Dylan Haugen is a professional dunker, content creator, and podcaster dedicated to helping young adults build real-world business skills. He works alongside Dennis Yu and Jack Wendt through High Rise Academy, training the next generation to drive results for their parents’ local service businesses using proven digital marketing systems. Dylan is also a founder at Local Service Spotlight, where he focuses on project management and content.
David is a well-known marketing author with multiple bestselling books. His main Grokipedia page already covered his background, career, and major accomplishments. Under the publications section, his books were listed, but mostly as a simple collection of titles with limited detail.
We saw an opportunity to expand that into something stronger.
From a Bullet List to Individual Book Pages
Instead of leaving the books as short mentions under his primary page, the plan was to:
Create a dedicated Grokipedia page for each book
Add structured, factual descriptions
Interlink each book page with David’s main profile
That structure strengthens topical authority and makes the relationships between entities much clearer.
How We Created the Book Entries
David has a books page on his website listing all of his publications. We used that as the starting point.
From there, we generated structured summaries for each book. The key was staying neutral and encyclopedic—not promotional.
Each book entry included:
The full title and author
Publication history (original release year, later editions, updates)
Notable impact (international bestseller status, industry influence, longevity)
A factual summary of the book’s core themes
A short rationale explaining why the book deserves its own entry
That final section is critical.
You’re not trying to sell the book. You’re documenting why it is notable.
For example, with The New Rules of Marketing & PR, the rationale focused on:
Its role as David’s flagship book
Its influence on content-driven, buyer-centric marketing
Its multiple editions and long-term relevance
That establishes importance without sounding like marketing copy.
Handling Edit Requests vs. New Page Creation
A common issue you’ll run into: instead of creating a new book page, Grokipedia may submit your content as an edit to the main author page.
This often expands the book section under the primary profile, which improves depth.
However, if your goal is to build a true SEO tree, you still want standalone pages.
That’s where your rationale matters. If Grokipedia already mentions the book within the author’s page, you may need to resubmit and clarify why a dedicated entry is justified.
In our case, some books required multiple submissions before individual pages were approved.
Organizing the Process
To stay organized, we tracked:
The generated summary
Whether it was submitted
Whether it was approved
The final live URL once published
Once individual book pages were live, we returned to David’s main Grokipedia page and submitted another edit request to:
Interlink the book title to its dedicated page
It’s important to use the word “interlink” so it’s clear the link stays within Grokipedia rather than pointing externally.
Then we went to each book page and requested:
Interlink back to David Meerman Scott’s main page
Now the structure looks like this:
David Meerman Scott (main page) ↕ Individual book pages (each linking back to him)
That internal authority loop strengthens the relationship between the person and the properties he controls.
Why This Structure Matters
Grokipedia has solid domain authority. Internal links from structured entity pages can contribute to search visibility and credibility.
More importantly, this mirrors how knowledge systems are structured:
A person
Their companies
Their books
Their projects
Each gets its own documented page, and everything connects logically.
That’s far stronger than a single static profile.
Applying This to Your Own Brand or Clients
If you or your client:
Wrote books
Founded companies
Created podcasts
Built organizations
Each of those entities should have its own page, properly documented and interlinked.
The basic process:
Write a neutral, factual summary
Include publication history and impact
Provide a clear notability rationale
Submit the article
Interlink it with the main entity page
Over time, this builds a structured footprint instead of a single isolated entry.
What David Meerman Scott’s Grokipedia SEO Tree Proves About Structured Content
Grokipedia is still early in its growth cycle, which means there is real opportunity to establish structured entity presence now.
The key is staying factual, organized, and intentional about internal linking.
At High Rise Influence, we’re continuing to build this structure not just for David Meerman Scott, but across our network, ensuring that every meaningful entity has its own documented page and that all related properties connect in a clear authority chain.
If you want long-term credibility, think in systems, not single pages.
Grokipedia (by xAI) is an encyclopedia-style platform similar to Wikipedia, except it’s much easier to request new articles, suggest edits, and build connected entity pages for people, businesses, and brands. For client work, Grokipedia is a fast way to help a business owner build online credibility, connect their digital assets, and create a clean “entity footprint” that can support long-term trust online.
This SOP breaks down the exact process our team can follow to request Grokipedia pages for clients, get them approved, fix mistakes, and maintain them over time.
Why Grokipedia Pages Matter For Clients
A Grokipedia page becomes a central reference point that can connect the client to:
Their business entity
Their other related entities (podcasts, brands, associations, awards, etc.)
Other people in their network
Public sources across the internet
Unlike a standard blog post or landing page, Grokipedia pages are structured like a public encyclopedia entry. That matters because these pages are built to summarize “who the person is” or “what the business is” in a clean, structured way that aligns with how entity-based search and AI tools organize information.
Even when the first version isn’t perfect, the edit and revision process is simple enough that we can quickly refine it.
What To Create For Each Client (Required)
For every client, the goal is to create two separate pages, not just one
For example, we created a page for Jeff Hughes, as well as one of his businesses, Rocket Clicks.
1. The Client’s Personal Page
Example: the business owner, founder, doctor, attorney, etc.
Example of family law attorney Jeff Hughes’ page
2. The Company Page
Example: the client’s dental practice, law firm, home service business, agency, etc.
