The multimodal construction of corporate performance: An analysis of earnings videos

Abstract

Financial communication is conducted through various genres, among which are earnings videos. The videos discursively disclose corporate performance two/four times yearly (once every three/six months), using multimodal features to convey specific social meaning about corporate performance. These features constitute discursive strategies, which may generate and maintain investor interest in corporations. A multimodal analysis of language and image features is conducted on earnings videos in English, French and Spanish of corporations in the global finance industry. The analysis posits five discursive strategies. The information in the videos (1) emphasizes corporate contribution, (2) displays their beneficial activities, and is (3) anchored to spatio-temporal location. The information (4) is humanized and (5) acknowledges the risks faced. The strategies are realized using language and image features. These features complement one another because language and image co-construct meaning about corporate performance. The discursive strategies should be understood in relation to the corporate context, which reveals institutional isomorphism. The choice of strategies is probably influenced by a mix of coercive, mimetic and normative reasons. Disclosure in earnings videos is linked to government and stock exchange regulations, models of existing texts and conventionalized practices, and comprehension for investors. The study of financial communication may enrich discursive competence and provide a systematic way to decipher and deploy multimodal features.