Habitat GTA is reminding people that they need to do their part to solve the housing affordability problem.
The housing crisis feels like an impossible challenge, yet very few people know that Habitat GTA and its partners are already on the ground making a difference, having built approximately 600 affordable homes across Toronto, Brampton, Caledon, York Region and Durham Region, explains Kailyn Perchalski, the org’s VP of marketing, communications and policy.
“Habitat for Humanity is well known, but not known well,” she says. Habitat operates with a Federation model, and affiliates like Habitat GTA function as small nonprofit developers, operating independently but sharing resources and collaborating.
It was important for it to get the word out about what the organization has done for the region. Perchalski tells strategy that for its “Making Homes Possible,” campaign the org thought it was important to have an optimistic message, despite the housing doom and gloom. The hero spot shows the contractors and builders behind the homes that change people’s lives.
“The enemy is inertia,” she says. “We can’t accept this as the new normal.”
Young people and future generations deserve better and the opportunity that comes from having a home of their own, she explains, and she believes we cannot leave things up to our political leaders. The primary target audience is new or existing GTA-area philanthropists.
“Now is the time for donors to be part of the solution,” she says, noting the secondary audience is the general population.
“There’s opportunity for everyone to get involved,” Perchalski says, admitting that philanthropists tend to gravitate to hospitals and universities, which are seen as higher profile for high net worth donors.
Tactically, the nonprofit is deploying some connected TV, and is in VIP cinemas, has OOH by Toronto’s Gardiner Expressway, a “heavy social investment” and TTC streetcar wraps. There is also a nighttime experiential component with images projected onto walls of prominent downtown buildings, asking viewers to imagine a scenario where more people are housed.
“We wanted to do something that feels different,” she says, highlighting buildings where people could be living.
The holidays are a peak donation period for Habitat, and it wanted to get its buy in before the Black Friday holiday season.
“This is a really big deal for us as we’ve had no previous comparable ad efforts for Habitat GTA,” Perchalski says.
Juliet is the agency partner. (The shop “demonstrated unignorable energy around our mission” when winning the RFP, notes Perchalski.) It also handled the buy.
Narrative is providing PR support.
