by Thomas Becktold, Senior Vice President, Global Marketing
Turns out, quite a bit. You see, within hours of his terrible injury on the basketball court, fans were flocking to Twitter to offer their support. Unfortunately, most were initially going to a fake Twitter account and weren’t engaging with Kevin Ware at all.
Following the April 2, 2013 SEC Report of Investigation that says social media accounts fall under the guidelines of their 2008 Interpretive Guidance Report on IR sites, we have put together some tips to help public companies in their IR social media efforts.
Social media engagement should be a part of the communications mosaic, but it is not a replacement for full, fair and simultaneous distribution of news achieved through Business Wire. Investor relations professionals appreciate that their audiences are diverse and dispersed and use a wide range of platforms and content sources to access material information.
Social Media Opportunities for Public Companies
Social media channels offer the ability to gather intelligence and engage in two-way conversations, and as part of a comprehensive communications mix, are quite valuable.
Companies should establish official IR-specific social media channels on key platforms, even if they are not ready to use them. If the channels are not active, put a disclaimer or keep them dark.
For those with a solid understanding of social media and their investor audiences, regular, consistent use of the channels for both good news and bad news is key. Just like any other disclosure platform, don’t tweet or post only the good results and skip the bad ones. Once you commit to adding a social media channel to your communications mix, stick to it. If you discontinue use of a channel, communicate that as well.
Establish and publish a clear policy on your company’s use of social media as a supplemental channel to alert investors of disclosure press releases and filings. Cross-reference those channels on your IR site, press releases and filings.
Listen to conversations and track sentiment and influencers, including your company’s Twitter “Cash Tag” – tweets tagged with your ticker symbol preceded by a $. Business Wire now offers social media sentiment analysis reports for press releases via our partnership with NUVI. For real-time monitoring and engagement, the NUVI platform provides an easy visual representation of influencers and sentiment based on the terms you choose.
Privacy: Social media channels have barriers to entry and require the user to set up accounts and agree to the terms and conditions of each channel. Your company does not control those terms and they may be objectionable to those interested in your news. Chances are, your own IR site, as a best-practice, does not require visitors to agree to terms and conditions to access material news.
Fragmentation: Where’s Waldo meets disclosure. As an IRO, do you opt for a wide, instantaneous Business Wire distribution or solely post to Twitter or Facebook and hope people find your material information? Ask yourself, how do your investors, potential investors and media currently access your news? Chances are, it’s through a widely divergent set of sources.
Simultaneity: The fact that users must click on a link to read a full-text announcement (that will reside elsewhere) adds latency and unfairness to the disclosure process.
Usability: Is social media going to meet the needs of your audiences? Is it realistic to ask your institutional investors to hit “Like” on Facebook to get the latest earnings release alongside their elementary school friend’s picture of their latest cake or new puppy? Should you expect your retail investor to stop relying on their brokerage account to access your news because it’s no longer there and instead subscribe to your Twitter feed?
Security: Don’t use social media as your sole means for disclosure: Look at Kevin Ware, the Louisville basketball player and what happened on Twitter just after his recent on-court accident. Someone set up a fake account because, yes, we know it’s that easy to do. And, that fake account had more followers than his real account. Imagine potential investors searching in vain for the “real Twitter account” for your company when breaking news happens? (Or finding that the official account has been hacked, as recently happened to both Burger King and Jeep.) Want to get a “verified” account? Good luck — and it might not make a difference anyway, according to this recent Mashable article. The Business Wire slug ensures a seamless, secure, audited experience.
Reliability: Twitter has been riddled with outages as it grows – think how many times you’ve seen the Fail Whale. Business Wire operates at 99%+ uptime. With your news widely distributed, if one site or system goes down, investors have many others to turn to.
Liability: Leveraging a Business Wire distribution ensures full and fair distribution. Tweeting a release today is akin to walking across a frozen lake in late March. Your odds of making it across are good, not great.
