16th European edition and

8th in Austria

20 largest companies analysed

in Austria and nearly 1000

from 40 countries and 19 sectors

An evaluation protocol composed

of 100 criteria, one third of which dedicated to financial information

498 responses to the two KWD Webranking Questionnaires

8th EditionKWD Webranking 2012 Austria Top20 and Europe 500

Strabag and Wienerberger tie for top prize in Austrian online corporate communications, followed by Verbund and OMV.

All 20 companies in the ranking score less than 50% of the total, meaning Austrian companies have a long way to go to meet users’ minimum requirements.

Milan, January 2013 - Strabag and Wienerberger tied for first place in the 8th annual KWD Webranking Austria, obtaining a score of 48.6 points out of 100, up from tenth and seventh place respectively last year. Runners up were Verbund in third place, up from sixth last year, followed by last year’s winner, OMV in fourth.

Overall, Austrian companies are still lagging behind their European counterparts. The average score of the 20 Austrian firms in the ranking was 36.9 points versus 39.3 for the 766 companies analysed at a European level in the Webranking 2012-2013 study, highlighting the need to improve if they want to close the gap with European competitors.

Moreover, none of the Austrian contenders was able to achieve 50 points, generally considered a score that indicates a company is responding to the minimum needs of key stakeholders such as investors, journalists and jobseekers.

Of the 20 companies evaluated, only Strabag was able to improve upon its 2011 score (+0.35 points). No Austrian names managed to make the top 100 positions in the flagship ranking of the largest 500 European companies.

“Companies need to move beyond a simple disclosure-driven model and open up a more dynamic relationship with their stakeholders in digital channels,” said Joakim Lundquist, head of KWD Webranking in Austria. “Companies need to convey their brand identity and investment story in an engaging way, provide easy access to corporate information but at the same time think carefully about how they are present in a multitude of digital channels, from social media to search.”

The KWD Webranking survey, now in its 16th European edition, is the most in-depth analysis of online financial and corporate communications in Europe. The annual research is conducted by KW Digital, a division of King Worldwide – the leading global financial communications and stakeholder management company. The study is conducted in collaboration with Lundquist, which represents KW Digital in Austria.

New this year, KWD Webranking ranked social media content and presence in Google search for each applicable criterion. The social media and search tests now account for 13.5% of the final score, compared with only 5% in 2011.

KWD Webranking 2012 Austria Top10

1= Strabag 48.6 points

1= Wienerberger 48.6

3 Verbund 47.7

4 Omv 46.9

5 Erste Group Bank

45.9

6 Telekom Austria

44.7

7 Evn 43

8 Voestalpine 42.9

9 Vienna Insurance Group

41.9

10 Raiffeisen Bank International

39.7

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KWD Webranking 2012 Europe 500 Top10

1 Telecom Italia (IT)

87.5 points

2 Eni (IT) 83.5

3 SCA (SE) 78.3

4 Basf (DE) 78.1

5 Fortum (FI) 74.4

6 Pirelli & C. (IT) 74.2

7 Credit Suisse (CH)

73.5

8 Snam (IT) 72.3

9 Terna (IT) 72

10 Swedish Match (SE)

71.5

Austrian performance in a European context

The average Austrian score slipped 7.9 points to just 36.9 this year (vs. 44.8 in 2011), sinking below the average of the 766 European companies ranked in 2012, which dropped almost 5 points to 39.3 from 44.2 last year.

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Graph 1: Austrian companies in the KWD Webranking

Source: KWD Webranking 2012

65% of the Austrian companies evaluated do not provide any information regarding

financial targets vs. 68% in Europe 500 ranking

Fewer than half of the companies surveyed in both Austria and Europe offer comprehensive

information about debt structure, and 45% of Austrian firms publish their credit

rating (59% in Europe)

45% of Austrian companies neither describes the sector they operate in nor provides

sector statistics (39% on average in Europe)

95% use text-only press releases exploiting no other formats such as images and

video (72% in Europe)

Half of the firms in Austria presents details about executive remuneration (30% in Europe)

55% of Austrian companies do not publish a sustainability or CSR report (40% of the European 500)

50% of Austrian and European companies fail to explain their employee compensation policy and benefits

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

90

100

2008(35)*(150)**

2009(35)(500)

2010(44)(500)

2011(20)(500)

2012(20)(500)

66.75 62.5 62.5 61.75

48.657.3

43.347.7

48.3

43.4

44.2

42.839.3

44.836.9

Wien

erbe

rger

Wien

erbe

rger

* Number of companies included in the Austrian classification** Number of companies included in the European classification

Top performer Austria

Austrian average

Wien

erbe

rger

OMV

Stra

bag

Wien

erbe

rger

European average

Austrian companies scored below the European average in almost all categories, faring particularly poorly in social media, press, corporate responsibility and employer branding. They performed best in investor relations and corporate governance.

