13 Mar

For years, executives and even some brands used the fact they operate in a regulated industry to avoid developing a social media strategy and presence. From various sectors of the financial services industry and the healthcare industry to the alcohol and cannabis industries to name a few, there are a variety of regulations that affect marketing and advertising, including social media. This presents marketers with tricky social media barrier to navigate. However, this does not mean that companies and their executives can do nothing. Having worked with both brands and their key executives to establish a social media presence in several of these industries, we found there are two key steps in developing a successful marketing program in highly-regulated industries. First, it is about clearly understanding the regulatory constraint on any marketing or social media program. The second step is that...

21:29 / CEO Insights by Elissa Liu
21 Feb

This week, our article focuses on business mogul and philanthropist Bill Gates, and in particular the way he adapts his content according to the platform he is using. The co-founder of Microsoft is perhaps best known as one of the pioneers of the microcomputer revolution, and these days is chiefly known for his humanitarian work through the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. Gates is extremely active on social media, present on four major social media apps (Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter and Instagram). However, we found that Gates’ Twitter and Instagram in particular are great examples of adhering to different aspects of his business and brand, and do so according to the best practices of each respective platform....

21:29 / Executive Spotlight
14 Feb

On February 18th, 2020, Sandeep Mathrani begins his role as CEO of WeWork. He was previously the CEO at Brookfield Properties Retail, so his experience in the real estate industry has many hopeful that he can turn the struggling company around. While it appears Mathrani has accounts on both Twitter and LinkedIn, both profiles have not been updated in a long time. He has not tweeted since 2014 and his LinkedIn profile makes no reference to WeWork. It is not often that we feature a CEO that has no social media presence, however Mathrani's new position opens the door for him to implement an executive social media strategy. In this article, instead of analyzing his accounts, we will instead look at the conversation surrounding him on social media. We will then discuss how these topics are relevant and can be shared by...

18:13 / Front Page Execs
07 Feb

When executives join social media, one of the biggest decisions they face is selecting which social media platform(s) to join.The most popular apps for executives are LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. For executives who are not familiar with these platforms, a common mistake they make is thinking that all social media platforms are the same. However, as we have seen in our previous Executive Spotlight articles, successful executives on social media are the ones that truly understand the unique benefits each social media platform has. This week, our article focuses on the chairman of Mahindra Group, Anand Mahindra, and his Twitter content. While he also has a LinkedIn and Facebook account, both are inactive with no posts. However, through our analysis, we find that Twitter is the most effective social media platform for Mahindra's content. In our analysis, we will take...

14:45 / Executive Spotlight
31 Jan

Over the past week, one funny meme has gone viral across social media. With over 500,000 posts on Instagram alone, the origins of the meme came from an unlikely source–74-year-old country singer, Dolly Parton. Her original posts have received a lot of engagement so far. On Twitter, her post has almost 40,000 retweets and over 250,000 likes. Her post on Facebook has garnered almost 3,000 comments and over 14,000 shares, while on Instagram, her post has received almost 15,000 comments and over 1.1 million likes. https://twitter.com/DollyParton/status/1219681321762656256   The meme has spread across social media platforms with adaptations created by brands, celebrities, and the general audience using #DollyPartonChallenge. In this article, we will take a look at what makes this meme so popular, and some executives who have posted their own version.   The #DollyPartonChallenge Meme and Why it Spread   The #DollyPartonChallenge is a collage of four...

14:40 / Front Page Execs
24 Jan

Mary Barra is the chairman and CEO of General Motors and with over 1.2 million followers on LinkedIn and over 48K followers on Twitter, it is clear that she is a well-connected executive. For many executives who act as a brand advocate on social media, one of their core strengths is maintaining consistency in their tone. In this article, we will take a closer look at how Barra’s social media strategy helps reinforce a positive brand image.   LinkedIn: Sharing Original Articles   First, we will analyze Barro's LinkedIn profile. The header image features a look inside a General Motors factory, emphasizing the industry she is in. Compared to her Twitter profile header, this is more brand-related and speaks more about the tangible products the company offers.     The majority of her content is brand-related, whether it is an original article, sharing a post from another...

18:46 / Executive Spotlight
17 Jan

In the wake of the devastating Australian bushfire, many executives have stepped forward to donate to organizations providing relief efforts. Executives can use social media to draw attention to specific causes and inspire others to action, which we have seen in many of our previous articles. Individuals like Bernie Reifkind and Marc Benioff use social media to not only share their thoughts about social causes, but also to showcase the actions they have taken to help inspire others to action. In this article, we will look at three executives from different industries and how each of them has responded to the Australian bushfires. By analyzing their social media posts, we examine how the tone can vary from post to post while still effectively calling attention to the cause.   Tech: Scott Farquhar and Mike Cannon-Brookes   First up is the tech industry, where the two...

18:07 / Front Page Execs
10 Jan

GreenBiz is an online media company that looks at sustainability from a business and technological standpoint. The site recently released their list of 20 C-suite executives whom Greenbiz believes will be making an impact in terms of leading their company with an environmentally-friendly mindset. ENGIE North America's CEO, Gwénaëlle Avice-Huet, made the list thanks to her work in moving the company away from the fossil fuel industry. Using her online presence and strong brand voice, she is a vocal advocate for decentralization and digitization, opening up data generated from ENGIE's wind farm in France to scientists and researchers. In this article, we will be analyzing her LinkedIn and Twitter social media profiles. We will look at how her social media content connects her values to her company's values and the ways executives on social can make use of similar practices in...

21:02 / Executive Spotlight
03 Jan

Millennials are the tech-savvy generation that is quick to adopt new technology and platforms, and are eager to engage with others on social media. They expect a certain level of communication, especially when a brand has a social media account. This presents a unique opportunity for companies to engage with their audience. With many brand social accounts focusing more on promotional content, companies’ executives have the opportunity to engage with the consumer base in a different, more personal way. Now, more than ever before, executives are taking advantage of this opportunity and are getting on social media themselves to engage with the general public. In this article, we will look at how millennials view executives on social media and what this generation expects to see from them, as well as how executives can capitalize on these findings to improve their social...

17:07 / Articles / Guide
20 Dec

LinkedIn has released their list of the top 20 U.S. influencers on LinkedIn, which includes philanthropist Melinda Gates at #1, broadcaster Katie Couric at #10, and Wired's chief editor, Nicholas Thompson at #19. Coming in at #16 is Ed Bastian, who has had a long career at Delta Air Lines. He first joined the company in 1998 and has been serving as the CEO for the past three years. In this article, we will be looking at how Bastian uses LinkedIn and Instagram to shine the spotlight on Delta Air Lines. Unlike some of the other CEOs we have featured in our Executive Spotlight, Bastian makes stronger connections to his brand, with the majority of his posts directly mentioning Delta. We will analyze how executives can discuss their company branding on social media in a way that feels more authentic.     Why Executives...

13:32 / Executive Spotlight