“Are we there yet?”
That might be what you’re asking yourself if you’ve been ramping up your thought leadership efforts—and seeing little progress. The problem is, everyone else is driving in the same lane as you, making it harder to reach your common destination.
This doesn’t mean it’s impossible for you to become an “expert of experts”. It just means you have to strike out in different directions if you want to stand out. In other words, you can’t just publish a few LinkedIn articles and call it a day. You have to think bolder, bigger, and broader when it comes to saturating the market with your thought leadership know-how.
Not quite sure how to get a significant boost that will propel you forward into the public eye? Try one or more of the following suggestions. They’ll help you position yourself as a go-getter and guru.
1. Share exclusively obtained information.
Knowledge workers flock to knowledge, especially the new and original. People all over the Internet are hungry for new statistics and data to talk about. Why not feed that hunger and fuel your thought leadership at the same time? This can be done by investing in studies, reports, and surveys related to your field. After you receive and extract the findings, you can package them any way you like and then make them public. You’ll get a nice thought leadership nod as well as have proprietary information to talk about.
For instance, consider the data-driven webinar platform, Hubilo. The company recently commissioned research from Forrester Consulting. The research focused on the digital event planning world from tech, finance, and healthcare marketers’ perspectives. Hubilo was able to distribute the exclusive insights and findings, attract new audiences, and further solidify its place as an industry expert.
You don’t have to partner with a powerhouse like Forrester, though. You can conduct studies of your own or even use the results of poll features on social media. The goal is that you’re pushing out insightful and up-to-date statistics that no other thought leader or organization provides.
2. Expand your outreach in new directions.
Maybe you’ve been working on your thought leadership strategy for a while now. Are you seeing less and less traction? Have you reached a plateau? These are both signs that you may need to spice things up a bit. Fortunately, you have numerous directions you can go to add more saturation to your thought leadership campaign.
Take podcasting. If you haven’t tried it yet, you still have time to get in the game. Sure, there are millions of podcasts out there. But there are also millions of listeners. In fact, podcast listenership keeps increasing. Pew Research shows that nearly one-third of Americans above the age of 11 said they’d heard a podcast the week before. As long as you have something to say, go for it. Setting up a podcast studio at your home or office doesn’t need to break the budget.
Not sure you’re ready to play talk show host? Creating videos may be more your speed. Though starring in a thought leadership video is similar to podcasting, the format can be more flexible. Either way, be sure to promote all your new outreach via channels like email marketing initiatives and social media posts.
3. Offer to share your expertise as a speaker
Most event planners will tell you that it can be like pulling teeth to get great, eager speakers for conferences. Why? Maybe it’s because around one-fifth of people experience stage fright that’s bad enough to cause them public speaking anxiety. Perhaps it’s just that some professionals are too busy. Regardless, you can be the hero by offering to share your insider tips.
You may not be able to snag a coveted keynote speaker role, at least at first. That’s fine. You can work your way up. Applying to be a TEDx speaker at local events or hosting a workshop will give you credibility from the start. From there, you can leverage your authority into other speaking opportunities.
Just be sure to take lots of time to prepare for every speaking engagement. A general rule is to polish and practice for around an hour for every couple of minutes that you’ll be in front of a crowd. Remember that you’ll want to be as much an “expert” as “entertainer.” Great speakers learn how to tap into their inner storytellers. The more authentic you can be, the more your audience will appreciate you—and want to hear more later. That’ll make it simpler to become a part of a speaker’s bureau if you desire.
4. Write and publish a book.
There’s an old belief that everyone has a book inside of them. Whether or not that’s true may be up for debate. Nevertheless, if you’re itching to share your skills and expertise with others, a book may be the perfect vehicle.
Unless you’re a natural author, you’ll probably want to hook up with someone who can help you map out your ideas into a traditional book. Hiring a writer (or a team of writers) doesn’t make you inferior. It means you’ll spend less time dealing with the nuts and bolts of putting your book together.
The nicest aspect of having a book is that it gives you instant status. “Would you like a copy of my book?” isn’t something every thought leader can say. Being one of the few who can will allow you to be an inch above your counterparts without literary aspirations. Once you have your book, you can sell it at conferences and online, or give it away as swag. Whatever works to get you noticed.
The road to thought leadership isn’t just for people who are smart and well-informed. It’s for people who are willing to be creative, too. The next time you feel like you’ve “done everything” to get thought leader momentum, ask yourself if you’ve overlooked some possibilities. Chances are strong that you may be just an extra effort or two away from kicking your thought leadership into high gear.
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