People can sniff out a fake instantly making transparency and validity more important than ever.
There’s a popular saying in the entrepreneurial community that says, “Go an inch wide and a mile deep.”
This saying rings true in almost any market as most entrepreneurs need to establish themselves as the authority in a small niche and provide insane value. But how do you go from Joe Schmo to an authority that people gravitate to? Newsflash, it doesn’t happen overnight.
Here’s what you need to do to position yourself as an authority in your niche:
1. Know your stuff.
In today’s marketplace there is loads of information at our fingertips. People can sniff out a fake instantly making transparency and validity more important than ever. If you want to be an authority, you need to know the most up-to-date and relevant information to relay to your audience.
Jon Loomer is a great example of someone who knows what they’re talking about. Jon’s blog is for advanced Facebook marketers and a favorite around here at Parachute Media. Each of his posts provide great value and gets into the meat and potatoes of Facebook marketing rather than going over the subject in broad strokes.
By knowing his stuff and communicating that with his audience, he has established himself as an authority in the Facebook marketing world.
2. Create trust with your audience.
Creating trust with the audience you’re trying to reach is important if you want people to return to you for information and convert leads into customers. Building relationship digitally can be difficult but you can build this trust several different ways.
Use your title to your advantage. People trust titles and having one can set you apart. Having a title such as a doctor, therapist, or expert can create trust because of your education. Dr. Josh Axe is an example of someone who is using his title to build trust. Dr. Josh Axe is a wellness physician, popular radio show host, and coveted national speaker. He’s committed to setting people free from their health problems so they can live their lives to their fullest potential. He has built trust with his audience by not only using his title but providing great content and health products and over delivering on value.
Show relevant results. Trust can also be created by producing relevant results in your niche and sharing it with your audience. This can look like doing some kind of case study much like what Parachute Media did here with Camping With Dogs. Results speak for themselves, and if you have that in your back pocket make sure to communicate those results to your audience.
Share testimonials. A powerful way to create trust is to share testimonials from the people you have helped in your niche. Testimonials just flat out work in most markets. People trust people and having a third party back you up can be critical to growing your brand.
Provide free content. You can build trust by providing free content that your audience can put into action immediately. It has to be valuable. No one wants free junk. Actionable content shows that you have their best interest in mind.
Over deliver every time. Lastly, the number one way to create trust is to always deliver or over deliver on your promise every time. Nothing destroys trust like under delivering on someone’s expectations. Make sure to always meet or exceed your audience’s expectations if you really want to be a leader in your niche.
3. Know your audience’s needs and deliver.
Maybe don’t deliver to your audience like the guy above, but if you want to be the authority you need to know and meet the needs of your audience. This starts with intensive research and speaking with your target audience.
From here, you are able to reverse engineer your whole business or brand around your customer’s needs making you the obvious choice in a field of competitors. If you know your audience’s needs inside and out and fulfill that need, you will become an authority in no time.
If you’re interested in becoming the authority in your niche or want to strengthen your social media presence feel free to drop us a line!
