Jeff Brown: 5 Things You Should Do To Become a Thought Leader In Your Industry

An Interview With Abe Alon

Be willing to push boundaries: Thought leadership requires one to break the mold and embrace things that may have been previously stigmatized. At Big Fig, we’ve taken back the word “Fat” — and we use it. Why? Because it isn’t a bad word, and we were tired of society infusing it with a negative stigma. So, we took it back, and use it frequently on our social channels.

As part of our series about how to become known as a thought leader in your industry, I had the pleasure of interviewing Jeff Brown.

Jeff Brown is a working leader who personally builds key relationships, both internal and external, and fosters trust to capture and deliver profitable revenue. Working in senior sales, marketing, and operations roles for multimillion-dollar global brands and privately held middle market companies, Jeff knows what truly drives sales growth, product conversions and value — and it is not in short term decision making or tactical thinking. As the current President of Big Fig Mattress, Jeff has extensive experience in global branded organizations such as Newell Rubbermaid, Pergo, Oatey and Barrette and has been successful in building a culture of overcoming and winning. He has experience in every phase of the market, finding success regardless of external factors, and has delivered value in every type of situation.

Thank you so much for doing this with us! Our readers would love to “get to know you” a bit better. Can you share your “backstory” with us?

After graduating with a B.S in political science with a concentration in finance from Virginia Tech, I got my start and learned to thrive in global branded organizations like Newell Rubbermaid, Pergo, Oatey and Barrette, and grew to specialize in coordinating sales, marketing, and operations functions for multimillion-dollar global brands and privately held middle-market companies, working to drive sales growth, product conversions, and value through understanding long-term drivers, connecting with customers and delivering on commitments.

Can you briefly share with our readers why you are an authority about the topic of thought leadership?

As the President of Big Fig Mattress, the world’s first mattress company devoted specifically to the plus-size demographic, I know how to succeed as a trailblazer in an established industry, and what differentiates a leader willing to act in the best interest of his customers than one who is using those customers to line his pockets.

In short, I realized a marginalized group wasn’t being taken care of, they were being taken advantage of — and I worked to do something about it. We created a mattress that truly served and supported the plus-size body — enabling a restorative night’s sleep. Big Fig doesn’t make other mattresses. We don’t have other brands. Our job is to take care of the plus-size community and make sure they’re championed, accepted, and included in our manufacturing.

Can you share the most interesting story that happened to you since you started your career?

If I look back, it’s the journey to ally that has been rewarding in ways I didn’t expect. For the 30 years I’ve been in consumer goods, I’ve never had that feeling where a customer says, ‘Because of your products, it made a difference in what I can do on a daily business.’ I get goosebumps when I read the emails and reviews. I worked for Rubbermaid, and I never got a review that told me Rubbermaid totes were life-changing.

Can you share a story about the funniest mistake you made when you were first starting? Can you tell us what lesson you learned from that?

I’m not sure how funny it is, but I think initially we assumed we knew it all and didn’t embrace opportunities to learn and grow. Think back to your most recent customer experience at a restaurant, clothing store, or an online brand — what worked and what didn’t? The reality is, it’s easy to criticize other companies, but not so easy to point out problems with your own. Gaining an edge comes down to learning from your mistakes — funny or otherwise.

Ok, thank you for that. Let’s now jump to the main focus of our interview. In a nutshell, how would you define what a ‘Thought Leader’ is? How is a thought leader different from a typical leader? How is a thought leader different from an influencer?

An influencer makes ripples in a pool of water. They amass a community of like-minded individuals whose trust they earn over time. This trust is leverageable in the form of recommendations.

A thought leader identifies a problem in society that affects a group of people, and works to not only fix it, but dismantle the way of thinking that allowed that problem to form and be a norm in the first place. A thought leader is committed to the betterment of the group that he or she leads.

For us, we saw an issue that we could help address. A plus-size person is more than what you see in front of you. This is a very emotional topic, it’s a little taboo, and people are dealing with discrimination. We’ve come to view this discrimination as a chance to change the world.

Can you talk to our readers a bit about the benefits of becoming a thought leader? Why do you think it is worthwhile to invest resources and energy into this?

I think ‘benefits’ is the wrong term. Thought leaders take on a responsibility to make the world better. To do so means putting the needs of the group you lead above your own — and using this customer base more as a constituency to guide your actions.

At Big Fig, we’ve been willing to accept smaller profit margins and a higher advertising cost to reach a community that’s historically been skeptical and distrusting of claims targeted toward them. So why do we do it? Because sleep is the great equalizer, and yet a huge segment of society’s basic sleep needs are being ignored.

We think we’ve got a great brand and a great audience, but there’s still more work to do. I’ve been in consumer products for thirty years, and I’ve never seen a customer community so loyal and so clearly underrepresented by manufacturers. I hope more mattress manufacturers get into the business of putting the plus-size community first.

Let’s talk about business opportunities specifically. Can you share a few examples of how thought leadership can help a business grow or create lucrative opportunities?

The mattress industry is a great example: A good, restorative night’s sleep is a pipe dream for so many people, because many do not understand the science of sleep. The reality is that mattresses are not one size fits all, and if you’re a larger-figured individual, you have unique needs that aren’t addressed in a standard mattress. Before Big Fig, the plus-size community was left to suffer through poor sleep and in silence because mattress manufacturers didn’t see their bodies’ needs as a reason to break from traditional mattress production.