Example of Rocket Clicks’ page, one of Jeff’s companies
This matters because Grokipedia can sometimes confuse the business and the person if the request is framed incorrectly. Keeping them clearly separated increases the chances of approval and makes the pages more accurate.
Step 1: Check If The Page Already Exists
Before you suggest an article:
Search the client’s name inside Grokipedia
Search the business name inside Grokipedia
Confirm whether a page already exists for either one
Sometimes a page already exists without us needing to create it. If it does exist, we skip directly to the editing process.
Step 2: Suggest A New Article
If the client does not have a page yet:
Click “Suggest Article” (or request the article after searching their name)
Enter the Article Topic
Use the client’s real name (first + last)
Add Additional Details
This is where you guide Grokipedia to pull the right informationWhat To Include In “Additional Details”
Focus on facts Grokipedia can verify from public sources, such as:
Their job title and role
Their business name and location
Their specialty (dentist, attorney, contractor, etc.)
Known awards, leadership roles, or credentials
Public-facing projects (podcast appearances, published interviews, etc.)
Goal: Give Grokipedia the correct angle so it generates a page that matches how the client should be and wants to be represented online.
Step 3: Suggest The Business Article Separately
After the personal page is submitted (or approved), request the business page as its own entry.
Important Note: Avoid The Duplicate Rejection Problem
Sometimes Grokipedia blocks a business page if it believes it overlaps with the owner’s page.
If the business article gets flagged as a duplicate:
Don’t mention the owner’s name heavily in the business request
Focus on the business as its own entity:
what it does
where it operates
what it’s known for
what services it provides
This usually fixes the issue.
Step 4: Review The Page After It Goes Live
Once Grokipedia accepts the request and generates the page, read it carefully.
You’re looking for:
Wrong dates
Incorrect job titles
Wrong location
Missing business name
Broken links to related entities
Mentions that should connect to other pages but don’t
Anything incorrect / non-factual
This step matters because Grokipedia is generating content by scraping the internet, which means it will occasionally pull incorrect info, misunderstand context, or mix in results from other people with the same name.
Step 5: Fix Incorrect Information With “Suggest Edit”
To fix something:
Highlight or locate the incorrect line
Click “Suggest Edit”
Explain the correction clearly and simply (include verifiable sources, if applicable)
Submit the edit
Select over the text you believe needs edited, then select “Suggest Edit”Add summary of the edits that are needed, include supporting sources / URLs
Common Client Fixes
Correcting dates (events, awards, launches, etc.)
Clarifying job roles (owner vs associate, founder vs employee, etc.)
Fixing spelling of names or business names
Cleaning up descriptions that feel inaccurate or unclear
If your edit gets rejected due to lack of proof, it means the internet sources Grokipedia found didn’t support your change yet.
In that case, you have two options:
Find a stronger public source for the correct info
Publish a source yourself (website page, article, podcast mention, etc.) and retry later
Step 6: Improve Entity Linking (Huge Benefit)
One of the most valuable parts of Grokipedia is how it interlinks entities.
Even if the article content is fine, it might miss obvious links such as:
client → business page
client → podcast page
client → award / association page
business → founder page
How To Fix Linking Issues
If you see a company name mentioned but not linked:
Click Suggest Edit
Request that the term becomes a hyperlink to the correct Grokipedia page
Submit
This is one of the easiest edits to get accepted because it’s not changing facts—just improving structure.
Step 7: Track Your Submissions And Results
Use the Grokipedia Activity/Statistics section to monitor:
Your suggested articles
Your edits
Approval rate
Rejections (and reasons)
This helps you learn patterns quickly, because Grokipedia has guidelines on notability and evidence—similar to Wikipedia, but easier to work with.
Common Rejection Reasons (And What To Do)
1. “Not Notable Enough”
This can happen if the entity has very little coverage online.
Fix: Build more digital proof first:
podcast appearances
client site content
interviews and articles
awards and associations
2. “Not Enough Sources”
This happens when Grokipedia can’t find enough trustworthy info across the web.
Fix: Create more public sources, then re-submit.
Writing an article honoring someone can further strengthen their Grokipedia page. It publicly recognizes their impact while creating another trusted source Grokipedia can reference for context and credibility.
3. “Duplicate / Already Being Processed”
This is common when creating a business page that overlaps heavily with the owner’s page.
Fix: Rewrite the request so the business stands alone as an entity.
How To Deliver This To Clients (Simple Template)
Once the page is live, send it to the client inside Basecamp (or if you’re not on our team, whatever client communication tool you use):
Message Template:
Hey [Client Name] — great news! We just got your Grokipedia page published. Here’s the link: [paste link]
If you notice anything that needs to be updated (details, dates, links, etc.), send it to me and I can suggest edits, or you can request edits directly on the page as well.
Most contractors don’t lose jobs because they’re bad at the work. They lose jobs because the customer can’t tell who’s legit in the first 10 seconds of a Google search.
If someone searches your name or your company name and Google clearly understands who you are, what you do, and where you do it, you stop looking like “another option” in a list of blue links. You look like the obvious choice.
When Dennis Yu was in Minneapolis with Jack Wendt and I (Dylan Haugen), we recorded a session answering the most common questions we get from contractors about Knowledge Panels—what they are, how they work, why some people get them (and others don’t), and what to do if you want one.
