4 Tips To Boost Your Brand As A Thought Leader

Almost every brand wants to be a thought leader, but very few know where to start. After all, we often hear about the come up stories behind popular thought leaders after they’ve either gone viral or had a big win, but seldom do we examine those who’ve been building slowly but surely. However, the latter route not only has more consistency but also brings about much larger audiences too. If this is something you’ve wanted to accomplish, then we’ve provided a few helpful tips for you to get started. Check them out below:

Know Where Your Brand Stands As A Leader

Before you even think about calling yourself a thought leader, you need to address what exactly it is you’re leading. A significant part of this role is having authority over a few subjects within your industry, as well as writing about them consistently enough that people are seeking your advice. Furthermore, thought leadership also requires your brand to be ahead of the curve regarding the latest trends and happenings. However, before we dive too deep into making you the next great voice in your field, we have to discuss what your audience is looking for on a day-to-day basis from your content.

A significant part of thought leadership isn’t about providing thought-provoking insights into the industry and why your company is ahead but consistently putting out materials that show you genuinely care about the problem you’re trying to solve. As noted by Business2Community, 81 percent of respondents to a survey stated that they had increased trust for a vendor or organization due to their thought leadership, which the keyword there is trust. Accomplishing this will involve taking a look at the type of content you can create week in and week out, as well as asking yourself why exactly someone will read it. Remember, people tend to look at blogs from a bird’s eye view, so if you’re really looking to win over someone’s allegiance, then you’ve got to be mindful of how your content looks from a couple of feet away.

Pick Up On Writing

With a good idea of what type of topics you’re going to cover, it’s time to get into the core delivery method for thought leadership: writing. The actual practice of writing for your blog can be tricky due to a number of considerations:

First, the overall competitive nature of readership is why nearly 53 percent of marketers make blogging their top priority (as noted by Impact Bound), which means you’re in for some stiff competition.

Second, create a balance between quality content and making it SEO friendly. While it’s perfectly fine to have both, too much SEO and you’ll end up with writing that’s awkward and choppy. However, too little and you’ll get lost in search. Ultimately, the goal is to strike a balance between the two, with turning out the best work a top-goal.

And finally, no matter how your first few articles turn out, you need to keep writing. This will not only be how you get better at writing but also how you’re going to build an audience. While it’s not fun slaving away at blog content at first, you’ll eventually get quicker and more efficient at it, providing enough content to really make some promotional runs.

Get In Where You Fit In

Although we often consider social media where our blog posts should go, that’s only half the effort. The other half is actually engaging with an audience, as well as going back and forth with others in your industry. A significant part of accomplishing this goal is by knowing where your audience lives on social media, as well as what you can do to reach them. However, that starts with establishing some test mediums.

In looking at your current base, ask yourself where your content has been most successful, as well as why you believe that to be the case. Remember, as we’re dealing with thought leadership, a lot of the mediums you’re after are going to be ones where people can go back and forth, particularly on LinkedIn and Twitter. From there, it’s all about refining your audience. For example, there are over 260 million monthly active users on LinkedIn, so if I want to position myself as a thought leader in IT Security recruiting, then going through different groups on there would bring my audience down to the most specific following. Although it’ll take some trial and error, embrace this part of the process as one where you get to learn more about your audience, as well as what they think about your brand as a thought leader.

Don’t Forget About Mediums Like Podcasts

Finally, even though blogging is considered the standard for thought leadership, a lot of entrepreneurs have started to look into other mediums as a means of content. One popular example has been podcasts, which enables people to give commentary, have interviews, and even get sponsored (if the brand is big enough). As noted by Convince and Convert, 26 percent of Americans listen to podcasts monthly, as the independent producers of these have sometimes turned into full-fledged production studios. While you might be wondering what a podcast interview is or how you can get started, rest assured we’ve got you covered.

The initial consideration you should make in starting a podcast is what the central theme or idea behind it is. After all, as a foundation for conversation, this needs to be more than just your brand but rather a bigger conversation your brand is trying to have; for example, a sports equipment company starting a podcast on mental health in sports. Additionally, you need to come up with a variation on both topics and guests, highlighting the important stories of your industry as much as you do dive deep into specific insights. While this all might seem a little overwhelming to begin with, make your studying and exploration into this something fun, giving yourself an activity you’ll enjoy working on every week.

What are some ways you’ve been able to build your brand as a thought leader? Comment with your insights below!