Our Year In Review

Our Top 10 Blog Posts

We received great feedback from our current and potential customers on our blog posts this year! We were mindful to cover the trending topics in the Public Relations industry and provided important information regarding communications.

Below are our most-read blog posts, with links leading to the entire articles.

1. The Importance of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI)
Understanding what DEI looks like in your company is critical to your company’s successful initiative roll-out and sustainable program. After all, no two DEI programs are exactly alike. Developing a customized initiative that fits your business can help your organization carry a strong value proposition to your current and future employees, shareholders, and/or investors. Read more

2. In 2022, Up your Press Release Distribution and Earned Media Game
Since our entry into the 24/7/365 news cycle, chit-chat about the need for press release distribution have held steady…people who believe that are sorely mistaken. Rather, it’s because of the 24/7/365 news cycle that press release distribution is more important than ever before. Read more

3. Strategies for Technology PR
If you are interested in this blog post, chances are your business is looking for a new tech public relations strategy. We understand. Making news in the tech sector is one of the hardest eggs to crack, since the largest behemoths like Meta, Google, Cisco, and other household names, tend to gobble up the headlines. In this blog, we offer strategies that will help your PR and marketing initiatives that will get your company noticed. Read more

4. What is ESG Reporting?
ESG is an elevated topic of corporate sustainability that attracts investors. In case you are not fully aware of what ESG is, read this blog to learn the definition, descriptions, and steps of an Environmental Social Governance initiative. Read more

5. A Guide For Crisis Communications Planning
Understanding what can happen without a crisis communication plan does not seem like anything any group of C-Level leaders would want to deal with…but if you ask any executive-level professional who has gone through a crisis whether they would recommend having a plan in place, we will wager to say “yes” would be the overwhelmingly answer given. Read more

6. The Importance Of Compliance Communication
Setting up a compliance team to address potential issues while creating a plan with solutions and actionable measures is extremely important, should a noncompliance situation ever happen. Employees typically need to undergo compliance training or be retrained and brought up-to-speed on whatever was missing in the compliance process. Read more

7. Leveraging Public Relations In An Economic Downturn
With the volatility in worldwide markets, compounded with a rise in inflation, 2022 provided a plethora of terms to describe the economy, such as ‘recession,’ ‘economic downturn,’ ‘inflation,’ or other similarly negative words to describe current global trends. It is understandable for today’s business leaders to lean toward pulling back on spending, as a result of so much negative forecasting. This article explained how to leverage PR during an economic downturn and stay focused on growing your business. Read more

8. A Guide to Corporate Social Responsibility, and Why Your Company Needs a CSR Strategy
An effective CSR initiative touches upon topics such as various social issues, environmental impact, sustainable development, and overall social impact in order to increase employee engagement, stakeholder engagement, customer value, and employee morale. In other words, building a Corporate Social Responsibility strategy is your company’s way of saying “we care.” Read more

9. A Guide to Creating a Brand Awareness Strategy
The ultimate goal in every public relations or marketing effort your business initiates should include one over-arching purpose: To make a business’s target audience(s) aware of the company and its products and/or services. That, concisely, is brand awareness. In this blog, you will learn to create PR and marketing communications strategies that give companies visibility. Read more

10. Tips on Building a Media Contact List
Creating a media list, or a contact sheet of those with a large audience is a crucial step in knowing how to get media coverage…It’s really easy to jump into the media relations pool your target journalists, media outlets, bloggers, podcasters, and whoever else can act as your company’s very own ‘influencer.’ This article offers tips on creating a useful list of key media contacts. Read more

Webinars & Events

This year, we partnered with several companies to participate in various activities, particularly with Ragan Communications on both the webinar and events fronts!

We sent our representatives to New York City to attend Ragan Communications events, including the Future of Communications Conference, at which Issuer Direct / ACCESSWIRE also served as a sponsor.

At Ragan Communications, Jennifer Hammers EVP Sales and Marketing, Issuer Direct President and CEO Brian Balbirnie, and our Director of Agency Relations Karen Reynolds delivered our #1 Favorite Webinar of 2022, “10 Stories PR Pros Need to Share with Their Audiences.” If you have not yet seen this informative and enlightening webinar, you definitely should! Watch the webinar in its entirety here!

Another sponsorship opportunity took place in Dallas, at the Public Relations Society of America (PRSA) ICON 2022 Conference. Having a sponsorship role at this event was exciting because it was the first in-person ICON Conference to be held since the start of the Covid-19 pandemic in 2019.

