Online Annual Reports
Easy to publish HTML company reports
Publish your Annual Report online!
Online corporate publishing is paramount to business communications success in today's fast-paced commercial world with the benefits of digital technology. The publication and relaying of information must be instantaneous, with no allowance for delay, in order to keep corporate board members, officers, employees, clients and shareholders continually up to date with your latest financial data.
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Prior to the early ‘90s, bringing documents to a printer was a real problem. The files frequently wouldn’t fit on a disk, the images had to be included and re-linked by the printer, and though printers carried all the major software, they’d frequently have a different version or lack the fonts used in the file. Since email wasn’t yet common, shipping files involved mailing or driving the disk to its destination, and when changes had to be made to a file or a proof had to be sent, the process became further slowed.
A revolution in the publishing documents online.
Adobe came out with Acrobat software in 1993, designed to standardize the process. Suddenly, companies with different software and fonts could transport files to each other as WYSIWYG (What You See Is What You Get) meaning that what the creator saw on the screen was what the recipient also saw, regardless of software. This was pretty innovative thinking at the time, and very quickly became the standard for delivery of print files.
Adobe came out with Acrobat software in 1993, designed to standardize the process. Suddenly, companies with different software and fonts could transport files to each other as WYSIWYG (What You See Is What You Get) meaning that what the creator saw on the screen was what the recipient also saw, regardless of software. This was pretty innovative thinking at the time, and very quickly became the standard for delivery of print files.
As the internet became widely embraced, many companies with annual reports decided to take their print-ready PDF and publish it online. This was a matter of convenience and timeliness for shareholders, to be able to download it this way and not wait for the printed issue; it was convenient for the corporations as very little effort was required. Unfortunately, despite the disadvantages to this system, it is often perpetuated solely because it is simple and is at this point a habit for most companies.
The internet has various features that are not available in Acrobat. A webpage can feature interactivity and multimedia elements such as video and audio, or even animations to further illustrate a point or to simply draw the reader’s attention. An HTML file can also be used on other mediums, such as PDAs or mobiles.
If the creator of the Acrobat file didn’t set it up to export as text, the file might be a series of graphics, with no text searching capabilities for the end user. This also means that search engines cannot search the document, so it won’t be shown to end users in their search results. And when Acrobat files DO show up in search results, the end user frequently will avoid clicking on that entry, knowing that loading an Acrobat file will slow down their search.
To find a small piece of information, the end user needs to wait for the entire Acrobat file to download, then they may need to find that file on their computer and manually launch it (depending on their settings). This might mean waiting for a hundred page document to download, then finding the appropriate heading in the table of contents, then advancing to that page number. On the internet, they would have simply clicked on the hyperlink for that page and would long since have found what they needed. (Acrobat DOES support hyperlinks, but many creators do not know how to correctly export with the hyperlinks intact, and many users of Reader do not expect hyperlinks in Acrobat so may not even realize that they can use them when they DO show up in a document.)
Why publish you annual report online?
Remember that a primary objective of online posting of an annual report is to reach a new audience of potential investors. Waiting for a large file to download (that is likely to seem like a dry read once launched) is not the way to grab them and give them a good initial impression of your corporation. How many times have you been really enticed and captured by a PDF you found on the internet, and how many times have you been immediately interested in something that caught your attention on a web page? Unless you’re simply posting your annual reports out of obligation and have no interest in attracting new investors or providing your current ones with a satisfying experience, consider the distinct advantages of HTML.
Gathering Dust or Garnering Interest?
Every year, businesses spend millions in an effort to establish their identities, communicate their corporate messages, and convince the public that they are leaders in their industries.
As a component of those efforts, these same businesses publish annual reports that, for the most part, gather dust on the desks of their stakeholders. Printed annual reports are just not engaging, so most people choose to go online to review them. But the annual report can be the perfect opportunity for companies to create a truly interactive experience for their stakeholders.
Companies like online-annual-reports.co.uk have made a business of bringing annual reports to life. Starting with a company’s simple .doc file, we convert the report to HTML. The information is packaged with a slick design, video web casts, interactive charts and historical data. A printed report just can’t compete.
Not only are online annual reports more engaging, they are more user friendly. The online user interface allows readers to use search and send-to-a-friend functions to find and isolate relevant information quickly.
With these features, online annual reports become an excellent marketing and recruiting tool. Journalists, job seekers and potential investors are all more likely to browse a company’s online report than thumb through a printed tome.
Cost savings should not be overlooked. Actual savings will depend on how many stakeholders the company has and the type of online report selected. Our advisors can help businesses decide on the right online annual report for their needs.
If you need more convincing, take a look at some companies who use our online annual reports: Mitie, ARM, Flomerics, to name but a few.
We might expect companies like these to take advantage of online annual reports. The good news is you don’t have to be one of them to do the same.
Online Annual Reports and Corporate Publishing
Each business-related entity has a stake in the total operation, and thus it’s to the ultimate interest of the corporation to keep all such interested factions well informed of any and all new company developments.
Live share feeds are highly effective way of keeping all stakeholders updated and informed. By consulting the corporate web site, members of all the various factions within the company structure (as well as shareholders and clients) can stay abreast of company initiatives, reactions, production levels, sales or gains, any business-related losses or setbacks. And, of course, everyone involved is eager to keep up with rates of profit.
By monitoring productivity and profit rates, all levels of administration and operations as well as trustees and corporate advisory board members can have immediate knowledge of any noteworthy business activity. Information from any division, department or office of a corporation which is pertinent to other officers and staff is most easily and efficiently distributed by use of live feeds on the corporate web site.
It s always helpful to have a central distribution point for dispersing company-related communications, and the official business web site is the best location. Many corporate sites also allow staff members input in the form of appropriate articles and business-related information on the company live share feed. The feed may also include relevant business news from outside sources of interest to the corporation s staff.
Corporate web cast
Another highly effective element of corporate publishing is the web cast. By means of a web cast on the corporate site, the CEO, chairman, and other officers and administrative staff can call attention to important business announcements, statements and news items, as well as addressing the general staff on any important subject whenever necessary or advantageous to maintaining a well-informed corporate community. Inter-departmental web casting can also be an extremely valuable tool for sharing training methods and any business-related input.
Annual financial figures and other statistics can be readily available to staff members, shareholders, clients and other interested parties with the help of professional graphic presentations on the corporate web site. In some instances, video or animation can aid in creating a dynamic and appealing business presentation, along with appropriate graphs, charts and even digital streaming of data, where helpful. All concerned parties will agree that the corporate web site, easily accessible on the Internet, is the most professional, economical, dependable and efficient location for providing all business-related communications of interest, value and importance to business success.
How to publish your report online.
Let us convert your report from word, quark, in design or any other similar software. We can create a fully interactive accessible report within days.
For more information on Online Annual report design and production please contact us on 01527 595595.
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