Is thought leadership just hype, or can it deliver material benefits?
You might be wondering how thought leaders can help your business. Let’s reflect on what thought leadership is.
At its core, thought leadership involves tapping some of the best and brightest minds to answer our biggest business challenges. Thought leaders are often the catalyst for innovation and can dramatically influence business success. And despite several years of publicity about thought leadership, interest is still rising according to Google search trend data.
Of course, thought leaders often become sought-after speakers and writers. Unfortunately, some of marketing’s most influential leaders are no longer with us: David Ogilvy, for instance, “The consumer is not a moron”, and Rosser Reeves, who invented the concept of the “unique selling proposition.” Such themes remain just as relevant in today’s world of marketing automation.
Fortunately, many respected thought leaders remain active and are producing remarkable amounts of useful content. These luminaries include Simon Sinek, Seth Godin, and Malcolm Gladwell.
Especially relevant here is that marketing must echo emerging trends in order for creativity to achieve return-on-investment. That challenge is more difficult than it looks because content gets measured in terms of views, amplification, and sales. It doesn’t matter how creative your work is, marketing success is ultimately quantitative and therefore driven by measurement.
It stands to reason that thought leaders can help our success by sharing insights and innovative ways of thinking.
Are you following your thought leaders?
