Thought Leaders and Gatekeepers
Operational effectiveness in creating and publishing thought leadership is essential in competitive, ideas-driven industries. But when organizations do not clearly map out who can make which decisions and under what circumstances, every gatekeeper ends up with veto rights. That messiness is exacerbated by the natural human inclination to have opinions and preferences and the difficulty of preventing those from spilling into bias.
The Hidden Power of Moral Focus
We accomplish so much more when we keep our moral commitments at the heart of what we do. That surplus shows up as greater impact, more trust, and warmer connections rather than the endless “more, more, more” of marketing content. We commit to helping people know more, think more clearly, make better decisions, strive higher to create better in their little corner of the world.
What Free Means to Me
Earlier this month, I started offering a free hour of consulting to anyone in the world of fintech or financial services. It’s a free offer where I sit with people and help them work through complex communications challenges. This is why I’m doing it and what free means to me.
Thought Leaders: Don’t Play in Traffic
Does it make sense to chase “traffic” as a goal for online content? Quite often, the answer is no. This may seem a contrarian point of view on the topic, but in the domain of thought leadership, traffic is relatively meaningless as a goal. Reputation always beats traffic. Don’t chase traffic that’s already on existing roads. Instead, become the topic that people search for.
A Fable About Two Cats
Spotted Cat strategy or White Cat strategy? As marketers, we have a choice. Demanding and noisy or calm and quiet? The idea is simple. Take a patient, deliberate approach to marketing efforts, recognizing that attention earned may be of better quality than attention demanded. Especially in the worlds of financial innovation and fintech for the B2B market, patience is rewarded by an engaged and eager audience.
How to Create a Content Swarm [Infographic]
Planning a thought leadership campaign? Download our latest infographic to find out what you should do before, during, and after your launch. Free, with no registration required.
Communications Transformation: Avoid the “Back to Normal” Trap
The coronavirus crisis has been enormously stressful and has caused real pain and sorrow to many people. At the same time, as with all such situations, personally or collectively, it also generates the potential for transformation. There is work communications leaders can do right now to foster such transformation, creating a better team and a higher value function as we emerge from the current challenges.
Clarity, Coherence, and Compassion in a Coronavirus World
Technology innovators and startups in the B2B space can make or break their strategy using thought leadership, but the coronavirus crisis is creating deep challenges for getting thought leadership out there. The key to all of it: adopt a strategy focused on clarity, coherence, and compassion. These are needed now more than ever.
COVID-19 Communications Strategy: A Financial Services FAQ
Many of my clients have asked about the communications implications of COVID-19. I would like to share those questions as well as some helpful answers with a wider range of people who might find them useful. The common thread is this: 1) take a calm, planful, and measured approach; 2) adapt flexibly to changing circumstances as they evolve; and 3) anticipate the needs of both communicators and audiences with thoughtful empathy.
Beat the Odds and Break Through “Content Chaos”
Research commissioned by Speak Media and released at the end of 2019 found that 90% of in-house comms leaders experience “content chaos.” They struggle with content creation and evaluation, often due to a shortage of skills and resources, fragmented business units. Having worked on both the in-house and agency side, I can’t say I am surprised that in-house comms teams experience such widespread chaos.