
For nearly 30 years, I've helped companies organize ideas, solve difficult problems, improve systems, and turn expertise into competitive advantage. Sometimes that meant marketing. Sometimes operations.
Today, I call it Business Knowledge Engineering.
Along the way I've served as an Air Force communications systems engineer, Fortune 500 VP, Fractional CMO, Director of Operations, board member, and consultant across more than 40 industries.
Every one of those experiences taught me the same lesson:
Businesses don't grow because they know more.
They grow because others understand them better.
Who I Work With
Simply put, I don't work with every business.
I work with good businesses that want to become better understood.
You're probably a good fit if...
- You know your business creates real value
- You're willing to think long-term
- You prefer systems over shortcuts
- You're open to challenging assumptions
- You care about building something worth
recommending
Sound like you?
What I Actually Do
Instead of talking about marketing, I help businesses engineer the knowledge that drives trust and recommendations.
That might include:
- Knowledge architecture
- Content strategy
- Entity development
- SEO, GEO & AEO
- Website structure
- Authority building
- AI visibility
- Operational clarity
- and maybe some marketing
Every engagement is different because every business already has the knowledge.
Most simply haven't organized it yet.
The Process
Every business is different, but every engagement starts in the same place.
- We'll look at where you are today
- We'll look at where you want to go
- Then we'll map the best path to get you there
Sometimes that means improving visibility. Sometimes it means fixing systems. Sometimes it means clarifying positioning, simplifying operations, or solving a bottleneck that's been quietly holding the business back.
Whatever the challenge, we'll focus on solving the highest-leverage problem first.
Then we move on to the next one. One solution at a time.
Over time, as the results compound, your business becomes easier to understand, easier to trust, and easier to recommend.
If your business deserves to be recommended more often than it is today... We should talk.
Important: This is a 100% no-pressure, relaxed conversation. I ask you questions. You ask me questions. Then, if you want my help, we'll make it happen. Simple.
Questions People Ask...
Understanding Business Knowledge Engineering
Q. What is Business Knowledge Engineering?
A. Business Knowledge Engineering is the process of helping customers, search engines, and AI systems understand exactly who your business is, what you do, and why you should be recommended.
For years, businesses competed for rankings. Today, they're increasingly competing for recommendations. When someone asks, "Who should I hire?" or "Who's the best at this?" the businesses that are best understood are often the businesses that get recommended.
That's the work.
Q. Isn't this just SEO with a new name?
A. No. SEO is one tool. Business Knowledge Engineering is the discipline.
SEO, content strategy, entity development, AI visibility, website architecture, branding, public relations, thought leadership, and even offline reputation all contribute to how well your business is understood.
Knowledge Engineering provides the framework that connects them.
Q. Why isn't marketing enough anymore?
A. Marketing still matters. But marketing alone doesn't guarantee understanding.
You can run great ads, create great content, and have a beautiful website, yet still leave customers and AI unsure what makes your business different.
The businesses that win aren't always the loudest. But they're always the ones that are the easiest to understand.
Q. Do I need AI optimization?
A. You need your business to be understood wherever your customers are looking.
Today that includes AI. Tomorrow it may include platforms that don't exist yet.
Today that includes AI. Tomorrow it may include platforms that don't exist yet.
I don't optimize for trends. I help businesses communicate their knowledge in ways that remain useful regardless of where people search.
Q. Can AI replace what you do?
A. AI is remarkably good at generating answers, but it still depends on humans to determine whether those answers make sense for a specific business, industry, market, or objective.
The quality of an answer depends heavily on the quality of the question, and a significant part of my work is helping clients ask better questions in the first place.
Q. Can you review an AI-generated strategy?
A. Absolutely. In fact, many businesses now arrive with plans generated by ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini, or another AI platform.
Sometimes they're surprisingly good.
Sometimes they're confidently wrong.
My role is to evaluate the strategy against your actual business, identify blind spots, challenge assumptions, and determine whether the recommendations deserve to be implemented.
Working Together
Q. What exactly do you do?
A. Every engagement is different because every business is different.
- Sometimes I identify bottlenecks
- Sometimes I redesign systems
- Sometimes I clarify positioning
- Sometimes I help improve visibility
- Sometimes I challenge assumptions that have quietly limited growth for years
My job isn't to sell a predefined service.
My job is to solve the right problem.
Q. What if I don't know my real problem?
A. That's often why people hire me. Because they have spent years chasing symptoms, but symptoms and root causes are not the same thing.
- More traffic won't fix a broken offer
- Better advertising won't fix operational bottlenecks
- More content won't fix unclear positioning
Finding the real problem is often the most valuable part of the engagement.
