Why Every Marketing Leader Needs a Personal Brand on LinkedIn
- Jerry Jose
- Jun 11
- 3 min read
84% of B2B decision-makers begin their buying journey on LinkedIn. That’s not just a stat. This statistic serves as a crucial reminder.
And yet, if you scroll through LinkedIn today, you’ll notice something surprising: the vast majority of marketing leaders—CMOs, VPs, and directors—are invisible.
They're not engaging. They're not publishing. They’re not building a presence.
They don't lack valuable content to share. However, they're excessively occupied with establishing the company's brand, inadvertently overlooking their own.
In 2025, that’s a mistake.
Your Brand Is Bigger Than Your Job Title
The digital world has reached saturation. Attention is a currency. People don’t trust logos. They trust people.
As a marketing leader, your experience holds weight. You’ve run campaigns, led teams, faced fires, won big, failed publicly, and learned fast.
That journey is not just worth sharing—it’s worth amplifying.
A strong personal brand isn’t self-promotion. It’s leadership at scale. It’s how you:
Build trust before the first meeting
Attract the right talent to your team
Create demand for your company and your own future
What's the most rewarding aspect? You already have everything you need.
Why Most Leaders Don’t Start and Why That’s Costly
In my conversations with senior marketers, I hear the same objections over and over:
“I don’t want to sound self-important.”
“I don’t have time to create content.”
“It feels awkward to talk about myself.”
“I’m not a creator — I’m a marketer.”
Here’s the hard truth: Silence doesn’t scale.
Your silence could be costing you opportunities:
The partner who almost reached out
The high-performer who went to a competitor
The team that didn’t get to learn from your insights
If you don't shape your narrative, someone else will, or worse, no one will pay attention.
How to Build Your Personal Brand on LinkedIn Without Burning Out
Let’s break down how you can start and scale your personal brand as a busy marketing leader using simple tools, smart strategies, and a bit of consistency.
1. Shift the Mindset: You’re Not Starting from Scratch
You already have content, it’s just sitting in your email threads, slide decks, Slack chats, and team retros.
Start by mining your day-to-day:
A campaign that performed well and why it worked
A tough leadership lesson you’ve learned
A common misconception about marketing you disagree with
A decision you made recently and the thinking behind it
One idea = one post. You’re not creating. You’re just translating your experience into stories.
2. Block 30–60 Minutes a Week
You don’t need to post daily. You just need to show up consistently.
Start with one post a week. Here's a simple structure that works:
Problem → Story → Insight
Example: "We thought our campaign would flop—it turned out to be our most cost-efficient yet. Here's why..."
Or try: Question → Context → Lesson
"Should CMOs also be creators? After 10 years in B2B, here’s what I’ve realized..."
Pro tip: Don’t aim for perfection. Aim for honesty and clarity.
3. Use LinkedIn’s Features to Your Advantage
LinkedIn isn’t just a place to scroll, it’s a toolkit for amplifying your voice.
Here’s what you should be using:
Creator Mode: Unlocks follower-first experience and allows you to add CTAs like newsletter or website links
Featured Section: Pin your best posts, podcasts, interviews, or strategy decks
LinkedIn Newsletters: Start a monthly recap of your thoughts, strategies, or team learnings, this builds a loyal base
Native Carousels: Break down complex ideas or frameworks in visual form (great for engagement and shareability)
Comments + Polls: Engage with others and spark two-way conversations. It grows your visibility faster than posting alone
4. Create a Simple Content Series
Are you overanalyzing your content themes? Don’t.
Just start with something familiar:
“Marketing Mondays” → Weekly industry insights
“Behind the Brief” → What went into a recent campaign
“Lessons from the Field” → A leadership or team story every Friday
Creating a series can help reduce decision fatigue and build audience expectations.
Still Not Convinced?
Here’s what can happen with a visible, consistent personal brand:
✅ You attract talent who say, “I joined because I saw how you think.”
✅ You build credibility that makes sales calls easier
✅ You get invited to podcasts, panels, and interviews
✅ You create influence, and influence opens doors
And most importantly…
✅ You stop being just a title and start becoming a name people remember
Your Brand Is Your Legacy
If you can lead a marketing team, you can lead your narrative.
In a world where attention is limited and trust is difficult to earn, showing up authentically is your edge.
So start small. Start honest. But most importantly, START!
Download my free LinkedIn Profile Audit Guide, your first step toward becoming visible, valuable, and unforgettable on LinkedIn.
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