How to use the web in times of a merger - The ABN AMRO case

The internet allows companies to communicate in a quick and transparent manner to a globally dispersed group of stakeholders. In this article we illustrate how all parties involved in the current ABN AMRO merger use their corporate website to inform their stakeholders on the situation.

Take control of the situation

There will be a lot of rumour in times of a merger or any other important corporate incident (e.g. environmental issues, product mistake). Not only financial stakeholders, but press, clients and (potential) employees will all keep a close track of events and developments. An increasing number of stakeholders will visit the corporate website, use Google, weblogs and other websites to find relevant information.

The best way to use your corporate website is offer as complete, up-to-date and realistic information as possible. This, of course, does not guarantee that there will be negative opinions, but it shows that your company is making a serious effort in the provision of information.

The current ABN AMRO merger seems a good moment to test whether the companies involved in the merger (ABN AMRO, Barclays and the Fortis, RBS, and Banco Santander consortium) use the internet to its full potential.

ABN AMRO

In the central section of the ABN AMRO homepage, visitors directly see recent press releases on the merger.

ABN AMRO homepage – Tuesday, May 29th

On the Investor Relations landing page (the place where the majority of ABN AMRO’s shareholders start their journey for merger information) one item in the ‘highlights‘section refers to the merger. This item provides links to:

• the press releases (the same as on the homepage)
• the webcast of the press conference, announcing the proposed merger between Barclays and ABN AMRO
• the investor and analyst presentation in London, where Rijkman Groenink and John Varley explained their plans to the financial community

What we miss on the ABN AMRO corporate website is a dedicated section, in which stakeholders can find all publicly available information on the merger.

Barclays:

Barclays was the first to propose a merger with ABN AMRO on the 23rd of April. In the meantime, Barclays has created a dedicated website, www.merger.barclays.com, in which all information on the merger can be found. A trigger on the homepage of Barclays’ corporate website refers to the merger and links to the dedicated website (see screenshot).

Barclays homepage – Friday, May 25th

After confirming to the disclaimer, visitors will find:

• a short and proper introduction
• an overview of press releases
• a video interview, with Barclays’ CEO, John Varley, discussing: the rationale, synergies, returns, business structure and next steps.
• presentations & webcasts
• an FAQ (in PowerPoint)
• and, last, but not least, contact information of the contact persons on the merger

Barclays CEO interview – selecting topics

The consortium

www.fortis.com, www.rbs.com and www.santander.com. What do the three banks, referred to as the consortium, communicate on their corporate website after they announced their bid for ABN AMRO of 38,40 euro per share, on Tuesday, the 29th of May? The three banks have established a special (portal) website, www.rbs.com/consortium01.asp.

Consortium site – www.rbs.com/consortium01.asp

On this website, the three banks offer:

• a short introduction of the three banks
• the May 29th webcast, on the merger
• all press releases and documents
• links to the investor relations, media and career sections of the three banks

On their individual corporate websites, the banks differ in the extensiveness of the information available. RBS provides the most extensive information on its corporate website, whereas Banco Santander is reserved in providing information on the merger.

The internet not optimally used yet

Jungle Rating concludes that, of all parties involved, Barclays provides the most comprehensive and web savvy example of online communications. Barclays discloses all information in one comprehensive overview. ABN AMRO, being the protagonist in this merger, does not optimally use its corporate website to inform stakeholders. On the other hand, the position of ABN AMRO, as a takeover candidate, might be more difficult than the position of Barclays and the consortium.

None of the companies proactively asks stakeholders for their feedback, or uses a weblog. These functionalities might help to get a better understanding of stakeholder opinions and to openly discuss important issues with them. In the case of a merger, the disadvantage of a weblog is that a lot of information is price-sensitive, and thus cannot be disclosed publicly. But asking stakeholders, for their opinion, by means of a trigger ‘we value your opinion’ must be possible.

Checklist for corporate incidents

Based on the examples and our experience in the field of online communications, we provide you with a checklist, to use in times of important corporate incidents:

• Create a dedicated website, or a special section within the corporate website. In this section visitors must be able to find all available information on the incident.
• Provide a clear entrance to the special section or website on the homepage and on all relevant landing pages (investor relations, press, etc.)
• Communicate the existence of the website to all stakeholders
• Add an FAQ section, in which you provide an overview of the most frequently asked questions and the answers to these questions
• Consider to add a CEO interview, in which the CEO provides background information on the situation. The CEO cannot tell all ins and outs, but some kind of explanation and rationale will certainly add to the understanding of stakeholders (see Barclays example).

What do you think of the way the companies involved in the merger use their corporate website?

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