Kim Morison has spent decades in Australia’s water markets. Argyle pioneered the asset class – water entitlements, bought from irrigation farmers and leased back, so the farmer frees up capital and the investor owns the scarcest input in Australian agriculture.
None of it is obvious to someone arriving from equities or property. Permanent entitlements versus seasonal allocations. High security versus general. A cap-and-trade market that runs across four states.
So every prospect conversation was starting from zero, and the Chairman was the one having it. His existing investees were also heading into a product transition, and needed to stay close to the thinking for the next five to ten years. And water is a sector where discretion matters – whatever was built had to work in private, for the right people.
Strategy
The Chairman explains the basics once, properly, on camera. The video explains it a thousand times.
Then put the farmers on camera too. Investors are backing the people who apply the water, and they should see them – on the farm, in the orchard, at the gin.
Build a controlled way to share it. Register your interest, then receive a progression of short pieces – each one answering the next question a prospect would have asked in a meeting. By the time Kim is in the room, the room already understands the fund.
Action
Filming in three states – the Chairman and investment team in Adelaide, and irrigators on site, unscripted, on their own operations.
A brand update while we were at it. The logo had a readability problem at small sizes, the palette was dark, and the type wasn’t earning its place. Each fixed in turn, with a tone of voice guide so the team could keep it consistent.
Then the investor companion document – 34 pages, which I wrote and directed the design of, threading the videos through it so the reader can watch as they go. An email sequence to serve it progressively. Integration into the website and the team’s systems.
Two years on, Argyle had sold its farmland assets and kept the water – a singularly focused fund, with a campaign to grow it ahead. Kim brought me back. Another day in the studio, a refreshed set of videos, the document and website updated to match.
Outcome
The material has helped secure several hundred million dollars for the fund, while giving international investors personal tours of remote, high-quality assets.
If you’re raising capital for something that takes explaining, and you’d rather spend your time where it matters with investors, I can help you get there faster and more effectively.