This article is a written version of that conversation, organized so you can actually apply it.
What A Google Knowledge Panel Actually Is
A Knowledge Panel is what shows up when Google is confident about an “entity.”
An entity can be a person, a company, a city, a product, a park—anything that Google can identify as a real thing with real attributes.
You’ve seen this with celebrities. Search a musician or actor and you’ll get a panel with photos, bio details, social profiles, and related info. The difference is: contractors assume that’s only for famous people.
It’s not.
A Knowledge Panel shows up when Google understands you clearly enough that it can present you as a full object in search, not a guess.
Instead of “10 blue links,” Google can confidently say:
This is the person/company you’re looking for
These are their socials and trusted references
This is where they operate
These are related entities connected to them
And that clarity is what drives trust.
Example of Tommy Mello’s Knowledge Panel, which we helped claim.
Why Knowledge Panels Matter For Contractors
Contractors don’t win on “who’s best at HVAC repair” or “who’s the most skilled roofer.”
They win on trust.
People do business with people. When Google understands you as the figurehead of your business, trust flows:
From you → to the business
From the business → to your services in your city
From your relationships → into your overall credibility
If you’re clearly “the Indianapolis tree company” or “the Denver remodeler,” it helps across the board:
branded searches (your name/company name)
local SEO (city + service)
Google Maps signals
and even visibility in AI tools that pull from trusted web signals
The panel itself isn’t the end goal. It’s proof that Google understands you.
Do You Have To Be Famous To Get One?
No.
This was one of the biggest points we hit, because it’s the most common misconception.
Google doesn’t care about a blue checkmark or follower counts. It cares about clarity and trusted signals.
We talked about a contractor example where someone had a legit business, good work, and barely any social following—but still got a Knowledge Panel because the information was structured and tied together correctly.
It’s not about being “internet famous.”
It’s about being “Google-clear.”
How Google Decides Who Gets A Knowledge Panel
In the session, Dennis explained it simply:
Google is looking for trust, and trust isn’t something you can fake.
A lot of people confuse trust with:
press releases
buying links
auto-generated blog posts
“PR packages”
random podcast appearances you paid for
Those don’t build real authority because they can be manufactured by anyone.
What Google actually responds to are signals that reflect real-world credibility.
Here are the core categories we kept coming back to:
Your website (especially if it’s organized around you and your company correctly)
Your social profiles (consistent names, links, and identity)
Reviews and reputation across platforms
Earned media (real coverage, real mentions, real interviews)
Co-created content (podcasts, interviews, collaborations with credible people)
User behavior signals (people searching you, clicking you, staying on your content)
That last one matters more than most people realize.
Dennis referenced how Google watches clickstream behavior—what people actually do after they search. If people click your stuff and engage, Google gains confidence.
The Biggest Reason Contractors Don’t Get Knowledge Panels
It usually isn’t because they “need more content.”
It’s because they already have proof—reviews, jobs, community involvement, photos, team stories—but it’s scattered and not tied together.
Dennis gave examples like:
tons of content on a website with no author listed
podcasts where the contractor is featured, but nothing links back to them
service pages and blog posts that never connect to the person behind the company
social profiles that don’t match, don’t link, or don’t align on name/location
Most contractors don’t need to invent a reputation.
They need to organize the reputation they already earned.
Personal vs Business Knowledge Panels
This part clears up confusion fast.
A business can have a Google Business Profile, and that can show a panel-like result. But a true Knowledge Panel is broader: it can pull in socials, references, related entities, and more.
There are two key entities here:
You (the person)
Your business (the company)
Here’s an example of Dr. Hugh Flax’s Knowledge Panel compared to his business listing (Flax Dental’s Google Business Profile / GBP).
Dr. Hugh Flax’s Verified Google Knowledge PanelFlax Dental’s GBP
If you want the strongest result, they should be connected properly.
When Google understands both entities and sees a clean relationship between them, everything strengthens.
What “Entity Consistency” Means (And Why It Matters)
Entity consistency is a technical term that basically means: Google sees the same person everywhere.
Your entity shows up across:
your website
your GBP
YouTube
Facebook/Instagram/LinkedIn
Yelp and other directories
podcast pages and interview write-ups
media mentions and community sites
If your name, links, bios, and identity don’t match, Google has to guess.
And when Google is guessing, you don’t get a Knowledge Panel.
A simple way we explained it in the conversation: every real story has entities.
A job story has:
who it happened to
where it happened
what service was done
when it happened
who did it
If that story is posted without those details being connected back to the right entity (you and your business), Google can’t confidently map it.
The Hub And Spokes Concept (Topic Wheel)
This was one of the most useful frameworks we shared.
Jack explained that your topic wheel has:
a hub (your “entity home,” usually your personal brand website)
spokes (topics and relationships that support your authority)
Contractors often have spokes—good reviews, real projects, community involvement—but no hub.
No hub = no central place where Google can see everything in one clean, structured way.
Jack Wendt and I presenting on the topic wheel at DigiMarCon Vegas 2025
For contractors, spokes can include things like:
your trade (roofing, HVAC, remodeling, etc.)
your city/region
your team and company story
community involvement
partnerships with other contractors
shared content with local organizations
When those spokes all connect back to a strong hub, Google stops guessing.
