In 2018, 77% of the United States’ population had a social media profile. If you think social media isn’t for you, you’re missing out on a huge audience. For executives, optimizing social media channels is an opportunity to leverage a wider network, earn thought leadership status, and build trust among connections.
If you’re keeping your career options open, social media should be a priority. According to , 81% of people believe that CEOs who engage in social media are better equipped than their peers to lead companies in the digital world.
Not sure where to start to achieve an executive-level social media presence? Here are a few simple steps for LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram.
QUICK STEPS TO SOCIAL MEDIA SUCCESS
LinkedIn and Twitter are two of the best outlets for executive thought leadership because audiences on these platforms expect to see business- and industry-related content.
LinkedIn Tips:
- Publish LinkedIn articles. LinkedIn articles are an excellent way to show thought leadership within your industry. Pen an article once a week to share your thoughts on a business-related topic and share the link to your article in updates.
- Connect with industry colleagues—but include a message. If you’re connecting with people you don’t know, include a message about why it’s beneficial to do so. Communicate the value they’ll get out of connecting. It’s not a best practice to connect with strangers without an introduction.
- Update your profile. Keep your information current and give details (without being too wordy). Your past job experience should include descriptions of how you brought value to your company. Your bio should be current and include details about your skills and expertise. And your career status should reflect the position you currently hold.
Twitter Tips:
- Include professional info in your Twitter profile. That way, when other users view your profile, they can quickly see why following you would be beneficial for them.
- Engage with other users. Reply, favorite, and retweet industry-related content from your timeline. The more active you are on Twitter, the more likely you are to gain followers. Plus, you appear more active on the platform when your timeline has lots of recent tweets.
- Schedule tweets ahead of time. Try a free tool like Buffer or Hootsuite to schedule your tweets for high-traffic times of day, a week or two in advance. Because Twitter is such a fast-moving platform, it’s not uncommon to tweet a few times a day, which may be unrealistic without the help of an automation tool.
Facebook and Instagram Tips:
- Keep it professional. Many people use Facebook and Instagram as personal platforms, so if you’re focused on maintaining a professional presence, try not to over-share. It’s okay to occasionally share about hobbies unrelated to work, but consider sharing the ones that could make good networking conversation starters, like cooking or sports.
- Engage with industry-related content. Join industry Facebook groups and follow Instagram hashtags related to your line of work to see and engage with the content most applicable to you.
WANT MORE CONTENT LIKE THIS?
Subscribe to the Ciresi & Morek blog to receive helpful content just like this, straight to your inbox.