As digital noise grows louder and investor attention spans shrink, investor relations firms are reassessing how they communicate. Sydney-based consultancy Investability has found traction by rejecting scale in favour of selectivity — prioritising deep, high-touch engagement over high-volume client rosters.
Founded in 2020 by Dannika Warburton, a former investment banker turned investor communications consultant, Investability works almost exclusively with small-cap companies across resources, technology, and decarbonisation. The firm doesn’t chase every mandate. Instead, it maintains a tight portfolio of around 10 to 15 active clients annually, offering what Warburton calls “high-touch, high-context” interaction.
“We’ve built our business on being the firm clients call when they need something complex done to a very high standard, and they need it done quickly,” Warburton said in a recent interview. “That only works if you’re selective about who you work with and how many clients you support at any one time.”
Referrals Over Advertising, Analysts Over Algorithms
Investability’s client base, ranging from pre-IPO ventures to listed mid-caps, comes largely through referrals, often from brokers, fund managers, or CEOs who have engaged the firm before. The company has supported equity raises totalling over AUD $500 million since 2020 and has worked across multiple global exchanges, including the ASX, LSE, and TSX.
This methodical, network-first growth model has enabled Investability to avoid the marketing blitzes common among larger consultancies. Instead, the firm allocates its resources to building long-term relationships with both clients and investors, particularly those managing self-managed super funds (SMSFs), a segment responsible for nearly AUD $900 billion in assets.
“We don’t just rely on algorithms or paid reach,” Warburton said. “If we believe in the fundamentals of a client’s story, we’ll pick up the phone and have direct conversations with investors. That kind of context can’t be automated.”
Investor Events as a Strategic Tool
Investor introductions and roadshows remain central to Investability’s services. However, unlike traditional models, which often prioritise institutional audiences, the firm also targets self-directed investors through events and digital formats.
The firm’s investor event series has grown in popularity, with one company’s registrations jumping from 13 to over 700 investors within a year. Investability attributes this to a combination of message clarity, targeted multi-channel distribution, and presenting a compelling offer.
Data from these events feeds back into the firm’s developing analytics tool, designed to track investor sentiment in real time. This feature is currently being tested internally and is set to launch more broadly by late 2025.
Focus on Content and Consistency
One of Investability’s core functions is translating complex corporate announcements into digestible, investor-friendly narratives. The firm provides end-to-end capital markets content development, announcements, presentations, video interviews, webinars, and digital campaigns, while closely monitoring investor engagement data to adjust the tone or delivery where necessary.
Recent performance metrics show measurable impact: a social media campaign for one ASX-listed client resulted in a 5,300% increase in online impressions and a 630% rise in average traded value. Another client’s share price doubled following the release of an Investability interview with a fund manager discussing the stock. On a recent investor webinar, attendees recorded an 80% increase in positive sentiment for the company’s leadership team and growth strategy following a Q&A session Investability hosted. These results underscore how strategic investor relations can affect a company’s market perception and performance.
This focus on reducing information asymmetry has also helped the firm maintain a consistent 5-star Google rating from clients, despite the demands of rapid investor communications during market volatility.
Leadership Anchored in Industry Fluency
Dannika Warburton’s background in capital markets brings a level of fluency that resonates with founders and fund managers alike. Prior to launching Investability, she worked on both the buy-side and sell-side, giving her insight into how institutional investors evaluate risk and growth potential.
Her experience includes supporting companies through IPOs, M&A transactions, and shareholder activist periods. More recently, she has contributed to broader industry conversations, including as a speaker at the Resourcing Tomorrow conference in London, where she addressed trends in investor behaviour and the outlook for junior mining equities in the current geopolitical environment.
Warburton’s leadership style is marked by precision and restraint. “There’s a discipline in knowing when not to push a story too hard,” she said. “Timing and tone are everything. We spend a lot of time getting that right.”
A Tight Team with Expansion on the Horizon
Investability’s current staff of under 10 manages a substantial volume of investor-facing content and events, supported by a strong contractor network. While small, the team’s impact has been significant, evidenced by its ability to scale campaigns, manage multiple capital raises, and support ongoing digital engagement for each client.
Although headquartered in Australia, Investability is seeing growing interest from clients in Europe, Hong Kong, and North America. The firm is expected to expand geographically through satellite consultants or collaborative ventures by 2026.
Not Built for Everyone
Investability’s high-touch, relationship-oriented strategy is in stark contrast to the approach adopted by larger firms. But the boutique, relationship-driven model has advantages. As AI threatens to dramatically shift the IR landscape, firms with strong relationships with investors and deep networks, like Investability, will remain in demand, given that this is one thing AI can’t manufacture.
Its success so far suggests Investability is onto something in the Australian investor relations space.
“We’re not trying to be the biggest,” Warburton said. “We’re just trying to be the most effective at what we do and deliver an outstanding level of service for our clients and our investor network alike.”
Spencer Hulse is the Editorial Director at Grit Daily. He is responsible for overseeing other editors and writers, day-to-day operations, and covering breaking news.
