The cat’s mother …

or the cat’s spouse?

Creating the voice for a cat food brandSuzi Robinson – suzi@atlas.co.uk

Creating the voice

Can a writer boost the fortunes of a vulnerable brand simply by changing its voice?

I say yes, because I’ve done it.

The story opens in a focus group of UK cat owners …

“Our cat is a member of the family!”

In every group, one person says this and the others all nod in agreement.

But I had a theory that the familial relationship is not the same for all cat owners.

I wanted to know what kinds of affection people feel for their cats …

One-to-one conversations

I chatted up cat owners wherever I found them

I began to identify two distinct groups of cat owners

I named them: Cat Mothers and Cat Spouses

Let me tell you about them …

The Cat Mothers

Keen to show you the cat photos on their phone

See their cats as children

Never want their “fur babies” to grow up

Not necessarily empty nesters

Not exclusively female

Cat Mothers: Characteristics

Crave their cats attention and affection

Hate being ignored by their cat

Squeamish about their cat’s hunting

Love buying gifts – treats and toys – for their cat

Cat Mothers: Psychology

Babying the cat gives them permission to be childish themselves, to play games and talk in silly voices

Most understand the therapeutic value of these games and will tell you that it helps them cope with stress

The Cat Spouses

Will bend your ear with a long story about something their cat did and cap it with:

“Our cat is such a character!”

Love cats for their feline qualities … beauty, grace, intelligence, mystery, hunting skills, leaping, purring …

Dazzled by their good fortune that their cat likes them and stays living with them

Cat Spouses: Characteristics

Treat the cat as another adult

Respect cat’s space

Do not mind being ignored

Enjoy trying to guess what the cat is thinking

Cat Spouses: Psychology

Enjoy giving the cat the power in the relationship

Self-deprecating sense of humour – refer to themselves as cat servants or staff

Often high achievers who project their dynamic selves onto their cats

Winston Churchill was a typical Cat Spouse

Theory into practice with GOURMET

All the cat food brands I’d worked on targeted Cat Mothers

I needed a brief that allowed me to reflect the relationship that Cat Spouses have with their cats

And eventually one came along …

Nestle Purina GOURMET “How To Get The Best From Life” Press Campaign 2007-2008 Agency: Beaconbrands

Purina GOURMET is a super-premium wet cat food.

In 2006, UK sales were suffering from low consumer awareness of the brand (10% unaided) compounded by competition from own label ‘super-premium-look-alike’ products.

The Creative Challenge

Had to convert European press campaign – no budget for new photography

White cat portrayed as a lifestyle accessory – did not engage UK consumers

No distinctive voice: Bland corporate copy did not resonate at all with UK consumers

No personality, humour or charm

Meet Archie, role model for aspiring cats

I created Archie, the nation’s most successful cat whose lectures in a series of full page, full colour ads introduced many thousands of up-and-coming cats to the pleasures of GOURMET fine dining

How Archie engages with Cat Spouses

Archie behaves just like any cat – sitting on people’s jumpers, playing with string – but he speaks like the CEO of a FSTE 100 company

Reflects peer-to-peer relationship with Cat Spouses whilst endearing himself to Cat Mothers

Provides plenty of comic opportunities from dramatic irony

Consumer engagement

Advertorials in broadsheet press discussed aspects of feline history such as: Who invented the cat flap?

I gave Cat Spouses a new role - Personal Shoppers - and invited them to contribute …

The highest form of flattery

That so many consumers wrote as their cats demonstrates strong consumer engagement

Here is one of my favourite letters from a typical “cat spouse” as dictated by her cat, Lady Tabitha Golightly

Value of Sales grown by 25%

In the first year alone, this campaign grew the value of GOURMET sales by 25% - without re-launching, price promoting or increasing distribution.

Brand Awareness grown to 30%

And by the end of 2007, spontaneous brand awareness had grown from 10% to 30%.

And then I wrote a novel for all cat lovers

A cast of feline characters that appeals to Cat Mothers and Cat Spouses

The world’s most nutritious cat food has an unforeseen side-effect that makes it extremely valuable and in the wrong hands, very dangerous too …

Find out more at http://www.amazon.co.uk/The-Best-Ever-Food-Formula-ebook/dp/B00CQ85XJ2

The only agency devoted to pet care

Thank you to Rick Rowley of Beaconbrands Ltd for giving me the GOURMET brief. It was a joy to work on.

www.beaconbrands.com

Thank you for your time

Please contact me if you would like to talk about a voice for your brand, or your client’s brand

suzi@atlas.co.uk

http://uk.linkedin.com/in/suzithewriter

Acknowledgements

Photography credits:

I have made all reasonable efforts to trace copyright owners of downloaded photographs but multiple “shares” have proved frustrating. If copyright owners will please contact me, I will gladly include credits or remove photographs as requested.

Insights & classifications: “Cat Mothers” & “Cat Spouses” are my own creations and are not sponsored by any brand or advertising agency.

At no time do I imply that one group loves their cats more than the other and this should not be inferred.