Does it really matter if our CEO isn't on LinkedIn?
These days, you would expect a CEO of any organisation to be on LinkedIn wouldn’t you, right?
Not always…
Go back 10 years and it may not have mattered too much that a CEO of a company was not on LinkedIn. They could have got around it by having Directors and salespeople actively engage on the platform, sharing company page posts and news.
However, now, it does matter, quite a lot!
CEOs are the face of their company, so it’s vital that their LinkedIn profile reflects well on the organisation. They should come across as being professional, confident and engaging, which helps to build trust and add credibility with potential customers and partners.
So where do you start if your CEO doesn’t have a LinkedIn profile? Here are our top 10 tips….
Top 10 tips on how to create an excellent LinkedIn profile for CEOs.
1. Create a brief summary of his or her experience
The first thing to do is to create, in effect, a CV for them. They may not have anything like this already, or it could be out of date, in which case, interview them, gain all the necessary information, including career history, professional experience, qualifications, membership of associations and create their profile. It is important to include plenty of information about the CEO, but keep it clear, concise and relevant.
The experience section should be kept up to date with any additional skills, professional qualifications, or membership of organisations.
A common mistake CEO’s sometimes make is not to include their role clearly in their profile description. Make sure you mention that it states CEO in the sub header below their name.
2. Make sure your profile is written in the third person
It comes across much better if your experience and achievements are written in the third person, rather than it sounding like the CEO is singing their own praises.
3. Select a professional headshot
A good quality photo is vital in conveying confidence and ability. The head and shoulders shot should look friendly and professional.
4. Make use of the featured section
The featured section on LinkedIn is the place where you can upload photographs, videos, showreels and other media to highlight a person’s business and personal achievements.
5. Upload a banner
By uploading a banner, it brings immediate visual impact and can connect your visitors with your personal messaging and corporate branding. It is worth working with a graphic designer to ensure this looks professional. Once you have your banner, go to your LinkedIn profile, click on the pencil icon on top right of your profile. Upload the photo, crop, filter and adjust, upload the picture and click apply.
6. Ask for recommendations
If you receive recommendations, it can help you to extend your network, add credibility and helps other people to engage with you. Ask former colleagues, clients, suppliers and member of professional associations for recommendations.
7. Demonstrate your commitment to sustainability, community, employees
People are interested in what values a CEO holds and how they demonstrate this in their personal and professional life. For example, do you support a charity or other cause that links with your business or demonstrates your values. Do you help out in the community and encourage staff members to do so? Have you achieved a personal ambition, such as scaling a mountain for charity?
Many CEOs use their personal platform to demonstrate their charitable and community works, showing the human side of themselves and what really matters to them.
8. Write 'thought leadership articles and upload to LinkedIn
A great way to raise your profile is to become an authoritative voice, either on industry issues or topics that concern your customers. We write thought leadership articles on behalf of CEOs and upload them to LinkedIn, sharing them through posts on the platform.
9. Switch on Follow
For CEO’s new to LinkedIn, who are looking to build up a following, they can switch on the Follow option. This helps them to reach a large audience without being bombarded by connection requests. Following allows one user to see and interact with another user’s content and activity, without being connected. It also helps LinkedIn users position themselves as B2B thought leaders, gives them the opportunity to discuss questions and share ideas with like-minded people.
10. Create a schedule of posts
To make sure your CEO’s LinkedIn profile is active and he/she is posting regularly, it’s a good idea to create a content calendar of future LinkedIn post. We recommend posting at least three times per week on LinkedIn.
If your CEO doesn’t have time for this, then we can create the LinkedIn content calendar for them either to post themselves or we can take care of it all, including their executive profiling.
There are many benefits to the Dragonfly social media team supporting a CEO with their LinkedIn activity. The CEO can still access their LinkedIn page but they don’t have to worry about posting every day, as we create a calendar of forward planned posts, which they get to approve beforehand. Nothing is posted without first being approved.
For more information on how we can enhance your LinkedIn profile, secure more followers and engagements, email hello@dragonflypr.co.uk or call 0114 349 5341.
Dragonfly PR is a business to business (b2b) PR agency specialising in the construction and manufacturing sectors. To find out more, see our case studies.