Improving Your IR Website

The Most Important Tool for Investors and Analysts

The IR website is the most important tool for investors. According to the Brunswick 2021 Digital Investor Survey, 72% of investors have made an investment decision based on information from a company’s IR website. In this week’s blog we’ll discuss IR website best practices, core site elements, and essential maintenance to help you make sure your company’s site is a great tool for investors. 

Why is a good IR website so important?

IR websites are the most used (by 92% of investors) and trusted sources of information for investors. It is the most authoritative source because the company is accountable to regulations and auditors for the information that it puts there. From the Brunswick survey, trust for IR websites was highest among the largest investors. So, having a strong IR site and presence is essential. 

A good IR website will guide an investor with ease to the relevant information they need. For example, the latest quarterly report, ESG metrics, or management bios. It will use engaging language to communicate key highlights to investors, and avoid dry technical language. A clean, dynamic, and responsive website will have pleasant UX, and investors will associate your company with professionalism.  An effective IR site will not only make investors’ and analysts’ lives easier, but it saves the time and resources of the IR team from having to answer unnecessary questions.
 

Miranda’s best practices for IR websites

1. The website must be simple, direct, intuitive and easy to use.
2. Language needs to be engaging and concise. 
3. Keep submenus to a minimum.
4. Mobile device compatible. 
5. Ensure that the IR website is consistent with the corporate website.
6. Use visual examples of the company’s products/services.
7. Use analytics to analyze website traffic, in order to make improvements.
8. Have an active SSL certificate and IT security measures to prevent hacking.

Core IR Website Elements

Every IR website must include the following core elements: About Us, Financial Information, Stock Market, ESG, and Contact. 

• About Us: 
  
  • This section needs to communicate your company’s story to investors and explain to them why they should invest in your company. 
  • Make sure to include: corporate presentation, corporate structure, a 5-minute video, investment thesis, and bios of key management. 
• Financial Information: 
  
  • The most recent financial reports and key highlights are what most investors are looking for, so they need to be easily available from the IR homepage. There should also be an organized archive for all of your reports, filings and press releases. Make sure to include: 
    
    • Reports (quarterly and annual), filings, and conference call recordings. 
• Stock Market Information:
  
  • Include the live stock price, relevant information, and an updated calendar. 
• ESG:
  
  • ESG topics are key to modern investors and have become even more important during Covid. Make key highlights and achievements visible on the IR homepage. 
  • The ESG page should include: Updated corporate governance, code of ethics, DEI (diversity and inclusion) policies, CSR (corporate social responsibility) report, and materiality assessment. 
• Contact:
  
  • Make sure that you have an easily available contact form, email address, physical address, and phone number. 

Website Maintenance & Backend:

Having a great IR website means that all of its information is up to date and accurate. At Miranda IR we help our clients meet this standard by conducting biweekly IR website reviews. We thoroughly check every single page for issues like tables not including the most recent quarters’ data, typos and poor translation (especially in English), incorrect link paths, and unorganized content. We also make sure the company’s information is up to date on Bloomberg. The review lets clients know what they need to fix urgently to be compliant, and what they should do to be up to par with IR website best practices. 

Another aspect of maintaining an IR website is having a simple way to make backend changes and updates. Miranda IR, in conjunction with Miranda Digital and Design, can set up a user-friendly backend and hosting and/or completely manage the website for you.

Excellent IR website examples:

Alpek’s IR website is visually appealing throughout and completely consistent with Alpek’s main page and includes all of the core IR site elements that we mentioned above. The homepage has quick links that lead you to their most recent quarterly and annual reports, and their corporate presentation. A quick scroll down leads you to their latest press releases, in an attractive blog style format. We especially like the brief quote and photo of the CFO. It adds a friendly face and explains the company’s strategy effectively. The library of reports, press releases, and recordings are all filterable, which makes it easy to find what you’re looking for. 

Vinte’s website, which was designed and programmed by Miranda IR, is another example that follows best practices and includes all of the core IR site elements. We especially like the visual examples of their communities and the brief video on the homepage, which gives visitors a quick understanding of what Vinte does and their commitment to sustainability. Their reports and financial highlights are also quickly available from the homepage. 

How Miranda can help you:

Miranda IR, together with Miranda Digital and Design, are happy to help you create, redesign, or host your IR website. We have experience supporting many listed Mexican companies in all of their IR needs. Miranda ESG can also help you improve the ESG and sustainability section of your website. Here are a few other examples of sites that Miranda has designed: FHipo, Vinte, and Nexxus.

Other exemplary IR websites:

• https://investors.vodafone.com/
• https://www.rolls-royce.com/investors.aspx
• https://investors.msasafety.com/
• https://www.intc.com/
• https://investors.nike.com/Home/default.aspx
• https://corporate.walmart.com/our-story/our-business/international/walmart-mexico
• https://www.orbia.com/investor-relations/

Sources:

• https://www.brunswickgroup.com/reportsurvey-confirmation-pages/dis-2021-report-confirmation/
• https://irsociety.org.uk/files/Q4_Whitepaper_-_2017_IR_Website_Best_Practices.pdf
• https://miranda-partners.com/the-2021-investor-relations-digital-agenda/
• https://miranda-partners.com/building-the-best-ir-website/