How to Become a Thought Leader
Episode 1012: How to Become a Thought Leader, with Natalie Ghidotti
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How to become a thought leader—Discover expert advice from a respected thought leader and actionable steps on how to become a thought leader.
How to become a thought leader? Natalie Ghidotti, APR, is principal of Ghidotti, which she founded in 2007 and has since grown to serve a wide range of clients, including some of the region’s best-known brands. The firm serves clients that span all industries, including retail, healthcare, retirement communities, professional services, nonprofits and more.
Prior to opening her own firm, Natalie was a senior public relations account executive with another marketing/PR firm in Little Rock. Before joining the public relations world in 2004, Natalie served as special publications editor-in-chief at Arkansas Business Publishing Group, where she was editor of Little Rock Family, Arkansas Bride, Little Rock Guest Guide and other magazines for five years. While at ABPG, Natalie won national awards from the Parenting Publications of America for her stories published in Little Rock Family. In her public relations career, Natalie has garnered top Prism Awards from the Public Relations Society of America and Bronze Quill Awards from the International Association of Business Communicators.
Natalie is an active community volunteer, serving on the board of the Rotary Club of Little Rock and the Board Development Committee for the Girl Scouts Diamonds of Arkansas, Oklahoma and Texas, and as an active volunteer with Holy Souls School and Catholic High School for Boys. She is a past president of the Arkansas Chapter of the Public Relations Society of America and a past chairman of PRSA National’s Independent Practitioners Alliance. She serves on the Executive Committee for PRSA National’s Counselors Academy, has served as one of a three-member leadership team overseeing National PRSA’s Section Council and has been a speaker for several PRSA International Conferences. Natalie is a member of PRConsultants Group, a collaborative of 50 senior-level PR practitioners representing the top markets in the country.
She has served on the boards of directors for Reach Out and Read, Museum of Discovery, Centers for Youth and Families and the Girls Scouts. She is a member of Leadership Arkansas Class XII, Leadership Little Rock, Class XVI, was named to Arkansas Business’ “40 Under 40,” and is troop leader for her daughter’s Girl Scout Juniors Troop.
What you’ll learn in this episode is about how to become a thought leader:
- How Natalie’s journalism career ultimately led to starting her agency, Ghidotti, and how her agency’s focus is on the power of becoming a thought leader
- Actionable steps on how to become a thought leader
- How Natalie defines “the mindset of a journalist”, and how capturing that mindset is a crucial component of her team’s thought leadership expertise
- Why understanding what a journalist considers important is the key to focusing on the right angle for your content to best reach and serve your audience
- How being a consistently valuable source for a reporter can help you build a strong, trusted relationship that can be invaluable in becoming a thought leader
- Why a sense of urgency is important when working with media outlets, and how Natalie defines thought leadership
- How PR and content marketing interact with Natalie’s comprehensive, integrated “PESO” content model: Paid, Earned, Shared, and Owned
- How becoming a thought leader and then slicing and dicing your content can allow it to be used across all four channels of the PESO model
- How being intentional and strategic with your thought leadership content is crucial for reaping its rewards
- How Natalie is active within the Executive Committee of PRSA (the Public Relations Society of America) Counselors Academy
- How to learn more about the upcoming PRSA Counselors Academy conference taking place September 19-21 2021 in Nashville, TN
Additional Resources:
- Learn more about how to become a thought leader, and you can find Natalie here.
- Elevate your knowledge about how to become a thought leader by tuning in to this podcast: Making a Positive Impact through Thought Leadership, with John Dameron
- Website: https://ghidotti.com/
- LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/natalieghidotti/
- LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/company/ghidotti/
- Facebook: www.facebook.com/ghidotticommunications/
- Twitter: @ghidotticomm
How to Become a Thought Leader: Full Episode Transcript
Get ready to find your recipe for success from America’s top business owners here at Onward Nation with your host, Stephen Woessner.
Good morning, I’m Stephen Woessner, CEO of the Predictive ROI and your host for Onward Nation, where I interviewed today’s top business owners. So we can learn their recipe for success, how they built and scaled their business. So just last week, Eric and I taught a half-day intensive for clients in guests, what we called right fit clients. So at the intensive, it was a ton of fun and it was a super amazing and super inspiring to listen to, and then watch everyone in the room, share ideas with each other, and then answer each other’s questions, be supportive and amazingly generous in sharing their expertise.
