[NEW INSIGHT] Personal branding – what it is and what it isn't
Executive visibility is more than just a buzzword. It’s a critical asset for entrepreneurs who want to lead with impact in today’s frantic world.
In an era where trust, authenticity, and leadership are constantly under scrutiny, how you present yourself can be just as key as the products or services your company offers.
A strong executive presence doesn’t just help you stand out. It builds trust with stakeholders, influences market perception, and ultimately opens doors to opportunities that go far beyond your immediate business.
In this article, we’ll explore six compelling reasons why cultivating a strong executive presence is essential for success.
Audiences need clear answers, and there’s no better person to deliver them than you, though a strong executive presence.
No matter whether it’s your first venture or your third, launching a new business is never easy.
Each time, you’re building familiarity with a new audience, assembling a new team, entering a new market, and once again proving that you’re the right person to lead it.
Without the confidence of key stakeholders, including employees, investors, partners, and, of course, customers, the task at hand can become incredibly tough.
How are you meant to recruit if you can’t promise opportunities for growth, fair treatment, full autonomy, and a sense of purpose beyond a fair wage?
How are you meant to excite investors, if you can’t show that your business is built to disrupt the market?
Will partners back you if they don’t see a shared upside or confidence that you can follow through on your promises?
Will customers even choose your business out of dozens of others, let alone stay loyal to it, if you can’t build a brand that continues to keep them engaged?
These audiences need clear answers, and there’s no better person to deliver them than you, though a strong executive presence.
The leaders who have one are often far more followed across social media than the companies they lead and dominate far more headlines. That’s not a coincidence.
Why? People follow people, not logos.
We’re talking about individuals who feel real, exist beyond a profit, speak with clarity, and show up consistently, creating long-term buy-in.
Where does this take place? Through posts on social media, contributions to media articles, press conferences, in-person events, and much more.
Of course, words alone are never enough.
Leaders need to follow up statements with action that builds trust, credibility, and long-term influence to truly elevate their company and personal brand.
In practice, learning how to build action-orientated executive visibility might mean:
Launching clear career growth paths and flexible work policies that empower employees.
Hosting investor calls with honest, data-backed updates.
Forging partnerships built on shared values.
Strengthening customer loyalty through fast support and constant product innovation.
This 360-degree approach to leadership is exactly how lasting confidence is built, and how strong executive presence becomes a competitive advantage.
By cultivating a strong executive presence through authentic, consistent thought leadership, you become that go-to expert.
Your business can do all the right things, but without genuine publicity, no-one is going to notice. Growth won’t come naturally, and credibility will lag behind.
This can lead to:
Failed product launches that leave your investors questioning whether you really understand the market at all.
A stalled IPO roadmap, because public markets don’t bet on companies no one’s heard of.
Missed funding rounds, as VCs struggle to justify backing a business without a visible footprint.
Being overlooked in industry rankings and awards, while less innovative competitors take the spotlight.
This mistake is more common than you think, often because entrepreneurs think coverage will land on their lap.
Yet, in reality, you need to go out and earn coverage with a strong executive presence built through thought leadership. That is, the practice of consistently sharing sharp, original insights that position you as a trusted voice in your industry.
If you’re a tech leader, this might mean publicly breaking down the real-world implications of emerging trends, like how AI regulation will impact enterprise SaaS.
If you're in consumer or retail, it might mean talking openly about why you chose certain suppliers or how you're navigating sustainability challenges.
Whatever the case, sharing your unique perspective in a clear, forward-thinking way via LinkedIn posts, podcast interviews, or guest articles not only shows you understand the space, it positions you as someone shaping its future, which journalists and their audiences are always interested in.
After all, they want to source their information from the most credible and insightful voices. Those who don’t just report on trends but actively influence them. By cultivating a strong executive presence through authentic, consistent thought leadership, you become that go-to expert.
The more visible you can be, the better. Not just across one, but multiple channels.
Building your executive presence is all about becoming a far more active, visible leader, beyond the corporate curtain. And that means responding to feedback and settling anxieties.
Because, when all is said and done, people want to follow entrepreneurs that aren’t only confident and accomplished on paper, but empathetic, too.
For instance:
Internally, you might hear concerns from your team about workload balance or unclear priorities. If left unaddressed, this can lead to burnout, low morale, or turnover.
But by openly acknowledging these worries and adjusting your leadership style or resources accordingly, you demonstrate that you value your employees’ wellbeing, which strengthens trust and productivity.
Externally, you might face anxious questions from customers or investors about your company’s response to a market shift or a product delay. Ignoring these concerns risks eroding confidence and creating rumours.
But by proactively communicating your strategy and timelines, you ease fears and reinforce your credibility.
