As a media relations specialist, knowing the media who are on Twitter and following their interests, upcoming stories, etc., has become an important part of my job and is a value-add that I provide my clients.

At the NIRI conference this week social media is being discussed from the perspective of IROs as they examine how to properly utilize and measure the impact of this medium, including the reality that aspects of social media’s ROI remain at times unquantifiable.

Consider these stats (from muckrack.com):

278 business journalists are using Twitter, and a significant portion of them are from the leading business/financial media outlets:

• 15 Financial Times
• 28 BusinessWeek
• 41 Forbes
• 66 WSJ
• 108 NY Times

 (Note:  Muckrack.com is an excellent site for finding reporters who are on Twitter.)

This means that through social media PR specialists can better understand the interests, story ideas and perspectives of editors and reporters in a much more timely and informal way than we ever could before.  And this access and understanding allows us to do what many clients hire us for - cultivate stronger and lasting relationships with the media that cover our clients’ companies and industries.

• 85% of financial services professionals under age 50 use social media (source: Ledermark)
• 47% of institutional investors read financial blogs for investing and research ideas

So why are some companies still hesitant to utilize social media as part of their IR program?   Investor relations professionals broached this very topic at the NIRI conference this week.

Here is a quick chart from the conference outlining the top reasons IR departments give for avoiding use of SM, and the counter argument:

Coincidentally, just a few days ago Forrester released its report affirming that financial services in particular should be using social media: http://www.nlcsocialmedia.com/forresters-reports-financial-services-marketers-should-use-social-media

The bottom line: no more excuses for not leveraging the impact and reach of social media on your investors and other audiences. We can’t blame SEC rules either. If you aren’t using social media, statistics show you are missing out on an important and direct communication channel to reach very important audiences.

Day One:  Monday, June 7:

Update from Corp Finance Division of the SEC:
“Notice & Access” Disclosure Process Remains Up for Debate

The annual NIRI conference officially opened today with more than 1,200 members convening in San Diego. To start this morning, Meredith Cross of the Corporate Finance Division of the SEC gave the group an update on the SEC’s focus right now in terms of enforcement changes and investor protection.

In brief summary:
• Proxy issues, or “Proxy plumbing” -  As this issue prevails, Ms. Cross reports the SEC is currently seeking solutions and will address NOBO/OBO, share lending, the best way for investors to have proxy access, accuracy of elections, etc.
• Disclosure requirements – In general some of these are 30 years old. The SEC is examining those requirements that may be antiquated and will be proposing updates.
• Notice & Access – In short, the ability for a company to inform the public of earnings and other material disclosures via its website (versus paid release over the wire). Is this being utilized broadly and is it working? Ms. Cross emphasized that investor feedback in particular should be considered here, as some have expressed dissatisfaction with how they are learning about such disclosures.

On this topic, just last month a NIRI survey revealed that Senior NIRI members found SEC guidance on corporate website use [as a means of material disclosure] too vague to be actionable. The overall conclusion of the survey suggests that respondents often view additional communications channels as supplemental to traditional channels rather than replacements for them.

See more on the NIRI survey findings here: http://mob.niri.org/Main-Menu-Category/resource/publications/Executive-Alert/Use-of-Non-Traditional-Disclosure-Channels-52710.aspx

PORTLAND – On the cusp of the agency’s 20th anniversary,  LANE PR, an independently owned, national public relations agency, hired Melissa Moore as account director and added four executives to the staff. Moore will help lead the agency’s business-to-business accounts including Umpqua Bank, Portland-Vancouver Regional Partners and Integra Telecom. Other new hires include Jane Taber, Kristin Heilman, Tracy Anderson and Ted Lane. Additionally, Jamie Godfrey has been promoted to senior account executive. 

Click here to read the full article.