Are you striving to position your organization and its leaders as thought leaders? This episode with guest Ashley Faus explores how to do just that through the use of content and social media.
Faus, an expert in the field, delves into the nuances of developing a thought leadership strategy that not only relies on metrics and dashboards, but also drives actual thought leadership.
She focuses on going beyond the basic approaches of inbound marketing to create content that resonates, inspires, and positions your company and leadership as leaders.
For example, she advocates slowing down in order to become faster – that is, reflecting and planning carefully so that you can quickly develop and implement an effective strategy.
Check out the video for more details and the full podcast (link below the video) for the entire insightful conversation.
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Episode details, guest information and referenced links
Episode #38
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MarketingProfs resources referenced in the show:
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Transcript: Developing a Content and Social Media Strategy to Drive Thought Leadership and Business Growth, with Ashley Faus
Do you have a thought leadership content strategy for your company?
What does this mean in terms of the type of content you should create?
Then stick around because today’s show will be entertaining and educational at the same time!
Welcome to MarketingProfs’ “Marketing Smarts Live” show and the Marketing Smarts Podcast. Here we dive into B2B news, resources, valuable guest content, and more every week.
If you’re a B2B marketer looking for a place to learn, stay updated, and have some fun along the way, grab a drink, a notepad, or at least a writing utensil and welcome to the trade show!
Hello to all my Marketing Smarts Live viewers today. I’m so excited to bring you episode 38 of the Marketing Smarts Live show. This week’s topic is all about developing a content and social media strategy to drive thought leadership and business growth.
So if you’re ready to start learning, buckle up and get ready to rock and roll.
Hey, I’m your boy George B. Thomas, speaker, trainer, catalyst and host of this show, the Marketing Smarts Live Show as well as the Marketing Smarts Podcast found on your favorite podcast app. Our guest clips today are brought to you by none other than Ashley Faus.
Ashley Faus is a marketer, author and speaker by day and singer, actress and fitness fanatic by night.
Her work has been featured in TIME, Forbes, and The Journal of Brand Strategy, and she has shared her insights with audiences at Harvard Business Review, INBOUND, and MarketingProfs.
She works for Atlassian, a collaboration software maker with a mission to unlock the power of every team. Follow her on LinkedIn and Twitter, @ashleyfaus.
Remember, Ashley Faus’ clips today are from the full Marketing Smarts podcast episode. If you would like to listen to the full interview with Ashley Faus and I, be sure to tune in to the Marketing Smarts podcast. Link to the full broadcast will be included in the description below after the live show ends.
In this episode, I speak again with Ashley Faus about developing a content and social media strategy to drive thought leadership and business growth.
Traditional marketing attribution is all about dashboards and metrics and how inbound impacts the bottom line. But thought leadership, says Ashley Faus, is a completely different matter. It cannot be measured using traditional methods.
To get us started, I wanted to ask Asley’s thoughts on why it takes long enough to slow down to develop a strategy around thought leadership content, which is so important to companies.
This is what she had to say.
Ashley: Two big things. First, people are lazy and platforms are greedy.
Most people don’t come to you for fun and to make you feel good. They come to you to get something for themselves. If you become the destination they go to to get something for themselves, then at some point there will be some kind of reciprocity. Build that trust. Building this affinity is the foundation. If you don’t take a step back and recognize the value you’re placing on them, if you just churn, you’re just doing things for yourself, and your audience is too lazy for that.
The second aspect is that the platforms are greedy. The platforms don’t want you to go anywhere else. LinkedIn wants you to stay on LinkedIn. Even with your own website, you want people to stay on your website. You don’t want them to go anywhere else unless they’re going somewhere else to talk to a sales rep. Again, you still want to keep them in your own little ecosystem.
When you realize that I have to fight for the attention of not only the people who consume my content, but also the platforms that host or provide my content, you realize that you have to be prepared. You don’t go into battle wearing shorts and a T-shirt. You have to put on armor, you have to bring your weapons, and that takes some training, some skills and some thinking.
This is where you start thinking about this strategy. First of all, it’s about focusing on the target group: what do they want, what do they need and how can you serve them? Second, how do I compete against all the other things on the platform that are drawing their attention to the platform and not my content?
OMG, most people are lazy and all platforms are greedy!
Did you hear the important words? Infinity, trust and reciprocity!
Are you starting to feel how important the fight for attention is?
I love how Ashley talked about getting dressed!
And again the important words: training, skills and thinking!
