Here’s What Today’s Decision Makers Want to See in Thought Leadership

There is a whole lot of thought leadership flooding the market right now. Unfortunately, most of it is coming up short of meeting the needs of its audience.

The recent release of our annual LinkedIn-Edelman 2021 B2B Thought Leadership Impact Study examines the state of this vital content type through feedback from around 3,600 management-level professionals in the worlds of sales and marketing.

The majority of these professionals (71%) say less than half of the thought leadership content they consume provides any sort of valuable insight. 

However, when done right, B2B thought leadership is highly influential. Sixty-five percent of respondents said a piece of thought leadership significantly changed their perception of a company for the better, while 64% say thought leadership is a more trustworthy basis for assessing a vendor’s capabilities and competency than marketing materials and product sheets.

For thought leadership to reach its potential, marketers must understand the preferences of their audiences and develop content that aligns with those preferences as they evolve over time.

6 Key Qualities of Exceptional B2B Thought Leadership

Based on the survey responses, here are some of the techniques businesses can employ to move their thought leadership into the realm of “excellent” or “very good,” where only 15% of this content currently resides according to those consuming it.

Stay Educated About and Highlight Emerging Trends

Decision-makers who consume thought leadership content do so primarily to stay on top of trends affecting their industries. They want to be ahead of the curve. This means it’s critical for marketers to stay educated about these trends and focus on delivering content that dives into topics currently affecting the professional space.

It’s also valuable to keep an eye forward and inform your audience about what’s coming down the pike, but many make the mistake of leaning too hard into this. While 62% of respondents said they seek thought leadership that focuses on analyzing current trends that are likely to be affecting their business today, only 38% said they want content that’s more speculative and discusses where things might be going in the future.

Cover Topics That Might Otherwise Be Ignored

Newsrooms across the United States have been shrinking rapidly. According to a Pew Research Center analysis of Bureau of Labor Statistics data that we cite in the report, employment in American newsrooms dropped by 26% from 2008 to 2020.

This reduction means a correspondingly smaller universe of topics being discussed or analyzed. This helps explain why there is such a craving for new, unique, thoughtful business content — 54% of buyers who responded to the survey said thought leadership is a critical means of drawing attention to topics the media would not cover but are still meaningful to their industries.

If you notice a blind spot in media coverage of your industry, thought leadership content is a great way to fill that void and attract readers or viewers who have been craving something more sophisticated and unique.

Put the Human Side Forward

Buyers are clear: They want to see more humanity and relatability from the organizations they do business with. They want to know and trust the people behind a brand.

One way to accomplish this is by using language that presents your company as personable. In the survey, 64% of respondents said they prefer content with a more human, less formal tone of voice. Meanwhile, 67% said they want content that prominently features the point of view of a clearly identifiable author, rather than content that’s just published under the brand’s name.

Challenge Your Customers’ Beliefs

There’s a reason they call it thought leadership instead of thought … followership. Don’t be afraid to get a little edgy. In the survey, 81% of decision-makers said they prefer content offering new, provocative ideas that challenge their assumptions regarding a topic. Your content shouldn’t be about validating your audience’s existing views — it should give them something to think about.

Respondents also yearned for deep dives into specialized topics (77%), and content that includes data and insights from other trusted individuals or organizations beyond just the publishing person or company (80%). 

This indicates today’s decision-makers are looking for a higher level of content that pushes their understanding of specific topics and presents fresh perspectives, even if those perspectives are counter to their own.

Avoid the Hard Sell

Survey respondents generally noted displeasure with content that is designed to sell or pitch products rather than provide useful insight. 

The point of thought leadership content is not to sell to people — it’s to inform and inspire them. By positioning your organization and its people as thought leaders over an extended time, you develop trust in an audience that naturally leads to more sales. It’s a much more organic method of marketing that is compromised as soon as you try to pressure the reader into a purchase

Nearly half of all respondents (46%) cited “overly focused on selling or describing products rather than conveying valuable information” as a shortcoming of low-quality thought leadership.

Develop Content That Suits Your Audience’s Needs

One size does not fit all with thought leadership content. Make sure you get insights from your audience to better understand which formats and styles of content work best for them.

An audience’s needs will vary across companies and industries, so you must already have a thorough understanding of your audience before you invest heavily in content creation. Forty-seven percent of buyers in the report said most thought leadership does not seem to be created with their specific needs in mind.

To recap these qualities of great thought leadership, B2B marketers should be aiming to create content that is:

• Timely and trendy
• Overlooked by news media
• Human and relatable
• Counterintuitive or provocative
• Informative rather than salesy
• Specific to the audience’s needs

To learn more about how today’s decision-makers perceive thought leadership and where the best opportunities lie, be sure to check out the 2021 B2B Thought Leadership Impact Study.