An annual report is an ideal way for you -as an organization- to show your employees and the outside world what has happened in the past year. A lot of time and energy is put into putting together and compiling the annual overview. The result: a publication that contains a lot of numeric data and descriptive text. One that is often distributed as a PDF file. But do you have enough insights into how the annual report is received? And is it even read?
An annual report in an interactive and snackable format
Static communication via a PDF should be a thing of the past. But how do you ensure that an annual report can be read properly? And how do you keep the reader fascinated?
If we look at how we nowadays absorb information and content, we prefer to do that as visually as possible. By replacing a pdf for a digital publication, new doors are opened and more is digitally possible.
With a digitized annual report, you can transfer a lot of complex data and information to your target group in an interactive, interactive and visual way. This way: a 100-page publication changes into 10 visual pages enriched with interactive animations, infographics and embedded media such as video.
In this blog, we put together several reasons and advantages for creating a digital annual report:
- Visually attractive
- Responsive design
- Easy to share
- Measurable results
- Always up to date
1. Visually attractive
Just like the offline version, you can place images in a digital annual report. But unlike a PDF, you can also add and embed other visual media in a digital publication: such as animations, videos from interactive infographics.
This way you can present and bring the publication to life in a more visual way. 70% of marketers also see better results with visual content. We remember 80% more of what we absorb visually, ten compared to the 10% what we remember of text.
2. Responsive Design
An annual report must invite you to read with, wherever you are. Not only on a large screen with a lot of room for images and catchy headlines but also on a smaller screen. Because nowadays, most content is consumed on a mobile phone. So give your audience the opportunity to read an annual report where and when they want.
That is why the presentation of the annual report has become equally important as the content. A responsive design ensures that a digital annual report can be read on any screen, applicable to various types of web content.
3. Easy to share
Where a print version of your annual report is limited how it can be spread, an online version is easier to share with your audience. That is because a digital publication has its own URL. Not only the entire annual report but also individual articles can easily be distributed by sharing links. It enables you to share it, for example, via social media or any other digital communication channels such as e-mail or from a blog on a website.
Are you sending your publication to a large group of recipients but is the magazine not intended for an external group? Then it is also possible to share an annual report with a secured link or via a login.
4. Measurable results
Digital publishing can be done in various ways. At Maglr you create and publish web content using content creation software. If a publication is live, thanks to an integration with Google Analytics you have access to statistics that provide insight into the reading behaviour of the readers. This allows you to see what is and what is not being read. We dive deeper into this topic on our November update: better insights in reading behaviour.
5. Always up to date
With a digital publication such as an annual report, it is also possible to make adjustments on the go. Are there still some spelling mistakes? Or does data and information have to be added? This is quickly adjusted for a digital annual report and is not possible with a hard copy version.
Bonus: environmental-friendly and cost-effective
Unfortunately, printed magazines such as annual reports often end up unread in the bin. And paper publications, once printed, can no longer be edited. Switching to digital publications also falls under the new corporate social responsibility policy for many organizations.
Last but not least, the cost-saving is also a good reason for digitalisation. Creating and publishing a digital magazine does have production costs. But compared to print, distribution costs are usually lower, because you no longer have printing and shipping costs.
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