9 Tools to Make Impressive Thought Leadership Easy
Writing 500-1000 words about a topic you’re an expert in is a great way to start your journey to becoming a thought leader. Taking your thoughts and turning them into thought leadership articles that look and sound professional requires a bit more polishing. Beyond that, making it easy to share those thoughts with your network and ultimately with a larger audience can be a daunting task. Don’t worry! You’re not the first person to face this problem, so there are tools that can make this process easier.
Creating Content
1. Grammarly - Spelling and Grammar (Free or Premium for $12/month)
Grammarly scans your text for grammar and spelling mistakes wherever you are writing. It goes beyond your average spell checking, suggesting commas and word choice. It’s almost like having another person read through your writing before you publish it. There is a basic version you can get for free or a premium version for around $12/month. They have a Chrome extension that will check what you write on social media. There is a Gmail and Outlook extension as well as Google Doc and Word.
2. Canva - Design (Free or Pro for $13/month)
Many design tools, like Adobe Creative Suite, are made for professional graphic designers. Canva gives you flexibility and control without needing to be a designer. They have great templates, and it’s easy to add your brand colors and fonts. They also have stock photos, video footage, and music. Plus, due to its popularity, there are many great resources and tutorials on YouTube and blogs. There is a free version with limited access and a pro version for around $13/month.
3. Google Workspace - Collaboration and File Manager (Free)
Google Suite includes tools like Google Drive, Docs, Sheets, and more. While they are a great way to have free access to basic tools beyond that, they are an easy way to collaborate with others. If you are working on thought leadership or interviewing an expert, you are creating a simple Google Doc and then share the link with anyone you want to view or edit the document as long as your settings allow that type of access. There are limits to the free version based on the amount of storage you use, but I have yet to hit that limit after using it for years.
Sharing Content
4. Buffer - Social Scheduler (Free or $15-$99/month)
If you like to share articles and insights regularly on LinkedIn but struggle to find the time throughout the week, a social scheduling tool can be a lifesaver. Spending one chunk of time using a tool like Buffer means you can write a batch of posts that go out later down the line. There are many great tools like Hootsuite, SproutSocial, and SocialPilot that all have free versions and pro versions at different prices. I chose Buffer to recommend for thought leaders because up to three accounts are free and simple to use. Plus, if you decide you’d like a premium option, the low-cost option ($15/month) for the pro versions making it easier to grow slowly using this tool.
5. MailChimp - Email Marketing (Free or $10-$300/month)
Creating an email list to send updates or newsletters is a great way to connect with your audience and grow your influence beyond LinkedIn. There are a ton of different email marketing tools include HubSpot, Constant Contact, and Drip. Like social schedulers, they all have free versions and pro versions. I selected MailChimp to recommend it that it has a simple drag and drop design tool for emails and landing pages. You can have up to 2,000 contacts for free and up to 50,000 for only $10/month, making it easy to grow with this tool. It is also one of the most common tools and therefore has many integrations built with complementary marketing and communications tools.
6. Squarespace - Website Content Management System (CMS) (Free or $16-$54/month)
If you are ready to move beyond sharing your articles on LinkedIn alone and want to start a website for your thought leadership, there are many different tools you can use. WordPress, Wix, and Weebly are all content management systems (CMS) that work well. They all have a free version and a pro version you can pay for.
The reason I chose to recommend Squarespace is that it’s an incredibly user-friendly platform. There are some limitations, but for the most part, you can pick a template, customize colors, and add content without much knowledge of web development. You will likely hit a paywall reasonably quickly if you want to do a lot of customization, but they have a low-cost personal plan for $16/month. I would recommend that even if you use Squarespace, purchase your domain (your website address) from somewhere else like Google Domains. That way, if you decide to move to another platform, you can easily take your domain with you.
Strategy and Optimization
7. Google Analytics - Web Analytics (Free)
Once you have a website and are trying to drive traffic or generate leads, it’s essential to keep track of what’s happening on your website. Google Analytics can help you see who is coming to your website, where they are coming from, and what they do when they are there. While Google Analytics isn’t the most user-friendly tool, there are many great resources to help you get set up and find the information you are looking for. It is also industry standard, so growing with Google Analytics is easy. There are also lots of experts that you can hire to help set up tracking for different parts of the tool. Plus, most marketing tools have integrations with Google Analytics, making it fit well in your tool kit.
8. Answer the Public - Search Insights (Free or $99/month)
When you are an expert on a topic, it can sometimes be challenging to determine what questions a beginner might have. Knowing what question people are asking about a particular term can help point you in the right direction. It can also be a great way to start working on search engine optimization (SEO).
Answer the Public is a great tool that allows you to discover what questions, phrases, and related words people search for related to a keyword or topic. For example, if you put in virtual events, it will show you questions like “Why are virtual events important” and “Will virtual events replace real events.” The only real downside of this tool is that it is pretty expensive at $99/month, but you can do one search a day for free. If you know what topic you want to write about, using your one free search gives you insight into what people want to know about the subject.
9. Moz - Search Engine Optimization and Key Word Research (Free or $99-$600/month)
You may have noticed that the two most expensive tools on this list are connected to search engine optimization (SEO). That is because SEO has a high ROI and can lead to substantial organic (unpaid/non-ad-based) growth. There are many platforms that include similar tools for SEO like SEMRush, Ahrefs, and SE Ranking. There are pros and cons to all of these are they are the most complex set of tools on this list. If you have a basic understanding of SEO and want to do Key Word research, the reason I recommend Moz is because their free tools give you a lot more access than the other options I mentioned. It’s a great place to try out some keyword research for beginners. I will also admit that I am somewhat biased to Moz because the SEO courses I took used it as an example, so I find it easiest to use.
Spending time on SEO can be incredibly powerful, but it a long-term play. It’s not something that I generally recommend for people who already have an audience and just want to grow their influence with their existing network. However, if you are ready to put money and time to develop a business investing in SEO with a tool like Moz or by hiring an SEO expert can have a high ROI.
Take-Aways
There are lots of tools that make creating quality content easier. From time savers like social schedulers to design to keyword research, there are many different ways to approach content creation. If you are just getting started in creating thought leadership, using Grammarly and Canva is a great place to start. If you are looking to take your content to the next level and drive new business using Answer the Public and Moz might be a good fit for you.
If you are ready to take your thought leadership to the next level but don’t have the time to elevate your content, we are here to help. Set up some time to chat today to get started growing your professional brand. Book an Appointment
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