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Marketing Simplified

Thought Leadership vs. Influencers

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What’s holding you back from building a strong online personal brand based in thought leadership?

Social media is a tough game in 2023. It can feel nuanced, crowded, and tough to break into. But what if I told you that you’re thinking about social media in the wrong way? All too often, we put influencers with thousands (or millions) of followers in the same bucket as people with strong personal brands but the two are distinctly different. Understanding why they are different and what your goals are will help you succeed on social media. Let’s break it down.

Influencers defined

In marketing, we consider influencers people who inform or guide the action of others, particularly when it comes to making purchase decisions. Traditionally, influencers have been classified as having ample followers and the ability to sell products by making organic posts about them. Influencers tend to have a selling niche and a primary social media platform with which they work. The are viewed as trendsetters. In 2023, being an influencer is a career.

Personal branding defined

People with strong personal brands, on the other hand, are thought leaders. In other words, they are experts or authorities over a particular subject matter. Personal brands (thought leaders) existed before the internet existed. The number of followers you have does not define whether or not you are a thought leader. However, sharing ideas and expertise on social media often leads to enhanced job security, a pipeline for new client leads, and/ or unsolicited career opportunities or recruitments.

Takeaways

  1. You can be a thought leader with ONE follower on social media. Way too many people and small businesses hold themselves back from branding themselves on social media because they don’t think they have enough followers, and it’s a wasted opportunity.
  2. To create a strong brand as a thought leader, you need to have expertise in a PARTICULAR subject matter. I started consulting when I was 33 years old. That’s pretty young to be a consultant, but I knew through my freelance work that I had a novel approach that worked better than my competitors. I wrote about that approach in my client pitches. Eventually, I packaged those things into intellectual property and turned them into marketing training programs for corporations and nonprofits. I do not have millions or even hundreds of thousands of followers and I’ve never tried to achieve that. However, the people who do listen to me on social media listen to me for specific reasons, and it’s created a pipeline for my consulting business that keeps my team and I overworked… an ideal situation for any business owner.

Goal setting

Now that you know the difference between what it means to be an influencer and a thought leader, ask yourself again, “Why am I hesitant to develop a strong online personal brand based in thought leadership for myself or my business?” I hope that some of the barriers have been taken down. After all, the average American currently spends over eight hours a day online. If you’re not creating a personal brand for yourself, others already are.

Now go start talking about your expertise, your why, your secret sauce online (or make sure you are doing it on behalf of your business). You have nothing to lose and everything to gain.

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Testimonials

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“Vanessa changed my life. This is not an exaggeration. I learned more about marketing and brand management from Vanessa in one weekend than I did in YEARS of trying to navigate these subjects on my own. Vanessa has a way of presenting material so that it is easy to understand, effective and immediately actionable. She makes complex concepts simple and accessible. With her many years of experience, she is able to teach real-life lessons that you can implement to launch or improve your business today. Most of all, Vanessa can see your potential and vision sometimes better than you can see it yourself. She truly believes in her students and clients and has a unique way of helping them make their dreams a reality. I did not always think of myself as a thought leader in my industry but Vanessa inspired me to look at my career in new ways. She has helped me bring forth opportunities that I never thought were possible. I am so thankful to have her in my life and forever appreciative of the impact she’s had on both my personal and professional endeavors. Vanessa uses her special gifts to help bring out yours.”

Dr. Lisa Hornick
Optometrist
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“A huge thank you to Vanessa and for her unwavering commitment to shaping leaders of the future. Her knowledge and strategies with personalized thought leadership was the foundation that transformed the way I presented myself and my business. I realized how crucial it is to create a brand that authentically represents you, your values, and your mission. This branding not only impacted my career but shaped the way we position WilsonTech in the market, emphasizing our dedication to excellence, trust, and innovation.”

Ryan Wilson
student and business owner
Heidy Kellison

“Working with Vanessa is like being in your mother’s arms. Seriously. She‘s persistent yet patient, nurturing yet assertive, and accessible while promoting independence. Most impressively, Vanessa knows what she’s talking about. Doing what she says, even when it removes us from our comfort zone, always pays off. You cannot have a better ally for online marketing.”

Heidy Kellison
DOWNTOWNNORCAL
Meaghan Likes

“Before Vanessa, I literally spent thousands of dollars on other marketing courses, and Vanessa’s strategies continue to outperform and exceed my expectations every single time!”

Meaghan Likes
OWNER, BOOKKEEPING ACADEMY ONLINE | CEO, LIKES ACCOUNTANCY COMPANY
Claire Tauzer

“Vanessa helped us realize that we needed to look at marketing one of our new ventures in a whole new way — the opposite of we were doing before. When I followed her approach to create our offer, conversions were downright easy.”

Claire Tauzer
CO-OWNER, TAUZER APIARIES
Bruce Watts

“I like how Vanessa begins with the end in mind. She has you strategically understand your goals, ideal customer, and offer first, then teaches you how all the rest applies. It’s not tied to one thing, but rather, it’s an integrated approach. I would like to create online products for my business and Vanessa really reaffirmed the possibilities. She also highlighted how simple it can be to get them started.”

Bruce Watts
WATTS-WOODLAND AIRPORT
Alison Kent

“Vanessa’s careful nurturing of her clients, her guidance, and her cheerleading have been invaluable to me. The amount of information you get in her workshops and online course is staggering… it includes email marketing, social media, paid traffic, content creation and so on… email marketing was especially valuable for my business. I would recommend her to anyone looking to increase their organization’s online marketing presence.”

Alison Kent
PRINCIPAL, LISTENINK
Lorraine Beaman

“We actually slowed down our marketing plan to keep up with all the new business!

Vanessa has expert knowledge of marketing techniques, but what is really special is the way she helps her clients understand and apply those techniques. She is a great mentor and coach.”

Lorraine Beaman
FOUNDER, INTERVIEW2WORK
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“Vanessa’s strategies have allowed me to significantly outpaced competitors in fundraising revenue generation. But what I really appreciate is her passionate approach, the way she cares about each individual person she works with, their mission, and how it can change the world. Her marketing strategies can’t be found in any textbook but they work significantly better than the ones I find there.”

Tracy Fauver
Executive Director, Davis Community Meals and Housing
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