Tone, culture and thought leadership

As I write this, I’m in the middle of a fascinating project, working with a fast-growing marketing services business, based in Central London. They have some genuinely stimulating and interesting views about their marketplace – and their clients’ challenges. Their service offer is also unique. So they are ideally placed to leverage thought leadership as a promotional and brand-building tool.

But what sets this business apart is not only their service and their views. They also have a great culture. They are curious. They love to solve puzzles. They genuinely care about the work they do. The office has an energetic buzz. The people love what they do, and clients really respond to this cocktail.

The central challenge has therefore become: how to reflect this in their written thought leadership. As the founder says: “it has to feel like us speaking”. And he’s right. In fact, the “it has to feel like us” point is key to all thought leadership work.

Capturing the right vernacular is key. Writing in the right tone is crucial. Thought leadership is about ideas, of course. But it is also about how these ideas are expressed and shared.

Which is what makes every thought leadership project unique.