More than half of the Austrian companies assessed (55%) do not publish a CSR report compared with 40% among the 500 largest European companies. Also the use of social media to cover sustainability issues is disappointing: none of the leading Austrian companies use any kind of social media for CSR versus 40% at the European level. Austrian companies also make less use of social media than their European counterparts: Slideshare, Twitter and YouTube are used most frequently to talk about corporate issues, but Facebook is underutilized.

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10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

Website functions and homepage

Employer branding

CorporateResponsibility

CorporateGovernance

InvestorRelations

Share information

FinancialReporting

Press

Companyprofile

Social mediaand search

Europe 500 average(Top 500)

Austrian average(Top 20)

Source: KWD Webranking 2012

Graph 2: Austrian performance by section compared with European average

Average score by country - KWD Webranking 2012 Europe 500

No Austrian companies in European top 100

The average score of the 10 Austrian companies included in the KWD Webranking Europe 500 was 41.2 points, a touch above the European average (39.3), but down 7.6 points year-on-year. None of the 10 made it into the top 100 positions, but seven placed in the top 200 (Strabag ranked 110th, Verbund 122nd and OMV 131st).

As the chart shows, among the countries in the Europe 500 ranking, Finland had the best average score, followed by Sweden and Italy. Austria came 9th.

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Graph 3: Average score by country (countries with more than 10 companies included in the map with all countries in the table)

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Source: KWD Webranking 2012

Position 2012

Country N° ofcompanies

Average 2012

1 Finland 10 55.2

2 Sweden 28 52.1

3 Italy 26 50.4

4 Denmark 12 47.2

5 Germany 48 46.2

6 Portugal 5 43.8

7 Norway 11 43.2

8 Netherlands 21 42

9 Austria 10 41.2

10 Switzerland 39 39.5

11 UK 110 38.7

1 Finland

N° of companies: 10Average score 2012: 55.22 Sweden

N° of companies: 28Average score 2012: 52.1

3 Italy

N° of companies: 26Average score 2012: 50.4

10 Switzerland

N° of companies: 39Average score 2012: 39,5

5 Germany

N° of companies: 48Average score 2012: 46,2

Denmark

N° of companies: 12Average score 2012: 47.24

United Kingdom

N° of companies: 110Average score 2012: 38.711

The Netherlands

N° of companies: 21Average score 2012: 42

France

N° of companies: 75Average score 2012: 35.115

Spain

N° of companies: 20Average score 2012: 35.814

Turkey

N° of companies: 17Average score 2012: 23.522

Russia

N° of companies: 27Average score 2012: 28.419

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Position 2012

Country N° ofcompanies

Average 2012

12 Greece 1 38.5

13 Belgium 11 36.5

14 Spain 20 35.8

15 France 75 35.1

16 Hungary 2 31

17 Luxembourg 1 31

18 Czech Rep. 2 29.7

19 Russia 27 28.4

20 Ireland 5 25.5

21 Poland 11 24.4

22 Turkey 17 23.5

Top performers in KWD Webranking 2012

In this year’s edition of the KWD Webranking Austria Top20, Strabag and Wienerberger share top honours for the best online corporate communications (48.6/100).

Construction company Strabag climbed from tenth last year to claim gold for the first time. It excelled in communicating sensitive information about debt instruments, risk management and corporate governance on its corporate website.

After losing the title to OMV in 2011, Wienerberger also returned to the winner’s circle this year, tying for first. From 2008 to 2010, the brick producer dominated the Austrian ranking, with a three-year run in the top spot. This year, its website stands out for the detailed content on the company’s activities, strategy and management.

Austria’s leading utility Verbund came third this year from sixth place last year with 47.7 points out of 100, after redesigning its corporate website to optimize its mobile capabilities. The new website has an appealing look and feel and is easy to navigate. It also provides links to the company’s social media channels.

5

1st

3rd

Best Improver 2012

1st

Innovating online corporate communications

The KWD Webranking study, along with research activities conducted by Lundquist investigating corporate responsibility, employer branding and social media, represent valuable instruments for measuring the state of corporate communications in Europe today.

