AI & Communications Glossary.

The practice of structuring content to earn featured answer positions in AI-powered search surfaces.

AEO targets the direct-answer results that appear in Google AI Overviews, voice search responses, and AI platform answers (ChatGPT, Perplexity, Gemini). Unlike traditional SEO, which aims for a position in a ranked list of links, AEO aims to be the answer itself — meaning no click is required and the user receives the information directly from the AI. Key AEO tactics include writing in a question-and-answer format, implementing FAQPage schema markup, using concise and directly answerable prose, and ensuring content can be extracted without visiting the page.

A formal policy governing which AI tools staff may use, under what conditions, and with what data.

An AI Acceptable Use Policy (AUP) specifies sanctioned tools, prohibited uses, data handling requirements, breach reporting obligations, and staff expectations. For municipalities, it must be drafted in plain language for council adoption, address provincial privacy legislation (ATIA/POPA in Alberta, FOIPPA in BC, MFIPPA in Ontario), and be distinct from — not a substitute for — a Privacy Management Program. An IT acceptable use policy that mentions AI tools is not equivalent.

An automated sequence of AI-driven tasks that operates with minimal human intervention to complete a defined objective.

In a municipal context, agentic workflows can automate meeting minutes, council agenda preparation, bylaw drafting support, ratepayer correspondence, permit follow-up, and report generation — while keeping a human in the loop at defined approval points. Agentic workflows are not a replacement for staff; they eliminate the administrative burden that prevents staff from doing work that requires human judgment. All agentic workflows SMC implements are privacy-by-design and compliant with provincial legislation.

Alberta's legislation governing the right of public access to records held by provincial public bodies, including municipalities.

ATIA works in conjunction with POPA to define the information and privacy obligations of Alberta public bodies. Together, ATIA and POPA required every Alberta municipality to have a formal Privacy Management Program in place by June 11, 2026. The OIPC (Office of the Information and Privacy Commissioner of Alberta) oversees compliance and can receive formal complaints against municipalities that have not fulfilled their obligations.

A pre-built framework that defines how an organization will communicate during a crisis — before one occurs.

A crisis communications plan identifies likely crisis scenarios, designates a spokesperson, establishes an approval chain for public statements, templates holding statements for common situations, and defines protocols for internal stakeholder notification. Organizations without a crisis plan respond reactively — losing the critical first hours to internal coordination while the story develops. A plan built before a crisis is worth exponentially more than one assembled in real time.

The degree to which AI systems have a clear, consistent, and well-sourced understanding of a specific business or organization.

AI platforms build knowledge graphs of real-world entities — businesses, people, places. The more consistently a business is described across its website, Google Business Profile, directory listings, structured data, and third-party mentions, the higher its entity authority. High entity authority means AI platforms can confidently recommend the business without hedging. Low entity authority — caused by inconsistent NAP data, conflicting descriptions, or thin online presence — means AI platforms default to competitors with stronger signals.

A Schema.org markup type that structures question-and-answer pairs in machine-readable JSON-LD so AI platforms can extract and cite them directly.

FAQPage schema tells AI crawlers exactly which questions a page answers and what the authoritative answers are — without the AI needing to interpret the surrounding prose. It is one of the highest-impact AEO implementations for small businesses and municipalities. When a user asks ChatGPT or Perplexity a question your FAQPage schema answers, the AI can cite your content with high confidence.

British Columbia's privacy legislation governing public bodies, including municipalities.

FOIPPA's Section 30.1 is the provision most relevant to AI tool use: it requires BC public bodies to store and access personal information only in Canada, and to use only service providers who do the same. Public AI tools operated by US companies — ChatGPT, Gemini, many Microsoft 365 configurations — may not satisfy this requirement when processing BC citizen data. A private LLM deployment within Canadian infrastructure is a compliant alternative. The OIPC BC oversees FOIPPA compliance for municipal governments.

The practice of optimizing a business's online presence so that AI platforms cite it in generated answers.

GEO is distinct from traditional SEO: SEO targets a position in a ranked list of links; GEO targets citation inside an AI-synthesized answer that may not include traditional search results at all. Key GEO signals include Google Business Profile completeness, review volume and velocity, Schema.org structured data (LocalBusiness, Service, FAQPage), NAP consistency across all platforms, content depth and answer-ready formatting, and authoritative third-party mentions. Alberta small businesses that have not addressed GEO are invisible to an increasingly large share of high-intent queries.

