The tangible indicators to measure your success
For IR teams, evaluating the effectiveness of earnings calls is crucial to demonstrate the success of the event itself, but also plays a part in the perception of the value the function adds to the company.
Stock valuation, shareholder buy-in and retention, analyst ratings and coverage – along with media reporting – are all tangible indicators of whether an earnings call event has resulted in a positive impact on a company. Alongside these measurable metrics, however, IROs also need to consider more qualitative aspects, such as investor perception and the sentiment within analyst and media coverage. While there is no one-size-fits-all answer and many aspects to consider, effective message dissemination is a common theme for our IR experts.
‘Message pull-through is how I would typically gauge the success of an earnings call,’ details Lynn Antipas Tyson of Ford. ‘Are we seeing and hearing the main points we wanted to emphasize? Do the analysts understand the points we made, even if they disagree with them?’
The IR team monitors direct feedback as well as analyst and media coverage to ensure our key messages were landed
Describing her process, Aston Martin’s Holly Grainger adds: ‘We receive good access data from our call provider. The IR team monitors direct feedback as well as analyst and media coverage to ensure our key messages were landed.’
Evaluating the comprehension and tone of messaging is also a key factor for FedEx in measuring the efficacy of its earning calls, as IR vice president Mickey Foster describes: ‘Do our investors, analysts and media understand and comprehend the major strategic messages? We read every sell-side research report and media clip regarding earnings. We also listen and view media clips from CNBC and Bloomberg to make sure our messages are coming across to listeners accurately and correctly.’
