Thought Leader ≠ Influencer

Article Series 'The Shift In B2B Marketing': Part 3

I hear people often struggle with the term thought leader. They see it as ego-driven branding or superficial self-promotion.

However, authentic thought leadership is far from that. It’s about seasoned experts who consistently offer original, insightful ideas, shaping industry perspectives and trends. They often drive change.

Today, we need these people more than ever. We're witnessing political shifts worldwide that limit freedoms. More people are outsourcing their thinking to artificial intelligence, weakening their cognitive abilities. So, we need individuals with original views developed through experience, observation, and critical thinking.

Every expert has the potential to become a thought leader—if they learn to effectively communicate their value. Thought leaders gain recognition only when they become visible and heard.

And that visibility has become the problem today.

The Social Media ‘Influenza’ Trap

There's this myth that thought leaders must become social media influencers. Some even argue it's essentially the same thing.

It’s easy to confuse the two because both require audiences, seek greater reach, and aim to influence people's thinking or behavior. But they’re fundamentally different:

• Social media influencers seek attention and large audiences primarily to sell products—either their own or someone else's. Let's not deceive ourselves: there's plenty of ego involved here as well, along with an unhealthy dose of dopamine spikes from massive follower interactions.

• Thought leaders, on the other hand, have different goals: they want to be active participants in conversations within their industries and serve as go-to authorities. Public visibility isn't primarily a sales vehicle for them (though it can certainly help with sales).

I have nothing against influencers earning money by promoting products on TikTok, or acquiring a 100K following on LinkedIn to sell their courses. However, I do have an issue with how this entire influencer culture has redefined success for anyone appearing publicly—including thought leaders.

The Problem with Influencer Culture

After a decade of social media, we've developed this image of influencers primarily focused on being seen, often without offering real value. Attention and virality is the name of the game here.

Rather than encouraging meaningful messages, we're pushed to obsess over numbers—followers, views, likes, impressions, and subscribers—the modern-day popularity meters.

The harsh reality is you're indeed not visible enough if those numbers are low. Algorithms governing social media run on numbers, not words.

As a communications professional, I've always prioritized content quality while also exploring ways to boost visibility for my clients and myself. I sought advice from online and LinkedIn "gurus" on visibility growth, only to realize most of them—despite what they publicly claim—never prioritize content quality, just volume and often questionable tactics.

They push us to optimize content for algorithms, artificially build large audiences, and become nonstop "content machines" across platforms. This advice is often impractical for busy professionals. Seriously, who has the time for all that?

This is why genuine experts with something valuable to share often choose to remain unseen.

My respected American colleague,Christopher Fox, coined a term perfectly describing this situation—Decency Deficit:

“The accumulated cost of years of short-term, exploitative thinking in communication, marketing, and influence. It happens when manipulation replaces respect, noise replaces depth, and transactions replace trust.”

Ironically, despite having more communication tools than ever before, some of our brightest minds remain hidden from public view.

Seeking a Better Way

This issue has genuinely frustrated me, so I once shared my annoyance with a client. His response got me thinking deeply:

"Don’t worry about it. I'm not here to build some huge audience anyway. I don't see value in that or have the time. I just want to remain present for people I care about and stay top-of-mind for potential clients when they're ready to make decisions."

That was my turning point. I realized I had been trying to combine long-term value and quality with short-term attention metrics. It doesn’t work.

After that, I decided to free myself from all these modern-day "must-dos" and focus on solving problems for serious professionals. I wanted to design a system that transforms experts into thought leaders without succumbing to influencer culture pressures.

The result was the EXPERT™ Framework—a systematic process integrating strategic positioning, narrative discovery, content planning, authentic execution, intelligent content repurposing, and meaningful outcome measurement.

New KPIs for Thought Leaders

Those aiming to become thought leaders rather than influencers can breathe a sigh of relief (since achieving big numbers isn't easy) and start focusing on different metrics. 

If you consistently share your knowledge, ideas, and observations, make an effort to put likes and followers aside for a minute, and focus on things like:

• Trust – measured through interactions where people tell you your message resonated, opened their eyes, or made them think.

• Referrals – measured by how often people associate you with your expertise and recommend you to others.

• Partnerships – measured through collaboration opportunities from those who recognize your complementary expertise.

• Publicity – measured by invitations to contribute articles, speak at events, or appear on podcasts.

• New Opportunities – measured by direct inquiries and warm leads. Genuine thought leadership can significantly drive sales.

Short-Term 'Hits' vs. Long-Term Legacy

I'm not saying a thought leader cannot become an influencer. Some of them have. I'm just saying the influencer imperatives are fundamentally different to building your digital presence as an expert. 

LinkedIn gurus won't admit it, but you don’t need 20,000 followers, nonstop content creation, or algorithm tricks to achieve meaningful goals.

I've had clients with small audiences and just a few monthly posts achieve their desired outcomes: landing dream jobs, promotions, or establishing industry authority.

When you stop expecting dopamine hits from likes and followers, you can focus on what truly matters—your unique value and target audience.

Ultimately, it's not about how many people see your content, but how many feel compelled to act because of your message. That is how your turn influence into impact and how you build a legacy.