Study: Online Report Perspectives

The 50 largest listed companies from Germany and Switzerland were selected by market capitalization. In detail, these were 47 annual reports in the Swiss indices SMI and SMIM and 50 in the German indices DAX and MDAX. The 2018 annual reports were analyzed and compared with data from previous years.

In addition to formats, design and content, the analysis also covered the use of digital features and design. Best practice examples. The results are enriched with interesting facts and figures from other studies.

Figure 1 How do the annual newsline in Switzerland and Germany develop?

The PDF is and remains clearly the leading format. Print is still on the retreat - albeit slowly. The number of online reports remains unchanged. At the same time, however, online experimentation is increasing and the variety of formats is growing.
 

Figure 2. What are the top five topics on the home page of online reports? Note: The topics that were addressed on the home page of online business reports were counted. The basis of the percentages is the number of online annual reports. 

On the homepage, the companies prominently display the contents of the CEO/ CEO statement, management report and key figures. A video is used for about half of the reports. In any case, the homepage is visually varied.

Figure 3 Which digital features are used in the online annual report?

Online reports are not getting more numerous, but a little better: HTML functionalities, such as interactive graphics, search function, feedback options, etc., are used more frequently, especially in Swiss reports. 

Figure 4. What design is the online annual report presented in?

Companies with online reports have the possibility to design the layout according to the corporate site or to create their own design note. This year, more than two thirds of the German companies analysed have now also implemented the online report with their own design, thus matching the Swiss companies in comparison to the previous year. 

The 50 largest listed companies from Germany and Switzerland were selected by market capitalization. In detail, these were 47 annual reports in the Swiss indices SMI and SMIM and 50 in the German indices DAX and MDAX. The 2017 annual reports were analyzed and compared with data from previous years.

In addition to formats, design and content, the report also highlights some best practice examples. These are subjective assessments that show recognizable features based on a comparison of reports. The results are enriched with interesting facts and figures from further studies.

Figure 1 How do the annual newsline in Switzerland and Germany develop?

The PDF remains the standard for formats, online reports such as a Full HTML or hybrid versions are offered by half of the companies. Over time, the development of online annual reports is stable, but more Full HTML reports are published, while less hybrid versions were offered in 2018 (see illustration). Online annual reports increasingly offer the same level of user friendliness as do PDF reports. Full HTML reports have additional navigation aids and offer interactive functionalities.

Figure 2. What are the top five topics on the home page of online reports? Note: The topics that were addressed on the home page of online business reports (Full HTML or Hybrid) were counted. The basis of the percentages is the number of online annual reports (Germany: N = 26; Switzerland: N = 28).

On the home page of the online annual report, companies are happy to present themselves, supplemented by key figures and statements from strategy communication. The choice of home page topics does not necessarily correspond to the depth of information in the report. 

Figure 3 Which digital features are used in the online annual report?

The online reports are SEO optimized and commonly in responsive format for easy navigation. However, they still need to catch up in the area of data protection.

Figure 4. What design is the online annual report presented in?

With the targeted use of images, graphics and videos, the (recall) effect of a text content increases. Best practice examples show that the use of infographics, images and colors in particular contributes to an attractive annual report. German annual reports are significantly more oriented towards corporate design than the Swiss publications, which give the report its own design touch.