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Whiskas Cat Food

The cat food market is polarizing between high-end science-based or gourmet brands and low-priced commodity products. Whiskas, Canada's leading brand of cat food products, had to maintain its relevance as a mainstream brand.

Research showed that all cat owners share a common desire to provide proper nutrition for their pets. The key insight lay in the fact that cat owners differed in their perception of what constituted "proper nutrition," and that their perceptions were directly influenced by the nature of their relationships with their pets.

Owners who viewed their feline as their baby gravitated toward heavily engineered brands based on "scientific diets" or gourmet ingredients. Owners who loved their cat but viewed it primarily as an amusing pet, perceived no-name brands as offering adequate nutrition. The Whiskas consumer, on the other hand, viewed their pet as an equal member of the family. To the Whiskas consumer, the cat/owner dynamic was somewhat akin to the relationship a mother has with a teenager - mom recognizes the cat has its own preferences, and she wants to provide a balanced meal the cat actually enjoys eating, while offering nutritious treats from time to time.

The creative platform leveraged this insight. It disrupted the category convention of portraying cats as simple props to the owner-focused product story. The feline was placed at the centre of the action, using its own ingenuity to get the great taste he craved. To the owner, the image of a cat going to great lengths to obtain his favourite food rings true: after all, it's that independence and cleverness that cat owners love.

Whiskas continues to build its market leadership share as a result of the campaign, while Whiskas Dry has achieved a record share of the key dry food segment, and owns four of the top five products in the segment. In addition, Whiskas Temptations dominates the fast-growing treats segment, with a massive 52.8% dollar share, up 9.3% since the launch of the campaign, while wet pouch share is up 8% over the past year. Top-of-mind brand awareness rose from 20% to 31% over the course of the campaign, while overall brand awareness and value ratings have risen 11% and 7% respectively.

TELEVISION

Jumpy

Smokey