So our goal in getting everyone together was to share a specific strategies and tactics so that they could take an apply in order too, what we like to call a plant, their flag of authority in the niches they serve, which has really just a fancy way of saying, becoming the known expert in their field. And then to be able to monetize that authority position by filling their sales pipeline with a steady stream of right fit prospects. What, here’s the reality OnwardNation we are entering the era of the authority in a while. You may already be tired of the phrase, quote, unquote thought leader. The truth is there aren’t that many of them, I mean, brands that hold a thought leadership position while they don’t create content or any of their competitors can claim thought leaders don’t write about anything than everything and thought leaders never, ever, ever Onward Nation compete on price.
And their time is now. The data is clear. Drew McLellan and I wrote about this in our book Sell with Authority. Brands that occupy the coveted expert status or afforded the highest level of confidence and trust from their customers or prospects and other stakeholders, because they have a depth of knowledge in point of view that can be denied or easily replicated. That’s the essence of the Sell with Authority methodology. So the take this deeper, I asked Natalie Ghidotti to join me as our guest expert for this episode. She is the founder and CEO of Ghidotti.com, which is widely regarded as one of the top public relations firms in the regions they serve Natalie.
And I agree that thought leadership may have started as a trendy phase or a trendy phrase, but it becomes the legitimate tool and it has become a legitimate tool to building and scaling a business regardless of your industry. She believes that because of the abundance of opinions readily available on social media, proving that you’re an expert improving this authority status and your industry with the actual valuable information. Well, that’s the most effective way to stand out in today’s crowded market. I couldn’t agree more so onward nation, if you’re looking to share your smart with your audience and you’re looking to be helpful and by doing so stand out from the crowd and by the way, fill your sales pipeline with the right fit prospects along the way.
Well, then this is the perfect episode for you. So without further ado, my friend, welcome to Onward Nation, Natalie.
Thank you so much. Great to be here, guys. So excited to talk with you.
We are excited to talk with you or excited to be able to learn from your smarts. And thank you for saying yes. I’m really grateful to have you here before we dive in Natalie, actually give us some additional context here, a take us behind the curtain, if you will, and tell us a little bit more about you and your path and journey, and then we’ll dive in.
How to Become a Thought Leader: Natalie’s Introduction
Yeah. Great. Well, I appreciate it. Yeah. So just like he said, I own a Public Relations and content marketing firm. We are here in little rock, so you can see behind me that the Arkansas River we’re up on the 29th floor. So we do have a great view. And so, so we do focus a lot on thought leadership. How I got here though is M I had a journalism career. So I went to school and actually was an ad PR major, but really I went to TCU and worked for the, we hit a daily newspaper. They’re at TCU. So worked there all for years and it was the editor of that paper. And then decided, I really from a PR standpoint, I wanted to be in the media.
I wanted to understand the mindset of a journalist. And so did that for basically 11 years until we went to the dark side, which has a media for, and so I went into the dark side or eventually, and started in agency life and in works in some PR agencies and then started my own agency in 2007. And it’s funny, I always tell people, they’re like, why did you start your own agency? I mean, I definitely wanted to be an entrepreneur entrepreneur and wanting to do my own thing and had some visions for that. But one of the main reasons as I hadaone-year-old at the time, that’s now he’s now 16.
And I thought, well, I can do this hole kind of mom, work life balance thing. Like I can do kind of a part-time gig and in, have you raise him? And now I have a second child. She is 13. And, but it is I tell people I worked more hours than I ever did doing that. What was the thinking of a part-time gig shirt in Adelaide? OK. That sounds likeagreat idea, but I’ll always tell people I still can do as the owner of my own business. You know, I can still can be flexible. I can still do things on, on my terms. and I probably do work more hours than I did at my former agency laugh, but its on my terms write where my kids were a little, I would get back online at nine o’clock after they went to bed and do all the work.
How to Become a Thought Leader: Leveraging the PESO Model and the Journalist Mindset
How to become a thought leader? So, we’ve grown from just me doing all that work like late hours too. We have almost Tina on our team now and it’s fabulous. You know, we, we work in a lot of different industries, so we have everything from a large, a hospital system. We worked with McDonald’s in four sites, we have a large law firms. So we really kind of go across the M industry spectrum. But I like it because our niche is thought leadership and we’re really focusing in on how can our clients utilize public relations, content marketing, all of those things to build a thought leadership platform.
