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Forbes
42 minutes ago
- Business
- Forbes
How To Create B2B Thought Leadership That Actually Leads
Great B2B thought leadership starts with framing. Before you write a word, zoom in on the idea, ... More sharpen the angle, and find the format that fits. In B2B marketing, where content is churned out at record speed, one question remains evergreen: What truly qualifies as the best type of B2B thought leadership content? The answer is not simple—because the best thought leadership content is not just about format. It's about framing. It's about originality. And most of all, it's about resonance with a well-defined audience. Thought-leadership content helps your audience solve important problems and sets you or your organization up as the go-to expert. As someone who's worked with hundreds of professionals inside our Thought Leadership Writing Incubator and through corporate programs, I've seen the same truth play out over and over: the right story, framed well, and matched to the right format can create real impact. But the wrong story—or the wrong frame—can make even brilliant ideas fall flat. Let's unpack what makes the best B2B thought leadership content. 1. The Best B2B Thought Leadership Content Starts with a Big, Original Idea All great B2B thought leadership starts not with a format, but with a bold, original idea. If you don't have a compelling concept to anchor your content, the format won't matter. It'll read like a warmed-over blog post. The best ideas are not recycled from industry panels or skimmed from competitors' white papers. They're forged from lived experience, informed synthesis, and wide sourcing inside your organization. Thought leadership doesn't always trickle down from the C-suite—it often bubbles up from customer-facing teams, solution designers, or data analysts who are closest to emerging problems. 2. Framing Your B2B Thought Leadership Is Everything Even with a great idea, your content will fail to break through if it's not framed effectively. A strong frame answers the 'why now?' question and delivers a clear benefit to the audience. It teases insight without giving away the punchline and aligns the story with a specific job to be done by the reader. Most organizations skip framing and dive right into writing. That's a mistake. In our story boot camp, we teach people to use journalistic story-finding techniques to frame their articles. Why? Because journalists are masters at making complexity accessible. They know how to find the most compelling angle, lead with a surprising twist, and write in a tone that engages rather than lectures. Great framing is what turns 'We improved our operations with AI' into 'Three AI Mistakes Even the Best Operations Teams Make.' The second promises insight. The first sounds like a press release. 3. Match Format to Idea—Not the Other Way Around Too many thought leadership efforts start by assigning content formats: 'Let's do a white paper,' 'We need a blog post series,' 'Can we get someone on a podcast?' But the best format emerges from the idea itself. If your idea is nuanced, complex, and driven by proprietary data, a study or feature-length article may be ideal. If it's contrarian and punchy, an opinion piece can land harder. If it's derived from personal experience or experimental methods, a first-person narrative or an in-depth interview of you may work better. Let the idea lead, and then find the form that serves it best. Rigid editorial calendars kill creativity. Leave room to adapt the format to the frame. But again: The format follows the frame, not the other way around. 4. The Best Thought Leadership Is Sourced Widely One of the most overlooked principles in thought leadership is that the best ideas often live in the middle or bottom of the org chart. Companies that rely solely on executive perspectives miss the deep, domain-specific insights that product managers, implementation leads, or customer service heads bring to the table. These individuals are closer to the pain points. They've solved problems in the trenches. They've iterated solutions before the market knew they needed them. Your job, if you lead a thought leadership program, is to surface those stories—and then shape them. Provide scaffolding. Offer editorial coaching. Use your platform to elevate their voices in ways that align with the brand, but preserve the authenticity. This is why some of the most successful B2B firms, like Accenture and IBM, build cross-functional teams for thought leadership. Their best content is peer-reviewed, field-tested, and team-owned. 5. B2B Thought Leadership That 'Performs' Is Useful All the originality and framing in the world won't matter if your content isn't useful. B2B buyers are trying to get jobs done: diagnose problems, justify investments, build consensus, or drive internal change. This means the best content offers: In short: If your content doesn't help someone make a better decision or do their job faster or smarter, it's not going to be part of a body of thought leadership. It may simply be copywriting that's necessary. 6. Journalistic Writing Is the Secret Sauce The best content reads like journalism, not marketing. This doesn't mean you need to hire reporters (though it helps). It means you need to apply the principles of journalism to your writing: When our incubator participants shift from 'explaining their work' to storytelling their work, everything changes. They engage readers. They surprise them. And most importantly, they build trust. Don't Settle For Mediocre: Bring The Conversation Forward When everyone is publishing, not everyone is leading. High-quality B2B thought leadership content doesn't just fill a slot on the editorial calendar. It says something new, useful, and compelling—delivered in a form that fits. The best content: If you're building or scaling a B2B thought leadership program, focus less on churning out content and more on curating ideas worth spreading—ideas that are worth the term thought leadership.
