How a Start-up Can Enact Thought Leadership
Business executives and other decision-makers know just how significant it is to get recognized as an authority in their industry. That's particularly true for executives at unicorns that want to set themselves apart in a crowded marketplace.
Notable unicorns that took advantage of market gaps to become leaders include Zoom Video Communications, DocuSign, and Shopify. These companies leveraged thought leadership to offer solutions that no one else had conceived before, even in their early years. It helped to establish them as leaders in their respective industries.
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Why Should You Become a Thought Leader?
Establishing your startup as a thought leader in your industry has numerous benefits. These include:
Reinforcing your brand name by focusing on topics relevant to your business
Establishing credibility and trust with potential clients by speaking confidently about topics they're invested in
Enhancing your SEO strategy through content and topics related to target keywords
Boosting lead generation using organic and reliable attention-getters that drive the target audience into your sales funnel
A thought leader doesn't follow trends but defines and creates them. An easy way to do that is by being at the apex of their area of expertise and building an audience interested in learning more about different topics.
Enacting Thought Leadership at Your Start-up
Becoming a thought leader doesn't happen overnight, especially for startups. It takes time to enact thought leadership and establish yourself as an authority in your industry. Here's how to go about it:
Identify Your Area of Expertise
Enacting thought leadership entails focusing on a specific niche that isn't too occupied by many other experts claiming the same credentials and experience as you. As a startup, you don't want to be in a space crowded with more established brands. It will hamper your chances of becoming a thought leader in your industry because the more established brands already have a significant following.
For this reason, it's best to limit yourself to your industry and identify a specific niche you're good at. Consider the topics you're passionate about, and then explore them as your potential niche. These topics are a sweet spot since the learning curve won't be too steep if you focus on them. The niche you identify should also be relevant to your target audience.
Identify Your Channels for Providing Thought Leadership
A new business can only enact thought leadership successfully if it identifies the most suitable content creation channels. Regardless of how good you are, you won't come out as an authoritative voice in your industry if you don't use the most suitable platforms to push your content out. Ideally, you should start with one or two channels where your content originates before exploring other options as you scale.
Dozens of options are available to you, but success only comes if you identify those that will help you share your thoughts with as many people as possible. Some of the channels you can leverage to establish yourself as a global business leader include:
Your company blog: Directly links to the organization and is a convenient way to gain customers.
Podcasting: The medium of choice for most of today's start-up entrepreneurs and thought leaders in the business world.
YouTube: The platform is an excellent alternative for thought leaders who prefer expressing themselves in audiovisual form rather than the written word.
These are just some of the mediums you can use to enact thought leadership and help your start-up grow. You should use them as the starting point and hub for the content you intend to create. Once you start gaining a following, you may choose to branch out to other channels and repurpose your content for dissemination across multiple platforms.
Find and Distinguish Your Voice
Startups that want to enact thought leadership need to be unique. Besides creating a niche, they also need to identify and speak in a unique voice that helps them stand out from the crowd. Doing so also enables them to connect with the target audience at a personal level.
It's best to consider whether your audience will identify with the voice you intend to use and what the voice will look like for you. Will it make you sound casual or professional? Does it help you to connect with the target audience?
Always use authoritative language and voice in your quest to enact thought leadership because being casual can cast aspersions on your expertise. As you create your content, stay consistent with the voice you use.
Be Consistent in Content Creation
As a thought leader in your industry, you need to create content consistently. A couple of articles, podcasts, or videos won't cut it regardless of their relevance to the target audience. You need to go all-out and create a reliable and consistent flow of content for your audience to enjoy. The end goal is to build your followers' expectations to the point where they always look forward to your content.
It's advisable to publish new content related to your niche at least once weekly. Avoid going through the dark spells whereby you don't post anything because you'll lose touch with your followers. Instead, find a way to build your core channel into a constant stream of content to satisfy and delight your followers and keep them coming back.
Focus on Value Rather Than Brand Promotion
Growing a start-up and enacting thought leadership concurrently can be a challenge. Indeed, your company needs to grow and break even. Likewise, you'll want to establish yourself as a thought leader from the get-go. As you start to gain a loyal following, the temptation to tell them about your business may creep in.
After all, shouldn't you tell your followers about your company and the value propositions linked to the industry they're invested in? Well, this can be your greatest undoing and may even make you lose your captive audience. Thought leadership should be your top priority because it allows you to promote your startup subtly.
You get to showcase your expertise through actual value, which helps you gain and maintain a captive audience. By focusing on value rather than business promotion, promoting your startup will be easier and more effective. It allows you to gain your followers' trust. Ultimately, they'll seek out your business without you having to push them.
Network Actively
You shouldn't also forget to network within your industry. It boosts your industry presence, thereby enabling you to build your brand. Attending conferences, networking events, seminars, and similar events allows you to interact with other industry leaders, find mentors, and learn from them. The Think Global Forum is one such event because it will enable you to meet other thought leaders and learn from their unique perspectives.
Key Takeaway: Become a Thought Leader
As you build your startup, the most significant challenge is establishing yourself as a thought leader in your industry. Fortunately, you're not on your own because we are here to help. We bring together industry leaders with specialist sector knowledge through our Think Global Forum events and summits. You can tap into their extensive knowledge to become a global business leader and grow your startup. Register your interest to join the Think Global Forum.