Can Thought Leadership Turn into Sales?

I have a marketing client who was trying to find the right way to educate some of the company’s salespeople about thought leadership content. The company’s sales folks were requesting that product solutions be highlighted prominently within thought leadership articles. Sometimes it is a tug of war between sales and marketing, but the best outcomes happen when we are all on the same page about the value and use of content.

This article is written for my client.?I have an image of him right in my mind’s eye as I write this. And it is for everyone else who wonders how sales teams can leverage content in a meaningful way.

Salespeople can elevate themselves in their client’s minds by caring about the same issues as their C-Suite prospects, well beyond product or service specs and features. Most buyers are sick and tired of salespeople always talking about their own solutions instead of sharing valuable insights that matter to the customer.

Unlike traditional sales collateral, thought leadership attracts and engages prospective customers by speaking of broader problems with genuine concern and knowledge. Doing so illustrates a meaningful appreciation for the challenges that customer faces, be it environmental, financial, societal, educational, technological, or health. This deepens the conversation.?

Simply put, thought leadership content is a way to put the salesperson on the same plane as the prospect. It is a way to elevate the conversation to a more strategic focus, closer to problem-solving. It’s a powerful tool to establish the seller as an expert in their field and as a trusted resource. Content that focuses on the challenges and opportunities facing the industry is sure to be more compelling and of interest to a prospect than any brochure-type piece. Thought leadership content is a key differentiator in a crowded commoditized world.

The company blogs can be a major boon for the sellers and become a driver of conversations and lead activity. The blogs and articles allow a company to showcase its unique perspective and insights on how to best approach solving industry challenges. The content helps to establish the company as a trusted resource.

Sales teams can take advantage of this opportunity even if the sellers are not content creators. Account executives can share a company blog post and add their unique industry expertise and perspective by adding thoughtful comments. The key to this strategy is their willingness to share their unique insights with the confidence that their sales leader supports and even encourages it.

Ideally, the sales team will amplify the company content with their individual stories, ideas, or experiences that will further strengthen the level of understanding they have of a prospect’s greatest challenges. The more specific and real the better. And yes, this can be trained and practiced.

To effectively leverage thought leadership for B2B sales, companies should focus on creating content that is relevant and valuable to their target audience and training their sales teams to engage with it effectively.

Consider these specific examples.

·?????A travel data company publishes travel trends and the implications for travelers in 2023.

·?????A mailing technology company writes about ways to save postage.

·?????An insurance company advises on the best ways to protect personal assets.

·?????A community bank writes about how to grow a small business.

·?????A water utility educates its customers on regional environmental issues.

Also, please look at the Post Road Consulting article called 25 Thought Leadership Content Ideas. which was just published this week.

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Would love your insights and questions!

Should salespeople be engaged with thought leadership?

Comment below – and thank you

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