There’s a big debate surrounding whether or not CEOs and owners of a business should blog. Elon Musk, for example, has such a presence in his businesses that he can write a single tweet and investors go nuts.
Personal branding can go a long way in increasing a business’s sales and marketing efforts.
And it makes sense for owners to want to blog. Owners create a business, and there’s a sense of making a brand “human” when the owners share their own insights into business.
Blog for Major Announcements
It’s difficult to say how often you, as an owner, should blog. Every business is different. What’s certain is that you should be blogging when major announcements are made. Those times when your business is:
- Introducing a new product
- Making negative headlines
- Sponsoring an event
Owners that feel the need to talk directly to their customers or clients on their blog can do so when it’s a major announcement. You can also use your blog as a means to consult with customers and consumers.
It’s a direct means of contact, but that doesn’t always mean that you need to be the person writing every post.
CEOs and Owners Providing Input
Writers are the backbone of most blogs, and it’s not uncommon for businesses to hire freelance writers to fill their ranks. The goal is to create relevant content that touches on the needs of customers or clients.
And it’s easy to find writers, but it’s difficult to find a writer that matches the voice and authenticity of the business.
That’s the difficult part.
A CEO must be a vital part in the blog creation process if they want it to succeed, or they can have other members of their team help.
This is done through:
- Suggesting content ideas to writers
- Helping writers match the business’s voice
- Working with writers to provide personal insights into the topic
Personal insights are very important. Lawyers often correct blog posts and add their professional opinion to posts that freelancers have written. When an owner or someone from the company provides insights, statistics or other information to the writer, the piece comes out much better as a result.
There are also some business blogs where the author isn’t listed, leaving it up to the reader to try and determine who the author of the article is. When trying to build on personal branding, it’s often best to have an author profile.
Some owners post more often than others, and there’s no wrong or right frequency.
What data does show is that there is a certain frequency that all blogs should follow. HubSpot finds the following to be true after analyzing data from 13,500 customers:
- Small businesses that post 11 posts per month have 3 times more traffic than those posting once per month.
- Increased blog posting had a direct correlation to higher leads.
- Companies blogging 16+ times a month had 4 times more leads than companies posting up to four times a month.
So, publish more articles no matter who writes them. Good quality content will provide lasting benefits, and when the CEO adds their input, expect the posts to attract more readers, shares and likes.