There can be more than one reason why a business may want to establish itself as a thought leader in its industry. Some of the most common reasons include attracting warm leads, building trust and credibility, and humanizing the firm.
No matter the reason, one thing is certain – it is indispensable for a brand to grow itself as a thought leader. A study found that 70% of the surveyed C-suite agreed that a partner brand’s thought leadership made them reconsider their vendor relationships.
The process toward effective thought leadership may be a gradual and painstaking one, but it is always well worth it. In case you find it too challenging, this article will help. We will discuss three useful tips to establish your brand as an industry thought leader.
Build a Thought Leader Website
The first place to start building thought leadership is familiar ground, which means your business website. A shocking study discovered that 27% of businesses still do not have a well-optimized website. This is especially true of small businesses with a modest client base.
The truth is that you can only grow your client base exponentially when potential customers see your brand as a thought leader. In case you can count yourself among the 27%, start by building a business website.
No, we are not implying that you must drain your pockets for web development. Even if you have no coding skills, there is hope. According to Hocoos, you can consider working with a website builder that uses the potential of Artificial Intelligence (AI) to build websites within seconds.
You can customize the site based on your business’ logo colors, tone of voice, etc. Even the layout can be adjusted as per your desire. However, to build thought leadership, you must ensure your website content strategy is on point.
For instance – set up a content calendar and create valuable blogs, industry reports, videos, etc. on a regular basis. Furthermore, you must engage with your audience by encouraging them to comment, share, and like the posts. This way, your website will have more credibility and you can grow a loyal following.
Highlight Your Area of Expertise
Your qualifications for being a good thought leader is to focus on core areas of deep expertise. Some businesses make the fatal mistake of jumping onto the bandwagon of a trendy term or phrase. Your aim should be to communicate areas of expertise clearly so that your audience knows what to expect.
Start by asking yourself which areas in business have been your greatest accomplishments. You can use your journey of growth as a model to help businesses that are walking down the same path. Consider the experience and knowledge you have gained through –
- Your specific career growth
- Changes and shifts that took place within your industry
- Industry trends and upcoming technologies
- Solving extremely complex business challenges
- Dealing with difficult stakeholders
Once you know these, it’s time to understand how your expertise connects with your audience’s pain points. For instance – you may be targeting prospects that wish to shorten their company’s sales cycles. That’s when you realize that you have solid experience in dealing with brands with similar pain points.
That’s your platform! Connect with these prospects and outline four to five stories that showcase your expertise in shortening sales cycles.
Make Announcements, Share News, and Celebrate
Another way you can establish yourself as a thought leader within your industry is to be 100% transparent with your audience. This will build trust and improve market credibility. You can make this happen by sharing important announcements regarding your firm.
For instance – if your brand opens up new locations or you acquire almostfamouscast a new one, consider sharing the news through press releases. As you invite your audience to be a part of your company’s growth and success, your company becomes more human and accessible.
Want to take transparency to the next level? Use your blog to discuss the reasons behind major business decisions. That way, you get to share in the success of your business partners and customers. As you do that, you will appear as more than just a vendor before your customers’ eyes.
It has been predicted that the business landscape will become more challenging than ever in 2024 and beyond. Some of the top drivers will be inflationary pressures, the growing ESG model, and rigorous digital transformation.
If you successfully establish your business as a thought leader now, it will become easier to handle the complex landscape. If not, you may struggle to stay afloat and gain a competitive edge. So, apply the three strategies mentioned in this article and emerge as an almostfamouss industry thought leader.
