[WEBINAR] Building your executive profile for B2B
Executive thought leadership is one of the best tools for building a lasting profile that inspires trust, shapes industry conversations, and unlocks growth.
But what separates the most effective leaders from those who fail to make an impact?
In this article, we draw on our experience working with global C-suites to share seven proven strategies you can use to elevate your thought leadership campaigns.
With the right approach, you won’t just raise your own profile. You’ll elevate your entire team, influence your industry, and expand your network. So, let's get into it.
Before you consider an executive thought leadership campaign, ask yourself: What do you want to achieve?
While building your personal profile can be enjoyable and even ego-boosting, vanity alone isn’t a strategy.
To drive real business impact, your content needs to serve real goals.
If your company is expanding into the US, a piece in Forbes or Entrepreneur showcasing your expansion strategy might establish credibility in the new market.
If you're a founder preparing for Series B fundraising, your executive thought leadership might centre on scale-up lessons or customer retention, tailored for investors scanning LinkedIn.
Or, if you’re struggling to recruit in a competitive market like cybersecurity or AI, you might spotlight your company culture or DEI values across social media, podcasts, and panels.
In short, content without commercial alignment is just content, whereas thought leadership that anchors to your objectives genuinely builds your reputation.
During the early stages of an executive thought leadership campaign, we usually advise leaders to secure as many “low-hanging” media hits as possible to ease them into the rhythm of media engagement.
Then, as soon as they’ve established themselves, we push hard to secure coverage in the big hitters, like Bloomberg, The Sunday Times, The Economist, and many others.
Usually, clients are more than happy with this approach. However, there are occasions when some reject it.
They might lack confidence.
Some worry about impacting their stocks.
Others fear being misrepresented.
However, in cases like this, where executives stick to small engagements, audiences nearly always switch off. In the end, they follow competitors they view as more credible.
Don't get us wrong, though, speaking to established outlets does run its risks. You still need to have some level of control and composure. But that's not something media training and some level of experience can't solve.
So, don't make this mistake. Back yourself and make bold statements that show your steel. While you can't expect unanimous agreement, you will be respected for it.
It shouldn’t surprise you when we say that executive thought leadership is oversaturated.
Take one look at LinkedIn, and you’ll probably see four or five identical posts preaching about the importance of corporate culture.
But what about that recent post you shared on your page, told your colleague about it, or, more significantly, incorporated into your own business?
It's posts like these we call thought leadership gold dust.
And what do they all have in common? A clear, distinct perspective. So, how exactly do you craft one?
First, ask yourself what you believe in.
What’s your take on the future of your industry?
What do you think others are getting wrong?
What insight can you offer that most haven’t considered?
Next, focus on originality.
This doesn’t mean being contrarian for contrarian's sake. But offering a perspective rooted in your lived experience, data, or lessons learned makes a big difference.
Then comes relevance.
Your point of view should respond to real-time conversations in your industry, economy, or society. If AI regulation is being debated, what’s your take on how it will reshape your business (and industry)?
Finally, consistency matters.
One great post won’t make you a thought leader. But reinforcing your views across different platforms helps audiences instantly recognise what you stand for.
So, the next time you’re drafting a post, prepping for a panel, or speaking to a journalist, ask yourself: Is this really saying something?
If the answer is yes, you’re on your way to executive thought leadership that sticks.
When you focus too heavily on becoming a media mogul or Linkfluencer, your content risks becoming fragmented, performative, or simply ignored.
So, what should you do instead? Always incorporate more than one channel, not for more content's sake but to strengthen your overall body of work.
Your opinion pieces should be repurposed into four digestible posts, each reinforcing a key idea.
Social content can echo the headlines from your media coverage, extending its shelf life and visibility.
Your owned content should serve as both a launchpad for fresh thinking and a home for fully developed ideas.
Multimedia should recapture everything and make your content widely accessible.
Of course, this takes more work.
But as we say to our clients, the more you put in, the more you get out.
Just ask your marketing team. You'd be surprised at how many different channels audiences check when discovering or researching your name.
And if that audience happens to be an investor, consistent visibility could be the factor that gets them seriously interested in backing your firm.
You’re probably familiar with the phrase “too many cooks spoil the broth.”
If you’re not, it essentially means too much meddling spoils the end product. And it's true in many settings... except for executive thought leadership.
In this case, the more thought leaders within your firm, the better. After all, there are only so many topics you can speak about in depth.
So, rather than limiting your experts to media briefs they've helped you with in the past, perhaps it's time you brought your team to the fore?
For starters, it’s not going to take away from your campaign. It’s going to strengthen it.
Your company will be viewed as a true authority across micro topics, while you appear as a better leader.
The biggest companies are so successful because they always take advantage of this. Just look at Microsoft, which remains one of the largest tech firms in the world.
CEO Satya Nadella specialises in AI and culture.
Vice Chair & President Brad Smith comments on tech policy, ethics, and regulation.
CVP of Security Vasu Jakkal is a cybersecurity expert.
Chief Partner Officer Nicole Dezen owns CX topics.
Case in point, embrace your team as ambassadors to build a stronger presence or miss out.
Executive thought leadership for visibility's sake is almost always a lost cause.
Sure, the buzz around your initial media engagements is bound to be satisfying, especially if it's with a tier one outlet. But like a plane without a destination, sooner or later, your fuel will run out, and engagement will plummet.
So, with any campaign, here are two things to consider: your intention and your audience.
A clear intention gives messaging a sharp point, style, and level of explanation.
Knowing your audience lays the foundation for your tone and strategy.
For instance, if your press release aims to drive changes to legislation, make it clear that you’re targeting government officials.
Use language like “calls on policymakers to act” rather than phrases like “hopes for change”.
The former communicates intent and pressure. The latter leaves the door wide open and makes it unclear who the message is really for.
Don't make this avoidable mistake. Always deliver clear value for you and your audience.
The big question we’re often asked: How can executive thought leadership be measured?
To be honest, it’s a tricky one.
On one hand, PR should never be confused with marketing or judged by lead-gen.
On the other hand, credibility only comes with time.
As soon as we start placing lofty expectations on thought leadership, client and representative relationships can get skewed far before results are achieved.
Besides, most executive thought leaders' journeys aren't directly comparable with another's in terms of content, time frames, followers, and far more other variables.
So, while you can quantify the quality of media hits and social media engagement you receive, it’s much better to focus on building genuine relationships, trust, and influence over time.
Trust us. Positive business outcomes will follow.