How to become a thought leader? And we’re big believers in what I call the peso model. Or you may of heard it, it’s paid earned, shared and owned. And so paid is a few doing some digital adds or things like that around is where we live in a lot, which has that media relations in getting that kind of a third-party validation through the media and through influencers shared his is your social and everything that’s out on, on your social platforms, blogs, those top things, and then own, it would be your website where, or your blog lives or your websites. So yeah, we look at it asaholistic kind of what is going on in that peso model to drive thought leadership.
How to become a thought leader? To be a fun conversation there. And so I was just going to add that to my notes, to make sure that we come back to that. Okay. So interesting tidbit here. Well, I think this could be a golden nugget that ties into thought leadership because my guess is even though you and I are we spent some time together in January and now we’re having this conversation here. So I’m you strike me as somebody who’s just naturally curious. Yup. And so I’m curious when you said the mindset of a journalist, I would really love to know more about that because my guess is that’s a key ingredient into the thought leadership piece.
So tell me a little bit more about the mindset of a journalist or how you would define that.
Here’s an example of how to become a thought leader:
Yeah, for sure. You know, that’s why we are good at what we do on the PR side. ’cause we do look at things through the mindset of a journalist. So what are they trying to do for their readers, for their viewers in all of them or different, they all have maybe different spaces that the recording in, or they have different angles that they’ve some of these reporters who are doing deep dives on topics, I really have different angles that they’re trying to get at for their viewers and in their readers. And you this is as much as I do the landscape for journalism has changed so much in really, even just the past five years.
How to Become a Thought Leader: Understanding the Journalist’s Perspective
How to become a thought leader? I mean, a lot of them, the newsrooms or smaller and things of digital and you’ve got a lot of bloggers and in other things that are going on in influencers that are in a part of that too, but for us, we have to really think through what are they trying to do to serve their audiences. And then as our clients, can we take a story that we know as important to our clients in, we try to match that with what the journalists is trying to do in, and as we always like go back to this was in my journalism day is I worked at, for a long time. I worked at the Fort Worth business press.
How to become a thought leader? And then I worked at Arkansas Business and that it was business and business pubs. And I remember having this, this PR guy pitched me the story about, and it was four, a large hospital. And I covered healthcare from a business standpoint though. I covered in healthcare from a business standpoint. And he tried to pitch me this story about some like pro bono event. They were doing in a pumpkin patch. And I was like, listen, I cover like HMOs and in health insurance, like not pumpkin patches. and he was like, yeah, we’re in the hospital and we’re doing it for the community. And I’m like, do you think the reader’s a four or the business press care about your pumpkin patch?
Cause they don’t. So it really, and that’s a funny story about how it does is always come to mind when a client will be like, well, surely you can pitch this X, Y, Z story. I mean, isn’t that something that it’s important to us, what may be important to you, but is not important to a reporter XYZ and his audience or her audience. And so when I say getting in the mindset of journalists, like how, how can we tell? And from a thought leadership story. So for our listeners right now, how can you tell your story and your, your thought leadership platform via the media while the, the way to do it is to make sure that you’re partnering or you’re pitching, or you’re talking to reporters that care in that have their audience wants to hear it to and what kind of angle or are they trying to take on things?
I mean, you have to do a deep dive into that. You can’t just fire off a news release and think every reporter is going to care cause they don’t right?
And a hundred percent in love the emphasis that you are placing on being helpful to the audience, how can you serve the audience? So Onward Nation, if you’re creating, let’s say that, let’s say you’re creating a video. Are you serious, that you want to teach something that is not about you? This is how that video series or that research study, or a podcast episode like this one, how is that helpful to your audience and being naturally curious, right, Natalie, in like in uncovering what the business issue, his, or the challenge or whatever, setting yourself aside is not about being self-aggrandizing.
How to Become a Thought Leader: Building Relationships with Reporters
This is about how can you be helpful and in service to the audience then should I tell you what you should write or create, right?
Here’s a great example of how to become a thought leader: Yeah, totally. And add a twist on that two with the media side is, or we always practices and we preach this to our clients too, to be a source to that reporter, meaning. So maybe, maybe you’re not, maybe you’re not pitching your own story or maybe you’re not trying to get the headline in that story. You are just serving as a background source to that report or the more you can be a source like that, the more those reporters are gonna depend on you and call you. I mean that if you look at national media those reporters have tried and true sources that they call on a daily basis to get background on, something to go Do a deeper dive on something.
