Housing Foundation NZ appoints Tonic Communications to strengthen PR and stakeholder communications

The charitable trust helps lower-income households make the transition from renting to home ownership through shared ownership and rent-to-own programmes. It will partner with Tonic across strategic communications, media relations, content and integrated campaign activity.

As part of the appointment, Tonic will work closely with Housing Foundation’s marketing team to grow brand awareness, strengthen stakeholder engagement and increase understanding of its alternative home ownership model among key audiences.

Tonic Communications Managing Director Georgia Coleman said Tonic was well placed to help Housing Foundation communicate effectively across a complex mix of audiences, including customers, industry partners, advisers and wider networks that influence awareness, trust and engagement.

“Housing Foundation is an organisation with a strong purpose, but also a significant opportunity to further build awareness and understanding of its model,” said Coleman.

“Our role is to help sharpen the organisation’s profile, connect with the right audiences and ensure its story is told clearly and consistently across multiple channels.

“There is a growing need for communications that build trust, simplify complexity and create meaningful engagement as conversations around housing accessibility continue across New Zealand.”

Housing Foundation CEO Dominic Foote said Tonic’s strategic approach and integrated capabilities made the agency a strong fit for the organisation’s next stage of growth.

“We were looking for a communications partner that understood both the reputational and engagement opportunities in front of us,” said Foote.

“Tonic demonstrated a clear understanding of our model, our audiences and the role strategic communications can play in increasing awareness and trust.

“As more New Zealanders explore alternative pathways into home ownership, it’s important that we continue building understanding of the options available and the impact our model can have for individuals, whānau and communities.”

The appointment further strengthens Tonic’s portfolio of purpose-led and impact-driven brands across New Zealand and Australia, and follows continued growth for the agency over the past 12 months.

Tonic is part of Attivo, a marketing services group with agencies across Australia, New Zealand and the United States, including 303, Mediahub, Farrimond, DNY and Hill Holliday.