Business Writing Tips for Aspiring Thought Leaders
A few years back, consultant Elise Bauer introduced me to the term thought leader, which she defines as “a recognized leader in one’s field.” Bauer says that this recognition comes when “the outside world” acknowledges you for freely and generously sharing your intelligence and expertise to meet the needs of your clients and the “broader marketplace” in which you operate.
Picking up on this theme, author and consultant David Meerman Scott provides some great tips on producing thought leadership content. He notes that - whether presented via white papers, blogs, newsletters or reports – this kind of written material:
- Addresses issues of interest to your clients and prospects
- Aims to educate and entertain, but not to sell
- Solves problems and answers questions
- Shows that you and your firm “are smart and worth doing business with”
Scott is one of my favorite sources of information on creating excellent Web and print content. He offers his insights through his blog, webink now, and his terrific book, Cashing In with Content.
For the visual learners among us, Brian Carroll has a post on Using Thought Leader Content As A Lead Generation Tool that includes a great mindmap of client-centric content that can position you as a thought leader.
Rounding out the tips is Scott Ginsberg’s post on 17 ways to become a thought leader. My favorite, of course, is “write, write, write” because, as Ginsberg puts it, “[i]f you’re not capturing your thoughts, ideas, experiences, stories, advice and insights, forget all about this whole thought leader thing."
