Photo: Tipalti/Digitaloft
In 2022, the (ex-)CEOs of the largest international companies have done everything to improve their media visibility and present themselves – also as influencers. Tipalti.com, a specialist in processing international payment transactions, has commissioned a ranking of the kings of the internet.
The assessment included:
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the number of followers on Twitter,
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Hashtags on Instagram and TikTok,
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Search IMDB to include media appearances,
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google video searches,
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Fact Check Explore to find the number of fake news published about the CEO,
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Search on RedBubble (merchandise items with heads and CEO names) as well
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on Forbes, Celebrity Net Worth and Wallmine to determine CEO wealth.
The biggest global influencer among CEOs is therefore Elon Musk with 9.91 points out of a possible 10. Bickering over the Twitter takeover and controversial management style haven’t hurt the Tesla founder, at least in terms of popularity. 107 million Twitter followers are top notch, and visibility on Instagram and Tiktok is higher than any other.
Photo: Tipalti/Digitaloft
Bill Gates in second place scores 9.60 points and can only trump Musk in media appearances (IMDB). For his Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, the Microsoft founder actively seeks publicity in traditional channels. On Twitter, Tiktok and Instagram, however, Gates is nowhere near as good as the Tesla boss.
Third is Amazon founder Jeff Bezos (score: 9.20), although the distance to the leadership duo is considerable. Rounding out the top 5 are Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg, who got a lot of attention with his Metaverse fantasies, and Apple boss Tim Cook – the latter, however, trailed far behind. The group of ten most influential CEOs in media also includes Reed Hastings (Netflix), Mary Barra (General Motors), James Quincey (Coca-Cola), Bob Chapek (ex-Walt Disney) and Karen Lynch (CVS Health).
We make big investments to give @GM customers a seamless transition to #EVincluding working to provide access to over 100,000 charging stations in the United States and Canada. #YahooFinanceAMS22 https://t.co/wfjkL1ZmTB
— Marie Barra (@mtbarra) October 27, 2022
According to RedBubble, Elon Musk’s likeness appears on 25,712 T-shirts, mugs, hoodies, bags, and more. – often with a fun design. Bill Gates adorns 5,214 items, Jeff Bezos is available on 1,837 items.
According to IMDB, the biggest TV presence is Bill Gates, who has often been seen on talk shows and the news (241 IMDB credits). The 66-year-old’s billion-euro investment in Warren Buffet’s Berkshire Hathaway company, which made all the news, didn’t hurt either. Elon Musk has 158 IMDB credits, which means second place. Musk has not only been heard and seen in podcasts and interviews, but he’s also had spectacular feature film and series appearances in Iron Man 2, Machete Kills, The Big Bang Theory and Young Sheldon. Musk has also appeared in animated sitcoms such as The Simpsons, South Park and Rick and Morty.
The Simpsons predicted Musk’s purchase on Twitter, which apparently pleased the multi-billionaire:
“Simpson Predicts I’ll Buy Twitter S28E12” ~ Elon Musk pic.twitter.com/I1LzcWiIWD
— Codey369 (@Codey369) November 26, 2022
When it comes to IMDB appearances, it’s not Jeff Bezos who is number three, but Mark Zuckerberg (124 IMDB credits). He has been the subject of several documentaries and TV series dealing with the rise of Facebook and Meta, as well as Zuckerberg’s Metaverse utopia. Also, Zuckerberg was a Simpsons character a few years back.
When it comes to social media appearances on Twitter, Tiktok and Instagram, no one can fool Tesla founder Elon Musk. Because he is ahead on all three platforms, his score here is an undisputed 10.0 points. Musk isn’t just dominating the competition on – now his own platform – Twitter, he’s also six times more successful on Tiktok than his closest pursuer. Additionally, more than twice as many Instagram hashtags refer to him. With 9.52 and 9.29 points, Gates and Bezos follow in the places. (H v)