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What Makes a Social Media Thought Leader

HOW AND WHY YOU SHOULD BECOME ONE

Adam Singer

CEO, Ability Growth Partners

9:00 AM - 10:30 AM

September 08, 2020

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Who am I

  • Adam Singer
  • 2011 started AJ Singer Studios
  • First websites in 97 working for BNA, Fortune 500
  • Hub solutions partner 2014
  • Wordpress since 2011
  • Israel now

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Who to follow

  • Ty Heath
  • Seth Godin
  • Justin Champion
  • @Aj613

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COMPANY LEADERS

ARE EXPECTED TO SHARE THEIR INSIGHTS AND IDEAS ACROSS CHANNELS

Benefits

  1. Establishes your expertise and reinforces your value

  • Tells your colleagues and your network what you are working on

  • Invites collaboration and collective learning with others

  • Sharing your thoughts and knowledge on industry trends keeps you visible

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WE ARE THE MOST IMPORTANT SOURCE�OF INSPIRATION FOR�EACH OTHER

Brands are struggling to maintain their eminence

HR is waging a war for the brightest talent�

Sales people fight for customer attention ��Employees struggle to find meaning and purpose in

their work

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THE “TRUE VALUE OF THOUGHT LEADERSHIP” �IS ABOUT TRUST

75%

70%

Influential

Thought Leadership

is the most influential

channel in today’s economy

Trusted

LinkedIn is the most trusted social platform to share content

THOUGHT LEADERSHIP INFLUENCES DECISION MAKING

6.8X

More Engagements

5.4X

Higher Reach

5.0X

More Impressions

On avg. C-level exec. shares generated:

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TOPICS THAT INTEREST LINKEDIN MEMBERS

LINKEDIN MEMBERS INVEST TIME TO GROW PERSONALLY

Industry trends/news

Tips/best practices

Jobs/skills

Leadership

Industry events

Products or service information

Employee Perspectives

89%

86%

79%

78%

75%

72%

67%

ABILITY

GROWTH PARTNERS

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TOP 5 REASONS FOR LINKEDIN�MEMBER ENGAGEMENT

REFLECT ON WHAT IS HAPPENING IN THE WORLD

62%

61%

48%

40%

38%

IT’S EDUCATIONAL OR INFORMATIVE

IT’S RELEVANT TO ME

TO STAY ON TOP OF LATEST TRENDS

IT HELPS WITH

SKILL DEVELOPMENT

IT’S INSPIRING

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4 STEPS FOR LINKEDIN�THOUGHT LEADERSHIP

  1. Create compelling thought leadership
  2. Define your approach
  3. Engage and nurture your audience
  4. Measure and optimize

EXECUTION REQUIRES PARTICIPATION AT THE COMPANY AND INDIVIDUAL LEVELS

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STRUCTURED DECISION MAKING CONNECTS�DECISIONS TO OUTCOMES YOU GENERATE�

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“O” IS FOR OWNABLE

OWNABLE MAKES IT DISTINCTIVE

LINKEDIN MEMBERS INVEST TIME TO GROW PERSONALLY

84%

of buyers incorrectly identify the brand behind the ad

ABILITY

GROWTH PARTNERS

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BE DISTINCTIVE WITH YOUR BRAND ASSETS

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“R” IS FOR REPLICATION �REPLICATION MAKES IT VALUABLE

HOLLYWOOD HAS A MORE PROFITABLE APPROACH: THE BLOCKBUSTER

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“R” IS FOR REPLICATION�REPLICATION MAKES IT VALUABLE�

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63%

“E” IS FOR EXPERTISE

EXPERTISE MAKES IT PROFITABLE

64%

C-Suite Executives

Business Decision Makers

Say Thought Leadership determines who wins an RFP

B2B

Buyers

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TALK ABOUT THE THINGS THAT MATTER TO YOU

FOCUS ON WHAT’S IMPORTANT, WHAT’S THE “SO WHAT”

A reminder, status updates don’t all have to be link shares. You can also share...

  • Crowdsourced thoughts
  • Critiques
  • Quick hitting tips
  • Personal observations
  • Random thoughts

COMMENT ON

INDUSTRY TRENDS

HIGHLIGHT YOUR COMPANY’S SUCCESSES

SHARE YOUR POINT OF VIEW

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ADD YOUR VOICE TO THE CONTENT

YOU SHARE

RESHARE CONTENT ADDING A BRIEF STATEMENT OR QUESTION

ABILITY

GROWTH PARTNERS

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TAKE ADVANTAGE OF�NEW VIDEO CAPABILITIES

BE CREATIVE AND TIMELY WITH VIDEOS

SHOW IT

See a piece of technology that will make weaves in your industry?

TRANSPORT US THERE

Hear an interesting talk at a

conference or event?

SHARE IT

Have a unique perspective

or industry news?

YOUR TAKE

Have a different

creative idea?

We can’t wait to see it!

TEACH IT

Have a work hack or trick that others should know about?

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BEST PRACTICES FOR SHORT FORM POSTS ON LINKEDIN

Post between 9 to 5 working hours. Test posting hours before & after.��Try to post between 1-3x per day.

Diversify your posts. 80% of the content should be someone else’s.

Use a post scheduling tool or support.

Tag influencers & colleagues (when relevant). This can 2x reach.

“Megabatch” your content creation.

Plan for content capture at events.

When you write posts use a three-sentence teaser lead in.

Use relevant hashtags.

Don’t leave people hanging in comments.

POSTS IN 2019

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BEST PRACTICES FOR LONG FORM�PUBLISHING ON LINKEDIN

WRITE WHAT YOU KNOW

HOW TO WRITE COMPELLING POSTS

WRITE TO START A CONVERSATION

Link to content that reinforces your points

Give credit where credit is due

800 – 2000 words drives the most engagement

Don’t forget to add pictures Write your byline

Ask yourself: would I click on that?

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“AUTHENTICITY IS A COLLECTION OF CHOICES THAT WE HAVE TO MAKE EVERY DAY. IT’S ABOUT THE CHOICE TO SHOW UP AND BE REAL. THE CHOICE TO BE HONEST. THE CHOICE TO LET OUR TRUE SELVES BE SEEN.”

BRENE BROWN

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