An official website of the United States government. In contrast, shareholders and potential investors visiting a website's IR area have similar tasks, regardless of the company type. I don't know what the content is going to be in this.". Individual investors are often intimidated by the vast amount of financial data available, even from these simplified services. In addition to specific content requirements, there are some general requirements for public companies’ IR websites. Beginning June 30, 2020, you can find a firm’s relationship summary using our search tool. Potential investors look to this content to gain a sense of your company’s strategy, values, goals and accomplishments. Now more than ever, you need to establish your IR website as the authoritative source for connecting analysts, investors and the media with the information they want, in real-time, on any device: While your IR website may seem insignificant in the grand scheme of things when it comes to compliance, let’s face it: once the SEC puts you in their crosshairs, you may find more than just your website under scrutiny. Brands, Inc., based in Louisville, Kentucky, has over 50,000 restaurants in more than 150 countries and territories primarily operating the company’s brands – KFC, Pizza Hut and Taco Bell – global leaders of the chicken, pizza and Mexican-style food categories. If the presentation includes such information, the information must be simultaneously provided to the public or the recipient of the information must agree to keep the information confidential and not to trade in the company’s stock. You are required to include instructions about how website visitors can communicate with the board of directors. Your description/disclaimer should inform site visitors that the links are provided for convenience only and that your company does not approve of or endorse the content. Further, even with the use of disclaimers and/or pop-up boxes, you would not be shielded from antifraud liability for hyperlinking to the information you may know, or are reckless in not knowing, is materially false or misleading. For example, rather than saying “XYZ’s website contains the best description of our business that is currently available,” which would likely make you liable for the website’s contents, you could instead say “The XYZ Company produced an independent report which is available on their website.” In the latter example, you’re clearly stating that your company did not produce, and does not own, or endorse the content you’re linking to. Check out the rest of the SEC’s website for individual investors, Investor.gov. © Copyright Q4 Inc. 2017. In the modern world, investors assume that they can go to www.company.com to research a current or potential investment. For the audit committee, be sure also to identify who is serving as the financial expert. In fact, the second study didn't reveal many changes relative to the first study's findings: investors continue to approach IR sites in a similar way. Compliance, Sticky navigation for your top navigation menu can also help users easily access the main menu no matter how far down they have scrolled on the page. Don’t place hyperlinks to third-parties’ sites in the same location and using the same style you use when linking to other material on your own site. In November 2016, Google made an important announcement about its search engine optimization (SEO) algorithms: . You may pay other fees and costs related to services and investments. If you’re thinking about launching a new IR website or refreshing your existing site, here are five best practices that will keep your investors engaged in your corporate story. A typical adviser: For more information, check out this video from SEC Chairman Jay Clayton. When presenting non-GAAP financial information, always precede it with an equally prominent presentation of the comparable GAAP measures or include the GAAP measures in the same table, if applicable. Supplemental earnings materials (webcasts, presentations, etc. Contact New technology creates new expectations, meaning elements of your company story should be prioritized differently on mobile versus desktop. Q4 is a global leader in cloud-based investor relations and capital market solutions. Investments are all about information, as the growth of online brokerage services shows. He holds 79 United States patents, mainly on ways of making the Internet easier to use. (The full research report with usability guidelines for IR design is available for download.). This underscores the importance of providing easy and intuitive access to this media on your website. Thus, our recommendations are based on evaluations of IR information for 94 companies.