Customer Reviews

The Expert's Edge: Become the Go-To Authority People Turn to Every Time

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There is an old expression that says that knowledge is power. Yet, if no one knows you have the knowledge, does it matter? Ken Lizotte, with his concept of being a thought leader, helps experts create market visibility that they could never achieve on their own. He also helps experts come out of the shadows and into the limelight. Having knowledge is one thing. Being recognized as an expert is another. The knowledgeable starve while the thoughtleaders thrive!

- Lee Salz, author of Soar Despite Your Dodo Sales Manager

In an era where the proliferation of media outlets has created legions of "15 minutes of fame" authorities on a wide range of topics, Ken Lizotte's The Expert's Edge is a welcome tonic. The blogosphere is a fantastic forum for establishing a web presence and communicating to a like-minded audience, but many bloggers haven't taken the time or made the effort to strategically think through their platform and extend it to other media.

The Expert's Edge provides a practical and methodical approach to achieving "thoughtleader" status. Thoughtleaders are those experts that are looked to for their experience, insight, inspiration and knowledge. They are at the leading edge of their field. But they need to work at their communication skills and outreach plans to be able to achieve and maintain their standing.

"The Five Pillars of Thoughtleading" gives the reader a smart and logical way to think through and act on their ambitions. The practical examples about how to do it and, in particular, how Ken did it, give an easy-to-follow narrative that leaves the impression that "I can do it too."

I'd recommend The Expert's Edge to any current or aspiring thoughtleader who wants more visibility, prestige and reputation for their expertise. (Disclaimer: Ken served as my publishing agent and represented my book, Why Healthcare Matters to HRD Press)

I consider "The Expert's Edge" as some kind of guide book. Why? Becuase it is very informative, simply written, supported by many examples, and it is useful for everyone whether you're an amateur or a professional. Reading it, you will ask yourself a lot of questions which proves that the book is communicating with its audience and I find that very important. Just as a travel guide, it explores possibilities, new and interesting things and it gives you a different insight in publishing industry, thoughtleading and presenting or selling yourself as a valuable product.

The Expert's Edge: Become the Go-To Authority People Turn to Every Time is THE solution you have been looking for in your business life. It will show you exactly how to break through from your ordinary level of business to an elite level of expertise. The best part about it is that NO you will not have to go back to school to learn it and NO you will not have to spend a lot of time and money investing in new business procedures. Lizotte and his The Expert's Edge: Become the Go-To Authority People Turn to Every Time show you how to harness the tools you already have and establish yourself as the expert and thoughtleader you already are.

As well as informative, I found this book to be incredibly well-written and well-structured. Most business books are boring and I find myself having to create an outline of it for myself before I can even start to decipher what the author is trying to prove. Ken's book reads as an enlightened outline; it is organized and the flow of the book is thoughtful.

The book is inspirational. I was hardly finished with it before the wheels started turning in my head on how I could apply Lizotte's advise to my endeavors. This is a MUST READ for any professional.

I've been fortunate to know and work with some pretty famous people. Interestingly, they tried to avoid publicity at all cost, often treating the press like paparazzi. Their stellar accomplishments are what made them famous and they often considered our desire to know more an invasion of their privacy.

Although I didn't know him personally, the late Steve Jobs is perhaps the most well-known example. His founding and success at Apple propelled him to great wealth and fame. He was a natural on the stage introducing new products, but beyond that he valued his privacy. He certainly never "dressed for success," and there is a story about him showing up at a huge MacWorld event in Paris in his characteristic jeans, sweatshirt and sneakers. The French security could not bring themselves to believe someone so dressed could possibly be invited to, let alone be in charge of, such an event, and they refused to let him in.

The age old formula was to do something really great, and you would become famous, even if you didn't want to be. Of course, not everyone can accomplish this, and Ken Lizotte proposes a different approach in his new book, The Expert's Edge. If a certain amount of fame would enable you to do something really great before earning fame the traditional way, this book is for you.