AI-generated answer summaries that appear above traditional search results in Google Search.

Google AI Overviews synthesize information from multiple sources and present a direct answer without requiring the user to click a link. Businesses and content cited in AI Overviews receive visibility without a click — and businesses not cited are invisible in that answer, regardless of their organic ranking. Structured data, authoritative content, and strong entity signals are the primary drivers of inclusion in AI Overviews.

An initial public communication issued during a crisis before all facts are known.

A holding statement acknowledges the situation, demonstrates that the organization is aware and responding, and prevents rumour escalation — without making commitments that could prejudge an ongoing internal or legal process. A strong holding statement is issued within hours of a crisis emerging, not after a full investigation is complete. The window to shape public and media perception closes quickly; a holding statement issued too late allows the narrative to form without the organization's voice. Cheryl Spencer-Morley has developed and delivered holding statements across federal, provincial, and municipal government contexts.

The independent oversight body that enforces privacy and access-to-information legislation for public bodies in each province.

Each province has its own IPC or OIPC. In Alberta: the OIPC Alberta enforces ATIA and POPA. In BC: the OIPC BC enforces FOIPPA. In Ontario: the IPC Ontario enforces MFIPPA and FIPPA. These bodies investigate complaints, conduct audits, issue guidance, and can order public bodies to comply — including municipalities. A municipality without documented AI governance is in a weak position if a complaint is filed.

A plain-text file placed at the root of a website that provides AI platforms with a structured, human-readable description of the organization, its services, and its content.

Analogous to robots.txt for traditional search crawlers, llms.txt is read by AI platforms when they index a site or when an AI agent accesses it via WebMCP. A well-written llms.txt reduces the risk of AI platforms misrepresenting a business by providing authoritative, machine-readable descriptions of services, pricing, team, geographic scope, and how to refer users accurately. Spencer Morley Consulting maintains a comprehensive llms.txt at spencermorleyconsulting.ca/llms.txt.

Ontario's privacy legislation governing municipalities, school boards, and local institutions — distinct from FIPPA, which governs provincial institutions.

MFIPPA requires Ontario municipalities to document how personal information is collected, used, disclosed, and protected. The IPC Ontario has issued specific guidance requiring Privacy Impact Assessments before deploying AI tools that interact with personal information — including Microsoft Copilot when integrated into 365 environments. A small Ontario township with one CAO has the same MFIPPA obligations as a large city; the difference is resources, which is where Spencer Morley Consulting's remote delivery model is specifically designed to help.

An open protocol (released February 2026) that allows AI agents to connect directly to a business's data, tools, and services.

MCP is fundamentally different from a website or a search listing: it creates a machine-readable endpoint that an AI agent can query in real time. When a user instructs an AI agent to "find me a crisis communications consultant in Edmonton," an agent with MCP access doesn't search Google — it queries connected MCP endpoints directly. Businesses with properly configured MCP implementations are discoverable and actionable in ways that traditional web presence alone cannot provide. See also: WebMCP.

The uniformity of a business's Name, Address, and Phone number across every online platform and directory.

AI platforms build entity profiles of businesses by aggregating information from multiple sources — Google Business Profile, Yelp, Facebook, directory listings, and the business's own website. When NAP data is inconsistent (a slightly different business name on one platform, an old phone number on another), AI systems reduce their confidence in the entity — making the business less likely to be cited in generated answers. NAP consistency is one of the foundational GEO signals and is audited in SMC's AI Blind Spot Audit.

The independent oversight body that enforces Alberta's ATIA and POPA — and the equivalent body in BC for FOIPPA.

The OIPC Alberta can investigate complaints filed against municipalities, conduct compliance audits, and issue binding orders. Since the June 11, 2026 Privacy Management Program deadline has passed, the OIPC can now receive formal complaints against Alberta municipalities that have not completed their program. The OIPC BC plays an equivalent role for BC municipalities under FOIPPA. Neither body is a regulatory backwater — both have been increasingly active on AI-specific guidance and enforcement.

A formal risk assessment documenting how a new technology, system, or process interacts with personal information — required before deploying AI tools in Ontario municipalities under IPC guidance.