Q. How do we get started?
A. Every engagement begins with a conversation.
We'll discuss your business, where you are today, where you want to go, and what obstacles seem to be standing in the way. If I believe I can help, I'll recommend the next logical step.
Sometimes that's a focused mission. Sometimes it's a diagnostic. Sometimes I'll tell you that you don't need me.
Q. Can you implement the solution?
A. Sometimes. And if implementation is part of the mission, absolutely.
More often, I help your existing team execute the plan because they already have the capability. They simply need clarity, direction, and better systems.
If additional implementation resources are needed, I have flexible ways to help.
Q. Who do you work with?
A. I primarily work with business owners, founders, entrepreneurs, consultants, agencies, and organizations that create genuine value but aren't receiving the visibility or recognition they deserve.
My client roster has included Fortune 500's, celebrities, law firms, radio personalities, photographers, burger joints, politicians, and influencers in over 42 different industries from eCommerce to body armor, supplements, and everything in between.
Industry matters less than whether the business solves a real problem.
A few examples:
Q. How quickly will we see results?
A. That depends on the mission.
Some improvements create immediate wins while others compound over months or years.
I focus on building assets and systems that continue creating value long after the engagement ends.
Engagement & Boundaries
Q. What do you charge?
A. Every mission is scoped individually. Some engagements are short strategic reviews and others become large implementation projects. Rather than forcing every client into the same package, I price each mission based on its complexity, scope, and expected value.
Q. Do you accept equity?
A. Every engagement begins as a paid engagement. If an equity conversation ever happens, it happens after we've successfully worked together and both sides have demonstrated value.
Q. Do you accept revenue-share arrangements?
A. No.
Q. Why don't you offer retainers?
A. I prefer solving defined problems. Some missions take a week. Some take months.
I stay involved as long as I'm creating meaningful value. Once the mission is complete, my goal is for your business to continue moving forward without becoming dependent on me.
Q. Can you guarantee results?
A. Nobody can honestly guarantee outcomes inside a system they don't completely control.
What I can guarantee is thoughtful analysis, honest recommendations, clear communication, and decisions based on decades of experience. Beyond that, success depends on execution, timing, market conditions, competition, and many variables outside anyone's control.
Q. Do you offer refunds?
A. No. You're hiring my judgment, experience, analysis, and recommendations. Those are delivered throughout the engagement and can't be returned once the work has begun.
Q. Will you attend our weekly meetings?
A. Generally, no. I'm hired to complete a mission, not become part of your weekly operating rhythm. We'll meet whenever it's useful to move the project forward.
Q. Will you integrate into our workflow?
A. I collaborate with your team. I don't become part of it. The goal is better decisions and better outcomes, not additional meetings or another person inside your project management software.
Q. What are your working hours?
A. I generally work with clients Monday through Thursday. My schedule intentionally leaves room for faith, family, health, learning, and deep thinking. If I accept a mission, it will be completed according to the agreed scope and timeline.
Philosophy
Q. What if I already know exactly how I want it done?
A. Then you probably don't need me. You need someone to execute instructions. My clients hire me because they value judgment as much as execution.
Q. What if another expert would do it differently?
A. They probably would. Every experienced professional develops different frameworks, decision-making processes, and ways of solving problems.
You're not hiring me to imitate someone else. You're hiring me for my own experience, judgment, and pattern recognition.
Q. Why don't you work with everyone?
A. Because not every business is ready. I work best with leaders who are curious, open to challenging assumptions, willing to make decisions, and committed to building something meaningful. The relationship matters just as much as the project.
Q. What's the difference between hiring a marketer and hiring a Business Knowledge Engineering Strategist?
A. Marketing asks: "How do we get more attention?" while Business Knowledge Engineering asks:"How do we become better understood?"
One focuses on promotion. The other focuses on clarity. (Ironically, businesses that become easier to understand usually become easier to market.)
Q. What's the one question every business owner should be asking?
A. It's definitely not: "How do I get more traffic?" or"How do I rank higher?" or even:"How do I get more leads?"...
The better question is: "What does the world currently understand about my business... and is it true?"
Because businesses don't become recommended based on everything they know. They become recommended based on what everyone else understands.
Q. What if I have a question not answered here?
A. If you have read over this page and still have questions, set up a call and let's talk.
If Your Business Feels Like It Should Be Performing Better Than It Is... We should talk.
Important: This is a 100% no-pressure, relaxed conversation. I ask you questions. You ask me questions. Then, if you want my help, we'll make it happen. Simple.