Do you have a strategy that creates infinity, trust and reciprocity?
Type the answer to that in the chat section or let me know on Twitter using the hashtag #mpb2b and of course tag me @georgebthomas.
We’ll get back to Ashley Faus and her thoughts on developing a content and social media strategy to drive thought leadership and business growth, but first I have to ask…
Are you part of the MarketingProfs community? If not, become part of the MarketingProfs community by going to mprofs.com/mptoday – that’s mprofs.com/mptoday.
Now it’s time for one of my favorite sections…
In B2B News: We talk about breaking B2B news or really important tips that we find in the Google News tab that relate to you and your B2B company. This week the title is…
How to Do B2B Content Marketing the Right Way (with 5 Examples) by Julia McCoy
Here we are, more than two decades into the 2000s, but bad B2B content marketing still exists.
Digital content marketing has been around for at least 10 years, but some companies still make fundamental mistakes that kill their potential for results.
That’s a shame because most content marketers (71%) will tell you that content has become increasingly important over time.
Ready to see what content success and failure looks like? To read this article, click the link below when the live show is over.
So let’s go back to Ashley Faus and her Marketing Smarts podcast episode.
Now that we know how important it is to have a strategy, how the heck do you get started?
That’s exactly what I wanted to ask Ashley next.
Ashley: This is a tough question, especially for thought leadership, because so many people have goals, and those goals are usually about sales. I think in many cases you have to abstract thought leadership a little bit from sales.
In my opinion, thought leadership is not intended to drive short-term sales. This is sales and this is marketing and this is product marketing and this is content with purchase intent. That is not the goal of thought leadership. Thought leadership is about attracting the right people to the brand and the company. That could be talent, that could be strategic partners, that could be co-marketing opportunities, that could be investor relations or improving analyst relationships. There are a variety of things you need to build from a trust perspective.
When looking at your thought leadership, you need to be clear about which of these audiences will drive short-term and long-term results. Yes, being a thought leader in your industry, being trusted, and having that affinity with a variety of different audiences will ultimately lead to long-term business growth, but that is very different than short-term revenue. I think this mindset change is the big part.
I hear this all the time: “We’re going to provide thought leadership for a founder.” Oh, are you? What will they talk about? “You will talk about why our product is the best.” So you will do sales promotion. “No. It’s a founder, so it’s thought leadership.”
I think let’s go back here. Thought leadership is about trust and affinity. You can control these and measure them in different ways depending on the audience, the platforms and the person. But if the end result you’re measuring in the short term is some kind of revenue or sale, then you’re not providing thought leadership. This is a different type of content. It should also be quality, it is also in your strategy, but it is not thought leadership.
So many people strive for goals, and often those goals are about income.
Thought leadership is not designed to generate short-term sales! It should attract the right people to the brand and the company.
So much good stuff in the last clip!
Have you ever heard yourself or someone on your team say, “We’re going to create thought leadership content for…” Oh my God!
We’ll get back to Ashley Faus in a few minutes, but first it’s time for a few… Great B2B Learnings from the Vault of MarketingProfs Articles
That’s right, it’s time to dig into the treasure trove of valuable information and pull out two golden nuggets that will help you become a better B2B marketer.
This week’s first article is: So you want to be a thought leader? A Framework and Guide for Your Thought Leadership Strategy by Ashley Faus
Thought leadership is not a new topic. In fact, the term was coined by Joel Kurtzman back in 1994.
In the two and a half decades since, we’ve seen the rise of YouTube experts, Instagram influencers and the Kardashians.
But are they all thought leaders? Are any of them thought leaders?
Find out more by reading this article after the live show ends.
This week’s second article is: How Online Thought Leadership Can Transform You (and Your Business) into a Trusted Resource by David Meerman Scott
An effective online content strategy, artfully implemented, drives the action forward. Organizations that use online content well have a clearly defined goal—to sell products, generate leads, or get people to join a community, vote, or donate money—and they implement a content strategy that directly delivers contributes to achieving this goal.
People often ask me, “How do you recommend I create an effective ____?” (Fill in the blank with blog, podcast, white paper, eBook, email newsletter, webinar, etc.)
While the technologies for each form of online content are a little different, the common aspect is that your business can provide thought leadership with all of these mediums, rather than just advertising and product promotion: A well-designed blog, podcast, e-book , or a webinar contribute to an organization’s positive reputation by making it stand out in the marketplace of ideas.
