Do you ever think about the thought leaders in your niche. Have you ever considered how they got there?
Expertise? Hard work? Luck?
While these three elements do come into play, the number one reason these people have a great share of voice is that they worked out how to get noticed for the right reasons. They learned how to put themselves in the right place at the right time. And they knew exactly which tools to leverage.
You have the skills, expertise, and acumen to be a leader in your field and this article is going to show you how to get there. Here’s how to establish authority as a thought leader in your field.
How To Be a Thought Leader
5 Simple Ways To Get Started
In this post, award-winning copywriter and brand consultant, Hisham Wyne gives his thoughts on what it takes to become a Thought Leader!
#1 Find your platforms
One golden rule of thought leadership is that you can’t wait for people to find you. You must find them. Social media, blogging, and media appearances are both incredible opportunities to build a following from the ground up. Worried that you’ll be starting out with nothing? That’s how everyone started.
– Blogging
Begin by building a blog. Blogs are a fantastic way to present different types of content that will provide people with really valuable insights, actionable tips, and useful advice. You can provide ‘How to’ posts, Q&As, short-form blogs featuring insider tips, long-form content that explains the ins and outs of a topic, case studies, and more.
What form or forms of content marketing you go for will depend on your target audience. Why not take a look at what others are doing in your field and see what is getting the most social shares?
Related Post: Beginners guide to blogging.
– Social media
Speaking of social, you also need to build a presence across social media. Social media is fun, bitesize and needn’t take up too much of your time if you use some of the nifty tools for scheduling posts across multiple platforms. Best of all, it’s free.
Once again, the platforms you choose will depend on where the audience you want to reach is. See your chosen platforms as a community. As well as posting your own insights and sharing your content, you should aim to contribute widely across the community. Actively engage with other influencers, and like and share the posts of others.
Very quickly, people will start to notice you as consistently active, engaged and thoughtful. Before long, you have a much greater following of your own.
– Media appearances
There is absolutely nothing stopping you from pitching yourself to well-known websites, news media, and other influencers, especially once you have a significant following and want to grow it further. Do you have something pertinent and current to say? Can you offer their audiences something new and different?
You will likely get several knockbacks before someone takes you up on your offer. It’s worth persisting, however. This is because one opportunity nearly always leads to many more.
#2 Let your passion and enthusiasm shine through in all you say and write
Passion and enthusiasm are everything for a thought leader. If you are going to talk about one topic and resonate with your audience every time, you must believe in what you are saying and doing.
You’ll find yourself repeating your messages many times. As a future thought leader, you are destined to give many speeches, lectures, and interviews, as well as write many blogs and social posts on a single topic. To stay relevant and engaging, you must come across as passionate about this topic at all times.
#3 Don’t be shy.
Thought Leaders are not shy!
Once you start to get noticed, don’t hide away from telling people about your achievements. Been featured in a local newspaper or magazine? Then tell your social media followers. Made an appearance on a tv channel? Then make sure it’s noted on your website.
All this gives you more social proof and traction for your ideas when the next producer or journalist comes looking for insight on your topic. Every achievement builds on the last and helps more opportunities come your way.
#4 Ask for help if necessary
We all have different skill sets. If writing isn’t your thing or social media is not one of your greatest talents, then there are plenty of people out there ready and willing to help. A freelance copywriting service can provide their expertise and craft many kinds of copy, including blogs, newsletters, and website content, for you. They know exactly how to create compelling, audience-centric, and valuable written content.
If you don’t have the time or inclination to learn to be a writer, you don’t have to. Any investment you make in copywriting or social media services will be richly rewarded by vastly improving your engagement figures.
#5 Stay focused and committed always!
Finally, remember that overnight success is unlikely to happen. Stay focused on your goals and be prepared for it to take a little time. The rewards are only possible if you remain resolved and are there ready and waiting when the best opportunities come along.
This is how many of today’s thought leaders have made it, and it’s how you will too.
Related: How to write a book and become a Thought Leader
Final Thought…
First get the right people on the bus, the wrong people off the bus, and the right people in the right seats, and then they can figure out where to drive it.
— Jim Collins, Good to Great