In both situations, the more visible you can be, the better. Not just across one, but multiple channels, such as internal comms and social media, multimedia, press conferences, webinars, and industry panels, where you can regularly deep dive into high-interest topics.
The earlier you start building your executive presence with the right habits, the better positioned you’ll be to inspire confidence.
If you look at any successful company, a product or service isn't the only aspect that differentiates them. Most have a distinct heritage shaped by the entrepreneurs who built them.
Ask yourself:
Would Meta, Apple, Microsoft, or Amazon be as culturally relevant without the distinct vision of Zuckerberg, Jobs, Gates, or Bezos?
Would JPMorgan continue to dominate global finance without the consistent, visible leadership of someone like Jamie Dimon?
Would Nike still be a global cultural icon without the bold storytelling of Phil Knight?
Would GlaxoSmithKline’s transformation be possible without the strong executive presence and visionary leadership of Emma Walmsley?
Each of these entrepreneurs operates within highly contested spaces, where one wrong move can have devastating consequences for their reputations.
Yet, their continued success is a testament to their unwavering commitment to transparency and thought leadership, the very qualities that set them apart and renew trust.
Case in point, the earlier you start building your executive presence with the right habits, the better positioned you’ll be to inspire confidence, navigate challenges, and create lasting impact in your industry.
So, think deeply about what differentiates you:
Why you founded your business.
Where you plan to take it.
The greatest challenges you aspire to solve.
All of this is personal branding gold dust you need to create a unique narrative that propels your executive visibility.
Even if your company does everything else by the book, not taking accountability yourself can be a monumental risk to your personal reputation.
At some point, your business will inevitably face a crisis. It could be intentionally caused, an accident, or a sector-wide issue that you’re pulled into.
Whatever the case, what matters most is how you react:
The speed of your response. Have you acknowledged the situation almost immediately?
The clarity of your messaging. Are you transparent, honest, and easy to understand, or vague?
The tone you set. Are you calm, composed, and empathetic, or reactive and dismissive?
The actions you take. Do your follow-up steps align with your words, or are they performative and short-sighted?
The consistency across channels. Is your team aligned, or are there mixed messages?
And most importantly, are you personally responsible? Because even if your company does everything else by the book, not taking accountability yourself can be a monumental risk to your personal reputation.
It can suggest that you don’t care, or prompt suspicions that you were responsible, even if you weren't.
In recent years, we’ve seen this play out time and time again, where a leader’s silence only fuels backlash, snowballing into multiple damaging headlines that are difficult to erase.
Employees leave, revenues dip, and stock prices crash.
In contrast, the leaders who have shown up early, spoken directly, and stayed consistently visible, through repeated interviews, internal updates, and clear public statements, often come out stronger than they went in.
Why? Because in times of crisis, executive visibility gives people someone to believe in, even when the situation itself isn’t perfect. After all, mistakes happen. They're human, and inevitable for any company.
But real leadership, from those who confront challenges head on, is much harder to find. And that’s exactly where there’s an opportunity for you to truly set yourself apart.
Your credibility will skyrocket through the coverage and viral discussions you spark, potentially leading to outcomes like investment and big-ticket contacts.
Once you’ve built extensive executive visibility, you have a real chance to drive influence beyond your company.
You can influence regulations, such as responsible AI innovation.
You can sway political votes to benefit your industry.
You can influence peers to adopt more sustainable practices.
You can shape public narratives, shifting how society understands key issues like data privacy or mental health.
Once you help catalyse change, the benefits can be huge for your personal brand.
On one hand, your credibility will skyrocket through the coverage and viral discussions you spark, potentially leading to outcomes like investment and big-ticket contacts.
On the other hand, you build a lasting legacy beyond your business by campaigning for issues you genuinely care about, which can help give you a more profound purpose.
Just look at Bill Gates: no longer defined solely by Microsoft, he’s equally known for alleviating poverty. Or Richard Branson, whose work in ocean conservation has become equally key to how people perceive him.
In both cases, their work beyond business has strengthened their personal brands. And those stronger personal brands have, in turn, helped bring more attention and impact to the causes they support.
So, with all things considered, the role of an entrepreneur today is no longer just about building a business, not if you want to reach the very top. It’s about using your position to do and be more.
You have to want that, and your audience needs to believe it, through how you show up, how you communicate, and how you follow through with your actions.
While building your personal brand is by no means easy, your ability to be seen, heard, and trusted is everything.
A strong executive presence isn’t a luxury. It’s a necessity.
The moment you hide behind the corporate curtain is the moment your business begins to stagnate, invites scepticism, and never fulfils its potential. That’s what's at stake.
While building your personal brand is by no means easy, your ability to be seen, heard, and trusted is everything. So, take the step, speak up, and lead from the front.