What Google Looks At When Verifying A Person
We covered this from a practical angle.
If you want to think like Google, focus on signals that are hard to fake.
Here are the types of things we pointed out in the session:
real interviews with credible people
real content hosted on real sites people actually visit
real traffic and engagement (people staying, scrolling, watching)
real connections between people and businesses
real-world proof tied to a specific geography
If a spammer in another country can create it instantly, it probably won’t carry much weight.
Can You Buy Or Fabricate A Knowledge Panel?
Yes—people try. And yes, there are agencies out there selling “knowledge panel packages.”
But here’s the truth: you can’t literally “buy” a Knowledge Panel.
Google doesn’t have a checkout page where you pay to become verified, and there isn’t some hidden “backdoor” where someone can flip a switch and force your panel to appear. A real Knowledge Panel is generated by Google’s algorithm, and it only shows up when Google is confident it understands who you are as an entity.
That’s why the only “package” that’s actually worth paying for is not one that claims it can sell you a panel—but one that helps you do the work the right way.
Promotion matters because behavior signals matter.
If you can drive real traffic to the assets that represent your entity—especially branded searches—you help Google gain confidence faster.
Fixing Incorrect Info On A Knowledge Panel
Once you claim a panel, you can submit edits.
But the key point we made: you usually have to fix the underlying sources too.
If your LinkedIn bio is wrong, or an old directory has incorrect info, Google can “re-learn” the wrong data later.
So you fix it at both levels:
submit the edit request
fix the source
What About Negative Press Or Haters?
This turned into a reputation management lesson.
The best defense is to build so much legitimate proof that negative content can’t outrank you.
If your topic wheel is strong, and your hub is strong, and you have consistent earned signals, random attacks have a hard time breaking through.
How Long Does It Take?
We gave a realistic range in the session: usually 3 to 12 months to earn a solid panel, and longer to make it consistently show and start impacting broader non-branded searches.
It depends on:
competition in your market
how common your name is
how organized your current assets are
how much real proof exists already
But the bigger point: it’s not a one-time checklist. It’s building a digital reflection of a real reputation.
What This Looks Like When It’s Done Right
At the end of the session, we talked about why people like Tommy Mello and Dan Antonelli are so strong in Google’s eyes.
They don’t just have success.
They publish their process, teach others, and show real relationships in public—proof that others trust them, follow them, and benefit from what they do.
Example of Dan Antonelli’s Panel
That creates a compounding effect:
their entity becomes stronger
their network becomes stronger
people associated with them gain trust too
If You Want This Implemented Inside Your Business
If you’re a contractor who wants to stop guessing and start building this the right way, the best move is to train someone on your team to do it consistently.
If you have a son, daughter, or team member you trust, enroll them in our AI Apprentice Program.
We teach them the exact systems, SOPs, and frameworks we use—so they can implement this for your business with real proof, clean structure, and a repeatable process you own.
Most people picture being a young entrepreneur as nonstop grinding — long hours, constant pressure, and years of sacrifice with the hope that someday it all pays off.
That story is incomplete.
Over the last few months, Dennis Yu and Jack Wendt have been traveling through Europe, spending time together in places like Italy. More recently, we all met up again in Las Vegas. Along the way, we’ve been speaking at conferences, working on real business opportunities, and building long-term partnerships — while also making time to actually enjoy the experiences.
This article breaks down what that balance really looks like in practice, based on firsthand moments from recent travels and work.
The Grind-Only Narrative Is Misleading
There’s a popular idea that being a young entrepreneur means working 100-hour weeks for a decade straight, cutting out everything else in life, and hoping the sacrifice eventually turns into freedom.
That mindset creates two problems:
It burns people out before they ever build momentum.
It frames enjoyment as something you have to earn later.
In reality, the most productive periods often come when work and life aren’t treated as enemies. When energy, relationships, and physical health are maintained, the quality of work improves.
Working While Traveling Is Still Work
Traveling through Europe or spending a weekend in Las Vegas doesn’t mean business stops.
During these trips, we’ve:
Spoken at conferences
Met with partners
Made deals
Collaborated on content and strategy
The difference is context. Work doesn’t only happen behind a desk. Conversations are better. Ideas move faster. Trust builds more naturally when people spend real time together.
This is something BlitzMetrics has emphasized for years: relationships scale results faster than isolated effort.
Physical Activity Creates Better Mental Output
One recurring theme whenever we’re together is movement. It’s something I notice every time these trips happen.
Trampoline parks, workouts, walking cities, staying active — these aren’t distractions. They’re part of how momentum is maintained.
Dennis Yu has spoken publicly about losing a significant amount of weight through trampoline dunking. I’m a professional dunker myself, and that shared interest is actually how Dennis and I first connected.
I think that Dennis might actually jump higher than me on a trampoline. I’m a professional dunker, so that statement isn’t made lightly. Every time we’re together, we end up doing something physical like that, and it keeps energy levels high without feeling forced.
This aligns directly with BlitzMetrics principles around sustainability: if your body breaks down, your business eventually does too.
Fun and Discipline Aren’t Opposites
There’s a common assumption that if you’re enjoying yourself, you must not be taking the work seriously.
These trips show that enjoying the journey doesn’t mean you’re not serious about the work.
