Buffer

14 Ways A CEO Can Benefit From Social Media: A True Story

Written by - 26 Comments
Categories: Social Media

It took very little convincing to prove we needed social media for our company and our brand.

However, when it came to personally interacting as CEO of my own company on social media platforms, a wave of hesitation came over me on how to manage this pervasive virtual maze. After research and analysis on the ROI (Return On Investment) social media could offer, we knew it was IMPERATIVE to participate, not only for our company and brand, but for me as well, to remain connected and relevant in the business world.

When I saw Jeff Bullas’s “28 reasons Why The CEO Is Afraid Of Social Media”, it became obvious that I was no longer afraid, not only of new media, but also to share how we benefited from using social media, to not only advance our businesses, but also to improve our understanding of the new era in media.

So here are 14 reasons you as  CEO can benefit from social media:

  1. See change happen on Social Media: you do not participate; you no longer play in your field.
  2. Increase interaction and intimacy with clients
  3. Open dialogue with potential clients
  4. Get a live read of what consumers think of your brand
  5. Accelerate your brands traditional media efforts
  6. Adapt your brand language to connect with new customers
  7. Always know the latest industry and world news
  8. Share your experience as a CEO and professional in the field (I’ve found media has really valued that!)
  9. Address any false statements about your brand – ignorance is not bliss
  10. Drive business and launch campaigns on a limited budget
  11. Brand with an opinion
  12. Boost the impact of direct marketing – paging SEO!
  13. Direct connections with top media and analysts (thanks to social media I’m in constant contact with TIME magazine, Forbes, Brandweek, PRWeek etc)
  14. Spans all generations, races, creeds and countries to reach an audience no other channel can claim

Are there other benefits to a CEO engaging in social media you can add?

Cheers Sophie

This is a guest post from Sophie Ann Terrisse

Sophie is the Founder & CEO of STC Associates, a global brand management firm.

Send her a tweet @STCceo or a Facebook message or visit the website at STC Associates or visit their blog at STC Associates Blog site


Tags: , , , , ,
  • http://www.global-lingo.com/blog/ Richard Michie

    I’ve been banging on about this for the last few years and finally I’m finding that people are taking notice. The main problem is that companies and CEO’s are afraid that if they stand up and be counted they be shouted down. But what’ll actually happen is that they can build a dialogue which is what their customers have wanted all along.

  • http://themodernistrevival.blogspot.com James Jean

    I believe #14 is all the reason they could ever need.

  • http://www.johnakerson.com/blog John Akerson

    James Jean nailed it in the previous post.

    I could think of only one important point not listed in the above 14. It is particularly applicable in larger companies.

    Social media gives a CEO another channel to communicate with the employees, managers and executives. It is a way to directly deliver unfiltered thoughts, interests, fears, and the reasons for decisions that frequently become so muddy with corporate-speak when they are passed through the PR filters, the marketing filters and the management layer-filters. Bypassing those filters to intimately and directly communicate is invaluable and social media is a great tool for that.

  • Pingback: Most Tweeted Articles by B2B Sales Experts

  • Pingback: 3 Phase Approach To Creating A “Social” Business Culture « Social Schmoozing

  • Pingback: 14 Ways A CEO Can Benefit From Social Media: A True Story « The Social Media Club

  • http://www.pragmaticvisionary.com Dror Orbach

    Great post! There’s nothing like real personal experience. I’ll be sending this to a few CEOs I know…

  • Pingback: D Libb Rhett

  • Pingback: B Foster

  • Pingback: Bryan Foster

  • Pingback: Tim Pfeiffer

  • Pingback: Mark Stonham

  • Pingback: Sumit Gupta

  • Pingback: Mary Kurek

  • Pingback: Kim M. Beauchamp

  • Pingback: Mary Kurek

  • Pingback: socialmedia247

  • Pingback: The CEO And Social Media « Jeffbullas's Blog

  • @LonghurstC

    Fascinating post – especially given Sophie is CEO of a global brand management firm. I’d love to hear more from her on how the outreach is going and what additional lesssons she’s learned. Great work once again Jeff – I’d love an update! Colin

  • Pingback: 14 Ways A CEO Can Benefit From Social Media: A True Story | bajmartin

  • Pingback: Fiesta Friday 1/20/12 | IMPACT Branding & Design LLC

  • http://twitter.com/GregHamer Greg Hamer

    Maybe CEO’s of larger companies get this, but there are plenty of smaller businesses that are still skeptical of this “phenomenon”.  I deal with these people everyday as an IT consultant.

  • http://www.sm4hc.com/ Scott Scowcroft

    HIPAA/patient privacy concerns, staff safety and fear of negative comments on Facebook keep many healthcare organizations from engaging through social media. I imaging other security sensitive industries such as banking are in the same boat.

  • Pingback: This Week's Hot Topics: CEOs, the Pros and 100 Posts!

  • Pingback: Fiesta Friday 1/20/12

  • yoavburger

    Great blog, Jeff. This is the direct answer to a
    recent post I read ‘IBM Study: Without a Social CEO, You’re Going to be Less
    Competitive’ http://bit.ly/Of4sTK. I have included this in ‘Best of the Web’ http://j3webmarketing.com/best-web so others can benefit by your great content. Please take a look and share. Thanks.