Telling your corporate investment story the right way

By Leah Schothorst

Good investors look for a reason to invest in a company, yet very few websites do a successful job in presenting an investment case.

Our Webranking research show that three out of four investors think it’s important to find a corporate investment story on the corporate website. However, only a few of the largest companies across Europe take the time and effort to clearly outline their corporate investment story. All the others expect their visitors to do the work – to piece it together from random bits of information sprayed across the website. The 12 percent that actually do present their investment story properly are surely at an advantage. With a clear and engaging investment case their potential investor can understand the key strengths, uniqueness and value drivers of the company in just a few seconds. This gives investors a coherent view of why they should invest and could consequently attract a broader shareholder base. It also serves as extra ammunition for attracting job seekers curious about where the company is heading and how it generates operational growth.

How do you create an engaging story?

The recipe behind a successful investment story is a combination of hard facts and the ability to convey a feeling. According to Helena Nordman-Knutson, senior advisor in Investor Relations at our sister agency Hallvarsson & Halvarsson, the work includes both a communicative review and a conceptualisation of the business model, strategy, goals and results.

Make sure to explain trends and market expectations too

Growth drivers are another decisive piece of information. Nine out of ten investors think that it’s important to read about future market trends, expectations and challenges and how these will affect the company’s operations and growth. But here again is a big gap between what stakeholders want and what the websites provide. Many companies talk about the challenges for the coming year but omit a comprehensive, long-term view of the market and its opportunities. So, when planning your website content make sure to include your growth drivers and investment story as they give an overview of the company and its long-term goals ahead.

The investment story forms the alpha argument to why one should invest. The essence is that an elaborated story addresses both the logic and the emotion of an investor brain.