ALL I-R-O WANT FOR CHRISTMAS
All I-R-O want for Christmas is...
As an investor relations officer (IRO), your job is to build a high-quality shareholder base by exciting the market and positioning your firm as a great investment opportunity. That’s no easy task. If you are a member of the C-suite and are wondering how to become your IRO’s true love this Christmas, here are a few things that are sure to delight.
On the First Day of Christmas: A Dedicated Investor Relations Website
Any IRO will be grateful for what is arguably the most important platform for any company who wants to successfully attract and retain quality investors. A dedicated investor relations website serves as the primary medium for an organization to tell their story and connect with its audience. Investors consider it the most reliable source of information, so it should be treated as though it’s always the first stop for investors doing their due diligence. Dedicated websites are the perfect platform to drive shareholder engagement and instill confidence by telling the company story and putting the organization’s values on display. Companies can also use it to capture visitors to their website and build a pipeline of leads that can be converted to investors.
On the Second Day of Christmas: A Virtual Events Set Up
The work-from-home changes brought on by the pandemic doesn’t have to impact the flow of communication between a company and its investors. Virtual events have been proven to be an effective and efficient way for companies to engage their shareholders and to stay connected with the investment community. Whether it’s an earnings call, an investor day, AGM, or another critical event, it should be easy for a company to create engaging and captivating virtual experiences for their shareholders. There has also been an explosion in the available technologies that companies can use to put on live events. These new technologies give companies the ability to verify their shareholders on the call and allow them to vote or ask questions on a range of topics, keeping them engaged and feeling valued.
On the Third Day of Christmas: A Great CRM
A great CRM is the foundation and backbone of any good investor relations programs. Tracking key information about shareholders in a CRM gives a company a global view of its investor base so they can track shareholder engagement and spot key trends. A good CRM provides valuable analytics for better decision making and gives IROs the ability to measure the impact of their strategy.
On the Fourth Day of Christmas: An ESG Website
For many investors, ESG is now expected to be a key part of a company’s philosophy, so IROs need to find a way to feature ESG initiatives. Building a dedicated website/microsite for an ESG program is an effective way to communicate a company’s initiatives and showcase the steps you’re taking to reach your goals. Remember though, it is not enough to simply promote your ESG commitments. Companies must go to great lengths to show how ESG issues are material to the business and how they create overall value for shareholders.
On the Fifth Day of Christmas: A Steady Flow of News
Companies sometimes struggle to figure out what information to disclose and when to disclose it. IROs sometimes need to get creative about what to communicate when there’s nothing to really communicate. IROs need to carefully consider what makes meaningful, relatable news and package the information in a way that is useful to investors and that helps support your investment thesis and positioning.
So, if you’re feeling the holiday spirit and you’ve already ruled out the jelly bean of the month club, you now have a short list of gifts for which any IRO will thank you for profusely!