Want to read what journalists and others are saying about the SEC ruling? Here are a few links – the comments sections often provide greater insight for you to consider as a communications professional:
The Daily Dog, as part of their “Exhibitor Insights” video series from this month’s PRSA International Conference, spoke with Tom Becktold, our SVP Marketing, about how PR pros are in a perfect position to drive companies’ greater marketing messages, how social media has given PR a bigger presence in C-suite decision making, and how PR should be guiding marketing and advertising. Check out Tom’s interview with Richard Carufel below:
– by Tom Mulgrew, Vice President – Agency Relations, Business Wire
Tom Mulgrew, Vice President, Agency Relations
Worldcom Group, the world’s leading partnership of global PR firms, is holding its annual “Americas” conference soon and it looks like another fabulous line-up of speakers and programming.
It all happens Sept. 19-21 in Vancouver, and I will be there mingling with agency principals from all over the West Hemisphere: from Boston to Buenos Aires.
Established in 1988, Worldcom today boasts a membership of more than 100 agencies with more offices in cities and countries than any other multinational organization.
It was formed so that strong PR firms could serve national, international and multi-national clients while retaining the flexibility and client-service focus inherent in independent agencies.
What I like most about this conference is the networking/socializing. It gives PR professionals the chance to talk in an informal setting about anything. And whether the topic be social media, client retention, measurement or corporate social responsibility, the exchanges are always robust and engaging.
Worldcom in Vancouver. Stay tuned for an update in a few weeks.
by Nicholas Messing, XBRL Accountant, Business Wire New York
Nicholas Messing
The upcoming filing season looks to be one of the busiest yet for XBRL preparers, with all US public companies submitting financial statements to the SEC required to include detail-tagged XBRL as of June 15, 2012. As the XBRL mandate reaches full implementation for SEC filings, the functionality of XBRL continues to expand through various initiatives including the DATA Act, corporate actions, and Business Wire’s Retail Report.
XBRL has increased its presence in the US Congress with the Digital Accountability and Transparency Act, which the House of Representatives unanimously passed on April 25, 2012. Known as the DATA act, this bill provides for a broader implementation of data reporting standards to track federal spending data. Following its strong bipartisan success in the House, the DATA Act has been referred to the Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs. Similar to the Child and Family Services Innovation and Improvement Act, which was signed into law in October 2011, the DATA Act includes a significant reference to XBRL: “In designating reporting standards… the Commission shall, to the extent practicable, incorporate existing nonproprietary standards, such as the eXtensible Business Reporting Language (XBRL).”
XBRL US released the 2012 Corporate Actions Taxonomy for public comment on May 17, 2012. This is the second version of the Corporate Actions Taxonomy, designed to tag over 50 types of corporate actions announcements, including mergers and acquisitions, dividends, redemptions, tender offers, and stock splits. Approximately 200,000 corporate actions are released each year in the US, and these textual announcements require time-consuming manual steps to process as financial data. XBRL tagging of corporate actions releases would enhance the efficiency of downstream processing across the financial community. XBRL US has teamed with The Depository Trust & Clearing Corporation (DTCC) and The Society for Worldwide Interbank Financial Telecommunication (SWIFT) to promote the use of XBRL tagging for corporate actions in accordance with the existing ISO (International Organization for Standardization) standards.
On May 3, 2012, Business Wire became the first commercial newswire to map, tag and disseminate its own content in XBRL format. XBRL exhibits utilizing the US GAAP taxonomy now accompany Business Wire’s Retail Report, which is released monthly to Business Wire’s full national circuit. Published on the day that retailers announce sales figures for the previous month, the report tracks specialty apparel and general merchandise retailers’ monthly and year-to-date total sales with percentage comparisons across periods, alongside comparative stores’ sales growth data. To date, the April and May 2012 Retail Reports have been published with supplemental XBRL files, which may be freely downloaded and rendered through the SEC’s XBRL previewer, to facilitate analysis of retail sales data. Two members of Business Wire’s XBRL team, Senior XBRL Financial Reporting Specialist Belayneh Alemayehu and Junior XBRL Accountant Khondakar Moin, have provided their expertise to translate the Retail Report into XBRL. While Business Wire’s XBRL team has been proactively preparing for the final wave of the SEC’s XBRL mandate, we have also implemented a new innovation in interactive data.
by Danny Selnick, Vice President of Public Policy Services, Business Wire DC
The upcoming presidential election and national political conventions are looking to be a contentious time. No doubt this will be an interesting election cycle where also the entire House of Representatives is up for grabs, as is nearly one-third the Senate.
