CEO thought leadership: What they want and how to deliver it

The pieces that influence executive decisions are human-authored, evidence-backed and immediately useful. Here is what that means for B2B marketers, plus practical actions you can take now.

True CEO thought leadership is decision-grade

What separates thought leadership from other forms of content marketing? Ask if it would influence a board-level decision. If it lacks decision impact, it isn’t thought leadership. The findings of our survey of 100 CEOs support this.

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When asked what factors matter most in engaging with thought leadership, the top three were:

• “It offers actionable guidance”
• “It helps me to understand complex issues”
• “It’s published by a trusted expert” (the top factor)

When CEOs do engage, many act on the advice:

For B2B marketers, the benefits are clear. When it comes to CEO thought leadership, executives are not interested in soundbites. They want evidence to help them decide.

What earns a CEO’s attention and action?

Our analysis of the CEOs’ responses reveals four factors that are critical for a piece of thought leadership to achieve decision-grade status. Here are the ‘four Cs’ that CEOs look for:

Contrarian

Most CEOs favour ideas that test the status quo. 73% rate contrarian work as more valuable than content that confirms what they already believe. Say something new and use research to test default assumptions.

Test: Would a thoughtful peer challenge this at first?

Credible

The strongest driver to engage with thought leadership is publication by a trusted expert. To build trust, support any claims with data — surveys, publicly available sources or structured interviews.

Test: Will this content actually change what someone does right away?

Concrete

The second most important driver is offering actionable guidance. Content must be built for real decisions, using data to craft clear recommendations that leaders can apply.

Test: Is every claim clearly backed by credible data and methods?

Consequential

Three-quarters of CEOs use thought leadership to make procurement and investment decisions, and an even higher proportion share it with C-suite colleagues. Plan for the actions you want to trigger. Social media is a valuable “front door” but should lead to deeper findings.

Test: Is it useful enough that people would share it or use it in a board deck?

How can B2B marketers put this into practice?

Here are six practical moves to get started:

1. Be provocative

Ask your team to develop hypotheses that challenge assumptions, and use research to test them.

2. Build a credibility stack

It isn’t enough to rely on opinions or surface-level insights, you need to build a layered foundation of proof. We recommend combining three key ingredients:

• Primary research (e.g. this CEO survey)
• In-depth expert interviews to explain the “why” behind the numbers
• External datasets that add context (e.g. market, talent or innovation signals)
  
  

3. Take a human-first approach

AI can help shape content, but C-suite audiences prefer thought leadership that is authentic and authored by humans. Draw on voices from across your organisation to articulate insights and ideas.

4. Embrace format diversity

CEOs want to engage across a broad range of formats and channels. Map the path from first read to next step, and support all stages of the sales pipeline.

5. Use events as an booster

The best thought leadership becomes a platform for discussion. Events such as roundtables, webinars, briefings and panels can amplify impact.

6. Measure influence, not just impressions

The FT Longitude framework for thought leadership measures a campaign’s success by combining intelligence and influence. Intelligence refers to the quality, data richness, and expert voices of the content itself, while influence evaluates the campaign’s broader impact, media reach, and ability to drive tangible business outcomes.

Bottom line

The best thought leadership empowers leaders to become better decision makers. Focus on the 4Cs, design for decision moments, and put a human voice at the heart of your approach. This is how you create unique insights that are trusted, shared and used. That is the bar worth aiming for.

Are you looking for looking for a thought leadership agency to help with your executive thought leadership strategy? Set up a free strategy call with us today and learn how we can help your business win the hearts and minds of the C-suite.

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