Today, there is no shortage of tactics you can choose from to drive success for your brand.
There’s also no shortage of advice telling you that Tactic A is dead and you should be all-in on Tactic B. Or C. Or Z for that matter.
Thing is, what you choose will have a radical impact on your results. So no pressure there then.
While there isn’t a one-size-fits-all that works for everyone – never has been, never will be – one approach has clearly shown its power to grow brands, deliver leads and help sales get across the line faster.
Spoiler: It’s thought leadership.
Done well, thought leadership can deliver against virtually every major marketing objective you face.
Decision-makers are difficult people to engage. They’re busy. They’re under pressure. And they’re bombarded by marketers trying to sell them stuff.
As a result, they tune most marketing out.
Except the stuff that can help them do the things that matter. Like grow their businesses, reduce wasted expense and uncover new opportunities to better serve their customers.
It’s why over half of decision makers and c-suite executives spend an hour or more every single week consuming thought leadership content*.
There’s a misperception that thought leadership is a nice-to-have. That it simply helps businesses boost their reputation. Something to give the CEO bragging rights at the next conference they attend.
Far from it.
Research from Bain and Google has shown that 90% of B2B customers buy from a vendor they were already aware of before doing any research. They call these vendors The Day One List.
Regularly producing high-quality thought leadership is the direct route to being top-of-mind for buyers when they have a challenge you could help them with.
Simply, it gets you a place on the Day One List.
Perhaps this is why the world’s largest study of B2B marketing effectiveness found that thought leadership is the single most effective tactic B2B marketers use across lead generation, demand generation and brand building.
It’s clear, thought leadership works. Whether you are building brand or delivering revenue, thought leadership should be the cornerstone of your marketing efforts.
But what’s also clear is that delivering the quality of thought leadership today’s executives demand is tough.
Edelman and LinkedIn found 30% of organisations don’t really know how to use thought leadership as a marketing tool. Some 26% say they lack the in-house skills to produce the level of content they need. And on the receiving end, just 15% of decision-makers say the quality of the thought leadership they consume is either very good or excellent.
It’s a problem and a massive opportunity.
We’ve planned, created and promoted world-class thought leadership for brands across technology, manufacturing and professional services. From research reports and technical briefings to benchmarking indices and complete video series, there’s virtually nothing we can’t help you deliver.
If you want to see what thought leadership could really do for your business, we should talk.
Contact us at hello@consideredcontent.com and we’ll arrange a time that works for you.
Speak soon.
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