So will the president (incumbent or newly elected) have a Congressional majority that can push along and support legislation that’s near and dear to him? Or will the country have a divided Congress that will keep it in political gridlock? The stakes are huge with political and economic and even global ramifications. Not even the pundits can agree. But one thing’s for sure, professional communicators with some interest in the outcomes will need to get the word out. The question is, with what strategy?
No longer can public affairs communicators rely solely on getting their message out to traditional media. They must also reach out to grass-roots supporters, influentials and voters by using social media — and use it effectively in creating powerful networks and communities. Additionally, communicators must use powerful search engine optimization tools to make sure their news is seen.
Let’s not also forget that the United States Supreme Court will be handing down its decision on the constitutionality of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. Should the Court let the Act remain as is, not much will change and the law that was enacted two years ago will continue to be implemented. There will be those organizations and state governments that will remain opposed, but they’ll have to abide by the ruling. However, should the Court rule against the Act, no one really knows what will happen. Dismantling what has already been in effect will not be easy, and the Republican Leadership (including Mr. Romney, as well as those even at the state level) will have to come through on their promise of a better plan.
In sum, public affairs/corporate communicators and government relations professionals should be working on their messaging and thinking about the tactics to reaching all their key audiences. One more very important point to mention is that the American public (and voters) is not homogeneous. Far from it. Communicators need to remember to include messaging to the Hispanic community (that has been growing in numbers, power and importance) as well as to African-American, Asian-American and other groups.
Selnick is Business Wire’s Vice President for Public Policy and LatinoWire Services and developed specialty targeted services that are designed to reach any organization’s key audiences — from the media to decision-makers … to getting your message in front of the public that goes online looking for news. The Public Policy Wire also includes Issues-Focused Lists that reach beat reporters by personalized email — including Health Care and Presidential Campaign.
by Molly Pappas, Media Relations Specialist, Business Wire Boston
Last Thursday, over 100 PR and communications professionals attended Business Wire Boston’s media panel breakfast event focused on the ever-changing media landscape. Panelists from the Boston Business Journal, Christian Science Monitor, Boston Herald, Patch.com and Mass High Tech discussed how news is changing in a digital environment, ways publications measure success and the differing views on paywalls.
Panelists included Frank Quaratiello, Boston Herald’s business editor, George Donnelly, executive editor at Boston Business Journal, Mass High Tech’s newest associate editor, Don Seiffert, associate regional editor of Patch.com, Abby Jordan, and Leigh Montgomery, Christian Science Monitor’s librarian. Business Wire’s own Sanford Paek, Group Vice President of Eastern U.S. and Canada, served as moderator.
L-R: Sanford Paek, Frank Quaratiello, George Donnelly, Abby Jordan, Leigh Montgomery, Don Seiffert
Here are some of the highlights from the discussion:
News changing in a digital environment:
Digital formatting has changed the way in which the media address their audience. In terms of storytelling, the visual experience online can be interesting. Donnelly says the Boston Business Journal runs two to three slideshows a week.
The Boston Herald has played around with its homepage and moved the video player there, and has since seen a dramatic increase on time spent on the site. Videos bring in about 180,000 views.
Digital environments have brought about a different world of immediacy to Jordan and her Patch.com team. They do not wait for an end-of-the-day deadline like print publications; instead, they are continually updating their sites, usually five to seven times a day. “The site is not just for people to consume, but to interact with,” says Jordan. For example, people can upload their own events on the site for display.
“We need to put aside old media/new media; it’s just media,” says Montgomery. In 2009, the Christian Science Monitor was the first international publication to drop its daily print and move to a Web daily only. They still adhere to a publishing schedule, but she says they have more flexibility to publish throughout the day online (usually 30 stories per day).
Seiffert has found that the length of stories and deadlines are affected by the digital environment. “There are losses to the digital age. You lose the ability to report longer, more well-crafted stories,” he says.
Measuring success:
Patch.com is unique in that it does not have a print subscription number to base its success on. “We are the new kids on the block. We measure success on the number of unique visitors on the site, the number of comments on a story, how our readers interact with the site,” Jordan says.
