The Attributes of Winning Thought Leadership Content

Two recent studies provide several important insights regarding the role and importance of thought leadership content in the marketing mix. Thought leadership content is often the primary means of creating the initial engagement with a potential buyer. Therefore, it plays a critical role in the marketing efforts of many B2B companies.

The Economist Group Study

Thought leadership disrupted:  New rules for the content age by The Economist Group was based on a survey (conducted in association with Hill+Knowlton Strategies) of 1,644 global marketing and business executives. This survey included both marketers (those who plan, develop, or manage thought leadership content) and executives (those who consume thought leadership content). The results discussed below are based on the responses of executives.

More than two-thirds (68%) of surveyed executives said they consume thought leadership content at least weekly, and almost as many (63%) said they had increased their consumption over the 12 months prior to the survey. However, 75% of executives also said they had become more selective in their content consumption over the preceding 12-24 months, and the executives reported that, on average, they engage with only about 25% of the thought leadership content they see every day.

When executives were asked why they consume thought leadership content, the top three reasons chosen were to encounter thoughts that go beyond current thinking (42%), to identify new business opportunities (34%), and to address existing business problems (28%).

When they were asked what qualities made thought leadership content compelling, the most popular attributes identified were innovative (40%), big picture (36%), transformative (36%), and credible (35%). In contrast, the adjectives most frequently associated with poor thought leadership content were superficial (34%), sales-driven (31%), and biased (28%).

The Grist Study

Last year, Grist, a B2B content marketing agency based in London, commissioned a study to better understand the views of business executives regarding thought leadership content. The Value of B2B Thought Leadership Survey was based on interviews of more than 200 senior executives at FTSE 350 companies.

When surveyed executives were asked why they consume thought leadership content, the three most frequently chosen reasons were to keep me informed of emerging trends (66%), to enable me to make better business decisions (60%), and to help me understand best practices (52%). When they were asked what qualities were most valuable in thought leadership content, the three most favored attributes were fresh thinking (46%), forward-thinking (30%), and evidence-led (29%).

The interviewers also asked participants what caused thought leadership content to fail. The top three attributes identified by executives were too generic - not directly relevant to me (63%), lack of original insight or ideas (58%), and promoting the advisor, rather than addressing my problems (53%).

The Grist study also sought to obtain data regarding the impact of thought leadership content. Surveyed executives said they consume 31% of the thought leadership content they encounter and that 28% of the content they come across has an impact on their decision-making.

The Takeaway

The results of these two studies provide important pointers for marketers who use thought leadership content in their marketing efforts. They demonstrate that effective thought leadership content must be objective and authoritative, and most importantly, it must provide unique and in-depth insights for the target audience.

Illustration courtesy of Abhijit Bhadurl via Flickr CC.