Like marketing and sales, thought leadership and lead generation shouldn’t be siloed. Here’s why combining these two superpowers is the most effective way to drive business for tomorrow and beyond.
Attracting new clients and keeping a healthy sales pipeline is core to a firm’s sustained growth. But that’s all easier said than done, especially if you’ve experienced a lack of results from your thought leadership efforts or lead generation approaches in the past.
Here’s why: A marketing strategy that focuses on just one of those aspects is like fishing without live bait. You might be putting yourself out there, but are you doing all you can to ensure you’re maximizing your efforts to not only fill your pipeline now but maintain it over time?
Thought leadership plays a crucial role in positioning your firm as an authority on the issues that matter to your clients. Lead generation turns that position into a steady flow of productive conversations. By harmonizing these two elements, your marketing approach fuels growth.
If you’ve written off thought leadership because it hasn’t driven leads quickly enough, you aren’t alone. Likewise, avoiding investing in lead generation strategies because it hasn’t automatically turned leads into clients is a common mistake. Let’s clarify a few misconceptions first so you can fully understand the power this duo can yield.
THOUGHT LEADERSHIP: A MARATHON, NOT A SPRINT
Expecting to get five new business calls next week simply from publishing your firm’s perspective and unconventional problem-solving approach is unrealistic. But sparking leads quickly isn’t the reason you pursue a thought leadership program anyway. You invest in honing your unique POV and refining how you articulate your firm’s thinking because it proves your expertise, establishes trust with your ideal clients, and keeps you top of mind when they’re ready to buy.
Building a robust thought leadership program is like investing in the stock market. Just as you research the market and analyze options before investing, you shouldn’t expect immediate results from thought leadership. A successful thought leadership strategy, like a well-built portfolio, requires time and strategic planning to yield meaningful results.
In the end, the goal of thought leadership isn’t to spark revenue for this quarter or even the next one. The aim is to drive sustained business growth over years. To drive more demand than you have capacity so you have the ability to work with the clients you’re best suited to help.
LEAD GENERATION: IT’S ABOUT TARGETING IDEAL CLIENTS
Another misconception is that once a lead is generated, they will automatically become a client. But just like one business conversation doesn’t guarantee a signed contract, one lead generation campaign won’t automatically yield new clients. It takes educating and nurturing to develop any business relationship.
To start, just because you’re putting money into a lead generation campaign doesn’t mean it’s showing up in front of the right people. Effective lead generation requires a targeted approach, one backed by data. Before jumping in make sure you know who your ideal client is, where they consume information, and the messages that will resonate with them. It also takes proper outreach and the right infrastructure to turn cold leads into warm prospects.
Sharing your latest article on your firm’s LinkedIn page and your monthly newsletter is a must. But that alone won’t drive the business conversations you need to hit your business targets. Putting a budget behind a paid ad campaign that targets the type of client your firm is best fit to serve will maximize your efforts by getting the right message in front of the right audience at the right time.
4 WAYS THOUGHT LEADERSHIP AND LEAD GENERATION WORK TOGETHER TO DRIVE REVENUE
Now that we’ve cleared up a few misconceptions, let’s tie the two together. Understanding how these two crucial elements work together can help you devise a winning strategy to help your firm reach its goals this quarter and beyond. To do this, we’ve broken out the four ways thought leadership and lead generation are powerful together.
1. ESTABLISHES AUTHORITY
Thought leadership is the vehicle for your leaders to create new markets. It’s where you put your stake in the ground, share your focused POV and turn your clients’ heads (in a good way.) It proves you have something profound to say, and put into practice. It’s the blueprint you (and your clients) will use to overcome the sticky business issues keeping them up at night.
2. PROVIDES VALUE
The modern sales cycle starts with value. Prospective clients expect value at every turn even before considering a business conversation with your firm. When a prospect shares their information to receive a gated asset they expect value from the transaction. That value is found in your unique approach to solving their problems, useful research data that could help them overcome a thorny issue, or your helpful tools that can help them operationalize a process. As they consume your content, you should be analyzing the data of what they’re interested in so you can reach out at the right time and continue the conversation.
3. SHARPENS YOUR MESSAGE
Effective messaging resonates with audiences when it reflects their own experiences and challenges. When done well, thought leadership does just that. It shows empathy and a path forward because it resonates with a client’s unique situation. That same targeted attention continues when you apply parameters in lead generation campaigns. A targeted approach not only increases the likelihood of capturing ideal clients, but also nurtures stronger connections by making your audience feel understood. A focused lead generation campaign brings things full circle by helping you see which aspects of your thought leadership are resonating most.
4. SUSTAINS BRAND AWARENESS
Your ideal client may not need your services just yet. But don’t think they aren’t already keeping an eye out for the right firm to help them when they do. That’s why publishing a steady stream of quality thought leadership content is critical to growth. It sustains your firm’s awareness in the marketplace, keeping you at the forefront of a prospect’s list when they’re up against a business challenge your firm is built to solve.
By combining thought leadership’s ability to build authority, educate, and provide value with lead generation’s targeted tactics, you’re able to approach attracting, engaging, and converting ideal clients with confidence.
Learn more about Thought Leadership here.
Get more tips on Lead Generation here.
COMBINING THOUGHT LEADERSHIP AND LEAD GENERATION EXPERTISE UNDER ONE ROOF
There are no shortcuts for building and sustaining a pipeline of highly qualified leads. It takes time, expertise, and thoughtful strategy. But you don’t have to do it all alone. Whether you need to hone your thought leadership approach or refine your lead generation strategy — or both — we have the tools and knowledge needed to make the most of your efforts.
