Thoughtleading Is PR and PR is Thoughtleading

“Thoughtleading” is a key part of a sound business-development strategy. Positioning yourself and your firm as leading-edge thinkers involves publishing articles and perhaps books, speaking regularly to professional groups and getting yourself noticed by the media.

While thoughtleading is especially crucial for professional service providers, any organization offering a product or service less generic than hog bellies can benefit from it.

Studies indicate that it is possible to measure a return on investment from thoughtleading. Article-publishing ROI, for example, can be measured by asking prospects if the firm’s published articles played any part in either their initial decision to approach the company or their ultimate decision to do business with the company.

Using such measurements Kennedy Information, the nation’s premiere management-consulting think tank, has found that firms and individual consultants at the topmost point of the compensation chart are paid far better than the remaining 99 percent. When asked how the top 1 percent manage this, the response is clear: “Those highest revenue-producers are the ones who regularly publish articles and books, do speaking engagements, and connect with the media,” the Kennedy people explain. “They are the thoughtleaders.” Another recent study correlated increased revenue with publishing, speaking, media exposure, and other thoughtleading actions, adding that thoughtleading’s ROI is higher when it is integrated with a firm’s more traditional marketing and sales activities.

For more information on thoughtleading, I recommend my colleague Ken Lizotte’s new book, The Expert’s Edge (McGraw Hill). It’s easy to read, thought provoking and comprehensive.

Henry Stimpson, APR, is president of Stimpson Communications in Wayland, Mass., a public relations firm. Contact him at 508-647-0705 or Henry@StimpsonCommunications.com.

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