How to become a thought leader for your business

Thought leadership is the expression of ideas by executives and business leaders who are recognised as authoritative and ‘go-to‘ people in their industry.

Thought leaders are informed and trusted sources of information. They move and inspire others through their ideas, expertise, and success.

And the more well-known and credible you are in your industry, the more likely you are to be contacted by journalists wanting comment or insight.

What is thought leadership in PR?

As a thought leader, you are recognised as the ‘go-to’ person to comment and provide insight on stories relevant to your industry. Through this media exposure, thought leaders generate positive publicity for themselves as well as for their business. This can be in the form of proactive as well as reactive PR.

It’s vital exposure that helps to build your credibility as a trusted source of information in your industry.

Thought leadership provides individuals status and authority with the power to persuade and influence. This is extremely valuable for businesses as thought leadership helps to build brand awareness. It is also essential in delivering key messages (especially in a crisis).

How to become a thought leader

Becoming a thought leader is rarely a quick process. It can take several months or even years to establish yourself as a credible and trusted industry expert. It requires time, patience, commitment, and dedication, as well as education.

You need to possess a depth of knowledge no one else has or know how to deliver that information in a way that suits journalists and their audiences.

To be a reliable source of information, you need to be able to offer insights and valuable perspectives that can successfully influence or educate others. You also need to look for opportunities to do this often and be ready to respond quickly, particularly when journalists call seeking your ‘expert’ opinion.

To establish yourself as a thought leader, you should regularly deliver authentic and genuine content, whether it be through research, industry publications, newsletters, earned media stories, social media posts and articles, and if the opportunity arises, as a public speaker. By putting yourself in the spotlight and making yourself readily available, you can develop a community or network. This provides you with a platform to grow into a leader people can trust.

Becoming a thought leader requires more than being an expert or knowledgeable in a particular field. Good thought leaders work to cultivate effective leadership behaviours, they recognise others to create unity in teams, and value open communication.

What is the value of thought leadership?

Many business leaders and executives aspire to become thought leaders, to offer guidance and insight to those around them. But, the value of thought leadership, in terms of PR, is the way it can generate positive publicity for yourself as well as for your business. By setting yourself apart to become an expert in your industry, you can start attracting attention to yourself and your company, and the branding opportunities are strong.

Thought leaders are also often mentors who inspire others to innovate. They encourage forward thinking to help promote their industry as a whole.

At Adoni Media, our expert team of PR and corporate communication specialists coaches our clients on how to become thought leaders, and strategises the release of articles, media releases, media alerts and other opportunities for media coverage to build momentum. By positioning clients as the ‘go-to’ spokesperson in their industry for the media, we have created experts who secure national media coverage and raise awareness, with their media appearances reaching millions of Australians.

To learn more about how thought leadership could support your PR strategy, reach out to our team.