Let’s face it, social media is not going away. In fact, social media continues to grow, not only in the volume of users, but with
channels adding new functionalities. While roughly two-thirds of Americans are actively using social media, there is one group that is greatly underrepresented when it comes to social media use – CEOs.
C-suite executives debate the merits of maintaining a social media presence. Is it valuable or not? While many CEOs may view social media as a distraction, it is becoming more evident that a social CEO can have a very tangible, though sometimes hard to quantify, benefit for a business.
Here is why CEO’s should dive head first into the social media swimming pool.
Meet and Interact with Customers
Customers are searching for brands on social media because they want to know more about those businesses. Social media provides CEOs with a direct pipeline to customers’ thoughts and behaviors by easily monitoring comments, complaints, and questions. Through social media, CEOs can lend insight to the culture, people, and values that are the backbone of their companies, thus humanizing the experience for customers. A socially active CEO can also support marketing activities. Ultimately, CEOs should be using social media to share their own insight and content relating to their industry. By actively engaging industries and communities, they position themselves as thought leaders.
Attract Quality Prospects
Social media can be very helpful for recruiting new talent for a company, even if they are not searching for new employees. Social channels provide CEOs the opportunity to connect and keep in touch with promising talent for future hiring considerations. LinkedIn leads the way in this area, but that doesn’t mean CEO’s should discount the value Twitter, Facebook, or Instagram can provide them. This is especially true if CEOs notice these are the channels where their company’s engagement with followers is coming from.
Don’t Be Left Behind
With the number of CEOs actively participating on social media slowly growing, the necessity of using social media should be motivation enough for CEOs to join the movement. Social media represents a cultural shift that has permeated workplaces around the world. It’s a shift that is an important breakthrough for business communications that can provide a competitive advantage. Social CEOs can reach not only customers and prospects, but employees as well. Simply put, it just makes sense for a CEO to be on social media in today’s day and age.
Social media has come a long way since Facebook launched in 2004. With the continued growth in use of social media channels – notable CEOs like Richard Branson and Elon Musk have millions of followers – business leaders who continue to embrace social media will reap the benefits of being socially active.
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