One of the topics that recurs when talking to our clients is that of using content to shine a light on a new growth area of the business. Often the management team can see huge potential but their services are relatively unknown, despite, or even because their brand is very strong in other areas. 

This is likely to be a permanent problem for quality Professional Services firms. By being on the cutting edge, they are always opening new avenues where they are less well known. 

The research below from Edelman, a leading B2B PR firm, really does back up the validity of this content first approach for Professional Services in two ways. 

Firstly, thought leadership is a really good way for new businesses to get known:

"63% agree that [thought leadership] is particularly important to build the reputation of new and small businesses".

And, even better, when you are selling knowledge:

"69% agree that [thought leadership] is one of the best ways to judge the calibre of thinking that an organisation can deliver."

This also shows that it is a bit lunatic to outsource your thought leadership to people who are less expert in your field than yourselves.