So what do investors use the website for? This depends on who the investor is – institutional, retail, a buy or sell side analyst or ESG raters and rankers. However across these groups the top content accessed is:

·        Share price and tools

·        Results & reports

·        ESG materials

·        Investor presentations (interactive / video based)

·        Videos about the company

·        Downloadable documents – ie ESG, presentations

Given its importance and this prioritisation of content, here’s a guide to what makes a successful IR website:

By focusing on these aspects, you can leverage the power of digital communication to build stronger relationships with your stakeholders in a genuine and impactful way.

1.        Intuitive navigation and surfacing latest content

Analytics tells us that investors need to be able to get to the content quickly and easily. So it’s vital your investor website has:

• Intuitive navigation - which should follow taxonomy conventions. Remember investors visit many different sites so it’s important to be clear where content is
• Promote the latest content - such as Results, Reports, Regulatory news – so investors can get to content in one click. Give priority also to call to actions such as registering for Results webinars.
• Mobile optimisation – although typically 70-80% of investor audiences use desktops, many others, especially retail, use mobile, So it’s important to ensure that the experience on mobile is good.

2.        Make the case for investment

Your website can influence investment decisions, and visitors will be a mix of prospective and current investors. Do not assume they know the company, what you do, or your key differentiators. So make sure you:

• Introduce the company on the IR landing page - video is often the most effective
• Present your investment case - and link to your financial highlights and KPIs and your strategy and business model to give a clear articulation of how you create value

3.        Deliver the financial data

Investors rely on accurate and detailed financial information to make informed decisions. A great IR website includes:

• Annual Reports and Results: Easily accessible and downloadable reports, including annual reports and results. Make sure this covers announcements, webinar replays, presentations, transcripts and Q&As.
• Interactive shareholder tools: As well as share price graphs, the best sites also provide interactive features such as Total Shareholder Returns, Dividends calculators and so on.
• Archive of Past Financials: Provide easy access to 10 years of historical data. Make it easy to filter between reports and results and by year (and ensure the mobile experience works!)

4.        Make search easy

Its astonishing how often investor websites don’t provide a proper search function.

• Make documents searchable – i.e. PDFs should be indexed and appear in search results given the volume of this content in the investor website!
• Enable filtering of results between ‘pages’ and ‘documents’
• Regularly index content so the latest content appears first in results

5.        Transparency and Timeliness

Investors will notice where content isn’t up to date. Seared into the memory of an investors quote: “if they don’t have upcoming dates in the financial calendar they’re clearly not very well organised”.

• Real-Time Updates: Share prices, press releases, and other time-sensitive data should be updated instantly. Share price tools have typically had a 15 minute lag – now data can be more real-time

• News and Events: A regularly updated newsroom with press releases, event calendars, and webcasts of earnings calls ensures stakeholders are informed.
• Contact Information: Include details for IR representatives, with clear channels for investors to ask questions or request additional information.
• Language Options: For global companies, offering multilingual support caters to an international audience.

6.        Engaging Visual and Interactive Elements

Features like these within an investor website enrich the experience, and lend credibility to the organisation – as well as being useful communications devices:

• Infographics and Charts: Simplify complex financial data and make it visually appealing.
• Video Content: CEO interviews, company overviews, or investor days can add a personal and engaging touch.
• Interactive Features: Widgets like stock price trackers or dividend calculators allow users to explore information dynamically.

7.        Address ESG and Corporate Governance

Clearly ESG has risen up the investor agenda, so it's vital to ensure content related to this is easily accessible. Companies can struggle between ESG and Sustainability and what content sits where. Unless your entire sustainability approach is structured to ESG, investors are most likely to start in the investor section. Further complication arises around governance which is a corporate narrative and so often sites within ‘About us’ or sustainability. So make it easy for investors:

• Provide Governance content and documents: Include governance standards, high levels roles of Board members, Board member bios, committees role, members and downloadable Terms of Reference. Provide Policies and codes in a single location.
• ESG Information: Communicate environmental, social, and governance approach, initiatives and data to appeal to socially responsible investors and provide the data and documents required by raters and rankers.

8.        Encourage broader engagement

Make it easier for investors to receive the latest content and to engage with you via other channels:

• Email Alerts and Subscriptions: Allow users to subscribe to updates on press releases, events, or filings.
• Social Media Links: Direct users to corporate social media channels for supplementary information.

9.        Don’t forget Accessibility Standards

Accessibility is rising back up the agenda – especially with the very latest Regulation coming into force in the EU in June 2025 requiring companies operating within the EU to ensure their website is accessible. So this means you need to consider:

• WCAG 2.1 or 2.2. AA Compliance : Ensure the site meets accessibility standards for visually impaired or differently-abled users.
• Accessible PDFs: Are your PDFs and documents accessible? You can use scanning tools to assess this, but often corrective work is very manual.
• Accessible video: are the videos you share or link to on the website accessible?

Conclusion

A great investor relations website goes beyond regulatory compliance to serve as a transparent, engaging, and reliable resource for stakeholders. By prioritizing user experience, providing timely and accurate information, and integrating interactive tools, companies can foster trust and attract long-term investment. An exceptional IR website is not just a digital presence—it’s a strategic asset that communicates a company’s value and vision to the world.

How does your IR site stack up?

If you'd like us to review your investor relations website, do get in touch - we can assess its performance against our Digital Index of best practice.

About Black Sun

Black Sun Global is a stakeholder advisory and engagement agency that's been driving transformation and positive change for ambitious brands for more than 20 years. With deep expertise in disclosure and reporting, ESG, sustainability, and digital engagement, we reshape how organisations connect with customers, investors, employees, and the wider world. 

We are trusted partners to some of the most influential global organisations, sparking innovation and sustainable performance through our strategic insights, partnerships, and proprietary technologies.

As founders of the Positive Change Group, we are on a mission to create a new kind of stakeholder relations partner. Our world-class specialists work closely with executive leadership teams to protect reputations, inspire trust, and promote responsible business practices - building resilience and long-term value in a rapidly changing world.

For more information, please visit: www.blacksun-global.com