CEO of iResearch Services, a global thought leadership agency that focuses on evidence-based research to power thought leadership campaigns.
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Rising above noise and clutter in the online space can be challenging. Tired of distinguishing between useful insights and sales talk, your target audience may skip even the best content.
Thought leadership is a key chapter in a company’s marketing playbook, so it’s important to give prominence to content around it. Fortunately, B2B businesses do not have to rely on themselves to achieve the desired outcome. Effective use of influencer marketing can be the catalyst your brand needs.
Influencer marketing’s contribution to the B2C space is well known. To illustrate, millennials, one of the bigger online shopper segments, trust influencers 12% more than celebrities. It’s hard to ignore influencer marketing’s role—and B2B businesses have begun applying it, too.
Effective B2B outreach activities must go beyond informing; your thoughts must shape the target audience’s perceptions and perspectives of the subject matter. In this way, influencers can lend greater authority and credibility. And the end result is trust.
Trust is critical in cultivating and deepening relationships. It can clinch deals and fortify client relationships. With customer retention and loyalty at a premium in today’s business landscape, keeping your customers engaged with your brand is paramount.
Choosing Influencers For Your B2B Brand
“Who said what” is as important today as it was in the pre-social media age. The “who” carries as much, if not more, weight than the “what.” In influencer marketing, finding the right influencer is perhaps the biggest challenge. A misstep in the process can be potentially damaging to your business. I recommend you evaluate prospective influencers using the list below.
• Set KPIs. Setting and managing expectations are central to all successful working relationships. Adopt this same principle when engaging influencers. Achieving transparency at the start will build the foundation for a successful working relationship.
• Seek quality, not quantity. It’s natural to look at the number of followers an influencer has, but this alone isn’t sufficient. There are other qualitative criteria you will need to consider, including the type of followers they have, the quality of their engagement with followers and their content.
• Alignment. As I have alluded to above, achieving amplification in thought leadership is not a numbers game. Finding an influencer who has the expertise and knowledge on the topic (e.g., metaverse), be it within the organization or external, is critical to alignment.
• Build relationships. In the B2C space, trends matter. As such, it is not unusual for companies to engage influencers closely associated with a trend. However, in B2B, the game plan is different. Consistency is the other critical ingredient. A healthy, long-term relationship with influencers contributes to this consistency and is a step toward transforming your content into thought leadership for your business.
Types Of Influencer Thought Leadership Content
Delivering B2B thought leadership content doesn’t have to be boring, despite the serious subject matter. It can be as versatile and engaging as B2C content. Here are just a few examples of influencer thought leadership content:
• Employee advocacy. Encourage your employees to amplify your content. Your employees are your best influencers, and incentivizing them to share their thoughts and opinions on your products and services dials up engagement.
• Voice of the customer. Your customers are another group of internal stakeholders you can turn to, so highlight their stories. This approach makes it easier for your target audience to embrace your product’s or service’s results, as they have an existing client of yours for reference.
• Online events. Covid-19 proved the effectiveness of online events. From Zoom to Facebook Live, you can bring together influencers from all corners of the world to share their experiences, opinions and perspectives on your product or service.
• Collaboration. Consider collaborating with other industry experts. For example, if you are in the energy sector, producing content jointly with the automobile or airline industry can create the desired synergistic effect. Whether research or case studies, you want to associate your company with your product’s or service’s leading users.
Determining The Right Social Channels For Your Thought Leadership
Choosing the right channel for your thought leadership content is critical. Unless you are where your target audience is, it is very unlikely your thought, views and perspectives will get through. When you are where they are, you can expect a higher return on investment (ROI).
• LinkedIn. More than 9 in 10 C-suite executives are on LinkedIn. With more than 3 in 5 B2B marketers acquiring leads via LinkedIn, you can expect to enjoy a high ROI.
• Facebook. Businesses use Facebook Live to run online events to reach a huge viewership. It’s ostensibly the most effective way to build trust with your target audience. From running “Ask the CEO” panel discussions or meet the team sessions, the opportunity to interact with your target audience takes personalization to a higher level.
• Twitter. As of 2021, Twitter had 206 million active users daily. From celebrities to politicians to entrepreneurs, it is the ultimate list of the movers and shakers of the world. The platform generated revenue of $3.7 million in 2020, with 80% coming from advertising.
It’s also worth considering platforms such as Instagram, YouTube and TikTok. But I would turn to the above to start, as they are established and proven.
Conclusion
A recent TopRank Marketing report revealed that 62% of B2B marketers said influencer marketing has improved the customer experience. Not leveraging this to catapult your thought leadership position is a missed opportunity. I hope this article will change your view of influencer marketing in thought leadership. You don’t have to do it alone.
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