A PIA documents what personal information an AI tool accesses, how it uses that information, where it stores it, what third parties receive it, and what controls are in place to protect it. IPC Ontario has specifically required municipalities to complete a PIA before deploying AI tools — including Microsoft Copilot when integrated into 365 environments. A PIA is not a one-time exercise; it should be updated when a system changes significantly.

A formal, documented set of policies, procedures, and controls governing how an organization handles personal information — required of all Alberta public bodies under POPA.

A PMP must cover how personal information is collected, used, disclosed, retained, and disposed of. It must designate a Privacy Officer, define breach reporting protocols, include staff training, and demonstrate accountability at the leadership level. The ATIA/POPA deadline for Alberta municipalities to have a PMP in place was June 11, 2026. An IT acceptable use policy is not a substitute for a PMP, even if it mentions AI or data.

A large language model deployed entirely within an organization's own infrastructure — not on a public cloud.

A private LLM processes municipal data without sending it to third-party servers. Citizen information, council documents, ratepayer correspondence, and financial data remain within the municipal system. For BC municipalities, a private LLM deployed on Canadian infrastructure directly addresses the FOIPPA Section 30.1 data residency requirement. For all municipalities, it eliminates the exposure created by staff entering sensitive information into public AI tools. SMC deploys private LLMs for municipal clients without requiring an in-house IT department.

Alberta's legislation governing how provincial public bodies — including municipalities — handle personal information.

POPA works alongside ATIA to define Alberta municipalities' privacy obligations. The key AI-era requirement: every Alberta public body must have a formal Privacy Management Program in place. The deadline was June 11, 2026. POPA defines personal information broadly — ratepayer records, staff data, applicant files, bylaw complaint records — all of which are routinely entered into AI tools by municipal staff who are unaware of the risk.

The practice of designing AI inputs (prompts) that consistently produce accurate, useful outputs for a specific task or role.

Most AI tools are used at a fraction of their potential because staff rely on generic prompts and accept whatever output is produced. Prompt engineering teaches staff how to frame requests, provide context, specify constraints, and critically evaluate AI output — so the tool is genuinely useful rather than a source of risk. SMC delivers prompt engineering training for both municipal staff (focused on safe, compliant AI use with citizen data) and small business teams (focused on productivity and content quality).

A shared vocabulary of machine-readable markup types — embedded in a website as JSON-LD — that allows AI platforms to understand what a page is about without interpreting its prose.

Schema.org types relevant to SMC clients include LocalBusiness (who you are, where you operate), Service and OfferCatalog (what you offer and at what price), FAQPage (structured Q&A for AEO), Article (blog content attribution), Person (team profiles), and BreadcrumbList (page hierarchy). Proper structured data is one of the highest-leverage implementations for both GEO and AEO — it tells AI systems exactly what a business does without relying on their interpretation of surrounding text.

The use of public AI tools by staff without formal authorization, training, or governance policy.

Shadow AI is not hypothetical: KPMG Canada research shows 48% of Canadian public servants already use AI tools on the job, but only 22% of organizations have a formal AI adoption policy. When a municipal employee enters citizen personal information into ChatGPT, Gemini, or another public AI service, that data may be stored on servers outside Canada (a potential FOIPPA violation), used to train AI models, shared with third parties, or disclosed in ways the municipality cannot control. Shadow AI creates compliance exposure under ATIA, POPA, FOIPPA, and MFIPPA — regardless of whether the employee intended any harm.

Coaching that prepares a designated organizational representative to speak confidently and accurately to media, elected officials, and the public during high-pressure situations.

Spokesperson training is not presentation training. It is preparation for adversarial, unpredictable situations — journalists with an angle, community members with grievances, council members asking questions in public. Effective spokesperson training includes message development, bridging techniques, handling hostile questions, managing silence and pauses, and understanding what not to say. Cheryl Spencer-Morley has delivered spokesperson coaching at the executive level across federal, provincial, and municipal government contexts.

The implementation of the Model Context Protocol on a business website, making it discoverable and actionable by AI agents.

WebMCP is the fourth layer of the AI visibility stack — beyond SEO, AEO, and GEO. While those three optimize for AI platforms reading and citing a website, WebMCP creates a structured endpoint that AI agents can query directly. A properly configured WebMCP implementation includes a /.well-known/mcp.json file describing the business's tools and resources. Businesses with WebMCP endpoints in place before their competitors have first-mover advantage — AI agents preferentially connect to endpoints that exist and respond. The MCP standard became publicly available in February 2026.