Mark Kaley Of Otter Public Relations: 5 Things You Should Do To Become a Thought Leader In Your Industry
An Interview With Abe Alon
Leverage your experience. You have learned from your life lessons and experiences. Share the stories. By imparting your experiences and sharing the lessons, you objectively provide information about how others can avoid the same pitfalls or look for similar opportunities.
As part of our series about how to become known as a thought leader in your industry, I had the pleasure of interviewing Mark Kaley.
Mark Kaley is an account strategist with Otter Public Relations as well as a self-published author. Mark is an entrepreneur at heart, an advocate for small businesses, and a passionate storyteller who authored “From Pennies to Millions.” He has more than 15 years of experience consulting with large and small businesses to provide them with management, marketing, and business consulting services.
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?
I could probably talk for hours about my backstory, so I will just share the highlights. Having grown up on Long Island, New York, I can come across to some as a little too straight forward, but being a straight shooter and calling it as I see it is one of my strongest qualities. Hopefully, that comes through in this interview.
I hold a Bachelor’s degree in Communication Arts from St. John’s University, a Juris Doctorate from St. John’s University, and an MBA from Strayer University. I have amassed more than 18 years of experience consulting with large and small businesses, providing them with management, marketing, and business consulting services and advice. I like to think of myself as an entrepreneur at heart, an advocate for small businesses, and a passionate storyteller. I even used the 2020 pandemic to author and publish a memoir of experience entitled, “From Pennies to Millions.” It is a cautionary tale about greed and how the desire for money shapes the decisions that people make. By the way, I am still waiting for the millions that I talk about in the book.
My repertoire of experience is quite diverse. I have worked on a national presidential campaign, with well-known companies such as Amazon and The Walt Disney Company, and small businesses such as 3D Eye Solutions, Inc. and The ExtraHelp Channel.
I like to think of myself as a creative, driven, analytical, and business-savvy marketing professional. I am also self aware enough to know that some would probably disagree with that assessment. To those I say, “Look harder at yourself.”
Throughout my career, I have consulted with over 100 clients and over 500 small businesses through the public relations process. I have focused my efforts on getting their products and services to market, securing financing, and working with management to improve efficiency and profitability. Many clients, either through my direct efforts or indirect efforts, were introduced to Fortune 500 companies for joint ventures along with other joint marketing and business efforts. Currently, I find a lot of enjoyment in working with clients in the blockchain, tech, medical, and financial industries. One of my biggest strengths is taking complex material and making it easily digestible and accessible for larger audiences.
Joining Otter Public Relations was one of the best decisions I have ever made. I enjoy the camaraderie with the other employees and management. While it may sound a bit cliche, the founders place a strong emphasis on not only work life balance, but also creating a family-like atmosphere. I have worked in the past for companies that tried to develop this, but failed because loyalty and respect was always missing. At Otter, mutual respect and employee loyalty are paramount. That is what drives me to perform at my highest levels, and to excel and exceed personal goals as well as company expectations.
I have had so much fun working with clients like Nick Donarski of Ore System, OG Arabian Prince (a founding member of the Hall of Fame rap group N.W.A.) and his management team at MdDAO, Gabriella Kusz of the Global DCA, and Insoo Park of Ecosense, as well as a myriad of others who I don’t have space to list. I have had massive success with these and other clients, landing them placements in CNBC, Yahoo! News, CBS News, Time, Wall Street Journal, Marketwatch, US News & World Report, Investor’s Business Daily, Tech Crunch, Tech Target, Bloomberg, Insider, Spectrum News, Miami Herald, The Street, Charlotte Observer, Forbes, and Fortune. At the end of the day, however, it is not the placement that truly matters, but rather the client’s satisfaction with the placement. To see the client happy is my end goal. And, yes, I do get a rush everytime I get that notice that a placement has gone live.
On top of all that, there is more to me than my business side. I was always attracted to the Central Florida weather and tourist experiences, so I relocated with my family to the Sunshine State in 2004. I have an incredibly beautiful and understanding wife who puts up with me, three extraordinary children, and two adorable dogs. After meeting client commitments, I make time to coach both flag football and soccer and partake in the Central Florida theme park experiences with my family. If we are not at home, you can probably find us walking around Universal Studios or Disney World enjoying each other’s company and making memories.
Can you briefly share with our readers why you are an authority about the topic of thought leadership?