Forbes
4 hours ago
- Business
- Forbes
Cultivating Leadership: Lessons From A CEO Who Started At The Bottom
Beth Forester is CEO of Animoto, a video creation platform, with 20+ years in marketing, leadership, and building customer-first products. As CEO, one of the most rewarding parts of my position is helping people step into roles they didn't initially imagine for themselves. My path to leadership wasn't linear or traditional. I started as an entrepreneur and small-business owner in the creative industry, and when I made the leap into tech, I had never worked in a corporate environment. I made a hard pivot into the tech world at age 46, after years of running my own creative business. I started at Animoto as an individual contributor in marketing, and over time, I grew into increasingly senior roles: from customer owner to product marketing manager, then director of product marketing, vice president of marketing, and eventually CEO, all at the same company. Fortunately, I had managers who guided me in learning how to gain buy-in for ideas I was passionate about. I was actively learning, constantly stretched and always engaged. That experience shaped a perspective I carry still, a deep appreciation for the quiet, steady kind of potential that doesn't announce itself. It's the kind that needs space to emerge, guidance to develop and trust to grow. These are the principles I return to when developing high-potential employees, especially those who may not see themselves as leaders … yet. Start By Listening Every quarter, set aside time for one-on-one conversations with employees who show sparks of potential. These aren't performance reviews or goal-setting meetings. They're real conversations: open, candid and personal. Ask what they enjoy, where they feel stuck and what they're curious to learn. Sometimes people have a clear path in mind, and sometimes they're figuring it out. Either way, these conversations reveal strengths that otherwise go unnoticed and let your team know their growth is on your radar, even if a formal opportunity isn't open yet. Takeaway: Spotting potential before someone raises their hand can be the start of their next chapter. Communicate The Vision And Connect The Dots One of the most valuable things you can offer as a leader is clarity. When people understand where the company is headed, why it matters and how individual work connects to that bigger picture, they show up differently. They take more ownership, make better decisions and start thinking like leaders, even before carrying leadership titles. Takeaway: Clarity builds confidence. Confident people lead. Share Your Process It can be easy to fall into the trap of giving directives, but that approach is disempowering and can limit growth. Sharing how you approach challenges, think through trade-offs and make decisions creates transparency and models critical thinking. Over the years, I've found that when you bring others along in your process, it does more than build alignment. It helps others learn how to do the same. It equips your team with tools to navigate ambiguity, build sound judgment and develop the confidence to lead. Takeaway: Teach people how to think, and you're not just building execution—you're building leadership. Replace Micromanagement With Asking Questions When a member of your team is stepping into something new, your instinct might be to keep them close and give hyper-detailed instructions, but micromanagement sends the wrong message. It says, 'I don't trust you to figure it out.' I try to be present as a coach—present for checking in, offering support and serving as a sounding board—but also step back to let people own their decisions and growth. Instead of giving people the answers, I ask questions that help them work toward a solution: • What outcome are you aiming for? • What are the risks? • How confident do you feel in your approach? This kind of coaching builds decision-making muscle. It encourages critical thinking, weighing trade-offs and taking ownership of choices. You're not hovering or micromanaging, you're creating space for people to learn how to do their best work. Takeaway: Growth doesn't come from knowing the answers. It comes from learning how to find them. Make It Safe To Share Unpolished Ideas Not every good idea shows up polished. Many don't. I remember times when I held back from sharing an idea until I felt like I had every answer, but solving hard problems in a silo doesn't lead to better solutions; it slows things down. Create a culture where people feel comfortable speaking up before they've figured everything out. Make space for early ideas through asynchronous brainstorms, open problem-solving sessions and regular cross-functional feedback. Research discussed in the Harvard Business Review (paywall) found that team members at high-trust companies (which likely includes those that create a sense of safety) are 76% more engaged, 50% more productive and 74% less stressed than those at low-trust companies. At Animoto, one of our guiding mantras is: 'There are no bad ideas, only learnings.' When it feels safe to contribute early, we hear more perspectives, better solutions emerge and trust deepens across the team. Takeaway: Innovation starts when someone feels safe enough to say, 'What if …' Remember, Empowerment Benefits Everyone Many of the strongest leaders at Animoto today started in roles without the 'manager' title. They were engaged, curious and consistently raised their hand to help. We gave them visibility, trust and growth opportunities, and they rose to the occasion. These journeys didn't just benefit the business. They showed everyone around them what was possible. When team members see peers grow into leadership roles, it makes that path feel possible for them, too. It sends a powerful message: 'You don't have to come in with the title. You can grow into it here.' Investing in people builds morale. But it also creates resilience, strengthens your leadership pipeline, and builds a culture where growth is expected, supported and celebrated. Investing in your people means benefits for everyone involved. Your next great leader might already be in the room. The question is: Are you giving them the chance to rise? Forbes Business Council is the foremost growth and networking organization for business owners and leaders. Do I qualify?
