Thought leadership rests not only on becoming an authority in your own business but also being able to communicate your expertise to a wider audience.
Thought leaders are specialists in their arena of expertise and as such are able to answer the complex questions which are always present in a company. These questions, and the solutions, will ultimately lead to success or failure of a company when it is looked at in terms of the bottom line. If thought leaders are answering the complex questions as to how to best lead the company forward, it enable everyone within the group to be heading in the same direction.
In addition, thought leadership is also about answering your customers’ questions, garnering respect and in the process building the brand.
Who Are Thought Leaders?
A thought leader can be anyone who is a trusted professional and who is known for their high level of expertise. Ultimately they inspire others with their ideas and they turn these innovations into reality. People whether employees or fans are keen to not only follow them but to collaborate on any level to bring about change.
How Does Thought Leadership Benefit a Company?
Employee Engagement
One of the key factors in thought leadership is not only being able to gain a level of employee engagement but also being able to retain that engagement over a longer timeframe. BergHind Joseph defines employee engagement as an individual’s commitment to a company, its goals and its values. This can only take place if employees have respect for the upper levels of management and the direction in which these leaders are taking the company.
Recruitment
If a company has a strong presence and generates powerful content it becomes much easier to attract talented staff who want to engage with such a forward thinking employer. As we have discussed, thought leaders also recognize the importance of retaining their employees’ engagement over the long haul. This is even felt in issues such as ensuring that staff needs are met in the office and as Skyline Offices ‘Guide to Serviced Offices in London’ shows, this comes down to a multitude of factors, including: location, prestigious address, suitable equipment and above all pleasant working conditions
Building a Brand
When a person or group of people within a business or organization are recognized as thought leaders it is easier for the wider audience to gain an understanding of what is on offer. This is hugely helpful in marketing as it assists with brand affinity. Building a brand also encompasses these strategic areas:
Public Relations: Positioning in the market is easier if you are writing your own story on a continuous basis. In addition, because consumers in today’s marketplace prefer to do their own research rather than be sold to, the content generated in the thought leadership process answers many of their questions.
Social Media Marketing: Thought leadership should be on display in all your marketing efforts including social media. You can build trust by engaging with your audience and ultimately building relationships with your potential clients.
Branding: If you have strong thought leaders within your business this can help shape the brand and humanize the business in the eyes of the wider world. Consumers want to communicate with people, not a faceless company and personalizing the brand can help achieve that.
One of the strongest examples of thought leadership working so successfully is Sir Richard Branson taking the Virgin Group to ever higher success. Branson became the first thought leader to pass the million follower mark on LinkedIn in 2012 and his own personal brand of influence shows no signs of slowing down.