How to become a thought leader — They’re going to the thought leaders, or they’re going to the people that they know are creating valuable content that has a valuable opinions and in unique and niche angles to things. And those are the people that they’re going to in, in getting that background. Sometimes I quote them sometimes I don’t, and that’s okay, because that means they’re calling you well those into develop.
How to become a thought leader? Those relationships are a really valuable asset to have in your business and template to essentially be on the people who are going to cringe. I’m sure when they hear me say Rolodex, but anyway, like they like to be on sort of speed dial back in the day of all of those reporters, because not only do they know that they’re going to get a great insights from you, but they’re also going to be able to get that from you quickly. They don’t have to ask you the question is send you a query. And in a three days later, you get back there on when, back in the day, when they used to be managing three or five deadlines, now they’re managing 10. Right. Right. And so they need, not only do they need the goods, but they need it quickly.
Right?
How to Become a Thought Leader: How to Become the Go-To Expert in Your Field
How to become a thought leader? Yeah. That’s part of our media training. I mean, it’s like a number one role. If you want to be a thought leader and you want to start doing this. And in being in this, ah, kind of arenas, especially with the media, you have to return peoples calls like that or, or their emails. I mean, you can’t just sit on something because it our media relations manager has to work at CBS radio in New York. And he said, if they couldn’t, if they couldn’t get somebody on the phone, right? Then they were going down their Rolodex or half a second and third because they had five minutes to put together a story. So, yeah.
So let’s talk a little bit more about like how you define a thought leadership. I think this is a really interesting model. I love the mix of PR content marketing flowing into this thought leadership model. So lets kind of slice that apart a little bit, but let’s start with like how you define a thought leader.
How to become a thought leader? Right. So for us, I mean, it’s definitely that you are looked at as a source of the expert in, in that field that you’re, you’re kind of a first name that pops up when somebody thinks of like, we work a lot with a legal marketers and law firms. So if, if your, if your, the, if your, the woman that comes up when they’re talking about patent work or when they’re talking about insurance reg, one of the first names that come up, that’s a thought leader now, how do you get there? Will we always tell people we can’t create great thinking just from the work that we do, you have to be smart, you have to know your business.
Right. But what we do is ensure that people are hearing that and that, and that they’re seeing value and that you’re continuously putting content out there that they do see valuable. Because that’s really key with a lot of attorneys. There are a lot of smart attorneys and there is a lot of attorneys that are thought leaders in their space, but people don’t know it, right. Because they’re not putting it out there to not creating content. They’re not connecting in that way. And so that is really what we help them do. But we always say, we can just make a thought leader. You have to be a real thought leader and then we help you get it out there.
How to Become a Thought Leader: Unveiling Thought Leadership
So, where would you agree with this? One of the attributes of someone actually being a true thought leader where whether they’re known or, or, or not known yet in what will get to that piece in just a second, but in order for them to actually be a thought leader, they, they, they have to want to serve. They have to want to be generous. They have to want to be helpful to the audience. It’s not about selling them as about how can we help them be better. Where would you agree or disagree?
I definitely agree with that. Absolutely agree with that. I mean, I think of myself, honestly I think people, for sure, in this state, in my region, look at me as a thought leader in PR, and in that frame that you just put it in, like, I am very generous with my M ideas, my time and all of that when it comes to Public Relations in talking about and helping others, all of that, like it definitely, you definitely have to want to be helpful. The people generally.
Yeah, and it’s so easy. It’s so easy these days to sniff out a fake; it just feels yucky when you do it right.
Yes. You have to be authentic. Absolutely. Yeah.
So, let’s now think about if that’s what thought leadership is and that’s who a thought leader is from the generosity of the teaching, the being helpful, a really wanting to serve. So then let’s think about like how PR and then how a content marketing fits into that. So going back to like your peso model. Yeah. So would you put a PR and content marketing into that model? And if so, like how, how do they fit into?
Pesos? Yeah. So with peso, the media relations, and the PR piece would be in that earned media. We call it or media because I’m always say it’s not free because you’ve got a pay a PR person to help pitch reporters and things. And do the, do the legwork for you. But earned media is basically getting your story out to the journalist, who is, it is going to rod about it. It’s not ad in the newspaper. It’s not an ad on TV. It’s they it’s in their editorial. They’re quoting you in that. So that’s the PR part. And then the content marketing we really put in that shared part of peso.
