To become a thought leader and influencer, you must have something to say that is original and of value to your audience. It’s about the trust your audience has in you because you’ve done the work to earn the title.
Part of your journey so far has been to develop an audience. Now, you must leverage the right communication tools to convey your message to your audience on a consistent basis.
This may be the time when you start to panic. How are you going to develop the proper communication tools? How much talent will it take? How much time will it take? Where do I begin?
There are many ways to deliver communications to your audience. If you think about all the ways to do it at once, you’ll most likely become overwhelmed.
So, don’t.
Look at the following options and pick one that you can excel in to start with.
If you’ve already reviewed and researched the different ways to attract an audience as outlined in Lesson Six, you already have a head start with developing the right communication tools.
Get a website. A website is like a business card or a brochure. If you’re going to offer a service as a thought leader, you’ll need a website. Now, that’s not to say that everyone should do this because it depends on the type of audience you’re looking to target. Only you can decide if this is a communication tool that will be useful.
If you do decide to create a website, keep it simple and be sure it’s professional-looking with valuable content.
Include an email sign up form and a contact page to encourage people to connect with you. If you don’t know anything about creating a website, there are freelance services that you can find online or even in your local community for help. If you decide that you want to tackle a website on your own, a website service like Wix may be a good start. Just be sure that your website is viewable and looks proportionate on different browsers and mobile devices.
Create videos and podcasts. Creating videos and podcasts are also great ways to convey your message to your audience. Use them to teach or to interview other thought leaders or use them as a channel for your audience to listen in on a regular basis.
Develop webcasts and online courses. Developing webcasts, online and audio courses like this one is a great way to create interest in what you have to offer.
Write content. Writing Blogs, Articles and Guest Posts regularly will help you attract more of your target audience. Writing a book, e-book or white paper can help to establish you as an influencer in your field.
Tap into social media. Social Media Sites like Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Pinterest, and LinkedIn can help establish your reputation and engage your audience.
Visual social media. Sites like Pinterest and Instagram work well, especially if you have a more visual type of talent.
Email marketing. As you build out your email list of subscribers you can send them regular emails with offers, announcements, or articles.
Public speaking. Start off small and find speaking engagements in small, community-centered venues.
These are just a few examples of how to deliver communications to your audience. There are certainly more, so start thinking and be creative! Choose one communication tool to get started. Become good at one and others will become much easier. Just remember to stick with it.
