Thought Leadership: The Power of Content, Positioning, Ownership
Today, many companies want to assume a strategic market position of “thought leadership.” According to Wiki, the term was coined in 1994 by Joel Kurtzman of the Booz, Allen & Hamilton magazine, Strategy & Business. The term “thought leader” was used to designate interview subjects who had business ideas that merited attention.
That definition is still accurate today but has broadened in meaning. Thought leadership is rich content. Expertise. Esteem. In-depth knowledge of specific areas of one’s business operation. And the ability to interpret for others. It is the basis of innovative change.
Companies and organizations may have these essential qualities. It’s our job at Strategic America to help them develop the content deserving of external attention. It may be a blog (like this.) A white paper. Guest editorial. Newsletter. Case study. Radio or TV interviews. Student convocations, roundtables and professional events. Or paid messages such as an ad or advertorial, an advocacy piece or presentation. A digital solution like an ROI calculator. All are valuable, effective elements in thought leadership strategy.
As a strategy of our 30th anniversary in business, SA has implemented a number of these including media relations as to our belief in sustainability and our practices designed to achieve LEED status. We hosted seminars on social media and the discipline of business execution, as well as performance achievement. CEOs, CMOs and marketing and business leaders participated. We saw the impact of taking the position of thought leadership in the marketplace.
Comments came back to us such as this, “I just wanted to thank Strategic America for bringing in Jay Baer for today’s program. The seven-step strategic planning process was very easy to follow and will be useful to me as I start mapping out a social media strategy. Please continue to bring this type of expertise to our market. Very valuable.“
SA is seen as an entity that is invested in our industry, our clients and our community for the kind of qualitative conversations that bring insight to complex issues. The result is relationships.
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