“You keep using that word. I do not think it means what you think it means.”
– Inigo Montoya, The Princess Bride
Thought Leadership: a term us marketers like to throw around like confetti at a best friend’s wedding. Webinars, research reports, opinion pieces, podcast shows, how to guides…if it isn’t (overtly) selling, it must be ‘thought leading’.
When Joel Kurtzman (editor of Strategy+Business) first coined the term back in 1996, he had something specific in mind: “Thought Leaders are those people who possess a distinctively original idea, a unique point of view, or an unprecedented insight into their industry.”
Today, what most B2B brands call thought leadership is simply good, old fashioned content marketing – the good, the bad, and the ugly. It rarely hits the heights of what Kurtzman had envisaged.
Some recent research highlights the paradox of modern-day thought leadership:
- 94% of B2B marketers consider thought leadership to be essential to their marketing strategy (Today Digital 2023)
- 73% of B2B decision-makers view thought leadership content as a more trustworthy basis for assessing an organisation’s capabilities than its marketing materials (Edelman2024)
- But only 15% rate the overall quality of the thought leadership they consume as “very good” or “excellent” (Edelman2024)
- Just 26% of B2B buyers consider the brands they buy from to be genuine thought leaders (Dentsu SuperpowersIndex 2024)
A more thoughtful approach
What if there was a different way of doing thought leadership? What if, instead of pumping out ‘stuff’ in the hope of getting noticed, thought leadership added genuine value to the sector? What if, instead of being a crude lead gen tactic, it actually became a ‘win-win’ that grows the business AND delivers social impact?
Call it ‘thoughtful leadership’, if you like. (Credit goes to Jon Goldberg for coining the term)
Thoughtful leadership isn’t simply content marketing in fancy clothes. It’s an opportunity to blend social responsibility, organisational purpose and business development into a single strategy. Done well, it has the potential to deliver the ‘tripple whammy’ of:
business growth + audience value + social impact
Let's be clear, this approach isn’t for the faint-hearted. It demands focus and restraint (instead of an “anything for a lead” approach many B2B brands seem eager to employ). It requires openness and a generosity of spirit (even if that benefits your competitors from time to time).
Here are just a few purpose-minded B2B businesses delivering thoughtful leadership with our support…
A global human rights consultancy focused on helping businesses become human rights proactive. Their approach has revolved around summary reports, how to videos, webinars and online gatherings for leaders - delivering:
For the business: Word-of-mouth referrals and high quality, engaged new biz leads
For their audience: Practical, insightful content that helps leaders make their case to senior management
For society: Empowering smaller businesses to adopt a proactive approach to human rights (without the need for consultancy)
Heartstyles
A global leadership development programme focused on growing character within business leaders. Their approach has blended proprietary character profile data, opinion pieces by expert authors, industry white papers and online roundtable events – delivering:
For the business: Visibility in the crowded market of leadership development; an engaged community of prospective clients
For their audience: Practical tools and expert advice to help leaders drive behaviour and culture change within their business
For society: A deeper understanding of the important role character plays in developing effective leaders
Noble + Eaton
A UK-based environment design consultancy focused on creating thriving spaces for forward-thinking schools. Their strategy has involved primary research in the sector, expert how to guides, in-person networking events and evidence-based thought pieces - delivering:
For the business: A community of 'raving fans' (who become prospective clients when they are ready to buy)
For their audience: Peer research and evidence-based strategies which schools can immediately apply
For society: Challenging the conventional approach to learning environments - raising the bar for everyone
Possibilities for the purpose-minded
This more ‘upstream’ approach isn’t for everyone. For those businesses driven by the bottom line, it will be unecessarily expansive. For those determined to keep these sorts of activities firmly in the marketing box, it will feel too involved.
But for those looking to deliver on their organisational purpose AND their sales targets, perhaps thoughtful leadership is the alternative you’ve been waiting for. A chance for marketers to be part of something bigger than simply the endless churn of content that often fails to deliver deeper 'thought' or true 'leadership'.
