Establishing yourself as a voice of authority in your field is always listed as one of the best ways to boost sales. When consumers view you as a respected authority, they are more likely to listen to your advice and buy your products or services.
There are plenty of examples of this in action. Just look at Oprah Winfrey. She is the voice of authority when it comes to popular non-fiction. It is estimated that Oprah Winfrey book club recommendations contributed to 55-million book sales in 2011 alone.
Do you need further proof? One study found that about 84 percent of consumers will make a purchase after reading about a product or service online.
The bottom line is that being a voice of authority carries extra weight. Your marketing efforts will be more effective, you will reach more people, and you will attract more traffic if you can establish yourself as an authority in your field.
When you are just starting out and no one has heard of your products or services, how do you become an authority? Through content marketing. Though, instead of focusing on marketing your products or services, you will be marketing yourself.
You Need to Be Confident
The first step towards establishing yourself as a voice of authority is to be confident. You need to assert confidence in everything you do. This especially applies to your content. When you answer customer questions, respond to feedback, send out a newsletter, or write a blog post, you need to sound like you know what you are talking about.
Even if you do not have a lot of knowledge in your field, you need to act like you are an expert. You need to fake it until you make it. This does not mean you should lie to your target audience. But you can create a sense of confidence, knowledge, and authority in everything you do online.
Recognize That You Are Not an Expert
Along with being confident, you need to realize that you will never be a true expert. You will never be able to know absolutely everything about your field. It is when you assume that you know everything that you will find yourself making mistakes.
When you become complacent, you run the risk of missing key details or overlooking glaring mistakes. This could be detrimental to the success of your business.
You are not an expert and probably never will become an expert. So even if you feel that you know everything about your industry, continue learning. Make sure you keep track of the latest trends, advances, and breakthroughs in your field.
You Need to Be Original
Perhaps one of the most important tips for becoming a voice of authority is to be original. A person of authority is not a follower – they are a leader. You need to lead within your niche market. This means being original.
There are many ways to be original. You can come up with a new way of presenting your content. You could do your own research or create your own original content.
Take a look at the authorities in various industries outside of your industry. Consider the concepts they are using and then use this as inspiration to come up with your own original ideas.
Create Video Content
Video content provides an effective way to reach your market. It is easier to convey the fact that you are a voice of authority in a video than in text. Also, the number of Internet users that get the majority of their information from video content is increasing.
Video content provides the best way to reach out and connect with your target audience. You can promote a specific emotion and show consumers that you know what you are talking about.
You do not need a professional videographer to begin releasing your own videos. You simply need an HD video camera and some free video-editing software. Start experimenting with different video content and use this content in your marketing strategies.
Discover Your Niche Market
The final tip for building authority is to find your niche. You may not be able to become the top authority in your entire field. Instead, you should narrow your focus on a specific niche within your industry.
This is the same concept as finding a niche for your content marketing strategies. You want to limit the competition. Think about the specific area of your industry that you should focus on. Once you become an authority in that niche, you can think about expanding into other niche areas of your industry.
Final Thoughts on Becoming a Voice of Authority
Anyone can start becoming an authority in their field. As discussed, you do not need to be an expert in your industry. In fact, you will probably never really become a complete expert. But, you need to act and promote yourself as if you are the top expert in your field. People should come to you for answers.
The first step is to remain confident in all aspects of your business. Even when you do not know the answer to a problem, you should be able to find the answer. Always continue learning and researching your field. You also need to focus on being different and original. Continue researching and keep releasing content.
If you continue using these tips, you will be able to establish yourself as a voice of authority. Authority building is not easy. It will take a while to notice positive results. But the sooner you start, the sooner you can reap the rewards.
In order to build authority, you need to be an authority figure. Use these suggestions to become the go-to person in your field.
This is a Contributor Post. Opinions expressed here are opinions of the Contributor. Influencive does not endorse or review brands mentioned; does not and cannot investigate relationships with brands, products, and people mentioned and is up to the Contributor to disclose. Contributors, amongst other accounts and articles may be professional fee-based.