Kiara Cleland

"I don't want to be an influencer."

I've heard this from more clients than you might think. Fair enough, and that's not what thought leadership is about. But there is something influencers understand better than anyone: how to build a community based on trust.

That's the point most CEOs miss.

Posting on social media platforms like LinkedIn and X won't make you an influencer. It might build a small following, but that's unlikely to translate into anything beyond that specific platform.

Say what you like about influencers, but people keep coming back to hear what they have to say. Most importantly, people trust them, which is exactly what CEOs want to earn as thought leaders. So, how do they do it?

It starts with a point of view. Before you start building your profile, you need to build your perspective. A thought leadership campaign based on generic advice won't cut through the noise on platforms like LinkedIn.

An opinion only you can share, backed by hard-earned expertise, builds credibility. That's how you get people to pay attention, but credibility alone won't keep them coming back.

Connection will. And people don't connect with polished brands, they connect with other people.

So let your personality show. When you write a post or newsletter, don't only stick to the cold, hard facts and figures. Talk about your failures just as much as your successes. Let people in on the thinking behind the decisions they see. Share the lessons you've learned along the way.

These are the insights audiences really want to hear. How you built those or overcame that. Why you didn't give up when the odds were overwhelmingly stacked against you - and how they can do the same.

I get it, you don't want to be an influencer. You shouldn't try to be, but you should start thinking like one.

That extends beyond the content of your thought leadership campaign to the day-to-day mechanics. Be consistent. If you start a newsletter, don't let it fizzle out after a few months. If you post on LinkedIn, do so on the same day and at the same time each week.

Genuine, high-quality, regular insights shared once a week beat generic, sloppy posts shared every day.

Finally, don't post and ghost. That's where influencers truly shine: they show up consistently in the conversations happening around their content and turn followers into communities.

That's one of the most important lessons CEOs can learn. Followers aren't clicks on a screen. They're real people with whom you can, and should, build lasting connections.

That's what makes thought leadership so powerful. It's about understanding why people choose to listen, and how to keep them coming back. Social media is just another tool, and like any tool, you can use it to build something real.