What are the most effective ways to use online content to inspire change as a thought leader?

one principle has remained at the core of my approach: clarity of purpose and vision Identify Your Core Change Agenda: Start by pinpointing the exact change you want to drive. Ask yourself, what's your driving force? Your content should be a reflection of this mission. It isn't just about being seen as an expert; it's about being a catalyst for change. Define your purpose, let it guide your content, measure impact in terms of change, stay authentic to your values, and be willing to evolve. That's how you create content that not only informs but transforms.

Begin by identifying your core values and sharing them in authentic ways on the platforms you use. As you communicate your insights, positions, and beliefs, tie each back to your values. When you’re clear and consistent about what you care about, what you can offer, and who you’re looking to attract, you naturally draw others to you who share your beliefs, want to learn from you, and will help advance your vision.

I’m think if you’ve got a passion and you are educating yourself on something you can share that with others and just try and teach them what you’ve come to know. The best person you can help is some one you use to be. When you are doing something for the right reason and your real - people vibe with that. You should focus on talking about what you’ve learned and make your content out of that. Share it with others and inspire them.

One crucial add-on is the audience. Understand their issues, solve them, that's my direct approach. Transparency is key too. Sharing challenges and failures humanizes you, fostering a stronger connection. Goals lay the groundwork, but audience-centric solutions and openness fortify your thought leadership.

Shape the Future with Your Words and Wisdom Online! ???? - I'd start by picking the proper content format, like an artist choosing a canvas ?? – blogs for depth, webinars for interaction. - Create content that's both a treasure trove and a compass – valuable, credible, and guiding ??. - Engage with your audience like a friendly neighbor over the fence – invite and cherish their feedback and ideas ??. - Plan content that's a two-way street – not just broadcasting, but inviting participation ???. - Actively seek and respond to feedback like a wise mentor – show you care and value their thoughts ??. Pro tip: Use WordPress or Medium for impactful blogging and content creation! ??

The content format and platform selected should meet as many of the following criteria as possible to ensure that it's sustainable: 1. A format and platform that appeals most to your target audience 2. A format and platform that you are comfortable with and can master 3. It matches the resources you have and you are willing to spend the time/effort to start and maintain it. Often, it takes some time before thought leadership is discovered so make sure that you've checked as many of the 3 criteria mentioned earlier for eventual success.

In my experience, people fall into different buckets when it comes to consuming content. There are people who prefer longform content (articles, blogposts etc.). Others are more visual preferring videos or shorter reels. Audio formats like podcasts are also gaining popularity and traction. The same content can be repurposed to suit different audiences. As long you have the elements of a story in place, content can be used in different ways.

Always ask yourself, "Where does my audience live and what kind of content do they enjoy consuming." Tailor your content to the platforms you know your audience is on and try out all different types of formats to see which ones resonate with your audience. Try it all and keep what fits and tweak what doesn't. Trialing it all will help you hone in on what's working and what's not!

Choosing platforms and formats wisely is key. I strongly recommend matching the content's complexity with format - blogs or webinars for complex, videos or podcasts for relatability. Conveying a complex concept? Write an in-depth article then. Explore variety to maximize engagement. Also, quality over quantity. Better a thoughtful piece every month, than generic content every week.

Consider areas such as your audience preferences here (where do they engage the most, is this social media, LinkedIn, newsletters, blogs) Look at your content purpose and message and look at the advantages and disadvantages of each format suited to your message. Consider your resources and capabilities and leverage technology or online tools (Asana) to manage your content creation and delivery process. Different formats carry different metrics; thus, look at analytical tools to suit your chosen format.

Use your stories, experiences, trials and triumphs, and actionable insight and value in your content. People want to get to know you and they also want to learn from you. Establishing yourself as a thought leader means leading with authenticity and open communication. People connect with people when we stay open and honest, and stay true to the intention of sharing to be of service and of help to others.

Strive for authenticity in the content, alongside quality. Integrating personal experiences with professional insights has often made content authentic, relatable and thus, more impactful. Moreover, while ensuring content accurately reflects research, consider explaining jargon in simple terms - making it accessible. Lastly, open dialogue and discussion are powerful. Encourage audience's feedback - their insights can play a crucial role in driving the content strategy.

Choose a topic you can passionately talk about, one that is relevant and original. Your content must showcase your expertise while addressing your audience's needs or interests. Providing data and a means of backing up your claims is also essential here to support your content and arguments. Storytelling is also essential here to promote trust, loyalty, and authenticity. Finally, seek feedback and steer your post toward a CTA or seek engagement from your audience.

The most valuable content answers clearly and succinctly to the burning question of "so what?" from the readers. Missing this is tantamount to leaving a great mystery unsolved... then you're just an armchair critique.

