I bet you have heard the term "Thought Leader" a lot lately. You may even be wondering what a Thought Leader is and how it would help you and your business. Well, as you're reading this blog, I am positioning myself as a Thought Leader for branding and marketing. (see how this works?)
The question is, why should you bother to try to position yourself as a Thought Leader? More importantly, how do you become a Thought Leader?
Believe it or not, becoming a Thought Leader ties in nicely with the creation of your Brand DNA because this is the next step.
So, what is a Thought Leader anyway?
THOUGHT LEADER DEFINITION
My definition of a Thought Leader is someone who has depth of experience and knowledge in his or her own field. In addition, there is usually a large portion of passion mixed in with your knowledge base. This in turn makes you the perfect Thought Leader candidate.
HOW TO BE A THOUGHT LEADER
I will give you enough information in this blog to get you excited, move forward and start strategizing how you can take all of your passion + your knowledge base, and turn it into something that will position you as a Thought Leader, right now.
For starters, if you have created your Brand DNA, then you are already well on your way to understanding what you are great at and where your strengths lie. This will help you define what you will talk or write about as a Thought Leader.
5 THINGS YOU NEED TO BE A THOUGHT LEADER
you're an expert in something
you're great at what you do
which ties into your passion
that connects back to your business
and most importantly, helps your audience learn something new.
Someone else might know a lot about what you know too, but the difference is that we all have our unique voice. That's what makes you, you.
Your niche audience knows and trusts what you say in your area of expertise. That area of expertise ties to your passion which connects back to your business, and that's how they found you in the first place.
That's a mouthful, but it makes a lot of sense, doesn't it?
Your audience, will look to you for guidance and/or knowledge.
HOW BEING A THOUGHT LEADER HELPS YOUR FOLLOWERS
Sharing your knowledge with others is one of the best things you can do. One way to do that is offering to share through channels such as webinars, blogs and articles.
If you have time, you could also do mentoring, be a Guest Speaker, get interviewed for books, publications and podcasts.
Once you gain followers, you’ll either get people who want to learn from you, or they are your advocate. Both are great.
Although it seems self-serving, being a Thought Leader can actually help people learn new ideas and consider new ways of thinking.
THOUGHT LEADERSHIP DOESN'T HAVE TO BE ALL ABOUT YOU
For example, recently I presented a webinar about my "13 Principles of Brand DNA™", a concept that I created. What I discovered working with hundreds of entrepreneurs, small business owners or even CMO's at large companies, is that they didn't know the answers to the many basic questions about their business, their Brand DNA.
Based on this gaping hole, I created these principles in a worksheet format to present to new clients. From there, I wrote a blog and shared this concept on LinkedIn.
After that, I was asked to create a Brand DNA webinar for the SCORE audience, which is entrepreneurs and small business owners.
Now, I have multiple webinars under my belt that I have delivered to thousands of entreprenuers.
While creating this webinar, I realized this also needed to be part of the book I was working on about retail success. Talk about an a-ha moment!
When I finish my webinars, I offer the viewers an opportunity for me to email them my Brand DNA worksheet so they can "do their homework". That's when the testimonials start pouring in.
Read this latest one, and you will see why it's so important to share your wisdom.
"previously I could not get a handle on what branding was for BUT I have to say today YOU clarified so many details for me (I'm not a pro) but I finally GET IT!
Thank you so very much for clarifying this subject for me, I appreciate it!!!!!!!"
How awesome is that? It feels great to know you're not just putting out content because it's all about you. When you create and share your expertise, you are helping people along the way.
WHY BEING A THOUGHT LEADER CAN HELP YOU GROW
When you start putting out expert content in blogs, articles, interviews, podcasts, authoring a book - anywhere - you're not only sharing your wisdom but helping your business grow because you are "out there".
Without realizing it, you are creating inbound marketing opportunities through the use of search engines when people are wanting to learn more about a particular subject. With your use of keywords and hashtags, it's another way for new people to find you.
Once they find you and like your content, then they often sign up on your email list, follow you on your blog, website, and social channels.
Better yet, they will hire you to do something or buy something from you because they liked your content and learned something new.
Just like your work output, everything you create should be of the highest quality to validate your worth and expertise.
IT ALL STARTS WITH TRUST
Ultimately, building your business starts with trust. By people trusting you, they will buy from you. A way to establish that trust is by putting content out there that shows you are who you say you are. You really look the way you do, (yes, use video too), and prove that you know your sh*t.
And PS - that last word there is the perfect word to drive home my point so I had to write it. Sorry, not sorry.
Until next time,
Keverne Denahan
Luxury Copywriter & Brand Expert
Copyright © Keverne Denahan 2021