Thinkers360 Announces Release of 2022 B2B Thought Leadership Outlook Research

Key findings include further gains by specialist communities over social media as primary destination for thought leadership consumers, and importance of customer trust and “any time” cadence for thought leadership producers.

DALLAS October 12, 2021

Thinkers360, the world’s premier B2B thought leader and influencer community, today announced the release of it’s 2022 B2B Thought Leadership Outlook Research Report conducted in association with the British Computer Society (BCS). The purpose of the research was to better understand current and future trends with regard to both thought leadership creators – such as individuals, agencies and brands – and thought leadership consumers and their plans for 2022.

The primary research survey was conducted between August 24th and October 5th 2021 among Thinkers360 Members, BCS Members, and other creators and consumers of B2B thought leadership content.

Key findings from the study include:

Thought Leadership Consumers (Current State)

Specialist Communities Gain Over Social Media – Specialist communities (62%) forged even further ahead of social media (46%) as the primary source for thought leadership content compared to last year
It’s all about Insight and Relevance – The key is insightful (95%), forward-looking (90%) and relevant (89%) content that’s engaging and impactful.
Authors Remain Top with Academics on the Rise – Authors (52%), Academics (39%), Influencers (36%) and Consultants (35%) are the primary sources of thought leadership content.
Informing Strategy and Aiding Decisions – Building subject matter expertise (84%), informing strategy (82%) and aiding decision making (75%) are the main motivations

Thought Leadership Creators (Current State)

Driving a Powerful Brand Premium – Close to 1/3 see thought leadership adding over 75% to the brand premium they command in the marketplace
Unique Perspectives Drive Customer Trust – Competitive differentiation (81%), brand perception (80%) and customer trust (74%) are the main business benefits of thought leadership content creation.
The New “Any Time” Cadence – Thought leadership content has evolved from a weekly and monthly cadence with creators choosing an “any time” cadence.

Thought Leadership Creators (Plans for 2022)

Top 3 Sales & Marketing Priority – 63% consider thought leadership a Top 3 Priority or higher within their sales and marketing strategies for 2022.
Scaling Up – 60% of thought leadership creators plan to produce more thought leadership in 2022 than in 2021.
Specialist Communities Are Key – Social media (78%) and specialist communities (66%) are tip of the spear for disseminating thought leadership content in 2022.

The complete report, including extensive analysis and interpretation, is now available to Thinkers360 members at the Pro Plan level and above.

ABOUT THINKERS360

“Connecting global brands and audiences with the world’s foremost thought leaders and influencers on business and technology for game-changing results”

Thinkers360 is an opt-in network of the world’s foremost thought leaders — including academics, advisors, analysts, authors, consultants, executives, influencers and speakers — with over 100M followers on social media combined. The company is differentiated by its unique patent-pending algorithms that measure thought leadership and authentic influence looking far beyond social media alone.

Thinkers360’s enterprise services help global brands find and work with thought leaders and influencers as well as showcase their own corporate executives, experts and content among the opt-in B2B community to “influence the influencers”.

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