CANNAINVESTOR Magazine October / November 2016 | Page 103

Know Your Platform

Social media can become an immensely profitable endeavor if we are knowledgeable about how and where to engage investor relations (IR). Many institutional investors aren’t sure where to start with using social media to find IR professionals, at most it’s being seen as a means to check on the momentum of a potential investment before committing.

What is notable about using social sites for investor relations is that most potential investors use LinkedIn. In a joint study with LinkedIn and Cogent Research surveyed more than 600 affluent investors and found that 52% of mass affluent, affluent and ultra-affluent investors use LinkedIn when researching financial decisions. This is a higher percentage than those that use Twitter, Facebook or Google+ although they are coming closely behind LinkedIn in terms of users, a major rise since 2013. What this means for an investor relations professional in the cannabis industry is that investor directed content should be displayed prominently on LinkedIn.

Being an Authority Inspires Investor Confidence

Becoming a prominent authority on social media can show a potential investor that our company has momentum in an expanding industry. This display will automatically build confidence and engage affluent investors from the sector. Becoming an authority is only possible with the right content plan because social followers respond to educational, informative and regularly posted relevant news, memes and blog posts. It has been shown that institutional investors are looking for very specific things from a potential investment on social media. They want to understand the market and economic trends as well as new product information and the company’s background. The right content will portray the desired image for the brand, an image that attracts those looking to put their money into cannabis. Make sure to create a good content plan when aiming to utilize social media to engage live investors, this will ensure success.

Communicate Wisely

While social media is ideal for engaging new investors, it isn’t the best place for undergoing serious chats about business. Use social sites like LinkedIn or Facebook to make the first contact with a potential investor and then try to take that conversation to an email chain or phone conversations. Direct communication makes the investor see that although we are in the cannabis industry we know how to properly do business; this builds even more confidence on the institutional investor's side of things.

SOURCES

https://business.linkedin.com/marketing-solutions/blog/h/how-engage-affluent-investors-social-media

http://www.slideshare.net/LImarketingsolutions/linked-in-hnwinvestorresearch2012-13635022

https://www.equities.com/news/what-s-the-role-of-social-media-in-investor-relations

103