For Quaratiello and the Boston Herald, circulation of print product is an obvious measure of success. But it’s also about the visitors online, who are building a community and using the Herald as a “meeting place” of sorts. The Herald has helped create a forum, engaging the paper and its readers.
As an online publication, the Christian Science Monitor can draw on a lot of online usage data, such as quizzes, to monitor success. The core, however, is solution seeking, Montgomery says. When a story is being discussed and you hear and see it in conversation, that is considered a measure of success.
While the Boston Business Journal has really embraced analytics, they try not to allow it to be the sole decision maker on the news they cover and publish. “We want to give people as much as we can in an interesting way,” says Donnelly.
For Seiffert, there is a constant struggle between balancing context and ‘hits.’ “We measure success on Tweets, join/follows on Facebook, the most read and most emailed articles. But there is a danger of losing the personal connection,” he says.
Paid content vs. free:
“Readers aren’t tired of free news, the newspapers are tired of giving out free news,” says Seiffert.
“I do not think paid online subscriptions will be successful. It’s just not going to pay the bills,” says Quaratiello. Donnelly, however, disagrees. He sees the tide turning in the other direction, and believes that it’s necessary. “Newspapers are realizing that readers need to subsidize revenue. Newspapers are dispersing news worth paying for. Valuable news shouldn’t be free,” he argues.
Patch.com has not looked at a paywall. They use metrics to get advertisers, thus bring in revenue.
Because of the Christian Science Monitor’s multiplatform model (Internet first and paid print subscriptions), Montgomery believes the publication will be self-sustaining by 2017 because of the revenue they bring in.
The panelists ended the event with a few quick pointers on how they like to be pitched:
Seiffert always likes to talk to someone directly. However, if that isn’t possible, provide links or pointers to other primary sources he can contact.
“When we get information, our day begins. It’s frustrating and annoying when someone sends in a release at 5, then leaves and we can’t get them on the phone,” Quaratiello says.
Both Jordan and Donnelly are happy to accept photos, but he advises that they be no more than 1 megabyte. Editors and reporters are weary of opening photo attachments because they can cause computers to freeze or shut down.
For more upcoming local Business Wire events or to see what’s coming up in our award-winning webinar series, visit our events page or follow Business Wire events on Twitter, hashtag #bwchat.
by Andrea Gillespie, Account Executive, Business Wire Chicago
With Chicago being the third largest media market in the US, many national media contacts call The Windy City home. Whether their beat is the entire Midwest or specific industry groups, knowing who’s who in the Chicago national media scene can earn you more placements. In April, Business Wire hosted some of these national news gatekeepers to learn what types of pitches stand out and how to get national attention for your company or client.
Based in NPR’s Chicago Bureau, Cheryl Corley travels primarily throughout the Midwest, covering issues and events from Ohio to South Dakota as a National Desk reporter.
Pitch tips:
Cheryl is interested in stories that have a national or at least a broad Midwestern scope. If a story is too focused on one specific state or city, she will refer the person to the local station.
Because of the radio format, she is not as interested in video. Adding still photography is helpful to create interest in your pitch, but no attachments.
The librarians for NPR are frequently called upon by NPR correspondents to do research for stories, so they are good contacts to have. They regularly scour and post queries to social media sites for experts.
Jason Dean, Chicago Bureau Chief, The Wall Street Journal and Dow Jones Newswires
Jason Dean oversees coverage of subjects including economic, political and cultural developments in the Midwest; national education issues; the agriculture and foods business; the airline and aerospace industries; and key financial exchanges.
Pitch tips:
Jason prefers personal pitches – just plugging his name into an email that went to a large group of people doesn’t fool him.
He also suggests doing research to identify which WSJ/Dow Jones reporter covers your industry. The Chicago Bureau does not cover all Chicago companies. For example, Chicago tech companies are covered by the San Francisco bureau.
Pitch visuals. With every story they cover, they consider what type of video component can be added to it. While they prefer to shoot their own video, it’s helpful to include a link to b-roll or your spokesperson in action in your pitch. He requests links only – no attachments.
Andy Fies, Producer, ABC News
Great crowd at the BW Chicago event!