What actually happens is simple:
Work still gets done
Standards don’t drop
Accountability stays intact
From conferences and meetings to shared experiences like live shows and spontaneous activities, the work doesn’t disappear — it’s integrated.
Why This Model Works Long-Term
This approach isn’t about flexing or appearances.
It works because:
Relationships compound
Energy stays high
Burnout is reduced
Execution improves
BlitzMetrics consistently teaches that real growth comes from doing simple things well, repeatedly, with the right people. That applies just as much to lifestyle as it does to marketing or business.
What This Looks Like in Practice
What I’ve seen is straightforward.
When people take their work seriously, stay physically active, and spend real time with people they trust, the output improves.
Conversations are sharper
Decisions happen faster
Motivation doesn’t have to be forced
For anyone trying to build those same skills — clear thinking, consistent execution, and operating well in real-world environments — this is the direction we’re moving with High Rise Academy.
The focus isn’t theory or shortcuts.
It’s learning by doing, alongside people who are actively building.
The work still gets done.
It just happens alongside real experiences instead of replacing them.
If you’re a young entrepreneur trying to build a personal brand, you’re not “behind.” Most of the time, you’re simply stuck at the starting line.
This YouTube video was filmed in Las Vegas with the High Rise Influence team, and they walk through a real coaching moment with a young entrepreneur named GeorgePaladichuk who is the founder of NaiL, An A.I. company for home services, and they explain why the reason most young adults don’t move forward has less to do with a lack of resources and more to do with hesitation and over-prep.
Video Context: What Happened With George
George joined the AI Apprenticeship Program by paying for it himself (not a scholarship, not a parent, not a free trial). That’s relevant because it signals commitment—and it usually means the person is willing to follow through when they get direction.
A week earlier, George told the team he wanted to start creating content, but he felt like he needed a full setup first:
a whiteboard
a camera
“the right equipment”
a perfect place to record
Instead of letting him stall, the team told him something simple:
The team’s message is direct:
“You just got to get started.”
When they checked back in, the results were immediate.
The Biggest Problem: Self-Limiting Beliefs (Not Skill)
This is a pattern you see over and over with young entrepreneurs: progress comes from publishing consistently and building a repeatable routine—not waiting for perfect conditions.
The entrepreneurs who move fastest don’t “prepare” for months. They start posting, get feedback, and improve in public.
This mirrors MAA (Metrics, Analysis, Action), because once he started posting, he finally had real data to work with. He could look at what was performing, what wasn’t, and then make adjustments and take action to improve. But if he never posted in the first place, he wouldn’t have any metrics to analyze—and nothing to improve on.
The team calls out the most common pattern they see in young entrepreneurs:
they overthink
they wait until they feel “ready”
they assume they’re too young to be taken seriously
That turns into self-limiting beliefs like:
“I’m too young for this.”
“They know more than me.”
“People will look down on me.”
“I need to have everything figured out first.”
The problem isn’t the belief itself—it’s what it does.
It delays execution.
George Posted 5 YouTube Videos
George stopped planning and started publishing.
By the time the team talked to him again, he had already posted five YouTube videos.
That’s the shift most people never make.
Most people stall on video #1.
George posted five and kept moving.
The Team Promoted His Videos (Same Day)
George didn’t just post and hope.
The team helped him promote the videos the same day.
That matters because content alone isn’t enough—you also need distribution. If something is working, put a little extra push behind it so it reaches the right people faster.
The best way to do this is using the Dollar a Day system which is a proven amplification strategy used to turn existing credibility, content, and customer trust into consistent visibility, leads, and sales without gambling on large ad budgets or guessing what works.
The team didn’t just tell George “good job.” They helped him push the content in the right direction and get distribution.
Promotion is the final stage of the Content Factory and it’s what turns content into:
Reach
Conversations
Opportunities
George Booked 8 Podcasts With Big Names
George took the next step that actually creates opportunities: conversations.
The most important part of the story wasn’t the five videos.
It was what happened next.
George booked eight podcast interviews with major players in his industry—people the team described as “titans.”
High Rise Academy exists because there’s a lot of noise in the AI and marketing space, and it’s hard to tell what training actually holds up in the real world. In this High Rise Influence YouTube video, Dennis Yu gave a simple filter for sorting that out. As he put it, “Don’t judge a program by the person selling it. Judge it by the students it produces.”
After Dennis lays out that idea, the video shifts to student builders and lets you hear directly from us about what we’re working on and how we’re applying the training with local service businesses.
The Principle Dennis Shared
Dennis’ point is blunt: it’s easy to make a program look good on the surface. The harder test is what students can actually produce once they’re inside it — their work, their thinking, and how that work holds up when applied to real clients.
That’s why the video centers on the people inside the program. You get to see how students talk about their work, what they’re building, and the kinds of problems they’ve learned to solve for clients.
What High Rise Academy Trains
High Rise Academy is an apprenticeship for young adults who want to build a concrete skill set in AI‑assisted marketing. The training is tied to local service businesses because the work is practical and the feedback is immediate.
Students practice:
Building and improving personal brand sites and business sites
Using AI tools to speed up research, content production, and operational tasks
Running and refining ads using proven systems like Dollar a Day, while tracking performance
Managing deliverables, communication, and client relationships
The idea is to learn repeatable systems and apply them on live accounts, so students leave with work they can stand behind.