Not only did Austria fail to distinguish itself in terms of its score or performance, the ranking also shows just how few Austrian companies are taking steps to innovate their online presence.

Integration between corporate website and social media

Corporate communication is rapidly changing as social media break down the barriers between companies and stakeholders. Today, social media play an important role in many companies’ online presence, meaning corporate websites are no longer the only way to enhance communication with stakeholders.

A company’s online presence is the sum of its activities across the web. The corporate website should therefore be a starting point for users rather than a destination, as static information will no longer be encased in the corporate website, but flow constantly via social channels.

Good examples of Austrian companies integrating social media content into the corporate website are Verbund and Voestalpine.

Austria’s leading electricity company, Verbund, has created “Flow”, a corporate blog aggregating articles from employees on various topics plus Twitter, Facebook, YouTube and Flickr accounts. The blog aims to highlight the company’s activities and projects from the employees’ perspective.

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Steel company Voestalpine has launched a corporate blog, accessible via the group’s website, highlighting its activities, events and innovations and also links to the group’s social media channels.

Use of technology to create new user experience and enhance communication

Corporate websites are generally not considered a suitable place to experiment with new technology and design because they address key corporate audiences and are not aimed at attracting customers. The result of this attitude is a general flatness (in terms of design and interaction patterns) and uniformity of choices (of information architecture and navigation).

Several European companies are experimenting with new solutions on their corporate websites to convey key messages more effectively and provide a more compelling user experience.

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Lundquist Srl represents KW Digital in Austria:

Lundquist is a strategic communication consultancy, specializing in online corporate communication and with particular expertise in financial, CSR, Employer Branding and social media communications. On the strength of its experience and research activity, Lundquist provides intimate knowledge of international best practice and user requirements, underpinning consulting services covering digital communication and social media strategies.

Cristina UrbanProject manager KWD Webranking Austria

t (39) 02 3675 4126@ cristina.urban@halvarsson.it

To order a copy of the KWD Webranking Report 2012 or for a website assessment, write to: cristina.urban@halvarsson.it

Joakim LundquistHead of KW Digital Austria and founder of Lundquist Srl

Sara RusconiHead of KWD Webranking Austria and partner at Lundquist

KW Digital is a division of King Worldwide - the leading global financial communications and stakeholder management company employing over 900 staff and serving more than 1,000 clients from offices in New York, Chicago, London, Stockholm, Madrid, Moscow, Dubai, Hong Kong and Taipei. For more information about KW Digital please visit: www.kw-digital.com.

lundquist.

For example, French telecommuni-cations company Orange has de-veloped a careers portal that places a strong emphasis on visual com-munications, featuring horizontal navigation below the page header.

KWD Webranking 2012

The KWD Webranking survey, now in its 16th European edition, is the most in-depth analysis of online financial and corporate communications in Europe.

The KWD Webranking is a valuable instrument not only for measuring the effectiveness of a company’s online communication but also for comparing results with national and international peers. The study evaluates the English language version of corporate websites, excluding commercial sections.

In Austria, the research ranked the 20 biggest companies by market capitalisation as of May 2012 while at a European level 766 companies were evaluated. KWD Webranking also ranks 145 of the largest publicly listed companies included in the Middle East and North Africa.

National rankings for 19 countries are compiled as well as a European ranking consisting of the largest 500 companies by market value (based on the FT Europe 500 index). In addition to the European ranking, the research includes a study of companies in the FT Global 100 list. The European classification included 10 Austrian companies in 2012.

KWD Webranking 2012 process

The research consists of a series of distinct stages. First of all, the communication needs of the financial market are reflected in the research via a questionnaire submitted to analysts, investors and financial journalists every year.

The results are then used as the basis for updating the evaluation criteria. After revising the protocol, the annual evaluation of the corporate websites takes place.

The results of the research are published by some of the most important newspapers across the continent.

KWD Webranking 2012 process

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Ranking protocol including 100

criteria divided into 10 sections

325 measurements (+ 76

compared to 2011), 65 of which dedicated to social media

Each site evaluated twice (top performers a third time)

4 hours on average spent analysing each corporate website

Hundreds of best practice examples identified

The KWD Webranking 2012 questionnaire

The KWD Webranking questionnaire asked analysts, investors and business journalists what they expect from a corporate website. Based on answers from 311 respondents, the following areas are considered most important:

The annual employer branding questionnaire collected responses from 187 professionals and college students from across Europe and determined the criteria for the employer branding section.

