When a company embarks on the exciting road to IPO, reporting quarterly earnings may seem like a far-off step. However, it’s an important milestone for a newly public company and marks the first box these players must check to stay in the good graces of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), the governing body that oversees capital markets and protects investors. These reports are mandated by the SEC and are expected after the end of a company’s first three quarters, and both quarterly and annually after their fiscal year ends. Once reported, they are public record and keep a company’s investors and potential investors up to date on the company’s performance as well as highlight any challenges to growth.
For newly public companies that have a great quarter and want to capitalize on earnings as a moment in time, eye-catching headlines in top business publications are icing on the cake. How do you land them? Stay true to three guiding principles in your outreach strategy:
Be Bold in Your Message
For the newly debuted on Wall Street, earnings announcements cannot stand on their own. The stronger your executives can be in their convictions about why the company is doing well, the better – and that requires more than just highlighting the numbers in your outreach.
CLIENT SPOTLIGHT: Take this recent Mad Money segment highlighting SailPoint Technologies’ Q4 and annual earnings. CEO Mark McClain makes a direct statement attributing the company’s standout growth of over 100% YoY to a growing interest in identity security technology. He shares broader market insight into how increased cloud adoption is driving this demand, which differentiates the interview and makes it more than just a discussion of gross revenue, net profit, operational expenses and cash flow.
As marketers, it is our responsibility to work with subject matter experts and executives to ask the questions necessary/prepare our spokespeople to make these bold statements and capitalize on them in our outreach.
Earned media goals should extend beyond business press. Learn about “The New Definition of Top Tier Media.”
Leverage a Timely Point of View
In terms of the assets you’ll need when planning an earnings media push, timing is everything. Not only will you need to align with your executives about the exact timing the shareholder letter or release will be published, and when the reporting call will take place, you’ll need to determine a timely point of view to lead the pitch to media. Reporters are inundated with pitches specific to earnings reports, and it is important to guide executives to speak to broader trends that will interest an investor audience.
CLIENT SPOTLIGHT: In this CNBC Squawk on the Street segment, Citrix CEO David Henshall shares his thoughts on what a hybrid work model might look like in a broader conversation about the future of work alongside quarterly earnings results.
These types of headlines and interviews, when timed with earnings, will pay dividends in terms of garnering interest from new and perspective customers.
Speak to Long-Term Plans for Growth and Transformation
Just as adding color about trends shaping the industry resonates well in earnings interviews, context from executives (beyond what is in the referenceable shareholder letter) about where a company is headed post-earnings is also key to securing great coverage results.
CLIENT SPOTLIGHT: In this piece in Forbes highlighting Rapid7’s Q4 earnings, Corey Thomas, Chairman and CEO of Rapid7, speaks to how he plans to continue making “nontraditional hires” outside the security industry based on recognition of the key role that diversity of talent and ideas plays in delivering innovative new solutions to delight customers. He attributes this understanding to the growth they have achieved to date and is transparent about how the company plans to sustain the progress.
When a company releases its earnings, there is usually a direct and immediate response to its stock price, especially when the company is newly public. When it comes to the Olympic gold medal equivalent of marketing and public relations efforts tied to earnings, stories that highlight the vision of both the company and of the key executives are the ultimate goal. Truly great media coverage elevates the numbers and shapes a broader narrative for investors, customers and prospects to reference day-of.
At PAN Communications, we know how to shape these stories and capitalize on earnings as a moment in time for newly public companies.
Learn more about our approach to supporting brand growth journeys through integrated marketing and PR strategy.
