We’re excited to announce the release of a number of feature upgrades now available on Q4. We’ve been listening to our clients and are happy to provide this set of improved features focused on the real-time integration of social media both in terms of publishing updates to Twitter and Facebook and integrating content into the site from social media content sites like YouTube.
Over the last couple of years we’ve been successful in working with our clients to create a customized approach that drives IR website traffic, expands content distribution and increase investor engagement. Over this time the Q4 platform has evolved and now can provide a true competitive advantage to public companies by expanding their reach, attracting investors and building better relationships.
These new features provide even greater capability for our clients to benefit from the web and the integration of social media into their investor relations efforts AND with the rise of web disclosure coming, our platform provides all of the tools required to be successful in the new world of online investor relations.
The list of upgrades is below, you can also check out our new website at http://www.q4websystems.com to learn more.
We hope you like them!
Darrell Heaps
UPGRADES NOW AVAILABLE
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On April 15th, Google issued an advisory release that instructed people to visit their IR website for their earnings and also included the following statement:
Google intends to make future announcements regarding its financial performance exclusively through its investor relations website.
Google is able to do this based on the SEC guidance from Aug 2008 regarding the use of websites for disclosure. This guidance states that under certain circumstances, companies can rely on their websites and blogs to meet public disclosure requirements under Reg FD.
As we all remember all too well, shortly after this regulatory change the market collapsed and this new channel quickly faded into the background, while most companies fought to survive the worst recession many of us have ever seen.
However, with 2009 behind us and the recovery underway, the first quarter of 2010 has seen the most activity on the web disclosure front yet, with a number of companies testing out new tactics. Let’s take a look at some examples.
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Times have changed but have your web communications kept pace? Today’s more discerning investor is more open to portfolio diversification – which may mean that you need to provide different information than you are offering now.
Join us on Thursday, January 14th at 4:00 p.m. ET as we share top IR Website improvements to meet today’s challenging economic environment. If you’re involved in your company’s IR website, this webinar will show some great examples of best practices from the world’s leading organizations as well as innovative small cap companies and how you can apply them to your own website.
Register now and learn 3 critical improvements to make to your website in 2010:
- Key information to include for potential new investors in this economy.
- Using social media effectively to increase your reach (and website traffic) and to protect your share value – with case stories and examples.
- New interactive technologies – what kind of technologies increase user engagement and add value.
If you have any questions that you’d like us to address please leave a comment below and we’ll be sure to answer during the webinar.
Over the course of 2009, I have connected with a lot of smart, seasoned IR professionals on Twitter. I have met IROs and IR consultants alike. One great contact I have made is Trevor Heisler, an IR consultant at TMX Equicom (a TMX Group company).
With experience as both an in-house IRO and IR consultant, I know the day-to-day challenges that IR professionals face. One newer challenge has been the question of whether to embrace social media as part of the broader communications strategy. Although I am not a practicing IR professional anymore, I was curious to hear how consultants were dealing with this rapidly emerging topic. With that, I asked Trevor to be interviewed with the goal of compiling tips that would help consultants handle client inquiries about social media.
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Earlier this month, Dave Hogan, presented his paper “Reaching Shareholders Online: Trends and Best Practices in Online Communications and Social Media in Corporate Investor Relations” at the 2009 Annual Conference of the International Association of Online Communicators in Washington, D.C.
The focus of the paper is how online communication tools, in particular social media, are influencing the communication practices of corporate IR departments at public companies of all sizes. It also examines the question of why corporate IR departments have been slower to adopt social media communications tools than their marketing and corporate communications counterparts.
Dave currently splits his time between teaching public relations in the Department of Journalism and Mass Communication at Abilene Christian University in Texas and works as Director of Investor Relations and Corporate Communications for First Financial Bankshares, Inc. (Nasdaq:FFIN).
While I highly recommend that you take the time to view the presentation in its entirety (below), I have summarized some of the key findings.
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Last week our CEO, Darrell Heaps, and I presented to a study group formed through an initiative of the Canadian Institute of Chartered Accountants (CICA) Research Studies Department. Comprised primarily of volunteers, this panel of experienced professionals research and provide guidance for comprehensive and integrated corporate reporting in order to promote effective communication.
By reading their reports and following their guidance, any IRO in North America can improve the standards of their company’s stakeholder communications.
To familiarize you more with their work, I have provided an overview of their most recent study, Corporate Reporting to Stakeholders.
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Yesterday, a press release was issued announcing that SlideShare and Q4 have partnered to offer public companies enhanced best practice capabilities for their IR websites using SlideShare’s innovative web platform for displaying and sharing presentations and pdfs combined with Q4’s market leading IR website platform.
Companies using our Q4 web platform will be able to easily embed SlideShare presentations into any area of their IR websites and publish directly to both their IR website and SlideShare.com. Additionally, SlideShare is launching a separate Investor Relations category. Companies will also have the opportunity to promote their investor relations presentations to SlideShare’s 18 million visitors in a targeted manner.
Yesterday I attended a panel discussion that primarily focused on social media and the opportunity it provides to communicate with shareholders and potential investors. The panel included: Serena Ehrlich, Director of Social Media, Startup Army/BLAZE; Laura Graves, Senior IR Manager, Cisco Systems, Inc; Dick Johnson, President Johnson Strategic Communications Inc.& editor of IR Cafe, and Robert Williams, Director Investor Relations, Dell Inc.
Robert said that Dell uses social media primarily to reach out connect with people who are interested in their company and want to access their information in different ways. He said that it was important to socialize SM internally with legal, finance and other executive positions, who may be concerned about risk, in order to help them understand the importance of being involved and the fact that you just can’t vet everything through the same DC&Ps. “The IRO is in a perfect position to handle social media because they understand the risks, they understand the story. And it’s not like they’re monitoring every phone call I make or every conversation I have with an analyst.” Read more…
I recently read an interesting article entitled “Corporate Tweets and the SEC: Sometimes It’s Better to Keep Your Mouth Shut” which provides some insights and commentary on social media, investor relations and web disclosure.
Since the SEC announced its recognition of corporate blogs as public disclosure in July of last year, social media has been used quite effectively by PR, marketing, and advertising professionals. However IR practitioners are still pondering the risks and opportunities outlined in the recent SEC guidelines.
There are many things to consider for integrating blogs and other social networks into an IR program – such as disclosure and adhering to legal compliance. This is quite a dilemma as the adoption of social media has exploded and continues to be a medium of choice for millions of individuals hungry for instant information. Read more…
Read the full Press Release!
Our latest Spring ‘09 release builds on The Q4 Web Platform and introduces 3 new investor relations website products plus new features designed to help you manage your online communications and build better relationships with your investors and stakeholders.
New IR Website Products
Each of these new on-demand products are designed to be seamlessly integrated or embedded into any existing corporate or investor relations website. All products are delivered on The Q4 Web Platform and include complete self-publishing control, automated updates, and reduced risk through our proprietary web records.
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