The simple way to creating valuable and credible content is to always share what have worked (or not) for you. Be vulnerable and authentic but also make it clear that this is your personal opinion based on your experience and that what worked for you may not apply to everyone. Also, including other authors, research, studies, and background information for where you got your information will help people form their own opinion and will provide a more rounded view of what you are talking about.

The worst way to be a thought leader is to announce your views and ignore responses from your readers. ?? I've personally responded to thought provoking content with views of my own to augment (or challenge) the ideas presented. How good is an idea that cannot withstand queries or alternative perspectives? Yet many thought leaders do NOT take time to read and respond to their readers. It's the digital age (unlike print) that allows authors to have growing instead of static ideas. It's a great opportunity to further sharpen your key ideas and truly change the world.

If you aren't engaging with your audience than you are missing out on building true and authentic connections with people who are actually resonating with your content. And it shouldn't stop there though. You should also be engaging and interacting with accounts and people that you deeply resonate with. Give love and share content from other accounts. Spark genuine conversations and leave genuine comments on other accounts. This is how you build an impactful community. Together we rise!

Engagement is truly vital. My journey as an HR thought leader taught me that responding respectfully and timely to feedback and comments can vastly impact building relationships. Pro-tip: set aside "engagement time" to connect with audiences and peers, fostering trust and influence. Moreover, collaboration amplifies your reach and enriches your content. I believe partnerships with experts or influencers drive valuable dialogues, fostering a learning ecosystem. Embrace engagement to cultivate a vast, vibrant, and thriving professional network.

See online content creation as a conversation. You create content that is hopefully valuable and insightful for your community and in turn your audience reaches out asking you for specific help with things they are currently struggling with. This creates a two-way communication that allows you to always create content that resonates with what your audience is struggling with the most at the moment.

Over the years, one of the biggest missed opportunities I see is not responding to your audience online and engaging with them. This is one of the greatest ways to build trust and community. If you are responsive, this encourages more engagement, not just from them, but others viewing the content, and it encourages them to return, interact, and even share your content further. This will also give you invaluable insights into your audience that you can use to create even more content.

Trust building is invisible. So, vanity metrics like "likes" and "views" don't necessarily track your impact or ability to change hearts and minds. The signs and signals I look out for to see if my content is resonating with the people I want to reach include: - Ideal audience members visiting my profile (maybe a couple times) - Downloads of the resources I share about on LinkedIn - People coming up to me in real life (at conference, convenings) to bring up conversations about the topics I share on LinkedIn - People sharing - unprompted - my podcast episodes or other thought leadership content with their own reflections

When you approach content creation with the "TRY IT ALL" concept, overtime you'll be able to see what content is landing and what's not with your audience. Stay open to feedback and figure out what your audience is looking for by asking questions and connecting with them outside of your posts. Building connections online should be the same as when you walk into a room with people you don't know... put yourself out there, be yourself, share your value, be honest, and stay true to your intentions.

It's important to have metrics and KPIs here to be able to track and evaluate these more effectively. There are various views on this topic, so it's important to consider these before setting KPIs. Once you have these in place, align these with the data and analyse accordingly. Then, look at your strengths and areas of improvement and apply a critical and objective way to these through frameworks (SWOT) and look at implementing changes.

Definitely one of the best ways to improve your content is from your audience's feedback. You can analyze metrics to see what is working and what people resonate with the most and create more of that content. And you can ask your audience directly for suggestions and what they would like to see more of in your accounts.

Being genuine in your online content helps to foster trust with your audience and stand out. However, don’t fret about revealing vulnerabilities. It’s seen as strength nowadays. Too often, I’ve seen peers shy away from admitting mistakes in their journey- it’s a missed learning opportunity. Sharing your stumbles and lessons learned resonates with people. Candidness encourages others to open up; thus, fostering real, meaningful connections in your professional community.

To be authentic and transparent as a thought leader, you need to be honest, consistent, and open with your audience and yourself. You need to share your values, beliefs, and opinions, as well as your challenges, mistakes, and learnings. You also need to listen to and respect other perspectives and admit when you don’t know something or need help.

Stay current and relevant while adding your perspective. One of the most powerful ways to build thought leadership is to share the latest news in your industry and adding your expert value to guide other users with less expertise to make sense of the current state of events and new developments. Timely content that addresses current issues or advancements can position you as a go-to resource.

Philosophy is great, here is how to action REAL change with your thought leadership. -> Create a branded show around your expertise. -> Run hot-seats with prospects or review real-life case studies. -> Broadcast it as a LinkedIn Live. The easiest way to inspire change is by actually showing your prospects EXACTLY HOW it is possible for them.