A corporate website is crucial for capital market professionals as it's often the first point of contact for potential investors. To understand their expectations, Comprend's Capital Market survey 2023 was conducted, with 136 participants comprising capital market professionals in diverse roles, such as business journalists, sell-side analysts, financial planners, and fund managers. This article summarises the survey's key findings, highlighting the crucial information expected on a corporate website by capital market professionals.
Comprend's Capital Market survey 2023 aimed to gain valuable insights into capital market professionals' preferences regarding the content they expect to find on a corporate website. With a comprehensive set of 30 questions, the survey was designed to identify the critical areas of interest and expectation for such professionals in the current market scenario. Their collective expertise and experience provided significant knowledge and valuable insights.
When summarising the results of the survey, we found:
- Corporate websites are crucial for capital market professionals, who use them extensively for initial research and analysis. Quick access to clear, concise, and easily navigable financial data, reports, and press releases is essential in the fast-paced capital markets. Effective presentation of information is critical for attracting and retaining the attention of these professionals.
- Important aspects of an investment case are industry information, market information, financial targets, strategy for growth, and ESG information.
- When explaining how your company creates value, many perspectives must be covered. You need to explain how you create value for investors/owners, customers, employees and society.
The importance of corporate websites for capital market professionals
In today's highly competitive market, the importance of a corporate website for capital market professionals cannot be overstated. It is crucial to ensure that it is informative, user-friendly and meets the expectations. An informative and user-friendly corporate website is essential to create a good impression of your company and gain trust.
As some of the respondents of the survey said when asked to what extent they use a company's website in their profession:
In a broker's research, the quality of a company's website and the information in it is of paramount importance.
Very high, the company website speaks about quality and credibility of the company and especially its management.
How it looks, how easy it is to use: the time it takes to get the right information, are signs of quality.
Most important information this year
When comparing the importance of all information we ask about in the Capital Market survey, we find that the most essential is presenting financial information in your investment case; 98% of the respondents find this information important. Financial information such as revenue projections, cash flow analysis, and return on investment calculations can help investors determine whether the investment is likely to generate a satisfactory return. Presenting financial information in an investment case provides an objective basis for evaluating the potential profitability and risk of the investment.
Ensuring that the latest press releases are prominently displayed on the landing/index page of the press section is the second most crucial aspect to consider. By doing so, you enable easy access to the most current information. Given the time constraints journalists often face, facilitating their search for relevant information is very important. Placing the latest press releases on the press landing page can significantly reduce the time and effort required to find relevant press content.
The third most important aspect is to present a link to the latest financial report on your home/index page. Investors and stakeholders often require access to the latest financial reports to make informed decisions about investing in companies. By providing a link to the financial report on the home/index page, you can help investors and other stakeholders access the information they need quickly and easily.
Most important information:
- Presenting financial information in the investment case (98% find this is important)
- Include the latest press releases on the press landing/index page (98% find this important)
- A link to the latest financial report on the Homepage (96% find this important)
Writing a convincing investment case
The main objective of the investment case is to convince investors that investing in your company will provide greater value than other similar offerings. It also shows that the company is transparent and understands the importance of providing credible, interesting, and concise information to potential investors. In addition to presenting financial information in an investment case, other aspects must be covered to convince an investor that it is worth investing in your company.
Industry information
When presenting an investment case, it's essential to provide industry information to help investors understand your position in the market and the potential for growth. Industry information could include market size, trends, and competition. Additionally, industry information can help build credibility and establish the company as a reputable player in the market.
96% of the respondents of the Capital Market survey 2023 find industry information in an investment case important.
Market information
Presenting information about the market in an investment case is essential because it helps investors understand the company's position in the market, the potential for growth, trends and competition. Understanding the market can also help investors identify potential risks to the investment. For example, if the market is highly competitive, it may be more difficult for the company to gain market share and generate profits.
98% of the respondents of the Capital Market survey 2023 find market information in an investment case important.
Targets
Presenting financial targets is crucial in an investment case because it provides investors with a clear understanding of your financial goals and expectations. Financial targets can include revenue growth, profit margins, and return on investment. By outlining these targets, investors can assess your potential for growth and profitability. Financial targets also help investors gauge your company's performance against competitors and industry benchmarks.
