This document summarizes a webinar on best practices for investor relations web sites. It provides an overview of the webinar presenters and methodology used to evaluate 50 corporate web sites. The webinar addressed common barriers that public companies face, such as not gearing information to various investor audiences, making key information difficult to access, failing to convey a compelling investment proposition, and lacking engaging content. Specific examples were provided of web sites that effectively overcame these barriers through tactics like integrating investor content on the homepage, using tabbed pages and pull downs to improve accessibility, defining the company story, and offering customization options.

1. IR WEB SITE BEST PRACTICES WEBINAR
April 30, 2009
Presenter: Catherine Crofton, VP Sales & Marketing
Moderator: Sheryl Joyce, Director, Marketing Communications
Manage your disclosure faster, easier and with less compliance risk.

2. Q4 Web Systems – Introduction
 Software to help public companies
manage online disclosure
 Faster, easier & with less compliance
risk
 Solutions for the
corporate/investor web site
 Experience provides insights into
challenges that issuers face
 Catherine Crofton
VP Sales & Marketing

3. Methodology
 CICA Corporate Reporting Awards experience
 Annually audit 50+ sites
 Selected from Fortune 500,
ROB 1000 – all sectors
 Input from:
 IR Leaders
 Third-party surveys
 Webinars, conferences & industry sources
 Regulatory guidelines

4. Importance of IR Web Site:
 75% of portfolio managers
use weekly if not daily
Never
Yearly 3%
 47% of investment 8%
Daily
professionals rate as very Monthly 32%
or extremely important 14%
 45% of US portfolio
managers say their
perceptions are
substantially impacted by a Weekly
43%
company‟s corporate site
Source: Rivel Research

5. BARRIER #1:
Information not geared to
various investor audiences

6. User Motivations
 Introduction
 Who, what, why, how? Market position. Investment proposition.
 Should I recommend/invest with you?
 Assurance
 What‟s new? Why does it matter?
 Did I make the right decision/recommendation?
 What‟s next?
 Reference
 Where can I find it?
 Access data quickly and easily
 To stay informed and source new information

7. Entry Points for all Users
Example of a fairly standard best
practice approach to a home page
with investor content integrated.
Multiple entry points to Investor
section & content– directly from the
home page.
Intro to company in centre panel
provides content to the new user
(should link to more) because that‟s
the route they‟re going to take.
Latest news, reports, results, stock
quotes all available off the home
page for all users.
Longer-term user will likely go
straight to IR section.
http://www.nexeninc.com/

8. BARRIER #2:
Key information not easily accessible

9. Difficult to Access Key Content
 Navigational structure is not standard or consistent
 Home/investor index lack quick entry points to key content
 No navigational aids - „You are here‟
 Lack of quick links to bring information forward
 Information location is not intuitive
 No helpful aids to sort/search information

10. Homepage
Boxes in middle
provide quick
links to bring key
information
forward.
Tag cloud is a
helpful aid to
search information.
It automatically
updates page with
prioritization of
most frequently
accessed content
for next visit.
http://www.shell.com/

11. Homepage Integration of Investor Content
Clean, uncluttered
home page.
Long-term investor:
Flash panel Quick entry and exit –
highlights What‟s new? (RSS
upcoming prompt right from here).
events/key
messages.
Pull Recent investor:
downs News
provide Latest financials
immediate Upcoming events.
access to
key
content. Mobile access –
easy way for all
investors to stay
informed.
New Investor:
Pull down – Why
invest?
http://www.potashcorp.com/

12. IR Index Page Centre panel keeps investors updated on new IR information and
upcoming events/presentations – great for long-term user.
Ability to print or email
page, sign up for
Immediate access RSS feeds.
to „Why Invest?‟
Stock price
Comprehensive
information.
sub-navigation gets
all users into
content quickly. Explanations for things
like icons & quick
troubleshooting for file
access problems
demonstrate intent to
make easy for users.
Latest news
releases.
Quick Links & pull
down for frequently
Plain language accessed information.
URL– easy to
maintain bookmark
http://www.potashcorp.com/investor_relations/

13. IR Index Page
Great use of
feature boxes to
highlight priority
content.
Tabbed pages
allows users to Comprehensive sub-
choose info of navigation provides
interest right off entry into great
the index page supporting info re:
– defaults to investment proposition.
News „At a
Glance‟.
Executive
perspectives help
you „know‟ the
people. Also has
Customer stories &
product reviews.
http://www.sun.com/aboutsun/investor/resources.jsp

14. IR Index Page
Lower part of
Sun‟s investor
index “Highlights”
provides quick
entry into all
other frequently
accessed
content.
http://www.sun.com/aboutsun/investor/resources.jsp

15. News Releases
Great feature to enable
user to look up press
releases by year, subject &
keyword.
http://www.cadburyinvestors.com/cadbury_ir/press_releases/?pr=1&yearall=&categories=fin_corp&image.x=11&image.y=7