The results of this questionnaire showed that the corporate website and social media channels are the main sources of information when searching for job vacancies and other career information.

Almost 60% said they search for information about potential employers in social media, an increase of 10% from last year. Of those using social media, 40% use LinkedIn, 25% Facebook and 24% Wikipedia, 15% Twitter, 10% Google+ and 7% YouTube.

KWD Webranking 2012 Protocol

The KWD Webranking 2012 protocol includes 100 criteria divided into 10 sections for a maximum score of 100 points.

New to the protocol is the elimination of a section dedicated to social media and search. Instead, the research evaluated social media content, presence in Google search and relevant search results found in each website’s internal search engine for each applicable criterion. The total score for social media and search tests was 13.5 out of 100.

The section on financial information remains the most important (financial reporting, general financial information plus share information) and accounts for 41 points.

The maximum score in the sections dedicated to corporate governance, corporate responsibility and employer branding were all raised. The maximum score in the sections dedicated to corporate governance and corporate responsibility rose to 12 from 8 while the maximum score in the employer branding section increased by three points (13 vs. 10).

The maximum score for the section dedicated to the company’s general information rose to 14 from 12 last year.

Most requested information by respondents in the capital markets questionnaire1. Indication of future performance (strategy, financial targets and

growth drivers)

2. Market share

3. Information about executives and board members

4. Risk management (including description of operational risks)

5. Financial performance (reports, key figures, etc.)

Social media and search

13.5Points out of 100

Employer branding questionnaire 2012 vs 2011

+10%use social media channels when searching for a job

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Changes to the scores

+ About usCorporate governanceCSREmployer branding

- Media Financial reporting

KWD Webranking 2012 Austria Top20 classification

Position 2012

Change Position 2011

Company Score2012

1 = 10 Strabag 48.6

1 = 7 Wienerberger 48.6

3 6 Verbund 47.7

4 1 Omv 46.9

5 2 Erste Group Bank 45.9

6 4 Telekom Austria 44.7

7 5 Evn 43

8 9 Voestalpine 42.9

9 8 Vienna Insurance Group 41.9

10 11 Raiffeisen Bank International 39.7

11 3 Zumtobel 39.2

12 14 Oesterr. Post 34.2

13 15 Rhi 34

14 13 Ca Immobilien Anlagen 33.9

15 n.a. n.a. Mayr-Melnhof 31.8

16 12 Andritz 30.3

17 n.a. n.a. Lenzing 30

18 = 18 Conwert Immobilien Invest 25.4

19 = 19 Immofinanz 23.8

20 = 20 Schoeller-Bleckmann 22.2

Note: New entries are highlighted in grey.

The maximum score is 100 points. The 20 companies were selected from the ATX Prime in May 2012. Each site was evaluated twice by different researchers between beginning of July and August 24. Companies in the top ten were evaluated three times.

Previous years’ rankings can be found at www.webranking.eu.

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KWD Webranking 2012 Europe 500 classification and the 10 Austrian companies included

Position 2012

Change Position 2011

Company Country Score2012

1 = 1 Telecom Italia ITA 87.5

2 = 2 Eni ITA 83.5

3 5 SCA SWE 78.3

4 3 Basf GER 78.1

5 8 Fortum FIN 74.4

6 n.a. n.a. Pirelli & C. ITA 74.2

7 20 Credit Suisse SWI 73.5

8 11 Snam ITA 72.3

9 19 Terna ITA 72

10 12 Swedish Match SWE 71.2

11 = 15 Bayer GER 70.2

11 = 9 UniCredit ITA 70.2

13 12 Wärtsilä FIN 69.8

14 26 Luxottica Group ITA 68.4

15 7 Deutsche Post DHL GER 68.1

16 18 Assicurazioni Generali ITA 68

17 35 Skanska SWE 67.5

18 13 SKF SWE 67.3

19 4 Repsol SPA 66.9

20 22 Metso FIN 66.4

110 n.a. n.a. Strabag AT 48.6

122 125 Verbund AT 47.7

131 52 Omv AT 46.9

139 87 Erste Group Bank AT 45.9

152 108 Telekom Austria AT 44.7

178 171 Voestalpine AT 42.9

198 160 Vienna Insurance Group AT 41.9

225 233 Raiffeisen Bank International AT 39.7

384 268 Andritz AT 30.3

443 413 Immofinanz AT 23.8

Note: The maximum score is 100 points. The European companies were selected from the FT Europe 500 list. The complete ranking can be found on www.webranking.eu.

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