Shortly after buying workingdemosite.com/authority, I bought up as many additional books as I could find on thought leadership marketing and I am always looking for more. I haven’t read them all cover to cover yet, but what strikes me about most of these is that the various systems for positioning and promoting yourself through personal and corporate “expert” branding have a very consistent set of principles.
All of these books talk about picking a niche, developing content and getting out there on the public stage through writing a book, public speaking and being regularly featured in the media. Most if not all of them talk about Internet marketing, blogging and social media to some degree and the level of emphasis does vary.
The good news is that positioning yourself as an expert and undertaking thought leadership marketing is not rocket science, but you do have to be committed and learn about the core principles that can fill you with a pipeline of leads and sales beyond your wildest dreams – potentially and eventually making you a million-dollar-a-year expert.
In this first post of the series, I am listing five essential books on thought leadership and also a bit on personal branding. The next series will dig even deeper into a half a dozen more books specifically on becoming an expert and an authority.
I will be reviewing some of these books on thought leadership individually over time and interviewing as many of the authors as I can, so I won’t go into too much detail here but I hope you enjoy this reading list.
Ready to Be a Thought Leader?
How to Increase Your Influence, Impact, and Success
By Denise Brosseau (Author), Guy Kawasaki (Foreword) | January 7, 2014
A great introduction to the idea of being a thought leader that includes a highly detailed system with step-by-step instructions. An impressive forward by Guy Kawasaki shows that Brosseau takes her own medicine.
Online Marketing for Professional Services
Your future lies online
By Lee W. Frederiksen (Author), Sean T. McVey (Author), Sylvia S. Montgomery (Author) | June 5, 2012
I can hardly express how excited I was to find Lee Frederiksen and Hinge Marketing because they have outlined with highly detailed supporting data, from extensive surveys and interviews, how positioning yourself as a thought leader can significantly increase your professional services business. This book is full of fun photos and data-driven graphics. It is also written in a way that is very accessible.
Thought Leaders
How to Capture, Package and Deliver your Ideas for Greater Commercial Success
By Matt Church (Author), Scott Stein (Author), Michael Henderson (Author) | First printed 2011, reprinted 2013
This book talks about building a six-figure income by becoming a thought leader in your industry and illustrates nine core skills of making that happen. It also includes a DVD and access to lots of online video. Seth Godin gives it high praise which was enough to get me to click buy now.
Book Yourself Solid
The Fastest, Easiest, and Most Reliable System for Getting More Clients Than You Can Handle Even if You Hate Marketing and Selling Paperback
By Michael Port (Author) | November 23, 2010
I have to admit that I paid Michael Port $1,000 for a one-hour conversation about positioning. The only other time I have paid a subcontractor that rate is for extremely advanced link building tactics, as we built out our link building and public relations team. Was it worth it? Yes, because in a very short time with someone as knowledgeable as Michael, I was able to clarify my ideas around positioning and selecting a niche very quickly. And we all know time is money.
This book is not titled in a way that ties it to thought leadership marketing as obviously as others but it is 100% at its core about positioning yourself as an expert.
Promote Yourself
The New Rules for Career Success
By Dan Schawbel (Author), Marcus Buckingham (Foreword)
I first saw Dan speak at a search engine marketing conference and was blown away. He is an absolute authority on personal branding, and no authority building or thought leadership marketing adventure should be undertaken without reviewing his principles.
Conclusion
There is simply not enough time in the day to read all of the books on thought leadership and how to position yourself as an expert. However, if you can get just one or two takeaways from each of these experts, you will be one step ahead of your competition and closer to achieving your dreams.