Additionally, presenting financial targets demonstrates that your company has a well-defined plan for achieving your goals and is committed to delivering value to shareholders.
95% of the Capital Market survey respondents find information about targets in an investment case important.
Strategy for growth
Clearly explaining your strategy for growth in an investment case is essential because it helps investors understand how your company plans to generate revenue and increase the market share over time. A well-defined growth strategy can demonstrate how your company plans to capitalise on emerging trends, take advantage of new markets, or optimise existing products or services. This information can help investors evaluate the potential for future returns on their investments.
By outlining your growth strategy in an investment case, you can also provide a clear roadmap for achieving your company's financial targets and demonstrate your team's ability to execute your plans.
95% of the respondents of the Capital Market survey 2023 find information about the strategy for growth in an investment case important.
ESG information
Presenting Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) information in an investment case is becoming increasingly important for several reasons. Incorporating ESG factors in investment decisions can help investors identify risks and opportunities that may not be immediately apparent from financial analysis alone. For example, if a company has poor environmental practices, it may face regulatory fines or reputational damage, which could impact their financial performance in the long run.
Additionally, there is growing evidence that companies that perform well on ESG metrics tend to have better financial performance over the long term. For example, companies prioritising environmental sustainability may reduce their costs through energy efficiency measures, while companies prioritising good governance may reduce their legal and regulatory risks.
84% of the Capital Market survey respondents 2023 find ESG information in an investment case important.
Nordea present a clear and concise investment case, covering all necessary aspects and providing clear argument for why someone should invest in their company.
Explaining how you create value
The value proposition defines your company's business model and explains how it will generate revenue and profit. It should be clear what differentiates you from other companies and what your target market is. It is also a statement that should communicate your company's unique value proposition and the benefits you provide to customers, investors, and other stakeholders. It should be clear, concise, and compelling.
Some respondents of the survey elaborated on what a business/value creation model should include:
Why is the current model the best to enhance how good business is done well? Strategy, and the ability and reasons for modifications during implementation.
Need to explain how the company makes money as concisely as possible.
Value creation for owners/investors
When explaining how you create value for owners and investors, it is important to provide a clear and comprehensive explanation of the financial benefits that investing in the company can provide. For example, revenue growth, profitability, return on investment and capital structure.
89% of the Capital Market survey 2023 respondents find information about a company's value creation for owners/investors important.
Value creation for customers
When explaining your value creation for customers, it is important to include information on how your company's products or services meet the needs and desires of your target customers. You also need to explain the unique selling proposition of your products or services, what makes them stand out in the market, and why customers should choose your offerings over your competitors. Other aspects to highlight could be product quality, customer satisfaction, price and value and innovation.
88% of the Capital Market survey 2023 respondents find information about a company's value creation for customers important.
Value creation for employees
When explaining your value creation for employees, you should focus on how your company culture, benefits, and work environment provide value to your employees. This information is also important for other target groups than just employees and jobseekers since attracting and retaining talent is one of the key factors of success for a company. Thus, this information could also interest investors and other stakeholders.
82% of the Capital Market survey 2023 respondents find information about a company's value creation for employees important.
Value creation for society
When explaining your value creation for society, you should focus on how your company's operations and products/services positively impact the community and the environment.
Important areas to explain are, for example, your social impact (how your company contributes to the well-being of society), environmental sustainability (how your company promotes sustainability and works to reduce environmental footprint) and also other CSR initiatives (including any programs aimed at promoting ethical business practices, diversity and inclusion, or social justice).
85% of the Capital Market Survey 2023 respondents find information about a company's value creation for society important.
What's next?
Are you interested in enhancing your corporate website's content? If so, you should consider the Webranking report. It is a powerful tool that offers a comprehensive analysis of your website, covering 100 different criteria, ranging from Investor Relations to Careers content.
By ordering the report, you'll get a detailed breakdown of your website's strengths and weaknesses, allowing you to identify areas for improvement and take your online presence to the next level.