Andy Fies is one of two producers based in ABC’s Midwest Bureau covering stories for World News with Diane Sawyer,Good Morning America, Nightline and ABCNews.com. His primary area of responsibility is news of national interest from the nation’s heartland.
Pitch tips:
Andy is interested in covering stories from all Midwestern companies, but he is mostly drawn to those that show how people on the street are being affected. They want to put a personal view into every story they cover.
As ABC recently merged with Yahoo! News, consider the digital version of your story. This means photos and visuals of your story are necessary.
Greg Stricharchuk, Editor, Sunday Business Section, The Chicago Tribune
As an editor in the business news section, Greg Stricharchuk works with reporters and helps conceptualize and edit their stories. He’s also specifically responsible for the Sunday business section.
Pitch tips:
While you can copy Greg on your pitches to reporters, it’s best to read the paper and know who writes about your topic. Pitch them directly first.
Greg is mainly interested in publicly held companies – not so much private companies or organizations, unless they are starting an industry trend or obtaining significant funding.
Don’t pitch experts 2-3 days after a story breaks. Oftentimes, stories are starting to form days before the actual news breaks. Get your expert pitches to the appropriate editor before that happens.
Remember that the Tribune is comprised of six newspapers, online sites and TV stations. Pitches that show how the story can cross all mediums are typically well-received.
Thanks again to all of our clients and the communications professionals who were able to join us.
For more upcoming local Business Wire events or to see what’s coming up in our award-winning webinar series, visit our events page or follow Business Wire events on Twitter, hashtag #bwchat.
It’s that time of year again! Business Wire is again headed to the Annual Berkshire Hathaway Shareholders Meeting in Omaha. As always, we’ll be selling a great item at our booth to support a great cause. This year, we’re selling commemorative Berkshire Hathaway Shareholder Meeting pins. Check them out:
Pins will sell for $3 each, or 2 pins for $5, and all proceeds will once again benefit CASA of Douglas County, Neb. CASA (Court Appointed Special Advocates) is a charitable organization that provides a voice for abused and neglected children within the court system.
So if you’re at the show, stop by our booth & say “Hello”, buy a pin and support a great cause!
With the biggest sporting event in the world at our doorstep, join us for a discussion about how the Olympics affects the media landscape. Panelists include: Matt Ball, Editor-in-Chief of MSN UK, Scott Dougal, Deputy Sports Editor, the Press Association, Duncan Hooper, Managing Editor, News & Sport, MSN and Darren Waters, Head of Devices & Social Media, MSN / ex-BBC journalist. This event is FREE for public relations and communications professionals.
Wednesday, May 2 at 8:45 AM BST
St Bride Foundation
Bride Lane, Fleet StreetLondon , EC4Y 8EQ, United Kingdom
Join Business Wire Boston for breakfast and a panel discussion with members of the local media. Learn about current trends in journalism, what kind of news editors are looking for, and how to effectively pitch a story. Panelists include: George Donnelly - Executive Editor, Boston Business Journal, Abby Jordan – Associate Regional Editor, AOL’s Patch.com, Leigh Montgomery – Librarian, Christian Science Monitor, Frank Quaratiello – Business Editor, Boston Herald and Don Seiffert – Associate Editor, News, Mass High Tech. This event is FREE for all attendees.
Thursday, May 3 at 8:00 AM ET
Westin Waltham Hotel
70 Third Avenue, Waltham, MA, 02451
Learn Tips for Reaching and Pitching Hispanic Media, a Critically Important and Growing Segment of the American Community. Daniel Montano, President/CE) of Elevation Creation International moderates a panel, including María Rozman, News Director, KDEN Telemundo Denver; Roberto Martínez-Maestre, General Director, El Hispano; Kim DeVigil, Senior Director, Communications, University of Denver; and Luisa Collins, News Director, Univision Colorado. This event is FREE for Business Wire members and $20 for non-members.
Thursday, May 3 at 8:30 AM MDT
Denver Athletic Club
1325 Glenarm Place, Denver, CO, 80204
Local media professionals will discuss how to effectively pitch news to the media. Panelists include Dion Lim, News Anchor, WCNC; David Harris, Managing Editor, The Charlotte Business Journal and John Arwood, Business Editor, The Charlotte Observer. This event is FREE for Business Wire members and $20 for non-members.
