5 Reasons Your C-Suite Should Be Blogging

Ask a CEO or CTO to contribute to your blog, and you might get a common answer: “Nope, too busy.” Press a little harder and they might follow with, “What’s the ROI for me doing so?” While the idea of a member of the C-suite blogging is appealing for marketing teams for many reasons, there are also some challenges.

Challenge 1: Your CEO needs an authentic voice to best connect to your audience, and some may not have established that yet.

Challenge 2: They need to find the time to write. Even if they are using a ghostwriter, that writer needs time with the executive to be able to adopt both the tone and the wisdom they have to offer.

Challenge 3: They need to be able to take criticism—not only will readers be able to comment on each post, but they’ll also hold you to your word when topics are brought up in a blog.

However, NONE of these reasons is a good one not to blog. The value of having your CEO’s voice consistently in the market pretty much overcomes any obstacle. So, let’s look at five reasons your C-suite leaders should be blogging:

1. Thought Leadership. This is a big one—you can’t be a Thought Leader without putting your opinions and beliefs out there for everyone to see. You have to have an interesting topic and be able to convey your opinion on that topic in a way that is compelling to readers. Some Thought Leaders come by this quality naturally, but others might need a little nudging to speak so publicly about their unique take on topics. See our Infographic for what makes up the anatomy of a Thought Leader.
2. The public face of the company. The CEO should consistently be in the public’s eye through speaking opportunities, interviews and social media. One easy way to do this is via a company blog—it’s a great way to share information to a large group of stakeholders all at once and isn’t reliant on a CEO’s physical presence to communicate effectively.
3. It’s a great resource for journalists. Reporters and editors will utilize a CEO’s blog for quotes and information when the CEO isn’t available to speak or the journalist is on a tight deadline. Having ready-made quotes available in the form of a blog increases your company’s chances of being included in industry articles.
4. Reinforcement of the problems you’re solving. There’s no better place to tell a story, provide examples, and talk about challenges and benefits than a blog post. Many companies actually accompany a press release with a blog post so that they can disseminate information that maybe doesn’t fit into press release form, such as longer customer examples. Being able to have two (or more) pieces of content that deliver the same message is a bonus for the company and for its audience.
5. SEO. While you don’t need the CEO blog to work on search engine optimization, it certainly doesn’t hurt to have your CEO’s name (vs. a company subject matter expert) linked to some stellar content.

If your CEO is passionate about a topic that’s related or semi-related to your company, consider having them write—or write more—about it. The results will be worth the investment! Want to learn more about how to get your CEO blogging more? Contact Calysto.