The PR work I do with small business owners, entrepreneurs, and CEOs to help them to tell their unique story to the market often involves positioning them as thought leaders. Those who want to sell a product or service benefit greatly from being known as a thought leader or industry expert. Why should anyone believe in the project if its management team or founder has no expertise, or is not seen as a thought leader who is sparking dialogue in the industry and provoking thoughts about the concept?
Take, for example, Nick Donarski from Ore, or Gabriella Kusz from Global DCA. I have leveraged their expertise and thought leadership to make them household names in their respective industries. If you are looking for blockchain solutions, then you will find that Nick — whose company was named as one of the top 10 blockchain solution companies in 2022 — is the person with whom you need to speak. In terms of digital assets, you will find that Gabby Kusz is your go-to. By highlighting their unique backgrounds and showcasing their expertise in articles and interviews, I was able to build them a media resume that showed them as important voices in their respective fields. This enhanced their credibility and allowed them to advance the discourse within their industries. How did we define a particular expertise for each of them? We examined the space, found a platform that needed a speaker, and positioned them to fill the role.
People listen to those who are qualified, and qualifications help to sell. If you are not seen as a thought leader, people will question whether what you have is beneficial to them or able to effectively meet their needs. Even if you have a product that is the next best thing since sliced bread, you still need to have some expertise to convince people that they need it. Why would they buy from you if someone else who is more of an expert has a comparable product? You need expertise to sell and, in the end, it is all about sales.
Can you share the most interesting story that happened to you since you started your career?
Back in 2007, a client of mine landed a $25+ million purchase order with the Department of Homeland Security for thumb drives. It was one of the most exciting deals I had worked on. The client did media interviews, was on the floor of the NASDAQ, and was excitedly describing all the business he was getting as a result of that order. However, in the end it all turned out to be false. The client forged the purchase order, wire transfers for the money, and even lied about having cancer. It was an unbelievable story and only one of many that I have experienced. If you want to read more, they are all in my book, “From Pennies to Millions.”
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?
One of the first jobs I had when I was in college was working at the local Marshalls department store in Massapequa on Long Island in New York. When you were working the floor, which was the job most preferred, you were responsible for putting new inventory out and using an old, clunky machine to create barcodes for items with no price tags.
I wanted to show my drive, so I figured I would help get inventory out from the back rooms. In my mind, more inventory on the floor meant more potential sales, so I decided to put out more socks on the sock wall. However, the socks I found in the back were missing price tags. Rather than ask questions, I got the bar code machine and started to print out barcodes for the socks that were missing the prices.
I easily doubled the merchandise on the sock wall, but unfortunately the bar codes I generated were all for $0.01. To this day, I do not know how I made that mistake, but a whole lot of customers got a great deal on socks. I definitely learned to slow down and be more diligent. Thank goodness there was no social media back then, or there would have been a run on socks at the Massapequa Marshalls.
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?
Thought leaders are those who listen and hear what others are saying and understand the “why” behind the “how” or the “what”. They leverage the expertise they have to share knowledge with others. By being an active and expert voice in their industry, they are seen as authoritative on the topic.
Thought leaders are on a mission to gain influence and to influence others, but they are not seeking influence to maximize their social media accounts or to help sell more of Joe’s Shoe Shack shoes. Rather, their goal is to provoke others to think and grow based on their area of expertise or niche of leadership. Furthermore, their authoritative status provides credibility for their projects, provided that those projects are in alignment with their expertise and thought leadership, of course. In other words, being a thought leader in blockchain does not confer expertise in selling shoes.
A typical leader is the person in charge of an organization, group, division, business, or some other hierarchical structure. A thought leader is something different. While leaders may have risen to their position by being an expert and being seen as authoritative, being a thought leader entails also having a public persona or the desire to build one up.
An influencer is someone in a particular niche that holds sway over a target audience, which is also different from a thought leader. While they have specialized knowledge, expertise, and authority on a specific subject matter, they typically leverage their position for the sole purpose of marketing products or services on behalf of someone else, thus establishing brand credibility for their client as opposed to their own projects.
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?
Entrepreneurs should definitely seek to become thought leaders in their niche or market. Building their personal credibility indirectly benefits their brand’s credibility. When an entrepreneur launches a project, their credibility helps sell the project. The more attention the thought leader attracts, the more eyeballs are on his or her project. When done correctly, investing resources, time, and energy into developing a public persona as a thought leader better positions an entrepreneur for success when their project launches.
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?