Yahoo
4 hours ago
- Business
- Yahoo
DATA Communications Management Corp. to Announce Second Quarter 2025 Results on August 6, 2025
BRAMPTON, Ontario, July 24, 2025--(BUSINESS WIRE)--DATA Communications Management Corp. (TSX: DCM; OTCQX: DCMDF) ("DCM" or the "Company"), a leading Canadian provider of print and digital solutions that help simplify complex marketing communications and workflow, will announce its Second Quarter 2025 results the evening of Wednesday, August 6, 2025. The Company will host a conference call and webcast on Thursday, August 7, 2025 at 9:00 a.m. EST. Richard Kellam, President and CEO of DCM, and James Lorimer, CFO, will present the results followed by a live Q&A. Register for the webcast prior to the start of the event: Microsoft Virtual Events Powered by Teams All attendees must register for the webinar prior to the call. Please complete the phone field in the form at the above link (prior to the start of the event) if you wish to dial in. The Company's full results will be posted on its Investor Relations page and on SEDAR+. A video message from Mr. Kellam will also be posted on the Company's website. About DATA Communications Management Corp. DCM is a leading Canadian tech-enabled provider of print and digital solutions that help simplify complex marketing communications and operations workflow. DCM serves over 2,500 clients including 70 of the 100 largest Canadian corporations and leading government agencies. Our core strength lies in delivering individualized services to our clients that simplify their communications, including customized printing, highly personalized marketing communications, campaign management, digital signage, and digital asset management. From omnichannel marketing campaigns to large-scale print and digital workflows, our goal is to make complex tasks surprisingly simple, allowing our clients to focus on what they do best. Additional information relating to DATA Communications Management Corp. is available on and in the disclosure documents filed by DATA Communications Management Corp. on SEDAR+ at View source version on Contacts For further information, contactMr. Richard KellamPresident and Chief Executive OfficerDATA Communications Management (905) 791-3151Mr. James E. LorimerChief Financial OfficerDATA Communications Management (905) 791-3151ir@
National Post
5 hours ago
- Business
- National Post
DATA Communications Management Corp. to Announce Second Quarter 2025 Results on August 6, 2025
Article content BRAMPTON, Ontario — DATA Communications Management Corp. (TSX: DCM; OTCQX: DCMDF) ('DCM' or the 'Company'), a leading Canadian provider of print and digital solutions that help simplify complex marketing communications and workflow, will announce its Second Quarter 2025 results the evening of Wednesday, August 6, 2025. Article content The Company will host a conference call and webcast on Thursday, August 7, 2025 at 9:00 a.m. EST. Richard Kellam, President and CEO of DCM, and James Lorimer, CFO, will present the results followed by a live Q&A. Article content Register for the webcast prior to the start of the event: Article content Microsoft Virtual Events Powered by Teams Article content All attendees must register for the webinar prior to the call. Please complete the phone field in the form at the above link (prior to the start of the event) if you wish to dial in. Article content The Company's full results will be posted on its Investor Relations page and on SEDAR+. A video message from Mr. Kellam will also be posted on the Company's website. Article content About DATA Communications Management Corp. Article content DCM is a leading Canadian tech-enabled provider of print and digital solutions that help simplify complex marketing communications and operations workflow. DCM serves over 2,500 clients including 70 of the 100 largest Canadian corporations and leading government agencies. Our core strength lies in delivering individualized services to our clients that simplify their communications, including customized printing, highly personalized marketing communications, campaign management, digital signage, and digital asset management. From omnichannel marketing campaigns to large-scale print and digital workflows, our goal is to make complex tasks surprisingly simple, allowing our clients to focus on what they do best. Article content Article content Article content Contacts Article content For further information, contact Article content Article content DATA Communications Management Corp. Article content Article content Tel: (905) 791-3151 Article content
Geek Tyrant
5 hours ago
- Entertainment
- Geek Tyrant
THE FANTASTIC FOUR: FIRST STEPS In-Universe Time Magazine Covers Spotlight Marvel's First Family — GeekTyrant
Marvel Studios is going all-in with its marketing for The Fantastic Four: First Steps , and this it a pretty cool marketing campaign, as the studio has dropped a series of in-universe magazine covers featuring Marvel's First Family gracing the front pages of iconic publications like Time, People, and Men's Health, and the attention to detail is next level. The retro-futuristic aesthetic perfectly fits the film's 1960s-inspired tone, and each cover highlights a different side of the team. Time spotlights Reed Richards and Sue Storm in their dual roles as scientists and heroes, while Johnny Storm leans into his celebrity persona (complete with ads for his 'Hot' aftershave), and Ben Grimm stands tall as the reluctant star everyone can't stop talking about. But the campaign isn't just about style, it's sprinkled with clever Easter eggs. Case in point: People magazine's feature on H.E.R.B.I.E. hides a subtle nod to none other than Doctor Doom with 'Doom Detection'. You can see screen shots of that below. I also included information below all the magazine covers that has been making the rounds online about Doctor Doom, but if true, it's spoiler territory. So, read at your own risk. For now, these magazine covers give fans a fun peek into how Marvel is treating the Fantastic Four as celebrities within their own universe. It's a smart way to build hype while staying true to the spirit of the comics. What do you think of Marvel's in-universe marketing?