At Big Fig, we took a stance and commitment to validate and bring the unique needs of the plus-size frame center stage. Instead of doing what’s always been done, we designed a new kind mattress that was expertly tailored for this specialized segment of society. In doing so, made the commitment to advocate for their needs and work to serve them. This passion has grown over the years. We do not just cater to the plus-size community. Rather, we exist to serve them as a true ally to make their lives better in any way we can.

Has the strategy been lucrative? It’s succeeded beyond our wildest dreams — especially because we are not just looking at success based on revenue. While we are proud to be the market leader in the plus-size industry, we are prouder that this “sub-industry” of plus-size mattresses has been created to further validate, normalize, and humanize the needs of the plus-size community.

Ok. Now that we have that behind us, we’d love to hear your thoughts about how to eventually become a thought leader. Can you share 5 strategies that a person should implement to become known as a thought leader in their industry? Please tell us a story or example (ideally from your own experience) for each.

1. Identify a pain point for your target consumer that’s in your power to change: In our case this was easy. Despite a myriad of mattress companies, no mattresses existed that could address the unique needs of the plus-size community. We felt these needed deserved to be met, and that the quality of sleep, and larger quality of life that the plus-size community experienced mattered. We committed ourselves to doing better and creating a product that would improve this quality of life.
2. Put your money where your mouth is: Your consumer base will be able to tell instantly if your allyship is merely performative. Don’t just say you’re going to fix an issue; Do it. At Big Fig, we didn’t just say we were creating a mattress for a larger frame, we invested time and energy in understanding what features must be incorporated into this one-of-a-kind sleep system. For instance, fuller-figured sleepers tend to generate more heat. To address this, we incorporated a ThermoGel topper which pulls heat away from the body so that the sleeper won’t wake up in a pool of his or her own sweat.
3. Be a continual active listener to your consumer base: Tides turn quickly — and a good leader makes it a point to temperature check to make sure he or she stays on course. At Big Fig, we created an advisory council called The Big Fig Collective to guide our actions. They are our guiding light, and we are so grateful and honored that they have joined our advocacy cause.
4. Be receptive to change and feedback: It’s not enough to temperature check, a true leader needs to be willing to change course if a course of advised. During a recent Collective meeting, our advisory board brought up the idea that there was more than one type of plus-size frame, and we needed to make sure we were humanizing all of them. It was a perspective we realized we weren’t addressing in some of our content and committed ourselves to doing better by the community moving forward.
5. Be willing to push boundaries: Thought leadership requires one to break the mold and embrace things that may have been previously stigmatized. At Big Fig, we’ve taken back the word “Fat” — and we use it. Why? Because it isn’t a bad word, and we were tired of society infusing it with a negative stigma. So, we took it back, and use it frequently on our social channels.

I have seen some discussion that the term “thought leader” is trite, overused, and should be avoided. What is your feeling about this?

The danger with the term “Thought Leader” is how it is bestowed upon an individual. Those who are calling themselves “Thought Leaders” to simply seize clout– what have you done to better society with these original ideas and thoughts? How are you using this position of power and influence that you have amassed? If the responsibility of this distinction isn’t also taken on alongside the title, then the term does become trite and meaningless. It’s the onus and commitment that makes the thought leader, not the title.

What advice would you give to other leaders to thrive and avoid burnout?

As a man in the sleep business, I urge leaders to make sure sleep is a top priority. Sleep is the body’s opportunity to recuperate, and to best ensure the body gets the maximum restorative benefits, the spine should be aligned in a supported neutral position.

You are a person of enormous influence. If you could inspire a movement that would bring the most amount of good to the most amount of people, what would that be? You never know what your idea can trigger. :-)

It sounds redundant, but my hope is that I inspire other brands to humanize and normalize the plus size experience. It would be an incredible movement to witness break long-standing societal norms. The impact of just simply normalization, without guilt or shame, of a group of people’s existences would go far for societal mental health and would work to bring an end to body shame. We have the power to bring about this change. What are we waiting for?

Can you please give us your favorite “Life Lesson Quote”? Can you share how that was relevant to you in your life?

My father was a career enlisted soldier, a Sergeant Major in the Army, and had a saying that he attributed to General George S. Patton, but is originally quoted by Thomas Paine — “Lead, Follow, or Get Out of The Way” — also often quoted by Lee Iacocca and others. Growing up a military brat, I heard it almost daily and as my career started, I found it so relevant to business. Make decisions; move, take action or decide not to take action — but do something, even if it’s wrong!

We are blessed that very prominent leaders in business and entertainment read this column. Is there a person in the world with whom you would like to have lunch or breakfast? He or she might just see this, especially if we tag them. :-)

As a young marketer, I was given a copy of Daniel Goleman’s book “Emotional Intelligence” and after seeing how incredibly bright and talented people had their careers side-tracked because they made poor emotionally charged choices and decisions, it struck me that knowing if something needed to be said, whether I needed to say it, and whether I needed to say it right then made all the difference in how people approached me, problem solved with me, and ultimately trusted in me. The book changed my life, and I’d love the opportunity to tell him in person!

How can our readers further follow your work online?

Visit BigFigMattress.com and check us out on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, and Pinterest.

Thank you so much for your insights. This was very insightful and meaningful.