And that’s really where you are sharing content maybe a via a blog, maybe a podcast, a, your LinkedIn, you’re a Facebook page, that top thing. Okay.
How to Become a Thought Leader: Maximizing Content Impact
So Onward Nation, I’m going to give this back to Natalie and see if I’m tracking here. So using a terminology that we talked about, here in our episodes, in some of our teaching is so forth. We call that like cornerstone cobblestone content. So at the macro and micro level, all of the sales funnel, if we’re created a video series or maybe a research study or a podcast, you mentioned that would go in to the shared. And then when we take, let’s say that we take a research study, like in annual research study, like last year is for us. And now we’re doing this year is right now we’re about to go to the field, to collect research with a Susan buyer are a research partner, or she runs audience audit.
We just use that’s right. You guys, or working on yours right now to, and so when we take that research then, and we slice and dice that and get like a years where the content out of that, yeah. Bigger pieces of smaller pieces goes in to sales funnels in all of that. That sounds like that all of that effort of stuff that we’re creating slicing and dicing, all of that goes in to the shared bucket.
Right. Well, it really can go across the peso model. That’s what’s brilliant about it. So like, I’ll give you an example. So we’re going through the research with the season right now, or legal marketers niche. So we’re doing that. We will use that throughout the peso model paid meaning we might do some digital ads and some lead gen around some of the nuggets that come out of that research or burned for sure. ’cause we can pitch different publications that, or reaching lawyers or association newsletters, M you know, of of course, the, the legal marketing association or themselves in different different media or trade publications that are targeting legal marketers, we’ll be able to use the nuggets from that research on the urn.
And then of course, of the shared, like you said, we’re gonna, we’re going to take that and create all sorts of blog posts, all sorts of LinkedIn posts, things like that. We also could take that research and use it own on the landing page that we have for legal marketers and some of those eBooks things that we do, white papers, things like that. So the way we look at it is in the USA and what you guys do with the cornerstones and the cobblestones is brilliant. And I’ve been able to really use that because how we look at it is how do we then put it in the face of that?
How to Become a Thought Leader: Integrated Marketing Strategies
That’s okay. And, okay. So, if I’m tracking with you at the pace of a model, which is really, really cool, I love acronyms. It doesn’t sound as linear. It doesn’t sound like if something is in paid, it would not actually be maybe sliced and diced into own. It sounds like this one asset, like you’re talking about with research, you’re going to not only find places for it to fit into paid, earned, shared, and owned, but something that might be and shared, you might slice and dice that see if he gets some traction, Sharon, you might think, oh, wait a minute, wait a minute. This was really helpful. We should now put this up into paid because it can make our ad spend even that much more efficient.
Yes. It’s all integrated. That’s our whole thing is that you are going to get way more traction, way more bang for your buck. All of the things you are going to hit, all your KPIs, if we can pull together pay. So, as a comprehensive, integrated approach, and that is in, we’ve seen that in our own business. And that’s what we’ve seen: the beauty of integrating all that and what it can do for lead generation. And that’s what we help our clients with too. So we lead ’cause, we’re our foundation as PR kind of always lead with that PR that earns that the E in the shared or the earned and the share, but we understand all of it together.
Now, really any agency, whether you’re a PR or a content or at, or whatever, you’re diving into some paid aspect.
How to Become a Thought Leader: Maximizing the Impact of Earned Media
Okay. So let’s take the earned piece. I just wanna kind of shine, an even brighter light on that piece for a second. So let’s say it again with your research scenario. So you get the research done with Susan and her Audience Audit team. You’ve got that. you’re starting to create all the kind of things around, it sounds like then you’re going to come up with some, if you want to call new socks, whatever that you’re going to use with reporters to kind of pitch some of the key research findings to the reporters who are covering that, that niche, you mentioned legal. So then let’s say that you get some stories and you get some interviews in that kind of stuff in my guess is that that’s going to be great in the actual media, wherever that reporter is serving, but then you also might take that story in as well.
And I’m kind of assuming here, will you also take that story and then cut it up and put it into like the shared and owned buckets as well?
Yes, that is the huge key. And we always talk to our clients about that is you don’t end when the story is published in XYZ magazine or wherever that’s just the beginning. Then you can repurpose that and put it back out on your social and earn lots of different ways. And we also say now in this used to not even be probably five years ago, but now PR agencies were in the seat to really make a difference on SCO getting that backlink from whatever publication that ended up or whatever, or digital online peace, it was getting that backlink that then helps your SEO.
