Well.. this is an important question to ask. This is even more important to consider if you are a CEO. There has been quite a bit of chatter in the social media world pertaining to a CEO’s use of social media. Should the overall leader in a company be involved in the online communication strategy being implemented by employees or an outside firm? There are many cases when the answer is YES and a few where the answer can be a resounding no.
The answer should be yes if you are a CEO of a company that is developing a unique (trust based) relationship with the customers or your product or service. This concept can be contained in the B2B and B2C world.
If you are running a small business where you (as the CEO) are the main source of business development it is important for your prescence to be known in the world of the Internet. The best start for a small business CEO? Blogging, of course. As a small business, you are building a reputation based on YOUR interactions with individuals. If you are not implementing (at the very least) a blog.. you may be missing out on a huge opportunity to influence potential buyers.
Now, there could be a case where social media should not be implemented by a CEO. I have been debating with myself on the abilities of a Fortune 500 to 100 CEO implementing such social strategies… and frankly… sometimes there is way to much on the plate of a corporate leader to implement personal social media. Blogs can be excused from this topic because there are plenty of corporate CEOs using blogs to communicate but there is only so much time in the day.
In the long run, as a CEO, you should evaluate where you can best represent the company. If you have a VP of Communications that is much better suited to run the social media of a company… by all means.. let the best lead.
However, you will find an increase in the trust behind your brand on behalf of your customers when you are communicating to them on a daily basis.
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Kyle,
I've heard anecdotes from some company bloggers where they needed to get legal and other approvals before posting. Doesn't this kind of defeat the purpose of blogging? Are publicly traded companies able to blog with much meaning?
Cheers,
j
I think the phrase, "You can lead a horse to water but you can't make it drink," applies here. Without a doubt, CEOs should participate in social media but that doesn't mean they need to be the main voice, as you point out. Some CEOs simply are not cut out for it. They just don't have the personality or interest. And this will come across in their communication.
There are always ways to encourage and make it easier for CEOs and other execs to participate, but ultimately it's their choice.
Kyle: You're right, this is a very important question, and I agree that it depends on the company and their goals. Personally, I think that having the CEO involved in social media can be a great way to show a more "human" or personal side to your company. Of course, they have to be willing to learn the basics and devote some time to it or else it won't be worth it. I don't think that the CEO should be solely responsible for, or in charge of, the social media efforts of their company. There's a happy medium. For example, our CEO at CPX Interactive is on Twitter and YouTube, and has written guest posts for our blog. But, it's my job to manage the sites on a regular basis.