Creating a Visibility Strategy: A Step-by-Step Guide for Busy Executives

Amid the whirlwind of daily emails, meetings, and deadlines, carving out space for your professional visibility might seem daunting. We know it’s important, so the challenge here lies not in the why, but the how.

Sometimes, all we need is a clear starting point. From establishing thought leadership to mastering social media, here's how you can implement an effective visibility strategy, step by step.

1. Identify Your Visibility Goals

What does visibility mean for you and your company? Are you looking to attract investors, build customer trust, enhance your brand's reputation, or position yourself as a thought leader within your industry? Defining clear goals will help tailor your strategy to achieve the desired outcomes.

What you can do today: List 3 visibility goals you aim to achieve and prioritize them in order of importance.

2. Audit Your Current Visibility

Take stock of your current visibility level. How are you perceived by your industry, peers, and target audience? Utilize tools to monitor mentions of your name and your company. Understanding your starting point is crucial to measuring progress.

What you can do today: Research your name and company, writing down 5 keywords for how you’re presented. Then, set up Google Alerts with your name to get started; it’s free and easy to navigate.

3. Craft Your Core Messages

Your core messages are the foundation of your visibility strategy, but are not necessarily your company’s core messages. They should reflect your individual values and complement your company's mission. These messages will guide your content creation, ensuring consistency across all platforms.

What you can do today: Craft 5 statements for how you want to be viewed, using your keywords from the last step if they resonate.

4. Spruce Up & Plan Your Social

Optimize your profiles with a professional photo, a compelling bio, and fresh links. Make sure your existing content aligns with your visibility goals, such as industry insights, personal achievements, and stories of challenges overcome. Consider if it makes sense to hide, archive, or delete content that doesn’t quite fit.

What you can do today: After your account review, write 2 post ideas for each of your 5 core messages. This serves as the base for your content calendar.

5. Embrace Thought Leadership

Publish articles, participate in webinars, and speak at industry events to share your expertise. LinkedIn is a powerful tool for this purpose. Choose topics that not only showcase your knowledge but also provide value to your audience.

What you can do today: Identify 3 opportunities for sharing your expertise (webinars, articles, speaking engagements) and apply.

6. Delegate and Automate

You don't have to do it all alone, and you don’t have to do it perfectly. I’ve always believed in not letting a good, finished job get in the way of a perfect, unfinished job. While personal involvement cannot be entirely replaced, certain elements of your visibility strategy can be delegated or automated, freeing up time without sacrificing the personal touch that defines your presence.

What you can do today: Identify 2 content creation or curation tasks that align with your strategy but don't require your direct input. Delegate these. Explore automation tools for scheduling posts on LinkedIn. Select one tool to trial this month.

7. Network Strategically

Networking doesn’t work if you only collect contacts without cultivating relationships. Strategic networking involves engaging with thought leaders and potential collaborators in meaningful ways that highlight mutual interests and opportunities for growth. Genuine engagement can lead to meaningful connections, opportunities for collaboration, and increased visibility.

What you can do today: Find 5 industry leaders in your field (you can find them online or lists from past conferences or upcoming events), and follow them on LinkedIn. For one of those contacts, propose a virtual coffee chat to explore mutual interests. For another, suggest collaborating on a piece of content.

8. Make Time for Visibility

Time is a finite resource, especially for busy executives. However, making time for visibility activities is essential for maintaining and growing your professional presence. Treat these activities as you would any other business task by sustainably integrating them into your schedule.

What you can do today: Schedule a monthly "Visibility Review" in your calendar, dedicated to assessing your visibility efforts, refining your strategy, and planning content and networking activities for the coming month.

9. Reflect and Share Your Journey

Visibility is more than celebrating successes—it’s also about sharing your journey, challenges included. Authenticity resonates, and your insights can inspire others while enhancing your own visibility. Consider: what's working? What's not? What might help someone else on this same path?

What you can do today: Start a new document entitled “Visibility Log” with sections for experiences, challenges, and successes. Add spending time on it to the agenda for your “Visibility Review.”

Conclusion

Building and implementing a visibility strategy doesn't require countless hours; it requires intention, strategy, and authenticity. By taking these steps, even the busiest executives can increase their visibility in a meaningful way.

Your journey to increased visibility starts now. Share your progress, learnings, and successes along the way. Remember: visibility is a marathon, not a sprint, and every step you take is a step toward greater influence and impact.

Katie Radel, with 20+ years of experience in PR and executive visibility, founded Ripple Consulting Group to help leaders like you make a greater impact in your industry. Let's connect and explore how we can amplify your visibility together.