How to increase your status as a thought leader

Many people want to be a thought leader in their industry; after all, thought leaders are the ones people flock to for guidance and advice. Thought leaders set themselves apart from their competition and position themselves as experts in their field; they build credibility and typically have a dedicated following. How do you become a thought leader?

Teamwork

Many industry leaders do not become thought leaders by themselves; it is often a group effort. Thought leaders do not gain their titles by bestowing them upon themselves; it is something that they earn by connecting with and adding value to their target audience. They do this by preparing regular content, working with a team, and demonstrating their value. 

Use your marketing or PR team to help you create content and connect with your target audience. Interact with your target audience to gain insight about what value you can offer them to gain more credibility.

Be Unique

Your business, your content, and your brand are unique because of you. Thought leaders are known for being authentic and true to their cause; keep that in mind when you are developing a plan to position yourself as a thought leader. Stay true to your values and deliver insights that are aligned with your beliefs and your business. 

Do not be afraid to be different; offer your audience new insights, ideas, points of view, and fresh content. Once you have positioned yourself as a thought leader, you will need to continue to cultivate this unique atmosphere to increase your thought leadership.

It is all about ideas

Being a thought leader requires you to have insightful thoughts and share them in intriguing ways. These can be new, experimental, or a little out there, but these ideas are what will propel you into thought leadership. Again, this takes teamwork; utilize the experts around you to formulate ideas and work together to bring new concepts to your industry.

Utilizing media

Media coverage increases your thought leadership by helping you gain exposure and instant credibility. It will increase your visibility and get your message to more people. Being a thought leader involves taking bold stances and introducing new dialogues; media outlets are always looking to cover what is new and what is big!

Having your new ideas featured in the media will help you stand out from the crowd and position you as an expert. You will have social proof that your ideas are valuable and create impactful growth in your thought leadership.

Bringing it all together

You have the ideas, you have the team, and you have your authentic message; how do you put all those pieces together and turn yourself into a thought leader? Be authentic in your messaging, be creative, and own it! Dive a layer deeper into your industry and ask yourself these questions:

• Is there a problem I can solve?
• Who can I help with my leadership?
• What is something new I can deliver to my industry?
• How can media relationships increase my thought leadership?

Positioning yourself as a thought leader in your industry is something that you earn through knowing your audience, having an authentic message, and delivering fresh ideas and insights. Making yourself visible and available to your audience, the media, and the public will help you deliver your ideas and cultivate a new experience for those following you!