Student Examples From the Videos
Dylan Haugen (Me)
I came into the program as a content creator and professional dunker. I knew how to grow an audience, but most of that lived on platforms I didn’t control. The shift for me was learning how to turn content skill into owned assets and clear client value.
Learning to package content and relationships into services for local businesses
Delivering real marketing outputs alongside the team
Jack Wendt
Jack’s story shows what happens when someone combines big‑picture vision with consistent execution. He’s been able to travel and still build because he runs work like a professional: projects stay on track, communication stays clear, and relationships keep compounding.
What stands out in his path:
He builds partnerships and opportunities through strong relationships
He keeps a steady operating rhythm even while moving across time zones
He treats marketing like a long game, not a short sprint
Luke Crowson
Luke started in fitness coaching, and Dennis noticed something that carries over into marketing: he cares about outcomes and sticks with a process. Inside the program, Luke applies that mindset to client work that’s built on steady improvement.
His focus areas include:
Campaign structure and ongoing tuning
Landing page and site improvements
Lead quality and follow‑up alignment with owners
The takeaway here is straightforward: consistent, client‑first execution plus good process is what drives dependable results.
Sam McLeod
Sam is still in school and leans heavily into engineering. His role is building tools and workflows that remove repetitive work for students and standardize delivery for clients.
Where that shows up:
Automating tedious steps so students focus on high‑value tasks
Turning proven processes into repeatable workflows
Supporting scale without lowering quality
One Shared Thread
Different backgrounds, same direction: we’re learning practical systems and applying them to real businesses. And the four of us you saw in the video are also building this alongside Dennis. We are founders of High Rise Influence and Local Service Spotlight, so we’re learning how to create an agency, start a business, and pressure‑test what we learn by using it every week.
Advice We Shared at the End
We wrapped the video with short advice for anyone considering this path:
Use AI like a teammate. It helps you draft, research, and troubleshoot faster, but you still steer the work.
Mindset drives follow‑through. Skill only compounds if you stay in the game long enough to apply it.
Aim for steady improvement. Getting a little better daily beats waiting for a perfect moment.
Learn by doing. You grow fastest when you ship work, get feedback, and refine.
Takeaway
Dennis’ filter is simple: student work tells you more than marketing ever will. The video applies that idea by showing what students are building and how they think about the work.
If you’re evaluating any program in AI or marketing, whether it be the High Rise Academy or something else, look for a trail of real output: projects you can inspect, processes students can explain, and progress that shows up across more than one person. That’s the safest way to decide what’s worth your time.
Why pay for a program when you can get AI training for free on YouTube?
Because you want your young adult to be mentored by the best, be in a structured program with accountability, and because you want to shorten the duration to achieve competency.
Information is free now. The basics are easy to find.
What’s not free is turning that information into real business growth — fast.
Metrics: what changed in leads, calls, jobs, revenue, and content output
Analysis: why it changed
Action: what we’re fixing or testing next
Your young adult runs real marketing, reports what happened, and improves it week by week until the numbers move.
The loop is always: execute → measure → coach → improve → execute again.
What You’re Paying For #2: Access
Inside the Academy, access means:
Experienced coaches.Dennis Yu and the team review your young adult’s real marketing work and show them how to make it stronger.
A clear path. They know what to focus on first, what to ignore, and what “good” looks like.
Fast feedback. Instead of guessing, they get answers and direction while they work.
A room of builders. Other apprentices are doing the same kind of work, so your young adult learns faster and stays motivated.
Masterminds with other AI Apprentices. They trade what’s working, break down problems, and push each other to deliver better results.
Dennis has 30+ years of experience and has worked with brands like Nike, Starbucks, Rosetta Stone, the Golden State Warriors, and more. That level of coaching helps your young adult avoid expensive wrong turns and reach competency faster.
What You’re Paying For #3: AI Infrastructure
A major part of the program cost is the AI infrastructure we provide.
Each AI Apprentice receives access to a full year of our shared ChatGPT Business account, including pooled credits and the custom GPTs and agents we’ve built for real marketing work.
This matters because:
Apprentices don’t start from scratch. They use proven custom GPTs for planning, writing, auditing, and reporting.
Output is faster and more consistent. Shared business-level access removes usage limits and friction.
Work is easier to review and improve. Everything lives inside one workspace that coaches can see and guide.
The cost is covered by the program. Apprentices don’t have to manage subscriptions, credits, or setup.
This AI setup directly increases how much quality work apprentices can produce each week.
The specific AI tools included may evolve over time. We currently use ChatGPT Business because it’s the best option for our workflow today. As models, platforms, and pricing change, we reserve the ability to upgrade, replace, or remove specific tools so apprentices always have access to the most effective AI systems available.
How the Apprentice Program Works
Your young adult builds skill by working inside a live local service business (often yours).
What they do inside the program:
Create and publish content using the proven Content Factory workflow.
Run simple local campaigns to turn that content into leads.
Improve offers and follow‑up so inquiries turn into booked jobs.
Apply coach feedback to the next round of work.
They’re getting real reps on a real business, with real coaching. That’s how they build skill that shows up as results.
What Your High Rise Academy Investment Covers
Training is free because information is free.
