Simon Sinek.
Oprah Winfrey.
Brian Dean.
Sure, these personalities have established their reputation in their respective fields and industries. Not just that! Prospects, clients, and even competitors consider the knowledge and specialization of these individuals as topnotch and forefront in their respective fields of expertise. More often than not, these personalities hold great influence and are the go-to individuals to invite for a speech. They are thought leaders.
It is no different in businesses and organizations. There also exists a great number of companies capable of increasing awareness, establishing influence, and generating engagement through thought leadership.
Regardless of industry, companies - such as Deloitte, GE, and Hubspot - with renowned brands and narratives connect with the market better!
Hence, Ripple VAs created the ultimate beginner’s to thought leadership to help your company or business increase brand awareness, reach more clients, and establish credibility!
What is thought leadership?
Most high-flying and well-performing companies demonstrate effective thought leadership strategies. Thought leadership is a content marketing strategy that utilizes the creation and promotion of the best-in-class content regularly to position a business organization as a trusted and leading expert in a certain field or industry. This content marketing strategy is used by people and brands to establish credibility for themselves and increase awareness in the market.
Strong thought leadership strategies involve the consistent creation and promotion of content - such as videos, published researches, articles, and other original content - as means to provide a genuine value of your brand to your audience.
Through the effective use of thought leadership, people and businesses can be acknowledged as an expert on particular topics, trends, and events.
How can thought leadership benefit my company?
In this century where a lot of businesses have thrived, businesses need to step up their game to stand tall above everyone else. As such, the management of businesses is compelled to invest and venture into thought leadership and other marketing strategies.
An effective thought leadership strategy, like other marketing strategies, contribute to the following benefits:
More business development opportunities
Enhanced credibility and trust from your customers and prospect clients
Increased brand awareness among your target market
More leads generated
More press and media exposure through speaking engagement offers.
How can I establish myself or my company as a thought leader?
Before being able to use thought leadership, you must first gain the attributes and fit the definition of a thought leader. Thereafter, you may incorporate your attributes and capabilities to your thought leadership strategies.
Here are the best ways you can get started on thought leadership:
Gain experience.
Your records and achievements will become a stronghold or foundation for you to obtain the trust of your audience. It is also through experience that you can widen your horizons and gain new perspectives on different matters.
Be genuine and be yourself.
Anchor on your strengths as a person or as a company and stay true to your field of expertise. For you to be recognized as an expert in that field, you must set your field as a central point of your leadership strategy. Learn to love your field of expertise so you may soon learn to love the topic of your content.
Establish your choice.
Choose a person from your company who can be the thought leader (or be the thought leader yourself!) and focus your content efforts on the person of your choice. He or she must be equipped with the skills and experiences to gain value from your audience.
Choose a thought leadership tactic.
There are various tactics you can use as a thought leader. This will create opportunities and get the audience’s eyes on your content. Thought leadership tactics include public speaking, blogging, public relations, guest opportunities, and publishing works like research, and books.
Create content and be consistent.
After selecting your thought leadership tactic, you may start creating content and post them on different platforms. However, creating content is not the end! You must remain consistent and continue creating content and promoting them without straying far from your field of expertise.
Thought leadership remains one of the best content marketing strategies out there because it enables businesses and people to prove themselves as experts in a particular field while growing your influence in the market. Truly, it is a great marketing strategy that garnered the interest of numerous businesses but only a few can demonstrate it consistently and effectively.
Here in Ripple VAs, we have seen the value of thought leadership and its benefits to our clients and even to our team! Do not be afraid of venturing into the journey of content marketing. Start now and don’t forget to monitor your results!
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