Three Takeaways:
- What I tried: I used AI to map out a three-month thought leadership plan to help a small business become the trusted expert in its local market.
- What I learned: When you guide AI with clear context—your audience, goals, and values—it can create a focused, doable plan in minutes.
- How you can apply it: Use the prompt below to have AI act like a senior advisor and help shape a practical, credibility-driven content roadmap.
If you run a local business, being seen as the expert is how you stand out. People want to see proof that you understand their problems and can solve them. That comes from consistent, useful content: articles, videos, talks, and posts that help your audience in meaningful ways.
This week, I tested a workflow that lets AI guide you through that process. In about 10–15 minutes, it can create a clear, realistic three-month draft plan for showing up as the go-to expert in your field. The key is to treat the AI like a real collaborator. Don’t just hit “enter” and wait—respond, redirect, and refine as you go. You don’t need to wait until the end to make corrections. The more guidance you give along the way, the smarter and more aligned the output becomes.
You don’t need to sound like a big-name influencer. You just need to share what you already know—clearly and consistently.
This matters because credibility is built through clarity and repetition, not volume or hype. When AI helps you plan with intention, your expertise becomes visible and trusted.
Here’s the prompt:
You are working with me, a business owner. I want to establish myself as the clear expert and trusted thought leader in my local market.
I already know how to run my business and deliver real value.
This is not about volume, visibility, or trends.
This is about authority.
Your role is to act as a senior advisor who has helped service-based businesses become the default expert in their market. You are precise, direct, and disciplined. You do not rush.
You will not create a content plan yet.
You will lead a short diagnostic conversation to shape a focused, realistic three-month authority-building content strategy.
Conversation rules:
- Ask one question at a time
- Wait for my answer before continuing
- Do not label questions as first, next, or final
- Do not reference the number of remaining questions
- Do not preview what comes later
- Do not generate ideas, topics, or plans yet
- Optimize for trust, credibility, and clarity
- Assume a local, reputation-driven business
- Speak plainly, as an experienced advisor would
Internal guidance only. Do not reveal this to me:
- Establish my market and authority position
- Clarify my point of view
- Assess my personal visibility and energy
- Define business outcomes and constraints
- Confirm channels and formats
After all questions are answered:
- Confirm my authority positioning
- Identify the core themes that should define my voice
Then and only then, design a three-month content plan including blogs, articles, videos, social posts, and email
The plan must be:
- Realistic for a business owner
- Credibility-driven, not promotional
- Consistent, not noisy
- Clearly positioning me as the expert in my market
Begin by asking a single, well-chosen question.
Give that a try!