You’re paying for three things: results, access, and AI infrastructure.
Together, that helps your business get more leads, calls, and booked jobs.
Most business owners don’t fail because they’re missing information. They fail because the message they’re trying to send isn’t being seen the way they think it is.
That point hit me hard during a call with Dennis Yu and Jack Wendt. We were reviewing progress on the cover for our Google Knowledge Panel book that explains the entire process for local service businesses. I was stuck. I kept circling the same surface-level ideas, trying to make technical concepts look visually appealing.
Then Dennis reframed everything.
What he said wasn’t memorized, rehearsed, or scripted. It was him breaking down something simple in a way that cut right to the point: If people can’t see the idea, they won’t understand it. And if they don’t understand it, they won’t value it.
That single idea changed the direction.
Why Words Weren’t Enough
We already know how to explain the Knowledge Panel system: how it connects trust signals, organizes your digital presence, and helps Google understand who you are.
But Dennis pointed out that none of that matters unless the business owner can visualize what’s happening.
He compared it to looking at your reflection.
You might have success in the real world—happy clients, strong reviews, awards, a solid reputation—but when you search your own name, the “digital mirror” rarely reflects that truth. You’ll find outdated information, unrelated people, inconsistent profiles, and mixed-up entities.
The message was simple: If your reflection is distorted, people won’t see you clearly.
And that’s exactly the point of a Knowledge Panel.
Dennis’s Visual Examples That Changed Everything
Dennis went deeper with a set of visualization examples that helped me finally “see” what he meant:
1. The Reflective Lake
A successful business owner stands at the edge of a lake. He’s surrounded by gold, 5-star reviews, customer praise—everything that represents real trust.
But when he looks in the water? He doesn’t see that.
The reflection is blurry, faded, confused. Waves distort his face. The image doesn’t match reality.
That’s what Google does when your digital presence isn’t clear.
2. The Foggy Mirror
Imagine a pristine, expensive bathroom inside a beautiful home. The business owner looks confident—until he looks in the mirror labeled “Google.”
The mirror is fogged over. You can only see a faint version of his face. He’s there, but not recognizable. A faint question mark floats in the condensation.
The outside world sees the room clearly. The mirror—the digital reflection—is the only thing that’s unclear.
3. The Young Adult “Superman” Transformation
This one also stuck with me.
A quiet, unsure teen walks into a phone booth. He steps out equipped with the skills, clarity, and confidence needed to help a business owner fix their online presence—almost like a transformation scene.
That’s what High Rise Academy does for young adults, and why our work ties directly into the Knowledge Panel system.
These examples helped me understand what the book and the project need to communicate visually: Not the mechanics—but the clarity and transformation that business owners actually experience.
The Real Lesson: Clarity Isn’t a Feature. It’s the Foundation.
Dennis explained something I had never fully understood until this call: people buy clarity, not instructions.
Complex ideas won’t always be understood if the idea isn’t presented in a way they can instantly see. But once you can visualize it everything else clicks into place.
That applies to:
The book
High Rise Academy
How we train young adults
How we communicate with business owners
Every Knowledge Panel or personal brand project we build
It even applies to how we design covers, thumbnails, and frameworks. The image has to tell the story before the words ever begin.
Why This Matters for High Rise Influence
High Rise Influence isn’t about showing people a set of tactics. It’s about helping them understand why their digital identity is unclear—and giving them the tools and people who can fix it.
This moment on the call reminded me why building visuals that communicate the true value matters so much.
The business owner needs to see the gap. The young adult needs to see the path. And the brand needs to show both instantly.
This video was filmed in Las Vegas during a conference weekend. Four of us sat down—young adults who are actually doing the work every day—to talk through a question we hear constantly: “Should I go to college, or should I do something else first?”
Our answers aren’t identical because our paths haven’t been identical. That’s the point. There isn’t one correct route. There is a smart first move, though: build skills that travel with you.
We All Took Different Paths—and We’re Still Moving Forward
Here’s what that looks like in real life for the four of us in this video:
Same table, same conversation, different decisions. Nobody is “behind.” Nobody is locked out of a good career. What separates people early isn’t the label of student or non‑student. It’s whether they’re gaining real ability to create value.
Using modern tools to speed up research, writing, and creative production.
Turning customer reviews and job photos into content people respond to.
Improving websites so visitors turn into calls and booked jobs.
Running simple ad campaigns and tracking what’s working.
Communicating with business owners and following through on deadlines.
Building repeatable workflows such as the content factory so that results aren’t random.
These skills transfer into almost any lane—whether you end up in business, tech, sales, operations, or entrepreneurship.
Real Ways People Use the Program
People come into High Rise Academy with different starting points, and the same skills end up helping them in different ways. That’s because the Academy sits in the middle of a two-sided market: on one side are local service businesses that need real marketing help, and on the other side are young adults who need real experience. When both sides show up, everybody wins—businesses get growth work done, and apprentices get reps that actually matter.
Some apprentices work directly with local service businesses through the Academy. They learn our systems, build campaigns, and get daily reps on real client work.
Others start close to home by running marketing for their parents’ local service businesses. They’ll fix a website, post content, set up ads, and organize reviews—then see what happens when consistent marketing meets real operations.
Some take that family-business experience and turn it into outside work. That step—from “helping at home” to “helping clients”—is a common bridge.
