What is one benefit you’ve enjoyed in being considered a thought leader?
To understand the benefits of sharing your expertise online, we asked experienced thought-leaders this question for their insights. From building up your brand to influencing action, there are several reasons why you should join the thought-leadership community and share your expertise online.
Here are 13 benefits of thought leadership:
- Builds Brands
- Embracing Obstacles
- Sharing a Unique Perspective
- Builds Leaders, Freshens Perspectives
- Leadership Builds the Next Generation
- Freedom to Think
- Inviting to Pitch for More Work
- Establishes Credibility
- Influence Action
- Have a Voice that Inspires
- More Interaction With Consumers
- Develop a Sense of Trust
- Build a Network
Builds Brands
I am flattered that people consider me a thought leader in the blogging industry. The result: I get invitations to be interviewed frequently on blogs and in videos. I accept every offer. Although it can be time-consuming answering interview questions, I receive two important benefits. First, people who interview me link to my site. This boosts my SEO. Also, my branding grows since more people hear about me. This leads to more interviews, more links, and more branding opportunities.
Janice Wald, Mostly Blogging
Embracing Obstacles
Being able to embrace challenges and not view them as negative but instead as necessary pathways to growth. The magnitude and frequency of challenges usually increase at the CEO level but if you have a growth mindset and are optimistic, you’ll be able to meet all challenges. I aim to inspire my team to learn, grow and evolve. It’s also important to let them figure things out. A true leader helps to create other leaders.
Bill Glaser, Outstanding Foods
Sharing a Unique Perspective
The benefit I’ve most enjoyed from being considered a thought leader is the ability to share my perspective. Everyone’s journey is different and provides them with unique and valuable experiences. By engaging in thought leadership, I’m able to share perspectives and insights that are unique to my professional journey. Giving insight on a topic that I enjoy or have expertise in allows me to grow as a professional and share what I’ve learned with others.
Adrian James, Markitors
Builds Leaders and Freshens Perspectives
I’m always grateful for opportunities to discuss and share my experience and industry insight. I often find that people ask questions that make me see a piece of my career or the future of it in a new light. You need fresh perspectives in order to stay on your toes, so these interactions benefit me as much as they do the reader, listener, or audience member. It’s increasingly important to stay connected and share expert knowledge because there is so much misinformation that can skew people’s perspectives. When we connect personally, it’s more relatable, tangible, and memorable. That’s how we build new leaders.
Nicholas Vasiliou, BioHealth Nutrition
Leadership Builds the Next Generation
Giving advice to new chefs and people considering a career in the culinary industry has been really meaningful to me. I appreciate what I learned from my mentors who really took the time to know me and understand my creative visions, rather than just telling me what to do. I try to do the same in return, and it’s always really rewarding seeing my leadership efforts pay off when mentees launch their own unique concepts, whether it’s restaurants, pop-ups, or a CPG brand. It’s amazing to see them build up a positive reputation and pay it forward as well.
Charlie McKenna McKenna, Lillie’s Q
Freedom to Think
In a world full of voices, it is easy to become saturated in a realm of social media influencers and determined vision. Aside from just being considered a thought leader, but pursuing being a thought leader, you enable yourself to be a free thinker in an economy of groupthink. This may be one of the top benefits of being a thought leader. You get to create and champion a business and even movement that supports forming independent and positive ideals pressed forward by the individual. The best leaders teach others how to lead.
Boye Fajinmi, TheFutureParty
Inviting to Pitch for More Work
From my perspective, It’s not always simple to get a foot in the door if you’re in an industry or business where you need to pitch or tender for work. People will want to know what you can do for them if they know who you are and what you do.
Thought leadership, in my opinion, aids in the establishment of authority, which makes you more appealing to potential clients. They’ll be interested in hearing what you have to offer, and you’ll notice an increase in people wanting you to pitch to them. Having more leads and chances is obviously beneficial, but it also allows you to be more selective. You may be able to choose who you want to work with (not who you have to). Any business owner can attest to the fact that this is a huge gain!
Gerrid Smith, Joy Organics
Establishes Credibility
The biggest benefit of being a thought leader is the credibility you have over your competitors. People have faith in your directives when you are a thought leader in the industry because you are speaking from a place of authority. It gives you a sense of credibility that makes people gravitate towards you because they trust your know-how.
Jason White, All About Gardening
Influence Action
Spurring action is a great benefit of being a thought leader because they are effective influencers. People look to thought leaders for advice on the best thing to do. Thought leaders bear the responsibility that their words can spur action, but it is also a great benefit for business owners to influence behavior in the favor of their brand in a relevant situation.
Brogan Renshaw, Modelers Central
Have a Voice that Inspires
Being a leader in itself is already a benefit for me because I’ve always dreamt of becoming a leader and have worked hard to earn my position right now. If you are an entrepreneur, you are also a leader, and you have limitless opportunities to impact the world around you positively.
Being an inspiration to your employees and investors by being a visionary in your field is one thing I enjoy. Being a leader allows you to impact your consumers’ lives by delivering on something you highly believe in. Through this, you can create campaigns that do not only sell but also deliver powerful messages.
I always share my success with my team, and seeing them get more motivated through my leadership inspires me. The best thing about this is that it benefits the people around me and me.
Baidhurya Mani, Sell Courses Online
More Interaction With Consumers
A part of thought leadership is that you view every client as instrumental to your company’s growth and look for ways to engage better with them to advocate for your brand. Establishing a good rapport with your clients can be regarded as customer service and an effort that will reap long-term benefits.
Kathryn McDavid, Editor’s Pick
Develop a Sense of Trust
A constant approach combined with relevant thoughts, in my opinion, will not only develop your audience but also their trust in you. I believe that trust is an important component of the sales process. The easier your sales interaction will be if customers already trust you because of your content and leadership. When the time comes, people will be ready to put their trust in individuals they know. If your prospect isn’t ready to buy yet, or you don’t think they’re the ideal fit for your company, your thought leadership material may be able to help. Depending on the prospect, you may publish content that answers their queries and gives them confidence that your company is perfect for them, or stuff that convinces them otherwise.
Lauren Cook-McKay, Divorce Answers
Build a Network
As a thought leader, I’ve benefited from building my network with people who both agree or disagree with my thoughts and opinions. I believe we can and should learn from everyone and thought leadership provides me with the ability to get positive feedback as well as to receive dissenting opinions from followers around the globe. As we can learn from Metcalfe’s Law, the community value of a network grows as the number of its users’ increases. This is especially true for thought leadership.
David Leichner, Cybellum
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