This form of content identifies a company and the people who work there as experts and a trustworthy resource to turn to again and again.
Don’t talk about your company at all
Okay, what is thought leadership and how do I do it?
Well, do you want to continue learning? If so, check out the links in the description below after the live show to get access to both great MarketingProfs articles.
OK, back to Ashley Faus… Let’s dive back into this conversation about developing a content and social media strategy to drive thought leadership and business growth
One of the things I always like to ask the guest I’m interviewing is what hurdles are standing in their way. What will be the obstacles to your success?
Here’s what Ashley had to say about hurdles and today’s topic conversation.
Ashley: I think the most important thing is that we are still stuck in the attribution mentality of 10 years ago. Before social media really became a place that individuals could own and where companies could work with individuals to improve, share and grow that audience, it was all back – it was brilliant when it came out, when it came out with the methodology of filling out the form, being able to track it and promote it, that feeling that you wanted to attract people, train them, promote them and then sell to them after you built that, that was super smart a decade ago. HubSpot has evolved its own model, but many marketers are still trying to implement the same measurement strategy and therefore the approach in their development and their tactics are from 10 years ago.
It is difficult. Your comment about sending this newsletter and receiving an order or engagement worth $12,000 shows that one click is worth $12,000. Right? But I actually don’t know what the overall click-through rate was for the email. If you sent me this dashboard, I wouldn’t be surprised if it potentially had a lower click-through rate just because it was a holiday. A lower open rate and possibly a lower click-to-open rate. As an outsider without that context, I might look at that and say, “Obviously that content didn’t resonate,” or, “That wasn’t your best email.” But for you, one on one, it has so much Sales generated. The same applies to social media.
Someone very kindly said to me, “I think I should create a folder on my desktop for all the posts you’ve written that I think are valuable.” I jokingly said, “If you could make that public, that would be great. It helps me so I don’t have to.” An hour later, he sends me a link to a Google Drive with all the content I created and he saved. I don’t know how you can measure that someone took the time to take screenshots, download them, link them or whatever, and put all the content I created in a folder for themselves can easily access it yourself. Where does this appear on the dashboard?
Are you stuck in the attribution mentality?
Are you still doing historical “INBOUND MARKETING”? Or were you able to further develop your measurement strategy?
We’ll hear some words of wisdom from Ashley Faus here in a few minutes, but now it’s time to shine the spotlight on you, the MarketingProfs community. Yes, time for…
From the #MPB2B community
We’ve searched far and wide in the #MPB2B universe to find amazing information and conversations to bring to the masses.
So firstly, make sure you use the hashtag and secondly, make sure you are having fun and adding value to the community.
We will then put you or your crew in the spotlight on the show. This week it is…
Ian Jackson = Designer / Programmer / Marketer / Pokémon Master
Ian’s LinkedIn post looked like this:
Last week I wrote a post introducing Adobe’s new #generativefill AI feature.
Well, today I’m here to tell you that MarketingProfs is hosting an 8-week online event focused on AI and content creation if you want more AI content. Find out how you can use AI to increase your productivity, your creativity and your career!
#ai #contentcreation #marketingprofs #mpb2b
But you have to look at the description and click the link to view the post, as well as the link to the page Ian shared to learn more!
Marketing Smarts viewers, I have to ask: will you be next in the spotlight?
Remember, community, use the hashtag #mpb2b on Facebook, LinkedIn or Twitter and let your awesomeness be spotlighted on the next or future episode of the Marketing Smarts Live show!
Pro tip: It wouldn’t hurt if you tag me in your post too. I’m @georgebthomas on LinkedIn and Twitter.
Okay, let’s go back to Ashley Faus and share a few words of wisdom on this topic of developing a content and social media strategy to drive thought leadership and business growth.
Here’s what Ashley Faus wanted to leave us with…
Ashley: I think the core of this whole conversation from my marketing practice is falling in love with people. These are the people who consume the content, the people who use your offerings, and the people who support the people behind the screen.
For me, when you can fall in love with the audience and the people behind the screen, you really start to feel the magic.
Yes, there are numbers, there are revenues, all those things, but if you can fall in love with the people, you’re going to see these other results for years to come.
Can we just drop the mic?
Fall in love with PEOPLE!
Have you fallen in love with the people you are here to serve?
Magical things happen when the answer to this question is yes!
Did you enjoy today’s trip? Let us know and use the hashtag #mpb2b on the platform you join us on.