When B2B decision-makers share thought leadership, much of it travels through channels the publisher cannot see. In a new Edelman and LinkedIn® survey, 89% of decision-makers who shared this kind of material said they did so through private channels such as email, direct messages, work chats or meetings. By comparison, 67% reported sharing through public channels. Respondents could do both.
Edelman’s 9 November 2026 analysis by Annie Dunleavy draws on a survey of more than 1,100 business executives across seven countries. The findings show how useful material can reach buying groups without leaving a public trail of reactions or reposts.
What buyers do with the material they share
The report found that 76% of B2B decision-makers said thought leadership discussed or shared in their buying group helped them assess whether a vendor understood their needs and priorities. Just over half (52%) said it helped their group decide which vendor to choose.
The material that gets passed on has a job to do. Useful data, research or evidence was cited as a reason to share by 73%; 57% pointed to relevance to a decision or discussion already under way. A buyer forwarding an article needs something colleagues can use, such as a comparison, a finding they can check or a clear explanation of a trade-off.
AI is another reader, not the source of the argument
Eighty-four per cent of B2B decision-makers said they used AI to summarise thought leadership during vendor evaluation. That is a reason to make the argument and its evidence easy to find in the original material: name the source, state what it shows and be clear about what it does not.
What this means for Company Pages and leaders
I’d use the Company Page to give buyers a clear source they can forward, and ask the people closest to the work to explain what the evidence means in practice. The aim is to give a buyer something they can bring into a meeting without having to reconstruct the argument themselves.
Public engagement still tells you something about distribution. It cannot tell you what was discussed in a buyer’s work chat or whether an article helped settle a decision. Alongside the usual metrics, I’d ask sales teams what material buyers mention or forward, and ask buyers what helped them make their case internally.
These are survey responses, not observed buying decisions. The research does not isolate the effect of LinkedIn® Company Pages, compare them with executive profiles or show that publishing more content wins deals. Its value is more specific: it identifies ways buyers say they use credible material that standard social reporting can miss.
Sources
2026 Edelman–LinkedIn B2B Thought Leadership Impact Report · Annie Dunleavy’s analysis for Edelman.
