Lexicon
Canonical
What canonical means, and how Paul Truscott applies this standard of conforming to a single authoritative source across every layer of his entity and content work.
Factual Definition
Canonical means conforming to the accepted standard, rule, or primary authoritative source within a given body of knowledge. A canonical source of ground truth is therefore the single most authoritative reference point against which other claims or data are validated.
Paul Truscott's Perspective on Canonical
Paul Truscott's perspective on the concept of canonical is that it is the organising principle running underneath his entire approach to entity work, not just a term reserved for its most technical SEO usage. His view is that every layer of his practice, from a designated canonical source of ground truth for a client's facts, to a single canonical entity record reconciled across the web, to a canonical author identity built through consistent author vectors, is the same discipline applied at different scales: establish one authoritative version, then bring everything else into alignment with it.
He treats the absence of a clear canonical version, of a fact, an entity, or an authorship identity, as the underlying cause of most of the fragmentation problems his practice is built to solve.
How Paul Truscott Applies Canonical Thinking
Before beginning any client engagement, Paul establishes what the canonical version of each key fact, entity attribute, and authorship identity should be, then treats every subsequent piece of work as bringing the client's wider digital footprint into alignment with that canonical standard. Read the full methodology.
Why Canonical Matters to Paul Truscott's Practice
The principle of establishing a canonical standard runs through every layer of Paul's entity reconciliation, schema, and author identity work, functioning as the single organising discipline behind an otherwise wide range of service deliverables. Read the full methodology.