Leveraging the Power of Leadership Communication to Maintain Brand Image
29 May 2025, Deya Bhattacharya
29 May 2025, Deya Bhattacharya
Elon Musk has long been one of the most influential and talked-about CEOs worldwide. And yet, his close involvement with the new US government attracted widespread criticism, which led to Tesla stocks plummeting and a huge dip in brand image. He recently announced a decision to shift his focus back to corporate — however, it remains to be seen if he can recover the loyalty of his customer base.
It’s become increasingly harder for leaders to make a public faux pas and get away with it. Whether it’s a politically insensitive marketing asset or an “unfiltered opinion” gone wrong, the rapid pace of modern media means that it will get noticed far and wide. And the repercussions can range from online backlash to impaired business relationships to financial losses.
Nonetheless, having a strong leadership presence online remains key to brand visibility in the digital age. And there are ways to do it diplomatically while also making space for leaders to share what they think. Today, we’ll share our top tips on building a leadership communication strategy that helps your brand rather than hinders it.
Start by listing out the core values that define your organization. This forms the bedrock of all your communication, so do this with care. Then, prepare a personal brand statement that builds off these values and lays out your leadership philosophy, your areas of expertise, and what you seek to achieve through your communication. We recommend working with your PR team to get this right and to ensure that it stays relevant as market needs evolve.
Even media veterans can benefit from having another pair of eyes assess their content before it goes out into the world. Appoint a team to vet your leadership communications — paying special attention to high-priority pieces, such as those relating to sensitive topics — and have a process in place to offer feedback, such as by challenging any assumptions in the content. At the same time, have guidelines for types of content that can be posted directly without requiring additional review. This is essential for ensuring that there’s a continuous flow of content — a must for building a brand presence.
It is inevitable that certain topics will be highly polarising — however, one cannot simply avoid posting on such topics. Instead, learn how to adopt a neutral stance that emphasises company values and genuine commitment rather than espousing any one side of the matter. This helps keep engagement civil, avoids alienating the customer base, and can be especially useful for maintaining brand image in matters related to politics or government decisions. If you aren’t sure how to maintain this balance, consider working with a communications expert who can help you prepare guidelines for non-divisive content.
Your content will almost certainly be read by people from multiple backgrounds, demographics, and geographies. And while it’s impossible to create content that’s suitable for everyone, it is possible (and vital) to be as mindful of sensitivities, regional contexts, and cultural/political grey areas as possible. If you’re not sure about how a certain communication will come across, it’s a good idea to have readers from diverse backgrounds vet the content and add their cultural perspective. In addition, if there are certain markets you are targeting, have people from those markets audit the content to make sure there’s no ground for misinterpretation.
Even when you give it your utmost, there’s bound to be the occasional misstep. Prepare for that in advance by having a response strategy in place. If a leader’s communication strikes the wrong note, acknowledge the situation as quickly as possible and issue a statement of apology — taking care to sound authentic and not performative. More importantly, state an intent to do better by taking tangible action, and follow through on any commitments you make. Remember that people are watching, and they will remember how you responded to being called out. The more sincere your response, the more goodwill you’ll earn.
A strategically managed leadership voice can be a powerful asset for your brand. Far from limiting your ability to express yourself, having a leadership communication strategy can show you new ways to share your expertise and experience in ways that attract goodwill and facilitate long-term business wins. And that is what we focus on at Star Squared PR — crafting a leadership voice that stays true to who you are while achieving what’s best for the brand. If that sounds like something you’d be interested in, reach out to our experienced team today. We’d be delighted to help.