A good example we talked about is Ethan Murphy. He began by doing marketing for his parents, then applied the same playbook to the fencing niche. Within a few months he had picked up five or six fencing clients and was delivering results fast. He’s basically building a niche agency around that skill set.
Those are four distinct, real outcomes from the same skill set. Same training, different applications—because the two sides of the market keep feeding each other: businesses create the problems worth solving, and apprentices build the skills by solving them.
Why Skills First Makes the College Decision Easier
College can be a good move for some people. It can also be the wrong move for others at a given time.
The problem is that most people are asked to choose before they’ve done enough real work to know what they want.
Skills fix that.
When you can produce useful work:
You have proof of what you’re good at.
You can earn while you learn.
You can switch directions without starting from zero.
You walk into college (if you go) with context instead of guessing.
That’s why we keep saying this program can be an internship, a first job, a career start, or a way to level up a family business. It’s not a narrow track. It’s a skill-builder.
What To Do Next If You’re Still Unsure
If you’re undecided about college, that’s normal. Most people are being asked to choose before they’ve done enough real work to know what fits. Getting real reps first makes the decision a lot clearer.
If you want to learn these skills in a hands-on way, then the High Rise Academy might be right for you. You’ll work on real local service business campaigns, learn modern marketing systems, and build a portfolio that makes your next decision easier.
When people ask what I’ve learned from building High Rise Influence (HRI), I don’t think about a class or a book. I think about the last few months of doing the work and getting real feedback from real clients.
I’ve learned more about business and communication in these past few months than I did in the years before—because this time the learning came with real stakes.
Here’s what’s stood out most, with examples straight from our experience.
Team Communication Is Learned on the Job
One of the best early lessons came from Jack Wendt. He told us how, when he was new to team email threads, he kept hitting “Reply” instead of “Reply All.” So only one person saw his response while everyone else waited for an update that never came.
It’s a simple mistake, but it shows what school doesn’t cover:
How quickly you have to adapt when other people depend on you.
You don’t get good at teamwork by reading about it. You get good at it by working with people who need you to be reliable.
School Zoom Calls Aren’t Client Calls
I mentioned in the video that we had Zoom during quarantine. But that was basically practice for showing up, not for leading.
On school calls:
Cameras were off.
Nobody was driving a result.
You could be half-present and still “attend.”
Client calls in LSS and HRI are the opposite. We’re meeting with business owners who trust us with their online reputation. We’re helping them claim and improve their Google Knowledge Panels, clean up search results, and make sure their brand shows up the right way.
That has forced me to learn, fast:
How to lead a call with a clear objective.
How to ask the right questions instead of guessing.
How to explain actions in plain language.
How to follow up without being chased.
Setting Up a Company Teaches Business at a Real Level
While we’ve been building HRI, we’ve also been building the structure behind it. That meant learning things we’d never touched before.
We’ve had to work through:
Equity splits.
Vesting schedules.
How many shares to issue.
How to think about investors and long‑term incentives.
Talking about equity in a classroom is one thing. Making decisions that affect the future of the company is another.
Client Relations: Trust + Ownership + Delivery
Clients don’t just hire us for tasks. They hire us to protect and grow their reputation. That changes your mindset.
What client work has taught me:
Trust is earned through delivery, not promises.
Speed matters because clients hate silence.
Ownership matters because excuses don’t help anyone.
Results matter because clients care about ROI.
We’ve seen this up close. People pay us because they believe we’ll take care of them. If something goes wrong, we fix it. If we miss something, we own it. That responsibility sharpens you.
Getting Paid to Learn Business Beats Paying to Learn Business
This is one of the biggest advantages of what we’re doing.
When you’re building in real time:
Feedback comes immediately.
Mistakes cost something, so you stop repeating them.
Wins show you what to double down on.
That’s why the learning curve is so steep.
Real Work Brings Real Rooms
A few weeks ago, Sam and I were on a call with a billionaire helping him claim and strengthen his Knowledge Panel.
That moment hit me because it wasn’t about age or titles. It was about whether we could help.
What I took from that:
If you can solve a real problem, you belong on the call.
Competence travels faster than credentials.
Opportunities show up when you’re already producing value.
Teamwork Also Means Knowing When to Do It Yourself
We talked about this in the video: working on a team doesn’t always mean pushing work to someone else. Sometimes the best move is to take something from start to finish yourself because it’s cleaner and faster.
What we don’t do is park tasks in “later” forever. Keeping projects moving is part of being dependable to your team and your clients.
Mentorship Compresses the Learning Curve
We’ve had Dennis Yu mentoring us through all of this. Having someone who’s already operated at a high level point out what matters, what doesn’t, and why saves you years.
It also sets the tone for how we want to lead: learn something, apply it in real work, then teach it forward.
Where This Leaves Me
Being part HRI has made business feel less like a concept and more like a skill set you build daily. Communication, accountability, client care, equity, execution—it all gets learned in the same way: by doing the work and being responsible for the outcome.
Want to Learn These Skills Through Real Work?
If you want to build the same skill stack we’re talking about—through real projects, real clients, and real mentorship—check out High Rise Academy.
It’s designed to help young adults (and anyone hungry to grow) turn real work and real reviews into campaigns that convert.