Tuesday, May 22 at 7:30 AM ET
Dilworth Neighborhood Grille
911 East Morehead St, Charlotte, NC, 28204
Hosted by Business Wire Dallas, with NIRI, PRSA, IABC and Critical Mention
What metrics really matter? How can metrics drive strategy? Join IABC, PRSA, NIRI, Business Wire & Critical Mention for the annual joint communications lunch, as Katie Paine, CEO of KDPaine & Partners, provides measurement insight on “best in class” measurement programs for 2012, best measurement tools today, where measurement is headed and more. Standard Luncheon Fees apply: Full-time Student $25.00, Guest $50.00 , Member $40.00 and Table of 10: $500.
Thursday, May 31 at 11:15 AM CT
Thanksgiving Tower (Tower Club)
1601 Elm Street, Dallas, TX, 75201
To register: Please RSVP by May 28 at 10:00 pm on this page
Business Wire holds dozens of local events every year. We bring local media members and industry thought leaders to your market to discuss today’s most relevant topics, from trends in today’s newsrooms to writing for SEO. Events are usually free of charge to members. For more upcoming local Business Wire events or to see what’s coming up in our award-winning webinar series, visit BusinessWire.com. Follow live updates from Business Wire events on Twitter: hash tag #bwchat
by Warner Boutin, Account Executive & Luis Guillen, Media Relations Specialist, Business Wire LA
Business Wire LA hosted a media panel breakfast event on Wednesday, March 28th examining best practices for online newsrooms.
Business Wire’s VP Web Communications, Ibrey Woodall moderated the panel. Panelists included Brian O’Connor, Director of Marketing & PR, Cunard Cruise Line; Serena Ehrlich, Director of Marketing, Mogreet; Deborah Braidic, Manager Website Content/Internal Communications, Children’s Hospital LA and Amanda Hedlund, Web Communications & Media Relations Specialist, Children’s Hospital LA.
L-R: Amanda Hedlund, Deborah Braidic, Brian O’Connor, Serena Ehrlich & moderator Ibrey Woodall
Half (48.4%) of corporate communicators currently have an online newsroom
The online newsroom remains a relatively modest investment for most companies
Companies are integrating their social media activity into their newsrooms
Two most important site features: PR contacts and search module
On building your online newsroom:
Stakeholders should come together from the very beginning – O’Connor
Corporate communications and web development must be on same page. “We streamlined things early, which prevented the marriage from falling apart down the road” – Braidic
Know your audience’s needs. “We make sure our audience can quickly find our latest news” – Hedlund
Determine what content your audience wants to see
Journalists want quick access to your newsroom rather than searching full site
On making your online newsroom relevant:
Customize newsroom based on top 3 most frequently accessed content type:
Photos, press releases & b-roll – Cunard Cruise Line
Multimedia, PR contacts and all social media content – Mogreet
Multimedia, Experts/Physicians lists and protected logos – Children’s Hospital
Categorize your releases and list experts as well – Ehrlich
Use inbound site traffic to create potential blog posts. “I check the web traffic analytics for blog ideas” – Ehrlich
Analyze your online newsroom’s web page stats on a weekly basis
Make your corporate blog accessible on your online newsroom
On online newsroom maintenance, crisis communication and security:
Every company should have dark site ability, allowing you to prepare pages ahead of time for a potential crisis
Dark sites need to be light on graphics and multimedia
Some of my clients maintain 10-12 different dark sites for “just-in-case” situations – Ehrlich
You must know your target market if you’re going to password protect your newsroom – Ehrlich
Password protected content needed sometimes:
We don’t want somebody pulling a photo archive on a ship we don’t manage anymore – Cunard Cruise Line
Sometimes we’ll use passwords to prevent logos from being stolen – Children’s Hospital LA
For more upcoming local Business Wire events or to see what’s coming up in our award-winning webinar series, visit our events page or follow Business Wire events on Twitter, hashtag #bwchat.
Posted by Tom Becktold, SVP Marketing, Business Wire 