16. News
Segments news in
one area. Offers
ability to search right
off tab to go into
Library where you
can search all
segments at once by
year. Can sign up for
RSS on any of them
or all news.
http://www.potashcorp.com/investor_relations/news_and_events/news/news_releases

17. Quarterly Results
Great summary of
information for Q3
results – a picture
and quotation from
the CEO, financial
highlights followed
by key bullets and
then the entire
document, with
links to all relevant
info/formats at the
top of the page.
http://www.nexeninc.com/Investors/President_Update/Update1.asp

18. Quarterly Reports
Great annual view with
archives immediately
available.
Segments quarterly
information under “item”.
http://h30261.www3.hp.com/phoenix.zhtml?c=71087&p=irol-reportsOther2008

19. BARRIER #3:
Content does not convey or summarize
a compelling investment proposition

20. Why Invest? – Requirements
 Company background
 Market data
 Unique strengths & why they‟re important
 Mission
 Strategic objectives
 Leadership
 Past performance

21. Define Your Story
Uses interactive online
annual report to aid in
defining their story.
“More per acre” encapsulates
vision statement. The problem
and the need are intertwined Vision Statement: “Play a key role in the
throughout all of the Company‟s global food solution while building long-term
communications. It directly
connects to their vision value for all our stakeholders.”
statement.
http://www.potashcorp.com/microsite/annual_report/2008/our_story/

22. Why Invest?
Potash provides top level
information on the global
market opportunity for their
product „potash „and how
their company is poised to
capitalize on this.
Embedded links pop out
charts and graphs to
illustrate problem &
opportunity.
http://www.potashcorp.com/investor_relations/why_invest/six_keys/

23. Why Invest? Why Invest linked to in-depth information on all aspects of
their business including global trends & statistics that really
illustrate their market opportunity & investment proposition.
See “Global Development” pull down for details.
Pull down: have
downloadable „Business
Overview‟. This entire
section on Global
Development plays as a
slide show. Have also
included a glossary of
terms.
http://www.potashcorp.com/investor_relations/industry_overview/2008/our_business/global_development/

24. Why Invest? Intertwine the six keys to understanding their business in
repurposed sections from their online report – use some
flash but mostly static pages with embedded links, lots of
charts providing market data. And they repeat this story –
„Helping Produce More Per Acre‟.
http://www.potashcorp.com/investor_relations/why_invest/six_keys/

25. Company “About Us” – Answers question of “Who we are. What we do.
Where we‟re going. How we‟re going to get there.
History includes a
Addresses leadership and accountability.
pull down for each
year with
performance
overview and
stories on
achievements in
ESR.
The Strategy is
also highlighted on
this page.
UK survey by Real World indicates that 91% of investors
said they wanted more background on a company and its
competitors.
http://www.potashcorp.com/investor_relations/company_profile/#strategy

26. Markets Information
The “Markets
Information” section
provides extensive
information on the
markets as well as the
ability to sign up for
email alerts and RSS
feeds for changes in
market conditions.
http://www.potashcorp.com/investor_relations/markets_information/market_analysis_reports/

27. Management Views
This page adds value as it
provides insights related
to management expertise
such as: impact of climate
change, safety, customer
relations, workplace
skills, competitive
landscape, risk
management. Available as
MP3 with transcripts.
http://www.potashcorp.com/investor_relations/management_views/interviews/

28. BARRIER #4:
Key content is missing, in wrong format
or just not engaging

29. Common Mistakes
 Content is missing
 Too much information in PDF format
 Overuse of dark background with knockout type
 Long monotonous scrolls
 Amateur photography
 Little/no use of multi-media

30. Snapshot Info/Relational Links
They use the right rail for relational links – as a way of
bringing information forward & moving users deeper into the
site.
Danisco uses the
centre panel to provide
fast facts on their
company.
Often we see Fast Facts in the right
rail along with Quick Links as a way
of highlighting key information from
the centre panel.
Most companies underutilize this.
http://www.danisco.com/cms/connect/corporate/about%20danisco/danisco%20in%20brief/danisco_in_brief_en.htm

31. Imagery Provides Visual Break
+
Smaller companies
have indicated they
typically don‟t have big
+ budgets for visuals.
To illustrate how
inexpensive, we found
the same images on
istock for $12.
+
Without imagery, this
page wouldn‟t be nearly
as inviting. Images
= $12
prompt a user to dig
further.
http://www.potashcorp.com/microsite/annual_report/2008/our_story/

32. Beyond the PDF – Communicating Board Skills
Many companies normally include
Board and officer bios, but usually
only include a reverse chronology of
the positions they‟ve held with no
emphasis on expertise.
Nexen does a great job on this page -
spell out areas of expertise and puts
this information in a matrix. The
matrix describes how the expertise of
their directors combine to help
execute the company‟s strategy and
ensure appropriate oversight.
http://www.nexeninc.com/Governance/Board/Board_Bios.asp

