The visibility of an organisation's leadership team has a dramatic impact on its financial prospects, according to new research commissioned by Profile with polling agency OnePoll.
The results show for the first time that consumers prefer buying products and services from companies with visible leadership teams.
Based on a 2,000-person poll of British adults, the results also show that consumers trust companies with visible leaders more than those without them. The survey was undertaken in December 2022.
According to our research, nearly 7 in 10 respondents said that they trust companies with visible leaders more than those without, with 29% saying that they trust companies with visible leaders much more.
The results come at a time when consumer trust is an increasing priority for companies. Forrester Research recently predicted that consumer and employee trust would be at the top of the agenda for business leaders in 2023.
The importance of visible leadership was recognised across all age groups in Profile's research, although older age groups gave it even more precedence. The results showcase the importance of thought leadership PR.
While 63% of people aged between 18 and 24 said that they trusted companies with visible leadership teams more, a massive 77% said the same amongst the 65-and-over group.
The research also showed that more than 60% of respondents said that they were prefer to buy products and services from companies that were led by visible leadership teams.
There has sometimes been an instinct that while visible leadership might shift sentiment amongst consumers, buyers, employees, and partners, that this might not lead to tangible action. This research shows that this instinct is wrong.
The results show that older respondents' purchasing decisions were even more likely to be moved by the visibility of leadership teams. For example, a massive 77% of respondents over the age of 65-years-old said that they would prefer to buy from companies with visible leadership teams.
The results should not come as a surprise, given that transparent and open communication has become increasingly important for consumers, investors, partners, and the public at large.
Research carried out at the same time by Profile showed that the public increasingly expect leadership teams to be more visible. More than three quarters of respondents (76%) said that they thought companies and brands should have leadership teams who were visible.
Visible leadership is set to be one of the biggest and most important trends over the next 5 years. Companies, non-profits, and organisations that take advantage of this trend and build the profiles of their leadership teams will steal a march on their competitors.
Profile is an award-winning thought leadership agency. We create visible leaders. If you would like to discuss building the profile of your leadership team, book in a no-obligation strategy call.