A recurring concern we’ve heard a lot lately from CEO’s is the demand on their time for telling their company’s story. “I’m just one person” and “I can’t be everywhere” has become a common complaint. It’s an understandable problem. As the leader and possibly founder of your organization, you have a unique passion for the vision you’ve created. Your knowledge for what the company has to offer and your personal commitment to its success no doubt has a profound impact on the people you’re addressing. But if growth requires that it always be you who’s telling the story, your progress is going to be forever limited. In this episode, I want to share with you some key strategies for solving the dilemma of how to scale your presence.
An obvious answer is to designate members of your leadership team to take up the story-telling baton. But you may be thinking, “Stand-ins just don’t make the same impact.” Well, that’s probably true, but why? Yes, you likely possess a unique passion, but often it comes down to internal communication. Building an Alliance of Ambassadors that expand your reach requires 1) tailored messaging that captures your compelling story and distinguishes your organization from others, 2) providing leadership with that prepared messaging, and 3) training them to optimize the affect and consistency in how the story is told.
(By the way, if shared passion is an issue, I encourage you to listen to our past episode of Minute with Messaging titled, Is Passion a Missing Ingredient in Your Organization?)
Once you’ve established your network of company ambassadors, equipped them with tailored messaging and trained them on delivery, it’s important to match the right messenger with each audience. Who best speaks that audience’s language and shares a connection with who they are? For instance, if the person or persons to be addressed are technical engineers, who of your trained representatives relates to that skill set? If, instead, its an audience of big-picture thinkers, who is the better communicator of vision and perhaps is more personable in how they interact with others?
Beyond people, leveraging technology is an excellent strategy for scaling a CEO’s reach. Video has been fulfilling that need for ages. The challenge is overcoming the detachment an audience can feel with a recorded message. How comfortable you appear on camera; the eye contact that is made with the lens and the sincerity of your delivery are all important factors that a good coaching producer can ensure.
Technology is an especially effective tool in casting a wide net for thought leadership. Showcasing expertise shapes perceptions, establishes credibility and can influence potential customers. However, if the inventory of thought leadership featuring an organization’s CEO can only be found on its website, the reach is somewhat limited. LinkedIn is just one of the digital strategies for capitalizing on repurposed content. When a CEO is interviewed for a podcast, publishes an article or records a presentation, consider how that content can be transformed into a valuable thought leadership post.
Scaling the reach of a CEO, or any leader for that matter, requires ensuring consistency in messaging, training an alliance of ambassadors, and planning ahead for optimizing the benefits of technology.
I’m Kelli Newman and this has been a Minute with Messaging™. If you found this podcast helpful, I encourage you to subscribe on your favorite platform so you don’t miss an episode. And to learn how your organization can benefit from Newman & Newman’s marketing communication strategies, visit our website at NEWMANandNEWMANinc.com.