33. Detailed shot of Nexen matrix below. It provides
Beyond the PDF the combined skills of their directors. They also
provide their process for evaluating the performance
of their board.
http://www.nexeninc.com/Governance/Board/AreasofExpertise.asp http://www.nexeninc.com/Governance/Board/performance_evaluations.asp

34. Scorecards Provide Quick Snapshot
The use of score cards is a
growing trend. It is useful
for showing investors how
they measure their
performance against goals
and then update their
progress.
Details performance
against annual governance
goals and targets. Allows
user to call up performance
records for previous three
years.
http://www.potashcorp.com/governance/goals_performance/

35. Beyond the PDF – Communicates Transparency
This section summarizes
information pertaining to
each Board member. The
notes link to an explanation
of terms.
One area not covered in
this chart is compensation
– which is covered in detail
in a different section. Would
be even better if they
included it all in one spot.
http://www.petro-canada.ca/en/corpgov/895.aspx

36. Offering Multiple Formats
Information is provided in a
variety of formats – a
complete PDF report, a
summary report, an online
version and a print version.
http://www.shell.com/home/content/responsible_energy/sustainability_reports/dir_shell_sustainability_reports.html

37. BARRIER #5:
Lack of methods/tools to aid
relationship/brand building

38. Communicating Accessibility
A lot of companies miss the opportunity to make it
easy for investors to call and ask questions. Instead
of providing a contact name and their information
they use a generic address such as info@investors.
Making IRO‟s (and
their teams) easily
accessible gives a
company
credibility. In
addition to
providing full
contact
information, Bayer
even puts a face
to the person – a
very good way of
engaging current
and potential
investors.
http://www.investor.bayer.com/en/funktionsnavigation/kontakt/ir-team/

39. Communicating Accessibility
Ability to contact the Board
varies by company, from
anonymous email forms
(Petro Canada) to mail
/email specific titles such
as Chair, Audit
Committee, Ombudsmen
(Potash & GE – which also
provides a phone number)
to providing a specific
contact name, as Nexen
has done.
https://www.petro-canada.ca/en/corpgov/763.aspx
http://www.potashcorp.com/about_potashcorp/management_and_bod/contact_board/
http://www.nexeninc.com/Governance/Contact_Information.asp

40. Communicating Accessibility
Coca-Cola details exactly
how mail is handled and
indicates that the majority
of information actually
makes it to the board.
http://www.thecoca-colacompany.com/investors/contact_board.html

41. Customization – 'My Page' Aviva has a “design your own
information” page – very simple
to set up; you just check off items
you want or choose a profile from
a pull down menu.
http://www.aviva.com/index.asp?pageid=3

42. Customization – Investor Briefcase
The term “Investor Briefcase” means many different things
– here it offers „wish list‟ functionality that let‟s you choose
items as you move through the site and view them in a
summary area.
http://ir.healthstream.com/briefcase.cfm

43. Frequently Sought Information – Investor Briefcase
Cameco also uses an “Investor Briefcase” which
allows users to consolidate the most sought after
information.
http://www.cameco.com/investors/briefcase/

44. Staying in Touch – Newsletters
Companies of all sizes offer regular newsletters to
provide greater insight into operations etc. This helps
keep investors up-to-date and engaged.
http://www.stockholders-newsletter-q1-09.bayer.com/en/homepage.aspx

45. Staying in Touch – Segmented Email Alerts
We surmise that approximately 90% of
companies offer email alerts. More and more
are now using segmented email alerts. Aviva
maximizes this tool through the various types
of information they allow users to download
on the right-hand panel – i.e. news, earnings
releases, presentation, reports.
http://www.aviva.com/index.asp?pageid=933&tools=alerts

46. Staying in Touch – Segmented RSS Feeds
RSS feeds are one of the best aids to address the
SEC‟s new disclosure guidance under Reg FD. Unlike
email, which can be blocked in spam filters, RSS feeds
can distribute timely information to your users as soon
as that information becomes available.
Leading
companies
such as GE
are now
offering
segmented
RSS feeds –
which
again, allow
users to
select
information of
their choice.
http://www.ge.com/news/newsfeeds/index.html

47. Social Media Integration
Here we look at a web site that integrates „sharing‟ through
social media, one way of gaining a greater exposure online.
http://www.agnico-eagle.com/English/GrowthProjects/Strategy/default.aspx

48. Conclusion – Ask Yourself These Questions
 Am I addressing all user motivations?
 Am I getting people into key content quickly?
 Am I connecting the dots on our investment proposition?
 Am I engaging my users?
 Do I have tactics/tools to aid relationship building?

49. IR WEB SITE BEST PRACTICES
www.q4websystems.com
Manage your disclosure faster, easier and with less compliance risk.