When marketers think of thought leadership, there are names rather than ideas, that tend to spring to mind.
Gary Vaynerchuk, Seth Godin, Neil Patel and a plethora of LinkedIn leaders are likely to be the most common, and that's because they have carved a niche out for themselves within the market, sharing their expertise which thousands now consider to be gospel.
It should be ideas that are at the forefront of the thought process, however, as thought leadership can be a great way to accelerate your organic digital performance - and set your brand apart from others within your industry.
Thought leadership is a type of content that offers genuine opinion and an authentic viewpoint, through using expertise and insight that is unique to the author, or thought leader.
This content creates value for both the thought leader and the user consuming it. Thought leadership is about the author being a subject matter expert - someone deeply knowledgeable about what they are talking about - and leveraging that knowledge to provide influence.
While the user can enjoy all of the knowledge being shared, the expert can reinforce their knowledge by doing extra research during their writing process.
According to SEMrush, 65% of businesses are already including thought leadership as part of their strategy - but what are the benefits that can come with producing this kind of content?
There are a number of benefits that come with producing regular thought leadership.
The most prominent is improving brand awareness, putting your business at the forefront of a user's mind and ahead of your competitors. By writing informative content, you gain exposure to potential customers who will trust you more as you're sharing your expertise. Every issue you can solve helps to boost your brand, and when you're providing valuable insight, consumers feel better about buying from you.
Thought leadership can also create opportunities for your business. Let's use Martin Lewis, The Money Expert, as an example. If he were to own a bank, his expertise on saving money and financial decisions would be likely to bring in custom for his bank as he is a trusted expert in this area. Trust is key, especially for younger generations - so if you say you're an eco-conscious brand and then produce eco-conscious thought leadership, you're helping to amplify that trust.
Organic performance can also see positive results through the use of thought leadership.
Thought leadership should be a consistent part of an ongoing, thriving SEO and Content Marketing strategy, and can also provide value as part of Digital PR and Outreach activity.
While the content produced can have relevant keyword research produced and support with picking up rankings, Google may also reward creators for creating useful, intelligent content that users come to as a learning opportunity (alongside backlink opportunities for those working in PR).
"We all, as consumers, want reassurance that the organisations we're buying goods or receiving services from are specialists. Thought leadership provides the perfect platform for businesses to spotlight the expertise within their organisations.
"From a digital marketing perspective, it's also a content format that can demonstrate the qualities represented in Google's E-E-A-T (Experience, Expertise, Authoritativeness and Trustworthiness) concept. Thought leadership enables businesses to confidently shape, steer and lead the conversation within their commercial niche - rather than just be a participant.
"Although E-E-A-T is not a ranking factor, it encapsulates what great content should offer users. When done well, thought leadership ticks these boxes, highlighting expert knowledge, authority within the sector and why consumers should trust an organisation - elements when combined deliver the best user experience."
"Thought leadership has become a necessity in the modern age of marketing. As a simple Google search demonstrates, the top 10 results for most keywords tend to be variations of the same thing - so to stand out you have to have a unique perspective on the topic.
"With any contact marketing strategy, Google's E-E-A-T framework has got to be top of mind. One of the best ways to demonstrate your authority on a given topic to both Google and users is to showcase authors with credible backgrounds that have written content on the topic. This is also useful for PR as journalists are more likely to link to a brand with a credible, named author, rather than a faceless one.
"Consumers are moving more towards trusting people rather than entities - so thought leadership can help to propel a personal platform and a business at a same time. A great showcase of this is the 'Prime' energy drink, which relies heavily on the social credibility of Olajide Olatunji (KSI) and Logan Paul.
"This doesn't just work in the influencer space, and many businesses start as an extension of someone's personal brand. As marketers and business owners continue to compete over consumer attention, it is those that have a unique perspective that caters to a specific audience that are going to win."
Karim Adib, Digital PR & Outreach Specialist
There are various types of thought leadership content that you can create, from articles and blog posts, video, webinars, eBooks and whitepapers, and podcasts. Speaking at live events is another option, but tracking the return on this is a lot less tangible.
Written content is a great place to start, and this can be done in various formats - a blog post, an interview, or perhaps even a ghost-written piece from someone more au fait with content marketing.
Alternatively, one of our content experts could work alongside you and an integrated team to set out a thought leadership strategy for your business, before a PR expert amplifies your voice across the digital landscape.
Get in touch with a member of the team today to learn more.