Building thought leadership increasingly has become amongst the most crucial activities within inbound marketing. In order to get your customers to look for you, you must build a name for yourself which reflects your experience in your field. It isn’t always simple for an entrepreneur to generate additional opportunities to highlight yourself, yet by utilizing content it is possible to assist in boosting your profile within a cost-effective manner. Therefore, how will you set up your own degree of thought leadership with the available technology today?
1. Build a Presence on the Internet
The initial thing that potential clients do as they hear your name or meet you includes Googling you. If you do not possess a solid presence online, they are likely to move on to the competition. Begin by developing a site which will make use of SEO best practices, which allows you to build the personal brand and image which you have a desire to project. Add an article hub or blog to your website, in which you are able to regularly add new content to increase your profile. Next, establish a different personal blog in which it is possible to directly speak with readers and develop an individual brand which concentrates on your company.
2. Regularly Publish
The reason why content marketing will work so well is due to it helping to get the site indexed in search. If the website comes up as prospective clients search for your services or product, individuals are more likely to be familiar with and recall your name. Every time you update your blog or site, Google takes an additional look at you and highlights you another time for users browsing for relevant keywords; therefore, it is important to follow a consistent schedule for publishing.
3. Get Name Out There
Publishing content underneath the name ‘Admin’ or your company’s brand does not set you up as an authority. All it will do is provide you a persona in order to hide behind! What will happen if you leave and go to somewhere else or you rename your company? To actually create a solid thought leader profile, you must feature whatever’s published in your own name. It may be obvious on your personal blog, yet businesses oftentimes do not have a desire to risk having people comment on their behalf.
4. Claim Google Authorship
It’s possible to additionally get your name out into your market by establishing an active profile on Google+, as well as claiming Google Authorship. Not just will it build credibility of your profile online, yet it will establish your ownership over the posted content. If there is ever a question concerning plagiarism, the truth that your name is on something assists Google in determining what version is the original one. Plus, if you spend time on the Google Plus profile, the more ‘circles’ you’re in, the higher the profile ranks within Google—and in turn, the more likely the posts will be to turn up within results as users browse relevant keywords.
5. Create a Body of Work
It isn’t enough to merely publish blog posts within your name, either. In order to be recognized as a thought leader, it’s important to create a broad array of content which you have authored, which include:
- podcasts or video clips of yourself talking about the issues of importance or being interviewed for comments.
- Infographics highlighting statistics associated with your topic and carrying your company’s logo.
- eBooks which cover your subject of expertise.
- A guest post on other websites in which you are recognized as an authority.
The body of work is going to turn up beneath your name as a user browses you, spotlighting your degree of involvement within all facets of your field.
6. Do Public Service Engagements
There isn’t any better way to get the content out there than to offer it for free; however, it’s possible to make that a viable business practice, as well. You can volunteer to speak at colleges and schools in your area about your field. Present seminars and workshops at your Small Business Centre or Chamber of Commerce, and be certain to publicize the fact that you are doing this. Take part in Internet discussions like industry forums and LinkedIn groups. Provide advice and respond to queries in a non-marketing manner, in order to promote your image as a leader within your industry.
