3 Keys to Developing Yourself as an Industry Authority

Are you an entrepreneur, business owner or professional looking to establish yourself as an authority in your industry?

Yes? … Me too!

Do you have a strategy or plan on how to accomplish this?

Two of the main pillars of success in becoming an industry authority are Personal Branding and a Content Marketing Strategy.

But first, let’s discuss WHY.

Why are these two activities necessary in order to slay it in your industry, catapult your reputation and become a well-known authority?

Gain respect and networking opportunities from your peers, potential clients or employers.

Open up a steady stream of referrals.

Get paid speaking gigs or PR opportunities.

Receive requests for guest blogging or vlogging, in order to leverage others audiences.

Feel a sense of compassion by sharing your knowledge and value with your community.

Land consulting clients who want to pay you for this knowledge and expertise.

Be known as the solution to your target customer’s pain points and the leads will come.

How will we you get there?

1. Establish your personal brand

What is the first thing anyone does when they want to learn about a person, place or topic?

THEY GOOGLE YOU/IT!

Your personal brand is the collection of content that you put online, which can be found by your current and potential employer, customers or clients.

It is your mission statement, vision, unique value proposition, core values, accomplishments, lessons you’ve learned through experience with a heavy dose of your personality! Once this is fleshed out, these will serve as the themes for your content to be distributed on your blog, public articles (LinkedIn, Medium etc.), and social media channels.

Your personal brand is the foundation of your mission and purpose. And content marketing is the communication vehicle for your message.

Lucky for you I am in the midst of creating a personal branding guide, so make sure you are signed up for my email newsletter to gain access!

2. Share Your Story

We all have a unique story to tell. This is at the heart of your personal brand. Your story should be an outline of your personal and professional experiences, but most importantly what you have learned through these experiences, good and bad.

It encompasses what your passionate about and how your actions align with all of the above but MOST importantly WHY you do it. What drives you in your business on a daily basis?

Pair this content with some high-quality images of yourself and you are well on your way to a successful content marketing strategy.

Your story should be authentic and represent your true self. With an abundance of imposters online, it’s very easy to slip into copy-cat mode because you see what is working for other people and it’s a safe route, or so you think.

While it is OK, to see what others are doing for inspiration, do not be tempted to copy someone else. Too many people chase vanity metrics and a clean, curated feed in pursuit of perfectionism. You are unique and your gifts are unique! Sharing your authentic story is what will differentiate you.

3. Implement a content marketing strategy and plan.

All marketers will tell you that “Content is King” and for good reason.

47% of buyers view at least 3–5 pieces of content before they contact a sales representative. 96% of B2B buyers look for more information from industry thought leaders before buying.

However, before you can create a strategy you will need to determine who your target audience is.

For example if you are a health and wellness coach and the audience you are looking to target and engage with are 30-40 year old moms who are struggling to stick to a healthy regimen. Then you would be able to create targeted and relevant content that educates, inspires, influences and impacts them as well as others in the same industry.

Now taking it a step even further to really establish influence and differentiate yourself in a noisy digital environment-

Lindsey Tague