How do you get time-poor senior leaders and partners to actively advocate for your brand online? In this episode, we dive into the exact strategies needed to shift corporate social media from an afterthought into a powerhouse business development channel.
Hosts Lewis Gray and Elliot Elsley welcome corporate communications expert Lori Grey, founder of Greydient Communications. Having managed internal and executive communications for big four institutions like KPMG and Deloitte, Lori brings nearly 25 years of corporate expertise to the table, including firsthand experience scaling an in-house advocacy initiative to thousands of global participants.
Expertise is the Product: Why Individual Visibility Trumps Corporate Brand
In professional services and high-growth industries, traditional brand marketing is no longer the sole priority; building up executive visibility has officially overtaken general content creation. Lori points out that because “people buy from people,” having recognizable leaders share their philosophies and client experiences is paramount to building marketplace trust.
When corporate entities rely solely on a faceless brand logo, they miss out on the human connection that naturally drives modern B2B buyers. For senior marketers, this means strategy must shift away from merely amplifying corporate channels and toward actively empowering internal subject matter experts to become the visible face of the firm.
The Long Game: Planting Invisible Seeds for Future Sales Pipelines
Executive visibility on platforms like LinkedIn is fundamentally a long-term business development strategy, not an avenue for overnight impulse purchases.
Lori emphasizes that consistent, authentic posting acts as a “slow burn,” building reputation and establishing credibility in the background. When professionals consistently share market trends and personal viewpoints, they subconsciously educate their target audience about how they approach problems. Consequently, when a prospect finally encounters a business need months or years down the line, the visible creator is automatically the first person they reach out to, effectively securing inbound leads through relationship-building while they sleep.
Overcoming the "Time Poor" Objection via Profile Optimization
The most common barrier to getting senior partners and executives active on social media is the belief that they simply do not have the time. Lori combats this friction by breaking the onboarding process down into immediate, short-term adjustments, starting with mapping the executive’s LinkedIn profile directly to their Ideal Client Profile (ICP).
By spending just a couple of hours aligning the profile copy to speak directly to the needs of their target buyer, leaders instantly begin seeing a shift in who views and interacts with their profile. This immediate validation creates early enthusiasm, demonstrating that social media is a legitimate, high-value business development tool worthy of their time.
Ready to start your own employee advocacy program?
Whether you’re exploring employee advocacy or considering DSMN8 as your platform, we can help you get started with confidence.
Learn More About Employee Advocacy:
Lewis Gray
Senior Marketing Manager at DSMN8. Lewis runs DSMN8's own employee advocacy program, putting the platform into practice from the inside, hosts The Employee Advocacy Podcast, and launched the Employee Advocacy Certification Course. His background in sales informs his approach to demand generation and B2B content strategy.
