How to Write an Annual Report that will WOW your Shareholders
How to Write an Annual Report
Creating an annual report that will impress your investors is a tough, and sometimes daunting, job. We have a few tips and tricks up our sleeves that will help you create an annual report that really stands out!
This post will go through what to include in an annual report; why the design matters; how to engage viewers, and finally, we will take you through some of our favourite annual report examples.
How to Write an Annual Report
Unless you’re a non-profit organization, it’s a legal requirement to produce an annual report to convey your business’ progress, financial position and other vital information needed by various stakeholders. So let’s get straight to it!
What to include in an annual report?
How to Write an Annual Report - Desk with Notebook and Folders
The first step you need to take when you want to ace your annual report - include all the relevant content. Below is a brief checklist that outlines everything you need to incorporate in your annual report.
A letter from the chairman/CEO that relay’s information to the stakeholders about what events have taken place and how much progress has been made throughout the fiscal year.
A brief description of your organisation and the industry it belongs to.
The company’s financial position via different financial statements, including the cash flow, balance sheet and income statement.
The business profile in terms of the mission, vision and values statement; the various potential risks for the organisation; where the main revenue comes from; information about the directors; and an analysis of the competitors on the market.
The management’s discussions and analyses must also be included to inform readers about what has happened during the year, in regard to new employees that have been hired; how well sales and marketing efforts have benefited the company; and the overall achievements.
Any other relevant information that the readers can benefit from when reviewing the annual statement.
Now that you know what to include in your annual report, let’s move onto why it’s important that this vital document has a flawless design!
Your Annual Report Design
Let’s be honest - no one wants to read a text-heavy annual report (or even if they do, we doubt they’re excited about it, especially if it's presented in a dull, static PDF file). Everyone, including your boss and your shareholders, likes an aesthetically pleasing design - so don’t neglect this key factor when creating your annual report!
And now you’re wondering how to create an annual report that’s aesthetically pleasing... Is it even possible to convert such a boring document into something that looks good? Should you even care about the annual report’s design?
The answer: YES and YES!
Some quick tips on how to make an annual report with a unique design:
How to Write An Annual Report - Infographic
Infographics!
Hire a graphic designer to create infographics for you - trust us, this will definitely pay off and add a positive element to your annual report’s design!Images!
Incorporate images that will break up the text-heavy document. Oh, and make sure that the images are relevant to and compliment your text, instead of drawing attention from the main points you’re trying to convey.GIFs and Videos!
By adding these interactive features to your annual report, your audience will be more engaged and interested in viewing your publication!Colours!
Ensure that your annual report is not just a bunch of white sheets with a boring black font. Incorporate colours that match your brand identity and make readability a treat for your shareholders.
Now, here’s how to really BOOST your annual report design!
It’s simple - Paperturn has got you completely covered. Once you have written all the content that’s necessary to be included in the document (as mentioned above), and you have saved it in a PDF format - all you need to do is upload it to our site, where the magic happens and it’s transformed into an online, HTML5, real-page turning flipbook!
By presenting your annual report in an online format, it opens the door to vital analytics that you can gain about your viewers. This annual report design will undoubtedly impress your shareholders! By using this platform, you can add engaging, interactive elements into your publication, to your heart’s content! These include videos, images, GIFs and links.
Furthermore, you can enhance the design of your annual report by adding background colours that coincide with your brand, incorporating your company’s unique logo and creating a custom domain name for your publication that links to your organisation’s site.
As you can see, designing your annual report doesn’t have to be a tedious process.
In fact, we think you’ll have fun creating your publication and making it eye-catching for your audience (you might also earn some well-deserved brownie points from your boss).
Annual Report Examples
If you’re still unsure about how to create an annual report that will WOW your shareholders, here are some examples, to give you some inspiration:
Annual Royal Agricultural Society of WA
2. Annual Report Example: King’s College Hospital Society
Check out this publication’s logo that displays while the publication is loading... This is a great feature that can help your brand get the recognition that it deserves. Simply click on the image to open the flipbook in the flipbook viewer.
3. Sustainability Digital Report Example: Lion Street
4. Educational Online Annual Report: Mount St. Mary’s University
This annual report example includes lots of information on what the company aims to achieve and how.
Need more? Here are some other flawless digital report examples to give you some momentum to start creating your KILLER report!
Want to see some pre-made annual report templates? Here are some examples.
So there you have it - a quick, yet (hopefully) useful, guide on how to write an annual report that your shareholders won’t forget.
Oh, and if you are struggling with getting your annual report online - Paperturn’s attentive customer service can help you with every step of the way. Contact our team at any time and we’d be happy to assist you in optimising your publications to the max!
