More and more public companies are trying to create a “TiVo-like experience” when communicating with employees, investors and stock analysts, a business executive told about 50 attendees Tuesday at a Denver luncheon.
A small but growing number of companies are using features such as on-demand content, Internet-based graphics and streaming video during conference calls and road shows with investors and analysts, said Rimas Buinevicius, chairman and chief executive of Sonic Foundry, based in Madison, Wis.
Buinevicius’ company sells software that allows users to create, record and design digital media files.
The broad offering of media, sometimes known as rich media, is starting to supplant traditional corporate communications such as audio-only conference calls and face-to-face meetings with institutional investors.
“We shouldn’t fight the trend, we should welcome it,” said Buinevicius, speaking to a gathering of business people at a monthly luncheon hosted by the Rocky Mountain Chapter of the National Investor Relations Institute.
He said a company that uses a diverse blend of digital media can more effectively – and inexpensively – communicate with investors, analysts and workers.
Buinevicius pointed to tactics used by Lockheed Martin, the Bethesda, Md.-based defense contractor with operations in Colorado. He said Lockheed saved $2 million in travel costs by hosting sales meeting via the Web instead of sending executives from city to city. He said less than 10 percent of U.S. public companies have fully adopted the rich media model.
He added that people learn in three primary ways – hearing, seeing and touching – and that rich media addresses each one. Highlighting a company’s developments with each method “increases the stickiness” of the message, Buinevicius said.
One of the first steps is hosting Internet-based conference calls for quarterly and annual earnings. The calls, graphics and charts can then be archived, enabling people to access the information whenever they want.
“You will have a better chance of getting through to people,” he said.
A pitfall of doing investor road shows via the Web is that investors don’t get personal time with company officials, Buinevicius said: “Business is not as social as people are used to.”
He added that corporate executives must be comfortable speaking via the Web, and that mishaps will inevitably occur during live teleconferences.
Staff writer Will Shanley can be reached at 303-954-1260 or wshanley@denverpost.com.
