1. The Content Strategy of
Thought Leadership
IABC World Conference 2015
Stacey King Gordon
@staceykgordon

2. I was looking for an individual
who was addressing the big
questions with which today’s
most senior executives are
wrestling.
These questions relate to business
strategy … and the ways in which
society itself is changing.
“Thought Leadership”
c. 1994

4. 20%
Of marketers say they believe the content their companies distribute
establish them as thought leaders in their industries.
46%
Of marketers say their content is OK but has room for improvement —
and doesn’t position them as thought leaders
13%
Of marketers believe their content reads like sales collateral
Companies are trying to grow into thought
leaders through content.
IMN
Content
Marke-ng
Survey,
2014

5. Why thought leadership matters

6. Long-term benefits of thought leadership
More inbound
inquiries
More short listing
Faster sales cycles
Higher close rates
Bigger deal sizes
Increased
customer loyalty
Higher lifetime
value
Early stage Middle stage Later stage
Source: Laura Ramos, Forrester

7. Brand value and thought leadership

8. #1: Apple #2: Google
#3: Coca-Cola #4: IBM

9. Integral to the culture and
brand
Thought leadership is: Thought leadership isn’t:
Something that originates in the
marketing or PR department
Based on a unique, informed
perspective
Based on repackaging others’
ideas
A long-term commitment An occasional tactic or
focused on short-term gains
Accessible to the customer and
community
Esoteric, difficult to use, hard
to find or access

10. Content strategy is essential to
achieve thought leadership

11. Efforts are fragmented.
Different departments are doing different things.
Leaders and experts aren’t involved.
Executives and subject matter experts don’t have time to participate
or interest in participating.
No sense of what’s most important or
impactful.
Teams have difficulty prioritizing projects.
What we hear from marketers

12. FOCUS
SUSTAINABILITY
STANDARDS

13. Focus

14. What you
uniquely
know
What your
audience
cares about
Where
You
Credibly
Play

15. Getting to the brand POV
• Brand positioning
• Existing content
• Company strategy
• Leaders’ vision for the future
• Competitive landscape

16. Awareness Research Consideration Purchase Relationship
WHAT THE CUSTOMER IS DOING
Deciding to buy; beginning to
plan
Researching online;
educating himself about
the basics
Comparing products in
store to what he saw
online; narrowing down
choices; consulting others
Making his final decision
and deciding on a
purchase
Implementation, thinking
about growing the
solution
CUSTOMER MINDSET
Excited, anxious/nervous,
overwhelmed with options,
discouraged about cost
Interested, engaged,
tentative
Hopeful, careful Satisfied, relieved, happy,
proud
Excited and relieved,
then overwhelmed
CONTENT GOALS
Help consumer overcome
sense of being overwhelmed or
discouraged; give him a logical
starting point to understand
options and decisions.
Help consumer explore
options, understand
tradeoffs and factors,
embrace variety and
choice
Answer more advanced
questions and help
consumer make his final
decision
Help consumer make his
final decision and feel
good about it
Bring consumer back for
“what’s next” and
continue to serve him
through the next stage
CONTENT THEMES, TOPICS, TYPES
101-level basics, answers to
basic questions, checklists,
primer videos, easy
infographics and “maps”
Basic overviews,
comparison charts,
decision guides, answers
to basic concerns that
arise during early
research
Answers to more
advanced concerns that
come up during research,
tips for weighing choices
Emotion-driven content
(testimonials, proposal
stories), confidence-
building content (post-
purchase issues)
Guidance on processes,
issues, getting most
mileage out of product
Figuring out your audience needs

17. Standards

18. Relevance
Structure
Credibility
Accuracy &
Timeliness
Clarity,
Readability
& Focus
Findability &
Organization
Tone &
Style
Overall
Experience &
Effectiveness
The quality
umbrella
• Define what quality
means to your
brand
• Use guidelines as
your efforts
expand and more
people get involved
• Use a benchmark
for evaluating and
measuring success

19. Checklists
Style Guides

20. Sustainability

21. Lean teams
Limited time
Little to no budget

22. Sustaining thought leadership success
Ownership &
Communication
Publishing
Strategy &
Prioritization
Processes &
Planning
Organization &
Lifecycle

23. Sample:
Three Tiers
of Content
Premium/Proprietary Content
Best Practices/Solution Content
Current Awareness/Expertise

24. Sample: content priorities/production
guidelines
Tier 1: Premium/
Proprietary Content
Criteria: Original research, first-time
publication, data-driven but with a
narrative, fostering external credibility
Tone: Educational, more formal, smart
and incisive, upbeat
Frequency: Quarterly/semi-annual
Creators: Professional writers/
marketing, or subject matter experts
with support of professional editors
Extending the Value: Complementary
content to support sharing at every
level: social content, video, PPT decks,
infographics, blog posts
Tier 2: Current Events / Awareness
Content
Criteria: Smaller bites of thought-
provoking content, highlighting individual
expertise, conveys unique POV, timely
Tone: Smart, conversational, upbeat,
succinct, humorous (when appropriate)
Frequency: Regularly (a few times a
week)
Creators: Subject matter experts,
salespeople, marketing
Extending the Value: Sharing on social
channels, curating and packaging “best of”
content into more premium publications

25. Measuring success

26. Start small and stay focused
• Benchmark where you are today on: engagement, relevancy,
and quality.
• Start with 5-7 KPIs related to goals.
• Software and processes in place to measure regularly.
• Focus on long-term, brand-level results.

27. Thought leadership communication is a
commitment. Content strategy can help.
You have to prepare for it to be hard.
It takes awhile to settle into the groove.
There’s a lot of trial and error involved.
If you stick with it, you’ll start to see results.

28. Thanks!
Stacey King Gordon
Twitter: @staceykgordon