​As I said in an earlier post examining the relationship between trust and thought leadership, brands need to have a few things nailed down to establish themselves as an authority that can shape messaging and ideas about their industries effectively. They need to:

1. Know themselves/Know what it is for which they stand
2. Know their industry/Be brave enough to stand by their opinions about the industry
3. Know the needs of their consumers/Be able to speak to those needs more than to their own needs

That’s generally not an issue for startups, which get rollin’ because entrepreneurs have a brilliant idea about how to do something in an industry that is better than what’s already out there. By default, entrepreneurs (and their startups) are rebels and risk takers, and they’re all about shaking things up, which makes them perfect for thought leadership. So, what's the problem?

I spend a fair amount of time talking with execs and entrepreneurs about branding and thought leadership. These topics pop up as a part of a conversation on the broader goals these professionals have for their companies’ blogs, social media, and digital presence at large. These guys and gals realize that they should be leveraging these spaces to lift their brands’ visibility, but they often don’t know where to start.

One reason companies blog (or vlog, or publish articles, or what have you) is to establish themselves as thought leaders. To blog and leverage social media in a way that demonstrates effective thought leadership, companies need to

1. Know themselves/Know what it is for which they stand
2. Know their industry/Be brave enough to stand by their opinions about the industry
3. Know the needs of their consumers/Be able to speak to those needs more than to their own needs

​From here, our discussion tends to turn toward context. After all, these are strange times.