Authority-based Marketing

How to Cut Through the Clutter and Connect with Clients

Abstract:

More than ever, media messages and advertising are clogging consumers’radios, television sets, mailboxes, newspaper and magazine pages, andcomputer screens. This white paper explores how to cut through the clutter byemploying

authority-based marketing

Intro:

We have entered the information age, and with it comes information overload.More and more often, people are inundated with sales calls, spam mail, andother marketing materials cluttering their mailboxes, email accounts, andtelevisions. People are tired, and they’re turning off.Traditional marketing is dead. Direct mail ends up in the trash, emails aredeleted immediately, and television marketing is too expensive. So how can aprofessional or business break through the clutter and connect with potentialclients?The answer: authority-based marketing. Authority-based marketing is the process of establishing a professional as anexpert in a particular field and positioning the professional as the primary voiceon the topic he or she specializes in. With so many messages coming at peopleday in and day out, everyone is looking for trusted sources of information,advisors to educate them and help them make informed decisions. They wantauthority figures on the topics of interest to them.

How to Establish Yourself as an Authoritative Source

Establishing yourself as an authority figure takes time; it doesn’t happenovernight. However, you can start developing your position as an authority figureright away by following these steps.

Step 1: Identify Your Specialty

True authority figures are authorities on a specific topic—and the more specificand differentiated their area of expertise the better. People who claim to beexperts on multiple topics aren’t experts at all, they’re dabblers. Becoming anexpert takes experience, knowledge, and a track record of results. One can’tdevelop those while pursuing multiple fields at once.Being specific is key to developing your role as an authority figure. For example,leadership is a big topic, but nonprofit leadership is a specific topic. Theconcerns and challenges of nonprofit leaders vary greatly from corporate andmilitary leaders. If you can speak to the needs and wants of this specific group,you will find yourself better able to gain credibility as a source. Plus, it will makeit easier to develop materials relevant to that group and identify ways to connectand interact with them.Differentiation is also important because it gives you a competitive advantage. As the example above shows, leadership is a big topic in which there arealready hundreds of experts. Focusing on nonprofit leadership narrows yourcompetition and helps you stand out. So does presenting a new technique orapproach, point of view, or new facts and insights not already prevalent in yourfield.

Action Steps

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Ask yourself this question: When people seek you out, what topic do theymost frequently ask you about? This is your specialty.

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Go to the Internet, a bookstore, or an industry association and identify theleaders in your field. Make a table listing their strengths and weaknesses. Doyou see an opening you can fill?

Step 2: Define Your Value Proposition

Now that you’ve narrowed down your specialty and differentiated yourself fromyour competition, it’s time to identify your key message and the value that youwill bring to others. Using the nonprofit leadership example, your value

proposition could be “growing socially oriented leaders” or “teaching organizershow to motivate volunteers.” Again, being specific and brief will help you quicklyhome in on your target audience and will help them identify you as an authorityon their topic of concern.

Action Steps:

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Make a list of several key messages. Mix and match to make new ones.

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Bring in a few trusted advisors to help you brainstorm.

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Sleep on it—this is your brand message. You don’t want to rush into it.Make sure it is something you can deliver, develop, and live with for yearsto come.

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Choose one and stick with it.

Step 3: Develop Your Message

You’ve identified your key message, and now it’s time to develop the content tocarry your message forward. What tips, strategies, frameworks, and examplesdo you have that help communicate your message and provide value to youraudience? Do you have access to important statistics, research, or fellowexperts? Compile all of your information into talking points and organize themby subtopic.Next, make the items in your message

actionable

. This means boiling down yourideas into steps or strategies that individuals can easily apply. Ideas are great,but real value comes when people learn how to employ those ideas to improvetheir lives. As in the case of the nonprofit leadership expert, actionable itemscould be “5 steps to building trust in a team” or “3 ways to run a meeting.”Honing and developing your message is not a one-time deal. Any expert worththeir salt understands the importance of staying current and constantly buildingon their knowledge base. Not only does this help you build a skill set, but it alsokeeps you involved in the dialogue so you can make timely comments and feeddebate in your field. It’s those who are involved and current who get the mediacoverage and clients.

Action Steps:

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Organize your thoughts into main ideas or concepts.•

Identify subtopics for each main idea/concept.•

Pull together supporting facts and actionable items for each subtopic.•

Edit and refine your content. Make sure it is easy to understand, providesvalue, and contains action steps to help people apply your knowledge totheir lives.