As I said earlier, being seen as a thought leader can provide a boon for a person’s brand and projects. That credibility, authoritativeness, and expertise indirectly provides a return on investment. However, the business has to leverage the exposure of the thought leader.
All too often, people think that if they submit an article or have a story written about them, it will generate sales for the business. Nine times out of 10, that does not happen because it does not generate a sufficient level of credibility. It might generate interest, but it is a one-time event, not an ongoing conversation.
Achieving thought leader status provides a business with a marketing tool, a business development tool, and a sales tool. Entrepreneurs who gain the reputation of a thought leader still need to sell their product or service, but the credibility they have makes selling a little easier. Who do you trust to sell you a pair of expensive shoes: the Macy’s store clerk, or the expert on high arches who developed transforming insoles to provide better support?
At the end of the day, all small businesses have three things in common: poor financing, poor management, and a product that may or may not get to market. Being a thought leader for your small business product or service niche can help you overcome some of those hurdles. It increases your opportunities for financing because, due to your acumen, the investor or financier sees you as less of a risk for loss. While it does not directly increase sales, it can increase product or service exposure when leveraged properly, thus providing a tool to generate sales.
Take, for example, Nick Donarski, one of the Co-Founders of Ore System. With an expertise in cybersecurity, he is viewed as a thought leader in blockchain solutions. Through articles, comments, and interviews — along with additional exposure through marketing — he has leveraged this thought leadership perception to grow a company that started as an NFT solution for video game ecosystems into an entire compendium of blockchain services that include video game NFT solutions, digital rights management for content creators, and an entire healthcare metaverse. None of his company’s growth would have been possible without positioning him as a thought leader, building up the brand and profile of the company, and leveraging that expertise and thought leadership to pursue and take advantage of additional opportunities.
Another example is Insoo Park, the CEO and founder of Ecosense. Insoo founded Ecosense with the mission of empowering consumers to lead a safe and healthy lifestyle free from the life-threatening dangers of radon gas and promoting the importance of long-term radon monitoring. Insoo had the business expertise and acumen, but invested in becoming a thought leader in the area of monitoring radon gas to spread the message that radon is the leading cause of lung cancer among non-smokers.
Ecosense started with a product that was recognized as one of the Top 100 Inventions by TIME in 2021. It now boasts a product line of radon monitoring devices for use by both consumers and professionals, as well as a variety of programs that promote the mission of the company. Ecosense has succeeded in growing its product line and spreading its message because Insoo became viewed as a thought leader within his niche and industry. Like Donarski and Ore Systems, Insoo leveraged articles, comments, and interviews to become a thought leader, subsequently bringing exponential growth and increased value to his business.
These are but two of many examples that I could give of how thought leadership leads to the growth of business and other lucrative opportunities.
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.
First, have a niche. Hone your expertise and understand yourself. It is an oxymoron for a thought leader with expertise and influence in a particular industry to be a jack-of-all-trades but master of none. Thought leaders must have a niche of expertise, whether it is about supply chain management, sales processes, human resources, or cloud computing.
For example, if your business provides individuals skills to get hired and offers certification training, but also focuses on developing soft skills, your expertise is not necessarily education. Rather, it is speaking on and advocating for the need for soft skills and business acumen to add weight to certifications and increase the likelihood of being hired.
The best success comes from developing expertise. I once encountered an entrepreneur who would launch businesses in which he had no expertise or experience, and then hire people to run them. Because he needed to rely on the expertise of others, his managers could easily pull the wool over his eyes. Being a small business advocate or a consulting guru does not necessarily qualify someone to start a real estate business or wallcovering company. There is great value in developing expertise.
Second, leverage your experience. You have learned from your life lessons and experiences. Share the stories. By imparting your experiences and sharing the lessons, you objectively provide information about how others can avoid the same pitfalls or look for similar opportunities.
Writing is one great way to share your experiences. Submit articles to media outlets. Write a blog. Write posts on LinkedIn. Find a way to start getting your name out there. When your peers recognize and rely on your expertise or others seek you out for comments or opinions, then you are leading the conversation.
Third, build personal relationships with others. Your reputation as a thought leader will not be established by one quote or article. To achieve that leader status, you need to have people follow you and take an interest in what you have to say. Cultivate relationships with others in the industry or niche where you want to be seen as an expert. If you are a blockchain expert, then you need to cultivate relationships with others in that industry. When your peers recognize and rely on your expertise, then you have become a leader in that industry. Remember that every connection does not need to be transactional; become a part of the community first, and then become a leader.