That’s a huge piece of it. And we definitely make it full circle when you get that coveted earned coverage, when you get that media coverage, there’s all sorts of otherwise to use that as well. Love it. Okay.
How to Become a Thought Leader: Crafting a Thoughtful Strategy for Sustainable Growth
And so then when you’re slicing and dicing it after, and I love this actually, so a quick aside here for a second, I’ve heard so many people say so many business owners will say I was as a guest on that show, but I didn’t get anything afterwards right. In. And I’m like, okay. So then, what did you do with the content or nothing? I was expecting that the show, like the audience, hearing me on the show that it was going to somehow Berst my, like my phone open, or my inbox will get crushed from everybody who heard me on that podcast or that news break or whatever. Yeah. I was like, oh my gosh, but that’s, there is such a long tail do this, or there could be.
Right. And I think that, that’s what you’re suggesting: if you have this amazing opportunity to be an expert featured in a story, that’s truly just at the beginning. A true strategy will be, yup. We are going to be quoted in the whatever. And then we’re going to use that in social, in email and ebook of whatever, to really accentuate and highlight, not only how you are helpful with our audience, but really pounds of steak in the dirt around thought leadership. Right.
Absolutely. That’s the key in, and you said the word strategy, and I can’t even believe that I haven’t said that up until this point, because that’s, that is what it’s about. It’s creating a strategy around thought leadership and a strategy we, we like to do in that peso model, but it is creating the strategic plan of how are we going to use these different pieces in the media coverage, in all of that, to hit our KPIs, to hit our measurable objectives. And we’re going to do it in a very integrated way.
How to Become a Thought Leader: Crafting a Winning Strategy
Well, and because Onward Nation, I know that when I say this, you’re, you’re all going to say, duh, Stephen, but here’s the reality is that a after doing this now for decades, it is so very common that business owners don’t have exactly what Natalie just said, a written strategy. We aimlessly wander through the wilderness, occasionally find a golden nugget, but then we look at somebody who’s super intentional about what it is that he or she does and think, gosh, I want results like that. Well, okay. But that, that requires with Natalie just said, strategy, intentionality, flawless execution within a model.
And in this case, the peso. Right. And then being consistent at it. Right, Natalie.
Yep. Absolutely. We do a facilitated strategic session is all the time with the clients. And then we build their plans that, and we call it it’s your roadmap. And I always say, it’s not, it’s not the, you don’t put it in a three ring binder that sits up on your shelf. It’s an ongoing living, breathing strategy that you’re, you’re, you’re following the roadmap. But if something doesn’t work in it, you need to go back and say, oh, maybe there’s a different direction to get there, those top of things. Right. And so it’s, you’re always working the plan, but there is a plan in, or you’re sticking to it and your following it. And sometimes if I can say this as an entrepreneur and the owner, sometimes you feel like you’re, you’re plugging away at something in your own.
You’re not seeing action. You’re not seeing results, but also it takes time. And I always tell people like thought leadership takes time. You’re not going to be an overnight superstar thought leader overnight is not going to happen. So you’ve got to be diligent about sticking to the plan and going down that road and that path, because it will come. It just takes time.
How to Become a Thought Leader: PR Strategies and Insights from the Public Relations Society of America
Yeah. Is it amen to that? So I know we’ve covered a lot in our time is quickly coming to an end. But before we wrap up with like final advice or recommendations, anything you think we might have missed? I also want for you to give Onward Nation as a resource here at here, here’s what I mean by that or highlight or a resource. I know you’re very, very active within PR. And that acronym is going to sound very familiar, too many of our listeners and so forth. So, let’s shine a bright light on PR as well as the event that you’re running point on in September, because onward, I think that this, what Natalie in her team or doing within PRS, I think it was going to be interesting to a lot of you.
So, Natalie, can we just highlight that a little bit and then, and then we’ll come back to a final thoughts and advice.
Yeah, yeah. For sure. Public Relations Society of America. It’s definitely the leading organizations or people or professionals that I’ve been involved in for a really long time, but since I’ve owned my own agency, I got involved with a section of pure or a site called Counselors Academy. So it’s agency owners of small to mid-size agencies. So it’s not a huge Fleshman Dillards of the world in those top things, but it’s anywhere from a person that has two people all the way up to 200. It is a sweet spot for Counselors Academy. And it’s, it has truly been a huge resource or me as the agency owner, to be able to talk to the other agency owners.
