–
–
–
December 29, 2020 – Germany’s corporate bosses do not take advantage of video content. 18 out of 30 CEOs were not visible on YouTube in 2020.
by Christina Rose
2020 was the year of moving images. Never before have there been so many video conferences and time on platforms like YouTube
spent. The German spends an average of eight hours a week on streaming services alone. In contrast to the DAX 30 bosses. The CEOs of the largest listed companies in Germany hardly exploit the potential of visual communication. This was the result of an investigation by strategy consulting Altcramer
. The official YouTube channels of the DAX 30 companies were analyzed in 2020. The disappointing result: none of the CEOs of the listed companies has an effective video strategy.
Most companies are silent. Not even every second DAX CEO (40 percent) addressed their stakeholders via video this year. Even in the Corona crisis, direct emotional approach via moving images was hardly used. Only two of the CEOs posed in front of the camera on the virus issue. German CEOs only upload an average of three videos a year. Mnchner-Rck CEO Joachim Wenning was last seen three years ago, as it was still in its own format “Wenning meets”.
No authenticity
Specially produced content for the target group? Nothing. Most of the videos are recordings from press conferences or annual general meetings. BMW boss Oliver Zipse is an exception. He meets actor Christoph Waltz in a Hollywood-style – but completely scripted – advertising film and introduces the BMW iX. However, authenticity and closeness – actually the strengths of moving images – are lost here. Fresenius CEO Stephan Sturm shows how easy it can be. During the COVID-19 pandemic, he addressed his employees directly from his home office using a laptop camera.
“The DAX CEOs are hiding when it comes to video content”, says Michael Cramer, Managing Director of the management consultancy Altcramer, commenting on the result. “A mistake. Today’s CEO has to represent his brand emotionally and publicly. Be your own brand. Moving images offer the greatest opportunities here. It is the best way to emotionally address your stakeholders and position yourself as a modern CEO.”
A lot is done wrong with basic things too: Videos are often published twice, in German and in English, instead of using subtitles in different languages (e.g. BASF and Fresenius Medical Care). Infineon and Vonovia do not even have a YouTube channel with an individual URL.
Recommendations for action:
- Long-term strategic approach: The moving image strategy should be embedded in the communication of the entire group and not take place separately from it.
- Target group fit: Not everything fits everyone. Different stakeholders need different moving images, different aesthetics, different storytelling approaches and therefore also productions.
- Authenticity is key: moving images create emotional closeness between the CEO and the audience. The sender must also do justice to this. Personality is the key to success here.
- Moving image communication is not a one-way street: It is important to offer your stakeholders a feedback channel and to react to comments.
- Individual formats: Recordings of annual general meetings are a must. Content produced in-house by Kr. This is the only way CEOs can stand out from others and position themselves as personalities.
The management consultancy Altcramer examined the moving image strategy of the DAX 30 CEOs on the official YouTube channels of the companies. Videos from 2020 were analyzed quantitatively and qualitatively.
– .
