Cats, Dogs and Using Embedded Videos in Your Real Estate Marketing Message

Anita Koppens
Published: 05/02/2012
Posted by: RET Staff

Has Internet marketing gone to the dogs? Maybe it's actually gone to the cats! Internet Real Estate Marketing has always presented unique challenges in drawing the most attention and getting click-throughs and response. So what role do dog and cat videos play in getting a response from a reader? Maybe more than you suspect. And Google is in on the action, too.

In 2010, there was a study conducted by the University of Texas at Austin. The findings concluded that about 42 percent of Americans think of themselves as "dog people," in contrast to 12 percent who identify as "cat people." About 28 percent of respondents said "both." The Internet though, is overwhelmingly "CAT." This is evidenced by the popularity of LOLCats.com, the ridiculousness of StuffOnMyCat.com and the marketing genius that is Catvertising. Cats have also been connected to some of the hottest memes over the past decade. Spaghetti Cat anyone? How about Keyboard Cat?

So why have cats seemingly edged out man's best friend on the Web? It's not too doggone hard to understand. Cats project an image to which anyone can relate. They can be sweet, they can be stupid, regal, hilarious, in peril, threatening, cuddly...anything. This makes cats the perfect marketing conduit to relay any kind of message. That, plus they work on the cheap.