Whether for digital marketing research or any other fast-evolving business and management specialty, there has never been a time when professionals have had a greater need to gain subject matter expertise rather quickly. While your expertise may not come literally overnight, you’ll learn the same approach I teach my consultants to use to gain an authoritative understanding of new areas of knowledge quickly.
The 7-part system that I will share with you is an approach that my own consulting clients have paid me thousands of dollars to learn and execute as part of accelerating their positioning and thought leadership in industries as varied as financial services, non-governmental development and direct marketing. Using digital marketing as an example subject area, I’ll illustrate how this approach can make you an industry player in record time.
Digital Marketing: A Prime Example of the Topic Explosion
Digital marketing today is a broad domain that generally covers search engine marketing, email marketing, social marketing, mobile marketing (across devices), online advertising and media buying, digital public relations, e-commerce, analytics. web, website design and marketing, digital signage and “Internet of Things” among other areas. Within each of these areas, new advancements are adding layers of complexity to the map.
Here are some steps to help you understand the new spaces and develop a place of thought leadership within them for yourself or your organization.
1. Map the Market
What are the subdomains within this new area that you are looking to investigate? For example, the mobile marketing subdomain can be broken down into the lines of mobile display advertising (and ad networks), SMS marketing, mobile search advertising, mobile app advertising, mobile social marketing, location-based advertising, mobile gaming , mobile video advertising and more.
You can use simple mind mapping software (Xmind or FreeMind) to create a map of key domains as well as key players and stakeholders. In this mobile marketing context, such players would include mobile advertising networks, SMS providers, mobile advertising agencies (digital marketing agencies), major trade associations and publications, major online content portals and websites, regulators, as well as the laws or regulations that govern mobile services. , mobile device OEMs (original equipment manufacturers), app marketplaces, and carrier networks.
2. Identify core issues and challenges
Examine the major issues facing space. These may be barriers to wider adoption or newly emerging issues that are expected to become more serious over time. Conduct research to help you identify which of the space stakeholders are leaders in tackling these emerging issues and challenges. Take a step back and think about your own challenges as a newcomer to space and the questions you have that many others can share.
3. Identify core solutions and offerings
Find application case studies and review how top solutions can relate to various customer categories such as B2B, B2C, Small and Very Small Businesses, Local Retailers, Professional Services, Manufacturers, Industrial Companies, Government and Public Organizations, Nonprofits profit, personal consumers, etc. . .
For example, suppose you are the director of a traditional marketing agency (TV, radio, print, and outdoor) and you want to research email marketing. You would have to map the email marketing space in a way that differentiates the B2B, B2C markets and the size of the companies (in terms of revenue). See if you can identify players who have developed licensed content for each of the categories or income levels you can identify in a potential market.
4. Identify best practices
Thoroughly study emerging research to identify consensus on best practices. Add these ideas and try them out to form your own opinions. Make a list of the findings you disagree with, and take a moment to write down why.
5. Uncover key trends and opportunities (spend, penetration and usage)
Specifically, try to track key trends in the areas of spend, penetration, scope of use, sectors of adoption, and potential challenges. Attend events (online events and video presentations) and communicate with thought leaders. Engage with them directly through social media and ask them for email interviews and teleseminar interviews.
6. Common mistakes
Look for information on common mistakes made by new entrants to the field (consumers, users, implementers, etc.), as well as strategic mistakes or missteps by key industry stakeholders that have been documented. See if you can combine this with your current experience and knowledge to identify some potential mistakes that established industry leaders may be overlooking.
7. You must have tools by income and category (B2b, B2C)
Look up the software tools, the physical tools, the educational and research tools that are already commonly used in that area, and those that you find particularly useful while you’re still new to the space. Be sure to create resource guides for these tools as you find them, as you can package these resources later to create a content marketing platform.
Conclution
I just showed you how I create expertise in my clients’ businesses and industries in record time. I also encourage my coaching and consulting clients to take this approach which I have just shared in detail with you. Whether you want to be a thought leader, industry analyst, or just market information products within a space, you can use this powerful system to decode any industry.