In the final post of our 6-part series on IR best practices, we share IR Thought Leader insights on the growing relationship between IR and technology.  We asked the IROs who participated in the discussion what are some of the basics that companies should be doing right now, commenting specifically on the IR website and social media.

IR Website:

One of the IRO’s who participated in the discussion revealed that website analytics on his company’s website indicate 80% of the site’s traffic is to their homepage, not the investor page.  For this reason, the participant explains it is critical that included on your homepage, is an actual phrase, whether it is a sentence or an entire paragraph, clearly explaining why they should invest. 

Another IRO did a redesign on her company’s website last year, adding a comprehensive data tool to the site.  This tool enables users to pull any of the company’s historical financial information, as well market and industry information.  As a result, the participant says the number of calls she receives inquiring about that sort of data has decreased significantly because investors now know where to find it.

All agreed that it is critical to that data always be fresh and information gets on there on a timely basis.  If you can make that commitment to keep the site up-to-date, you will become the source of information about your company via your website, instead of having other people be that source of information. 

Social Media:

Beyond an up-to-date IR website, there are certain fundamentals that should be incorporated into your IR program, including free-tools like Slideshare and YouTube, to maximize exposure to current and potential investors.  One IRO posts company PowerPoint presentation on Slideshare and videos on YouTube, which can then be easily imbedded into and played right off his investor homepage.

Cross-linking like this helps can improve the searchability of your website.  Another suggestion- consider including imbedded links to industry sites that you are a member of that you include in your company description.  These external links can help create traffic to and from, actually increasing your search engine rankings.

Twitter is a fantastic tool for adding an additional vehicle for releasing press releases.  Users are able to retweet messages that they have “liked” or felt were important for their followers to see, potentially increasing the reach of your message exponentially.  One IRO recommended using a free service like TweetReach to measure how far your tweet travelled. 

Many agreed that at this point they are using it to push information or a message, as opposed to being an interactive forum.  They have made forays into the interactive stuff (i.e. have a Facebook account, running Q&A on their blog) and recognize the opportunity there; however, they are moving cautiously, ensuring that a plan is in place first.

When asked who is using social media, the IROs unanimously agreed that it is primarily the retail audience, and perhaps some of the younger portfolio managers and analysts.  One IRO commented that these are the individuals who are just coming into the game, have grown up on social media, used it to communicate in school, and are now bringing that into the work world.  This will result in a large social media push in the near future.  The participant explained that we have to communicate with people the way they are communicating, and if web 2.0 is the way that they are communicating, then companies will need to adapt to connect with the next of generation of investors, portfolio managers and analysts.