17 Mar Executive Branding Services 101

Over the past few years, it’s become clear that establishing a strategic social media presence for a company’s executives is just as crucial as marketing the company itself. Yet, ask any marketer and they’ll tell you there are not enough hours in the workday to give both digital marketing strategies the attention they deserve. That’s where executive branding services come in.

In this article, learn about the different types of digital content creation services that marketers can access and how bringing on a partner agency can help fill much-needed gaps in a company’s digital marketing funnel.

Strategic Thought Leadership Writing

One of the most time-consuming activities is also one of the most important in any successful executive social media program: thought leadership writing. This includes researching, drafting, and editing social media copy. That’s why strategic thought leadership writing is one of the most valuable executive branding services.

While the trend for social media content is to grab people’s attention through eye-catching visuals, text plays a key role — whether it’s on a graphic or in the captions. Here are some examples of social media content creation services that marketers may want to leverage from experts at third-party agencies:

• Short-form writing: Social media posts are the bread and butter of an ongoing executive social media program and have a valuable role in positioning an executive as a thought leader.
• Long-form writing: This includes writing articles, which can be shared in a number of ways, such as on LinkedIn’s “Article” feature or posted on the company’s website (the latter of which can then be linked to on social media or even used as the landing page for a brand awareness ad campaign).
• Video scripting: Thanks to platforms like TikTok and YouTube, video has become one of the most important content formats on social media. Scripting can be as simple as researching key topics and providing bullet points or writing entire word-for-word scripts for executives.

Engaging Visual Content

Whether it’s a business-oriented platform like LinkedIn or a more casual platform like Instagram, visuals can make all the difference between someone reading your executive’s post or scrolling past it.

Marketers who don’t have access to an in-house graphic designer or video editor may find themselves shying away from using custom visual content, opting to use sites like Canva instead. While there’s nothing wrong with using premade templated graphics, a more effective executive social media program utilizes more original visual content that sets it apart from other people’s posts.

Here are some examples of executive branding services that help marketers make a visual impact on social media:

• Video creation and editing: Videos are an effective and engaging way to share a lot of information in a short amount of time. It can also feel more authentic when executives are speaking directly to their audience.
• Custom graphics: Single images, stories, and carousels are just some examples of image formats that can be used on many social media platforms.
• Profile imagery: Social media profiles also need their own touch-ups, including a polished profile image and custom banner.
• Infographics: Educational graphics that are well designed can boost your post’s engagement while providing a valuable takeaway.

End-to-end Social Media Management

Digital content creation services aren’t just about the images and text. After all, thought leadership writing and custom visuals don’t get themselves posted on social media  — it requires planning. The more tactical elements of an executive social media program are often outsourced by marketers who want to focus more on the strategic side.

Here are examples of end-to-end social media management services to help marketers:

• Scheduling management: Third-party social media agencies can manage scheduling content. A bonus is that marketers can tap into their expertise as most will have internal research about the best time of day to post and other social media best practices.
• Proactive engagement: Part of building a successful executive social media program is taking the time to engage with others on the platform. This includes responding to comments and “liking” other people’s posts.
• Network expansion: A crucial element of improving executive branding is by growing their follower base. For example, a way to do this is by sending out invitations to potential contacts to connect on LinkedIn.

Which Executive Branding Service is Right for Your Needs?

There are two main reasons why marketers want to partner with a social media content creation and management agency:

1. It saves marketers a lot of time and helps fill in any gaps in the current digital marketing funnel.
2. It allows marketers to leverage executive social media experts to more effectively reach their business objectives.

When it comes to which executive branding service is right for your needs as a marketer, consider these questions:

• In which areas am I struggling the most? Is it that I don’t have time or does the company currently lack the capabilities to launch an executive social media program?
• Do I want the partner agency to handle some, most, or all of the executive social media program?
• What do I want to achieve with my executive’s social media presence?

If you’re still unsure, we can help! Click the button below to schedule a complimentary session with one of our executive social media specialists and learn more about executive branding.

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