We Crave the Cute

Sometimes, nothing hits the spot better than a cute animal. Most people reading this probably already know that, or else you wouldn't have clicked on this post when you saw the thumbnail picture of the kitten and "mouse" (see below, if you haven't already scrolled down just to look at all the pictures and swoon).

The groundswell is crawling with animals (pun intended).

In 2008, a simple live video stream (Puppycam) of Shiba Inu puppies exploded on the internet. People went wild over watching the furry fluff-balls interact and be, well, puppies. Their cuteness was enough to draw in millions of views. If only marketers could be that cute, right?

Passion for animals is enough to drive huge traffic in social media. Pet owners and enthusiasts post on message boards and chat rooms like pethobbyist.com and terrificpets.com to brag about their perfect pets, ask for advice, and look for support. Some of these enthusiastic pet owners have also taken their pet-obsessions to social networks, where they have created profiles just for their animals. For the most dedicated animal-lovers, Facebook provides apps that include Dogbook, Catbook, Horsebook, and even Ferretbook, according to LJworld.com's article. A little excessive? Maybe. But a great opportunity for digital marketers to target a specific population of animal lovers? I think so.

An Animal Friend of Mine on Facebook

Animal profiles on Facebook are not only for private pet owners, however. When the Leipzig Zoo released photos of Heidi, the cross-eyed opossum, photos and videos of her immediately went viral online. Her fans quickly created a Facebook page for Heidi, which now has 324,382 fans. That's quite a few people who like her just for being cute - a number any business page would kill for.

Heidi, the Most Famous Opossum in the World

Heidi certainly is not the first animal to go viral on the internet. The following videos are other examples of some of the most-played animal-related YouTube videos in recent years. 

I must admit that the number of videos I posted was mostly self-serving.

But don't underestimate the power of a fluffy, doe-eyed critter. Their funny viral videos, heart-melting photos, and often ridiculous social networking profiles may seem light-hearted (because they often are), but they carry huge potential for online marketers. Some companies have already tapped into the animal craze by creating animal web mascots, such as the Firefox logo to the right.

Clearly, the public has an insatiable appetite for cute, funny, and intriguing animals. Besides posting advertisements next to the videos, forums, and profiles, however, I haven't seen many attempts by marketers to take advantage of this huge desire. So what do you think? Can marketers harness the animal appeal, or is the basic appeal of animals in the groundswell that they aren't there to sell or to convince?

They're there because they're cute. That's all.