Fourth, stick to your convictions. Remain consistent in your thoughts and values. Once you start developing your public persona through writing or speaking, remain true to the values and thoughts you express. Don’t go with the flow and just talk about what is trending.
If your expertise is digital assets, and you overtly state that digital assets are the best thing since sliced bread, don’t adopt the “sky is falling” mentality when the market crashes. Instead, advocate for digital assets. Have the same conviction after the crash that you had before it. Flip flopping on a position indicates a lack of education and, subsequently, a lack of expertise. If you don’t trust your thoughts, how can you expect others to trust them?
Fifth, brand yourself. If you effectively do the first four things I listed here, you will make great progress toward branding yourself as a thought leader. Stick to that branding. Once you brand yourself as the expert, authority, and thought leader, what you say starts to matter more. Remain consistent. Serve the brand and the brand will serve you.
In your opinion, who is an example of someone who has done a fantastic job as a thought leader? Which specific things have impressed you about that person? What lessons can we learn from this person’s approach?
I look at thought leaders like Dave Ramsey, Seth Goden, and Gary Vaynerchuk, among others, and recognize that they are where they are because they built a brand, leveraged their experience, maintained consistency, had a niche, and demonstrated their expertise. They took all the necessary steps to build thought leadership.
Without agreeing or disagreeing with the values and principles he espouses, I can relate to Dave Ramsey from the perspective of making a lot of money, losing it, and then getting it back. In the end, I do believe that it comes down to choice. Right or wrong, make a choice. Inaction is the worst decision; it gets you nowhere. You need to find a way to keep moving forward.
I have seen some discussion that the term “thought leader” is trite, overused, and should be avoided. What is your feeling about this?
I would say it is overused by those who are not qualified to truly claim the title. You can become a thought leader, but you do not start out as one. To be a thought leader, you need to be thought of by others as a thought leader. It is a moniker that must be bestowed by others, not one that you can claim for yourself. It takes time, effort, and experience to grow into the position. The guy sitting in his underwear in his grandmother’s basement posting statements on social media hiding behind a keyboard is not a thought leader, even though he may have thought provoking comments.
What advice would you give to other leaders to thrive and avoid burnout?
Take time for yourself to recharge. Be true to yourself. Own your story — the good, the bad, and ugly. Use your failures to create future successes. Be the thought leader you want to be and not the thought leader others want you to be. Don’t echo someone else’s comments because you think that is what your audience wants to hear. Tell your audience your thoughts, your comments, your views, and your expertise. If you become overly concerned with what others say, you will wind up in a quagmire of inconsistent statements with an obfuscated message.
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. :-)
I see too much division in politics today, and I think we need to find a balance between both the extremes of the right and the left. Politicians play for polls, soundbites, and airtime, rather than governing based on common sense. The wind may blow one way today, but the decision today may have serious consequences tomorrow. Something needs to change.
I would love to run for political office. I have always believed in what some may describe as traditional Republican values of capitalism, personal freedoms, and the like, but I also realize that my rights are no more paramount than others at times. I think there needs to be an elected official in this country that does not come from either political party. I would absolutely love it if I was a winning write-in independent candidate. I would do so much good and return this country to the values it stood for — equality, opportunity, and freedom from tyranny.
Can you please give us your favorite “Life Lesson Quote”? Can you share how that was relevant to you in your life?
“Never be a prisoner of your past. It was just a lesson, not a life sentence.” That quote also ties in with something that C.S. Lewis said, which is, “You can’t go back and change the beginning, but you can start where you are and change the ending.”
I have found success and failure. I have taken my lumps in life. I made mistakes and grew from them. At the same time, I am generally a positive person who sees the glass as half full. I believe that, on this roller coaster that we call life, you have the choice of enjoying the ride or screaming about. In either case, you have to get on the ride.
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. :-)
Without a doubt, Sammy Hagar. He has successfully built a brand around Cabo Wabo. Not only is Van Halen my favorite band, but Hagar’s charisma and audience connection, as well as musical skills, allowed the Van Halen brothers to do what they did best and create music, while he advanced their creative genius and was a consummate frontman who could sing. If he sees this, I would love to sit down with him for a bite to eat. Let him know; it will even be my treat.
How can our readers further follow your work online?
I would be happy to connect on LinkedIn, Instagram, Facebook, or Twitter, follow my author page on Amazon, or view my personal website here.
Thank you so much for your insights. This was very insightful and meaningful.