Customer Service Feedback (Reviews / Rewards)

We are proud of the high ratings our customers give for our products and customer service throughout every year, and 2022 was no exception. These are a sampling of the badges Issuer Direct / ACCESSWIRE earned from our customers who provided their feedback about their experiences to G2.com.
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Here are just a few of the 2022 comments our clients have written:

1. Excellent help in navigating disclosure platforms
   One thing I am absolutely happy about - 24/7 support. Our team works in several time zones - from 3 to 7 hours’ difference, the information flow is therefore around the clock, and the ability to reach someone without thinking about the deadlines is vital.
   ~ Anna S., In-house Counsel, Small-Business (Aug 26, 2022)
2. Accesswire is the next generation news wire
   The team! No matter what my struggle or forgetfulness or over busy brain blip I run into, the ACCESSWIRE team helps me through it to ultimate success. They are kind, caring, responsive, enjoyable, and truly helpful. From my first point of contact through the ROCKSTAR Editorial team, I have sincere appreciation for ACCESSWIRE and their stellar customer service. I'm a fan.
   ~ Jennifer L. H., Founder, Mid-Market [51-1000 employees] (Aug 25, 2002)
3. Ideal distribution site for a medium-sized firm
   The staff at ACCESSWIRE are completely responsive. Mark Esposito is my account rep, and he is not only proactive in reaching out to me for anything I need but he answers my inquiries extremely quickly. He is always available. They also place your release on Yahoo Finance. The reporting system is very clear as well. ACCESSWIRE has more features than its closest competitors for the same or a lower price.
   ~ Debra S., North America Director, Mid-Market [51-1000 employees] (May 18, 2022)

Volunteerism

When it came to volunteering for worthy causes in 2022, our employees showed up.

Earlier this year, we volunteered with Habitat For Humanity of Wake County, N.C., and several employees learned how talented they were at hammering, heavy lifting, working with drywall, and whatever else they could do to help families eventually move into homes of their own.

The exercise was part of our Summer of Service (SoS) program, an employee initiative of giving back to the Raleigh, N.C. community through volunteerism. The company's volunteer initiative is part of Issuer Direct's commitment to Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) efforts, which allows organizations to operate in a purposeful, meaningful way that portends trustworthiness, credibility, and community. Click here to read the press release about our SoS program.

In October, Issuer Direct participated in and sponsored the Fifth Annual Marge "Madness" for 3D Mammograms Fundraiser Luncheon in Cary, N.C. The event is a fundraiser that benefits UNC Health's Rex Mobile Mammography Unit, a department of Rex Hospital that provides free 3D mammograms to underserved and uninsured women in North Carolina communities. To learn more about this wonderful charity event, read our press release here.

DEI & ESG Initiatives

The final category that rounds out Our Year In Review (Part II) is one that we at Issuer Direct feel extremely proud of: Our Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) and Environmental Social Governance (ESG) initiatives.

It’s one thing to talk about how important DEI and ESG is in the workplace – which we did quite a bit in 2022 (see “How to Promote Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion,” and “What is ESG Reporting” as examples); however, it’s quite special when you practice what you preach – and we are proud of the initiatives we have put into effect.

Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI)

Our company values are built on a platform supported by the concept of DEI:

1. Employee Satisfaction
2. Customer Focused
3. Integrity and Respect
4. Innovation
5. Diversity

As part of our diversity and inclusion strategy, it was important for us to find and expand our board with qualified candidates that were representative of our customers and employees. To learn more about our DEI initiatives, click here.

Environmental Social Governance (ESG)

Issuer Direct has a long-standing commitment to our Environmental Social Governance (ESG), dating back to the earliest years of our company. Environmentally speaking, we comply with current state and federal environmental legislations and work to minimize the impact of our activities on the environment.

To explore more about our ESG initiatives, read more.

Summary

We hope you have enjoyed Our Year In Review! 2022 has been exciting, thrilling, invigorating, and more than anything, gratifying, not only because our employees are the best in the industry, but also because our customers are overwhelming satisfied with the products and services Issuer Direct / ACCESSWIRE offers.

We have many positive goals to achieve in 2023, and just as we did this year and all the years before, we will work hard on behalf of clients who put their trust in us.

Happy New Year! We look forward to doing business with you in 2023!