Collaboration in Thought Leadership: 7 Ways to Combine Expertise and Build Authority Online

Thought Leader Collaboration by Houssam talhouk

Collaboration in Thought Leadership: 7 Ways to Combine Expertise and Build Authority Online

Collaboration is a key aspect of thought leadership as it allows experts to share their knowledge and insights with a wider audience. This article will examine several online Thought Leader Collaboration opportunities, such as co-authoring, guest blogging, podcasting or vlogging, webinars, social networking, and more.

We will also be covering the advantages and disadvantages of the approaches that will be discussed so you can see which one or which combination might work best for you and your audience. There are various methods to interact online and position yourself as a thought leader in your business, whether you’re looking to share different ideas, reach new audiences, or build a community of thought leaders.

Co-authoring:

Thought Leader Collaboration can be on research, whitepapers, articles, or other written content by co-authoring and sharing their expertise. This can be a great way to combine different perspectives and create more in-depth, well-rounded content. Example: The New York Times column “Room for Debate” invites experts from different fields to share their perspectives on current issues and events. The column features multiple authors contributing their unique expertise to provide a well-rounded and in-depth analysis of the topic.

Advantages:

• Combining different perspectives and creating more in-depth, well-rounded content
• Exposure to new audiences
• Opportunity to learn from and collaborate with other thought leaders

Disadvantages:

• Coordinating schedules and deadlines can be difficult
• Different writing styles may not align seamlessly
• Disagreement on who leads the collaboration might rise and result in conflict

Guest blogging:

Thought leader collaboration can involve inviting other experts to contribute to their blog by writing guest posts. This can be a terrific way to expose the guest blogger’s work to a new audience, and it can also help the host blogger to create a diverse range of content.

Reaching out to popular website/ blog owners is also an approach lots of thought leaders do provide so that they can establish a relationship and add value to the website they would like to publish their blog on.

This can be a long process as it might often result in no response or rejection but by adopting a consistent approach process of researching the owner and content of a blog, writing valuable content, establishing a relationship/ rapport with the owner, then pitching your article. The chances of getting your article published increase especially if you personalize this process with several other established websites.

In the case of thought leaders inviting others to publish their blogs, the Harvard Business Review invites thought leaders and experts to contribute to their blogs by writing guest posts. The guest posts cover a wide range of topics and provide valuable insights and information to their readers.

Advantages:

• Exposure to new audiences
• Opportunity to share expertise with a wider audience
• Variety of content for host blogger

Disadvantages:

• Request for very High professional standards from applicants
• Quality of the guest blogger’s content may not align with the host blogger’s standards
• Outreach process can be frustrating with a low response rate

Podcasting or vlogging:

Thought leaders can collaborate on a podcast or vlog series by having guest speakers or co-hosts. This can be a great way to share different perspectives and engage in in-depth conversations about a specific topic especially since this type of content is gaining popularity with platforms like Spotify, apple podcast, and YouTube.

For example, Joe Ragan’s “The Joe Rogan Experience” podcast features a wide range of guests, including entrepreneurs, authors, and experts. Joe and his guests engage in in-depth conversations about a variety of topics related to self-improvement, science, and politics.

Advantages:

• Ability to share different perspectives and engage in in-depth conversations
• Easy setup by creators
• Easy content consumption by the audience on the go
• Opportunity to collaborate with other thought leaders and experts
• Variety of content for the audience

Disadvantages:

• Coordinating schedules and availability can be difficult
• Cost of instruments like high-quality microphones
• Editing skills may be required

Webinars:

Thought Leader Collaboration can include hosting a webinar, where they can share their knowledge and insights with an audience. This can be a great way to provide valuable information and engage with the audience through Q&A sessions. For example, Gary Vaynerchuk, Neil Patel, and Eric Siu are examples of thought leaders who collaborate to host webinars, where they share their knowledge and insights with an audience.

They discuss a wide range of topics related to digital marketing, growth hacking, and online business and it is interesting to see such great minds discuss different perspectives on certain topics, where they agree, and where they disagree.

Advantages:

• Ability to provide valuable information and engage with the audience
• Opportunity to collaborate with other thought leaders and experts, and learn while doing that
• Potential for lead generation

Disadvantages:

• Coordinating schedules and availability can be difficult
• Technical difficulties may arise during the webinar
• Managing the webinar while it takes place in terms of which guests turn it is to talk and for how long , managing conflict that might arise, and attendance Q and A

Social media:

Thought leader collaboration can also include social media by sharing each other’s content. This can include co-hosting Twitter chats or Live streams or creating a community where thought leaders can share their insights and collaborate.

For example, #Hootchat is a weekly Twitter chat hosted by Hootsuite, where thought leaders and experts share their insights and knowledge on a specific topic related to social media and digital marketing.

Advantages:

• Ability to share each other’s content and reach new audiences
• Collaboration through co-hosting Twitter chats or Live streams
• Building a community of thought leaders to share insights and collaborate

Disadvantages:

• Coordinating schedules and availability can be difficult
• Ability to control the conversation and censor negative conversation

Conferences or events:

Thought leader collaboration can also take place by speaking at events or conferences together or by co-organizing events. For example, the annual SXSW Interactive is an example of thought leaders collaborating by speaking at events or conferences together.

The conference features keynote speakers, panel discussions, and networking opportunities, where thought leaders can share their ideas and insights with a wider audience.

Advantages:

• Speaking at events or conferences together allows sharing of ideas and insights with a wider audience.
• Creates networking opportunities where thought leaders can connect with other experts in their field and learn from each other.
• Great way for thought leaders to promote their brand and gain visibility in their industry.

Disadvantages:

• The cost of organizing or attending conferences or events can be high
• Preparation and coordination required for an event or conference can be time-consuming and require a lot of resources.
• The success of the event or conference depends on the audience’s engagement and participation, which can be unpredictable.

Research or Projects:

Thought leaders can collaborate by working on research projects or on developing a product or a service. For example, The Alan Turing Institute is an example of thought leaders collaborating by working on research projects. The institute brings together researchers, academics and experts to work on various projects related to data science, artificial intelligence and other related fields.

Advantages:

• Combining knowledge and expertise to create something new and innovative.
• Great way for thought leaders to promote their brand and gain visibility in their industry.

Disadvantages:

• The cost of organizing or attending research projects or developing a product or a service can be high, which can be a barrier for some thought leaders.
• The preparation and coordination required for a research project or development can be time-consuming and require a lot of resources.

Takeaways:

There are many ways for online thought leader collaboration to successfully take place where expertise gets shared with a new and wider audience. Co-authoring research and whitepapers guest blogging and hosting webinars are the tip of the iceberg where the opportunities for collaboration are vast. It’s important to consider which strategy best fits your aims and target audience because each approach has advantages and disadvantages of its own. When thought leaders work together, they can create more in-depth and thorough content, engage new audiences, and collaborate with other subject matter experts.

Collaboration may assist build authority and competence in a variety of fields, as well as produce fresh and creative ideas. In the end, though, leaders should work to question established ways of thinking and acting and collaborate to develop a strategy that is more genuine, focused on people, and effective.