If you thought Facebook founder and CEO Mark Zuckerberg has an innately charming persona — simply by looking at his posts on Facebook — then you might be surprised to know that there's a science behind that appeal.
Yes, even the founder of the most popular social networking site needs professional help in keeping his Facebook profile squeaky clean.
Zuckerberg is making sure his social media presence is perfectly polished, all by having a professional public relations team handling his personal account.
So, while it may be a surprise to some, the fact that the company wants to maintain the CEO's image actually makes sense. That's considering speculations that Zuckerberg has his eyes on the White House for the 2020 presidential elections.
Meet The Team Behind Zuckerberg's Facebook Profile
The team is composed of at least a dozen people who post messages and photos for the hoodie-wearing CEO, and this includes people who monitor comments in reply to his posts and professional photographers who follow him around on his travels.
All those perfectly lit and timed photos and the seeming absence of trolls and spammers in the comments section are all part of a systematic plan to keep much of the garbage — plaguing other mere mortals on Facebook — out of the territory of the founder.
One of the professional photographers hired to follow him around is award-winning photographer Charles Ommanney, who covered Syrian refugees on "The Black Route" for The Washington Post.
From 'Accidental Billionaire' To Charismatic CEO And Philanthropist
Those who follow Zuckerberg's Facebook profile know that the CEO has been focused on improving his image by showing snippets of his life. At times, he is the young father taking his daughter Max for a vaccination or dressing her up as a Jedi; at other times, he is the civic leader revealing his philanthropic efforts and showing his more candid, personal side and sharing his goals.
Anyone who knows the background of this "accidental billionaire" will see the difference between the Zuckerberg in the early years of Facebook and the charismatic CEO he has grown up to be, especially after marriage and fatherhood.
To most people, it would seem as if Zuckerberg has simply calmed down, wised up, and learned from the mistakes other people commit in their social media.
"What he's learned over the last two years is that his image in the digital domain needs to be controlled," notes David Charron of UC Berkeley, who believes the CEO is "simply growing up."
Positive Light
The Facebook PR team is definitely doing a good job: Zuckerberg's profile seems to exude authenticity and paints the CEO in a positive light through his philanthropic initiatives, effectively steering the online crowd away from the ugly court battles he has to face, amid accusations of intellectual property violations.
The team is not solely focused on Zuckerberg, however, because they also keep track of other Facebook executives, such as COO Sheryl Sandberg, who uses her Facebook account to share news and messages, both personal and professional.
