According to a recent post on IR Web Report, "IT HAS become a tradition of sorts that quarterly earnings season kicks off when aluminum giant Alcoa Inc. (NYSE:AA) reports its results. ...when the company announced its results, much of the activity and evident investor interest took place outside of the company’s usual channels, on its social media and document sharing accounts. While this might once have seemed remarkable, it’s now fast becoming standard practice for scores of companies – and many more will likely join the parade in the coming weeks."
"In fact, company disclosure channels that once seemed innovative – such as investor relations websites, webcasting and PR wire services – are struggling to stay relevant as investors grow accustomed to receiving information from companies in real-time on their favorite social networks in formats that are easier to access and use. These changes are irreversible and were very much in evidence as Alcoa posted its numbers this week. ...I can’t say this loud enough: SOCIAL MEDIA IS NOW MAINSTREAM, and companies that haven’t yet started using social media in their IR programs are in danger of finding themselves talking to increasingly smaller audiences. We have reached the tipping point for social media in investor relations. If you’re not using social media in your IR program yet, you need to make it a priority and start right away." (Read the full article "Social media investor relations reaches tipping point" by Dominic Jones at IR Web Report online.
