Thought leadership is not a new concept. Thought leaders are unafraid to climb to new heights and turn ideas into reality. From Confucius to Mahatma Gandhi, to Brene Brown, all of the big change-makers in history are examples of influential thought leaders and visionaries. These go-to industry experts are the big movers and shakers that shaped the world as we know it. Inbound is all about creating value for your audience in an authentic way. Thought leaders embrace the beauty of inbound by doing just that. They influence innovation and inspire people to look at the world from a new perspective through their expertise.  

“A visionary is a leader of excellence who sees what others do not see, who achieves for now and plans for the future, who positively impacts different generations and raises up other visionaries.” - Onyi Anyado

 

Definition of Thought Leadership

Many professionals strive to be thought leaders, but what exactly does that mean? Joel Kurtzman, then editor-in-chief of Booz Allen Hamilton's Strategy & Business Magazine coined this term in 1994 to describe people who had business ideas that deserved attention. Thought leadership in its purest form is the expression of new ideas and perspectives based on expertise. It requires you to take a step back from your business agenda and focus on learning. The best thought leaders go about their lives collecting little pieces from their experiences and molding them into a sculpture of unique insight that inspires others. In order to continue to develop new insight, it’s important to keep consuming other thought leaders' material. Read that new book, go to the networking event, listen to that podcast, and explore whatever experiences and information you can. Being a lifelong learner is a trait that all successful thought leaders and creatives share.

The Importance of Thought Leadership

Creating value, building knowledge, and taking a stand allows you to establish your credibility and authority. As you establish your business through thought leadership, more people will start to care about what you have to say. 65% of buyers say thought leadership changed the perception of a company, for the better, due to a piece of thought leadership. Including valuable opinions, research, and data naturally encourages your audience to promote and engage with your content. Actions really do speak louder than words when it comes to thought leadership. Your audience doesn’t just want to hear about what you’re capable of, they want to see it being implemented. Over 64% of buyers say that an organization's thought leadership content is a more trustworthy basis for assessing its capabilities and competency than its marketing materials and product sheets. Thought leadership not only strengthens your brand image but also helps you make a real impact on your industry and the world.

Find Your Niche

Being an intellectual is great, but when you can relate your knowledge to a niche part of your industry it’s a whole other level of genius. Your audience is here for it too, 67% of people prefer content written by an identifiable, named author-expert expressing their own point of view, rather than a generic brand voice expressing neutral beliefs. If you want to establish your brand and credibility in your field, you need to focus on a niche area of your industry. You can’t do or be it all, you have to dive deep into specific topics. Identify gaps in industry knowledge and add a new perspective that people haven’t heard before. Talk about what you know. Focus on what you’re passionate about and what your toolbox best equips you to talk about.

Share Your Thoughts

Successful thought leaders not only have a deep knowledge of their subject area, they are also passionate about it. Most decision-makers say that less than half of the thought leadership they consume gives them valuable insights. When asked why this thought leadership fails to connect, 46% said it was too focused on selling, 40% said it was unoriginal or lacked new ideas, 31% said it was authored by non-experts, and 31% said it was too corporate. Quality thought leadership stems from the desire to share your expertise with others. In order to truly accomplish this you have to take a step back from your business agenda. Successful thought leaders are unafraid to think outside the box. With that being said, 64% of business executives said they’d rather have thought leadership that has “a more human, less formal tone of voice” over thought leadership that had “an even-toned, intellectual voice.” Embracing authenticity as a thought leader is about telling your story in a transparent way. Most thought leaders are storytellers, which helps them build connections and relate to the audience. Sharing strong opinions within these stories helps your audience see you as a real person.

Build Connections

Building connections with other thought leaders and sharing your insights expands your knowledge and increases your visibility as a thought leader. Develop relationships with influential industry leaders through events, conferences, content collaborations, and public speaking. These relationships will help expand your network and audience. What’s the point of telling your story and sharing your insights if no one is listening? Whether it’s your content or you are making a guest appearance, it’s important choosing the most effective content formats. Establishing key performance indicators (KPIs) for thought leadership marketing and tracking metrics to measure success can help you determine what content is working for you and adjust your strategy accordingly.

The Perfect Combination: Influence and Expertise

Take some of the greatest contemporary thought leaders, Oprah, Steve Jobs, and Mark Zuckerburg, who have used their expertise to build their empires. Using social media platforms and other popular channels to share their insight and expand their reach is what makes them world-class entrepreneurs. By coupling influence and expertise, they were able to stretch their capacity far outside their original niches.

We’ve all seen the value behind influence over the past few years. The data doesn’t lie. Over 93% of Millennials have made a purchase based on a recommendation from friends and family, and 89% of Millennials trust these recommendations more than they do the claims of the brand itself. Influencers are everywhere, from social media to your local community, to politicians, to even just within your close-knit group of friends. Anyone who people look to for recommendations or advice is a thought leader of sorts. But why do people ask specific people for recommendations and advice depending on the topic? You guessed it. It’s because they have an additional level of expertise that others find to be valuable. For instance, you wouldn’t ask someone who’s never been to Scottsdale Arizona for local recommendations of the area, or someone who’s never been to Starbucks for a drink recommendation.

That being said, influence may not be the whole story behind thought leadership, but it is strongly rooted in its foundation. When you couple influence and expertise, the sky's the limit. Becoming a thought leader doesn’t happen overnight, it starts today and bears fruit further down the road. Growing your influence and experience takes hard work and dedication, so be patient. Connecting pieces of your experiences and knowledge helps you become an influential and cutting-edge thought leader.

In its purest form, thought leadership consists of genuine insight that cuts through the clutter and has a real, lasting impact on the audience. Leveraging thought leadership in your industry will work wonders for your business. Fortune 100 executives estimate the ROI of thought leadership today to be around $3.6 million a year. From sales to marketing, when you establish your position as a trusted and insightful industry leader, your reach, engagement, and revenue will reap the benefits.