5 ways to become a thought leader in the forex industry
“Being a thought leader is really far more about being helpful, as you seek to address actual customer pain points in your field of specialized knowledge and expertise.” – Adinah Brown, Leverate
There is no denying that the term “thought leadership” is the latest buzz word in the B2B marketing sphere. It’s an unusual case, especially for forex traders, where the hype doesn’t actually undermine validity.
On the contrary, the ability to demonstrate yourself as a thought leader, puts you ahead of your game and a step in front of your industry’s competition. With good reason, the concept of thought leadership should become the lifeblood of your content marketing strategy.
What is Thought Leadership?
Thought leadership is not about tooting your own horn, in the hopes that the world will finally realize that you are god’s gift to ingeniousness. Being a thought leader is really far more about being helpful, as you seek to address actual customer pain points in your field of specialized knowledge and expertise.
To this end, it is used as a marketing tool which establishes your brokerage as an expert resource and an authority in online trading. It’s not about putting out sales heavy content, but creating an entry point to your brokerage that positions you as an expert in the field. Other opportunities will provide you with the chance to highlight your brokerage service, but as a thought leader, the focus is on projecting yourself as knowledgeable and willing to help.
- What are the pressure points?
To start with you need to identify the questions that your target audience is struggling with and is searching for answers. Your thought leadership marketing strategy is then built around providing answers to those questions.
Think about the questions that your customers are likely to put into a Google search, by identifying those questions, you can then go off to create content that is designed to answer those questions.
As a prompt, consider the types of problems that your brokerage service solves? And on that note, what are all the related possible questions people could ask about those problems? If your answer is particularly good, Google might even swipe it right off your page.
To find out what are the questions being asked by financial traders or brokerages, take a browse through the following sites; Quora, Yahoo Answers, Twitter, Google Keyword Planner, UberSuggest. And then there is the most obvious resource, and that is your CLIENTS!
- Sport your knowledge on Social Media
What’s a thought leader without an audience? Probably an old dude in a library. The point is, you can bring added value to your knowledge by sharing it with the world and that’s where social media comes in.
The content that you post on your social media platforms be it LinkedIn, Facebook or Twitter need to yes, be engaging, but also provide actual value to readers.
Post blogs that answer a timely question, address the possible consequences of a current issue or demonstrate your participation at an event. All of these types of posts demonstrate to your audience that your brokerage is an expert in the finance industry and there to be used as a resource.
- Venture beyond your Blog
Your blog should always be used as the platform for your brokerage’s audience building efforts, but at the same time it’s important to discover new audiences by publishing your thought leadership content on other platforms.
Within the financial industry there is a wide array of online publications that are always eager to post new content that is original, thought provoking, helpful and possibly game shifting. Likewise, guest blogging on other sites in your industry is another ideal way to find a relevant audience interested in what you have to say.
- Keep asking new questions
Even if the questions are basically asking the same thing, as tedious as what it may become, if you position your thought leadership marketing strategy on a foundation of customer questions, you’ll need to keep constantly revising those questions.
The good news is that the finance industry is never static, there are always changing developments, new products coming out, new services available and your business operation is also bound to evolve. Therefore, your answers are going to be constantly evolving too.
- Brand yourself as a Thought Leader
Define your brand as being thought-leadery (I acknowledge that’s not actually a word), the point is your thought leadership marketing strategy is to brand your brokerage as being at the forefront of the industry, and well ahead of your competition.
You can brand this image in your writing style, by the creativity that you incorporate into your videos and images and obviously by demonstrating that you are intimately aware of your B2B client’s needs and pressure points.
Make sure every piece of content published is aligned with this brand image, as any piece may well be one customer’s first point of contact with your company.
