Yet, we find ourselves stuck in a series of crises that seem never ending.
Political gridlock. A pandemic that’s morphing into an endemic. Systemic inequality. Increased violence our police can’t control. An acute mental health surge.
This is precisely the backdrop that makes us hungry for real leadership – wherever we can find it.
These days, business leaders are filling the void. According to the 2021 Edelman Trust Barometer, 86% of us expect CEOs to publicly speak out about social issues. As many as 68% of us even think business leaders should step in when government doesn’t fix our problems.
In 2022, trust will be the most important currency for our businesses.
So, how does your risk, insurance or compliance organization build trust?
By communicating your company’s values and WHY people should trust you.
The best way to do this in 2022 is the POV — or point of view — blog. It’s essentially an opinion piece
around key themes that your business stands for.
For Jeff Muto, chief marketing and strategy officer at Veriforce, a supply chain risk management software company, POV content revolves around the challenges of attracting workers to the skilled trades.
For Bob Lloyd, executive vice president, general counsel and security for Brown & Brown, POV content revolves around cybersecurity, workforce management, enterprise risk and sometimes even personal topics, like the non-profit work he’s passionate about.
Like Jeff and Bob, your business leaders can author POV content that turns them into thought leaders with the goal of making your business relatable and trustworthy.
Keep your thought leader focused on a few chosen themes so the posts are predictable – readers know what to expect and the message is passionate and strong. Doing so will tie the posts together to create a tapestry of thought leadership. 2. Brainstorm possible topics and subtopics of your theme.
Plotting topics in a content calendar ahead of time allows you to not only reduce the pressure
on your executives every month, but also allows you to weave topics and subtopics together. Map themes out across the year. Consider seasons, industry conferences, personal milestones and more. 3. Write effectively.
Use current and relevant stats to anchor the POV. Tell real stories of
real customers or employees when possible. Address readers in first person and speak to them directly.Remember, the POV blog reflects your business, so it shouldn't be a leader's individual stream-of-consciousness rambling. 4. Do distribution well.
I recommend a three-pronged distribution strategy for POV content:
1.Business-owned media. Your website and internal and external newsletters.
TIP:Getting your employees riled up about what your business stands for is arguably just as important as telling your customers.
2. Industry trade publications. Print magazines, daily or weekly email newsletters, video interviews and conference publications.
TIP:Industry publications have more content needs than ever with reduced staff. They're more than happy to publish your content
in at least one of their outlets — sometimes in multiple places.
3. Social media. Your business' social channels, your executive leader and POV author's social media posts, and those of any organizations he/she belongs
to and the boards they sit on.
TIP: Industry organizations want to support your business' core values, too. Using your author's well-established clout to get a POV blog published is another great way to further your business' message.
Thanks for reading to the end. I appreciate you!
All the best, Mindi 😊
INSIGHTS✨ Stuff worth reading
Brand Studio Fortune: What marketers need to know about trust.
Marketing Profs: Five tips for creating a successul B2B Marketing Campaign.
