Food. Shelter. Physical and mental health. Equitable opportunity. Art. These are the basic building blocks upon which great communities are built. Without those bases covered, technology can’t change the world. Toolbox is dedicated to using the power of branding to help mission-driven organizations ensure people have what they need to survive and thrive.
Our nonprofit clients have their missions dialed in and are clearly making their communities a better place. Their branding challenges tend to be twofold: looking and sounding as good as they truly are, and framing the conversation so their story resonates powerfully, whether preaching to the choir or winning converts.
Lack of diversification in home prices poses a real and growing threat to the economic stability, quality of life and future of every American. When all members of a community (teachers, first responders, seniors) can afford to live there safely, they build a stronger community, now and for the future.
There’s ample data to support that position, but without a messaging strategy that reframes the conversation about housing equity, citing that data does little to change hearts and minds.
Data and evidence can be used effectively, but only when it supports a more compelling overall message.
The Fort Collins Housing Authority needed a brand identity to better reflect the breadth of their offerings and start to change the perception of affordable housing. Toolbox drove the rebranding process, starting by building consensus around the name Housing Catalyst and resulting in an entirely new brand identity.
The Fort Collins Housing Authority needed a brand identity to better reflect the breadth of their offerings and start to change the perception of affordable housing. Toolbox drove the rebranding process, starting by building consensus around the name Housing Catalyst and resulting in an entirely new brand identity.
The Health District, as part of the Mental Health and Substance Use Alliance, needed to raise awareness about the growing public health crisis of addiction in our community. In 2016, a ballot initiative to fund a much-needed mental health and substance use care facility failed to win voter support, compounding the crisis.
Toolbox created the Changing Minds campaign, an initiative to break down biases about addiction by presenting the science of how addiction changes the brain. The initiative provided tools, language and conversation starters for Alliance members, healthcare professionals and the general public to start a healthy dialog about addiction — meeting people where they are and starting to change minds on the subject of addiction in ways large and small.
The first phase of Changing Minds hit the streets in August 2018. In November, voters approved the mental health and substance use care facility.
Talking about addiction isn’t easy. If we’re going to have a productive community conversation on the topic, we first need to break down the barriers to dialog. As a conversation starter, we planted Brain Pods throughout the community. Launched at a large festival, the pods asked passersby, “What are the odds?” Visitors might learn that 1 in 112 million gets crushed by a vending machine, but 1 in 10 of our neighbors lives with addiction. The Brain Pods piqued curiosity and started conversations.
What’s love got to do with it?
When we interview housing organization staff and the residents they serve, the word most often used to describe interactions between the two is love.
Stop, in the name of progress
Housing agencies are reinventing how they serve our communities. In that effort, policy matters. Process matters. Addressing inequity matters. And words matter. Here are four words that should be shown the door.