Thought Leader, Authority or Trusted Sage. Which do you want to be on LinkedIn?

When you need help in your business, who is the best person to approach?

You could seek out a Thought Leader. There are hundreds claiming that for themselves online. Not a bad place to start but will you get the practical insights and guidance you need to take the action that will turn your business around?

I doubt it. I think you’re more likely to get some good theoretical ideas, interesting opinions and suggestions but you’ll still have to figure out the next steps all by yourself.

So, if a Thought Leader can get you thinking but not get you moving, what could an Authority do to help? These people can present with credibility because they’ve “been there” and experienced the same challenges you’re facing.

They’re well placed to share insights and advice that they’ve used effectively in similar situations.

The problem with them, though, is that they aren’t you and they aren’t running your business. They see things through the lens of their own experience, not through your eyes.

They may have great advice to offer that can help but ultimately they’ll only get you as far as they got themselves, and that may not be far enough to reach your goals.

The person you really want to listen to is a Trusted Sage. This is someone you’ve followed for a while and so have thousands of others. They have all the attributes of both Thought Leaders and Authorities but they go much further.

I don’t use those two words, ‘Trusted’ and ‘Sage’, by accident.

A Sage is someone who’s acquired wisdom through years of observation and application in the real world. They know when to speak and when to keep silent. They have insight into what will help others and are willing to share with no thought of their own advantage.

Someone you trust is someone you can rely on to speak the truth, to behave authentically in line with their values and do what they promise to do. They’ll be there for you when things are tough as well as celebrate the good times with you.

When it comes to the online world, very few brands make it to the Trusted Sage level.

95% never get past the noisiest segment of the market where there’s lots of talk but little trust.

Less than 5% reach the level of being widely seen and recognised

Only 0.02% make up the most trusted brands online. That's where you want to be.

It’s a steep climb to get there and it takes a strategy, a system and a good deal of work but when you do get there everything changes. These brands have dramatically higher visibility on the platform and they even get to play by different rules that give them a huge advantage.

When you do become a Trusted Sage, the brand almost everyone turns to for wisdom, guidance and actionable insights you’re in that rare place along with 1% of brands that can charge premium prices. You deliver so much value that your customers will actually be a little surprised that you don’t charge more.

Being a Trusted Sage is not enough

Sorry if that sounds disappointing. Being seen, recognised and trusted as the “go to” person or brand in your industry is only the foundation.

As you work your way up to that level don’t fall into the traps that catch out most other businesses that use content marketing as their core business development strategy.

• Don’t get stuck competing on price even though you have a great product or service
• Don’t blow all your cash on increasingly costly paid advertisements social media
• Don’t just push your marketing and sales processes into ever greater complexity

To leverage the power of becoming a Trusted Sage, here’s what you need:

1. A straightforward, mostly automated marketing machine
2. A repeatable system that’s inexpensive to run with zero advertising spend
3. Incontestable value so you don’t have to constantly justify your pricing

When you get a system like this going, underpinned by recognition from your target market as a Truste Sage, you’ll see a steady flow of warm, qualified leads that will be relatively easy to convert.

Where to from here?

There are lots of coaching programs around that promise to turn you into a Thought Leader or even position you as an Authority in your field.

I don’t see many that can help you to achieve the level of Trusted Sage. That's what we do in my business, Prominence Global.

P.S. Here are 5 ways we can help you accelerate your Lead Generation results:

1. Follow Adam Houlahan’s LinkedIn Profile Now! Click Here

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