Revealed: Do Cats Or Dogs Sell More Stuff In Ads?

In yet further proof there appears to be a study into just about everything these days comes new research published in the Journal of Marketing on the effectiveness of showing imagery of a cat or dog in an ad.

No, this is not a joke. The research was conducted by no fewer than three esteemed universities – the University of Massachusetts Lowell, the University of South Carolina, and Hong Kong Polytechnic University.

Unsurprisingly, the research found that cat lovers preferred to see cats in ads, as was the case for dog lovers.

Dogs were found to increase an ad’s persuasiveness for products or services perceived as promotion-focused (ie stock investments or sports cars), while cats appealed better for those deemed more prevention-focused (ie mutual fund investment, insurance).

The study found that cats and dogs often featured in ads that had nothing to do with pet ownership and ads that showed animals often had significant recall with consumers.

Ads featuring cats and dogs reminded consumers of the stereotypical temperaments and behaviours of the pet species, and these attributes activated different mindsets in the pet owners. Dogs stereotypically symbolise loyalty, human interaction and family, while cats are seen as inquisitive, aloof and smart.

The Citizens Advertising Takeover Service replaced 68 adverts in Clapham Common tube station with pictures of cats. Organisers say they hope the pictures will help people think differently about the world around them. Credit: CatsnotAds.org

Exposure to dogs was also associated with willingness to risk monetary compensation for a chance to win an even bigger payment. Exposure to dogs also led participants to prefer ad messages that are framed with a promotion focus, or messages that appeal to eagerness. Meanwhile, exposure to cats had an opposite effect, leading participants to prefer ad messages with a prevention focus or messages appealing to vigilance.

Co-author of the study, Xiaojing Yang, from the University of South Carolina, noted: “Marketers should ensure that stereotypical pet temperaments are made salient in the message. For example, the eagerness aspect of the dog or the cautiousness aspect of the cat should be highlighted. Otherwise, the intended effects of featuring pets in the ad may not be achieved.”

According to the research, pets have assumed increasing importance in US households during COVID with the rates of pet ownership soaring. Currently, 68 per cent of US households own a pet. Of these, 48 per cent own at least one dog and 37 per cent a cat.

In other doggy/cat news, a study by social intelligence firm Nichefire found social media engagement rates for posts featuring pets can rise up to 63 per cent higher than those for the average business post.

Another study by agency referral platform Sortlist found that ads for non-pet products featuring cats delivered 27 times the views on YouTube when compared to the average number of views of any single video on the brand’s YouTube channel. It also found ads featuring dogs received five times the viewing rate.

Yang concluded: “First, marketers should consider crafting their advertising messages differently or recommending different products and services when they target consumers depending on their pet exposure situations. For example, to enhance the effectiveness of advertising appeals or communication messages, marketers should emphasise promotion-focused goals such as gains and non-gains if they are targeting dog owners or after consumers are exposed to dogs or dog-featuring stimuli, such as in an advertisement.”

“Conversely, they should focus on prevention-focused goals such as losses and non-losses if they are pursuing cat owners or after consumers are exposed to cats or cat-featuring stimuli. Importantly, our findings show that this advice holds even when the advertised product or service has nothing to do with pets or pet products,” said Yang.

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