And in, we do a conference every year, it’s usually in the spring this year, it’s gonna be in September do to COVID, but it’s a conference that it’s just for Counselors Academy members and non-members, so you don’t have to be a member. And we’re gonna gather a Nashville’s September 18th, I believe a 19th 19th to through the 27th, 21st. And uhm, and you are gonna do a pre-con forests. You’re going to be a one and a breakout, which is going to be amazing selling with the authority, its going to be a fabulous, but here’s what I would say to Onward Nation. Even honestly, even if you’re not a PR agency owner, I think any agency owner in marketing and digital and PR or any realm is going to gain a lot from this conference.
How to Become a Thought Leader: Key Insights and Final Advice from Natalie
It’s just a fabulous group of people to learn from. I will say these people that tend to come to this conference or just what you were saying, like they’re thought leaders. So they’re very, was very willing to share and to talk about the things that have worked for them and not work. The agenda’s really amazing this year. We’ve got some great speakers, so I would definitely encourage everybody to check it out. Awesome. In
Onward, we’re gonna include some links within the show notes for this episode and so that you can check that out in and if you do decide to attend, it’ll be a lot of fun to hang out with you on Sunday during the pre-con and then also it, the breakout the following day. So we’d love to see you there. So on Natalie, again, I know we covered a lot, but before we go, before we close out and say goodbye or any final advice or anything you think we might have missed, maybe please do tell us the best way to connect with you.
Yeah, sure. You know, I think we covered a lot of amazing things here. I think it’s, again, it’s just important to note that you do have to have a strategy. You do have to have a plan. A lot of times it is great to reach out to someone like me or someone like you and get some third-party help with that because I have even done it as in my own I own a PR company, but I’ve used different consultants and gone a different workshops because you kinda get an a half to get out of your head for a little bit and let somebody else help guide you. But the strategy piece to this is really important.
And I also think what you said. I don’t think it could be said a million times. Like you have to want to help people and to be valuable to people. From there to me, if you can have a plan to kind of get that out there and start doing that, that’s the easy part. But I think you have to inwardly look and say, do I want to do this? You know, do I want to be the go-to person for, whatever it is, and really give back in and help people?
How to Become a Thought Leader: Last Bit of Advice and Connect with Natalie
And I love that. And ’cause when you do that, OnwardNation, here’s what happened. You know, they will be stunned at this. It hasn’t already happened many times for a fur Natalie, or if you were just on the earliest stage, OnwardNation of thinking about doing your own thought leadership or really get intentional, and you liked this, the space, a model, here’s what happens is you walk into a room at a conference or maybe somebody comes into an event that you might be hosting and somebody walks up to you and says, Natalie, you are exactly the person who I thought you would be. This, this is amazing. Your first session this morning was off the charts. Every time I turn around there, you are being helpful to me.
And I’m so grateful for that. That’s why I got on a plane and flew to Nashville or whatever, because I knew that you could be helpful for the business issues that I’m dealing with. When that happens to you onward nation, then you will know that you’ve stepped into that spot, that you are a trusted guide, an expert for somebody.
Right? Yes. And you know, I’m always talking about kind of getting in your sweet spot and that is when you would get that. If you got that type of feedback, you have a BA in your sweet spot. I mean, that’s awesome.
Loved that. Amen. The best way for Onward to connect with you, Natalie?
It’s ghidotti.com or they can always email me at [email protected], @ghidotti on Instagram and LinkedIn Facebook. It’s a unique last name. So, follow me on Twitter @ghidotti.com, so the same everywhere. Oh my gosh. You will find me no matter how many notes you took or how often you go back and relisten to Natalie’s words of wisdom, which I sure hope that you do the key is to take these amazing lessons, this blueprint that she gave you for peso to take all of this car or all of this work in conversation around strategy, take it, apply it and accelerate your results. And Natalie, we all have the same 86,400 seconds in a day. And I am grateful that you took some of that time and shared it with us in came onto the show to be our guide, our mentor, to help us move our businesses onward of that next level.
Thank you so much, my friend, thank you so much. Thank you Onward Nation.
It was a pleasure being with you.
This episode is complete. So head over to OnwardNation.com for show notes and more food. If you have ambition, continue to find your recipe for success here at Onward Nation.
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