Lizotte shows how fame can make one's ideas more credible and marketable. He uses five topics, which he calls pillars, to build a platform upon which consultants, teachers, CEO's and others can build an expert's reputation, differentiating them from their competitors. If you want to become the "go to person" on some topic or issue, this book can show you how.

Well written, entertaining thus far (yes, a 'self-help' business book that is actually an entertaining read!). Verly logical steps to making yourself KNOWN as the expert in your field. I'm only 1/2 way through and it's already helped me clarify goals and stategies to get there. Get The Expert's Edge, it's well worth it.

Lizotte's book is a well written guide to turning garden variety experts into "thought leaders." The foundation of his philosophy is based on his five pillars of thought leadership: publishing (articles & book); public speaking; conducting research (he calls it "fresh thinking"); leveraging the internet; and using the media. The book's primary audience consists of consultants, small business owners, and people interested in creating a "personal brand," and for those of you who fall into one of these categories, this book is a must read. I also want to suggest that The Expert's Edge is a great resource for marketers in companies of any size. Lizotte's tactics for turning oneself into a thought leader can, with a little ingenuity, be used by marketers for transforming their firm's executives and knowledge workers into thought leaders.
Oh, and for you college professors teaching marketing or PR, this book makes a great complement to many texts. I can recommend it specifically to those using Marketing Public Relations as supplemental reading for chapters 11 and 12-especially for graduate level courses.

Part hands-on guide, part anecdote, part inspiration and wholly practical, The Expert's Edge cuts through the noise, offering step by step instructions for how to put yourself and your ideas out there. The publishing world can seem confusing and difficult to navigate, however The Expert's Edge untangles the process to increase your chances of gaining publication, notice and credibility by explaining how to pitch to editors and arrange speaking events. Ken's book effectively empowers experts to transform themselves into thoughtleaders.

"The Expert's Edge" is informative, smart, well rounded and highly readable. Eschewing abstract pontification and vague theory, this book gives solid, well-organized advice that is backed up by real word examples and input from other "thoughtleaders." This book can appeal to people in many different fields-- anyone interested in becoming a respected authority in their subject, and has a lifespan well past it's first read as a work to useful to consult again and again. Business books often have a reputation as being dry and challenging but this book proved to me that they can be engaging and clever while still packed full of information.

How would *you* market a new product? The usual approach is to talk about your product - and talk and talk and talk. Brag about it. Tell the world how amazing it is (or how cheap, or how desirable). Common wisdom says that the louder and longer you brag about it the more you will sell.

Ken Lizotte has a very different approach. He points out that people buy particular products or services because they know and trust the people behind them. Here's a vivid example (not from Ken's book):

Let's say you are choosing among three possible investments. One has an ad campaign with lots of statistics that demonstrate how rich other investors have gotten. The second investment's ad campaign features a famous sports figure doing a testimonial. The third investment is simply recommended by Warren Buffett in a New York Times interview. Which would you choose? I think I would trust Warren Buffett over the ad campaigns.

So did the big-spending campaigns win *your* mindshare? Or were you swayed by the credibility of one special individual?

According to Ken, your personal credibility and visibility are potentially the most powerful promotional tools you will ever have. You should be using them for personal gain and for the benefit of any endeavor you are associated with.

Ken's book is a concise, easy-to-understand guide for doing exactly that. There are two parts to the book. First, Ken explains what he means by becoming an expert (e.g. creating personal credibility and visibility). Then he gives the reader very clear step-by-step instructions for achieving expert status. And all of this is backed up by research and real-life anecdotes.

But don't expect instant results. Building credibility and visibility as an expert takes time - not because you need to amass more knowledge, but because you need to demonstrate your expertise in many, many venues. Ken makes a strong case, however, that the benefits are worth all the time and effort. After reading Ken's book, I would wholeheartedly agree.