This post is inspired by the many partnerships of America’s Bitter-heart, Grumpy Cat.

Whilst surfing the interwebs in search for Growth Hacking news, I encountered what could potentially be the most alienated concept from growth hacking: cats. While felines basically run the internet, it seems a bit too obvious and too cliche to use them in any sort of campaign, so naturally -as marketers- we completely steer away from them. As a certified cat person (a person who is also a cat) I am weakened at the sight of whiskers and MUST. SEE. THE KITTIES. What I found is simple, maybe too simple; I found a case study in the marketing world led by cats. 

Soak up the absurd reality of this article and strap to your chair while you learn a little about not turning your nose away from what the world has to offer. However simple it may seem, cat PR can teach us the following: Positive Partnerships, Relatabitity Beyond Sight, and Growth by Advantageous Content. 

Let’s dissect, shall we? As marketers and as anyone with access to the internet, we know cute animals run the world. Sorry Beyonce. Any piece of content outfitted with relatability, share-ability, and a bit of humor is guaranteed virality. So what has angry cat taught us? 

• A- Direct your focus toward great PR (for this campaign)

 Construct a campaign that provides a more serious benefit and yields the results your company needs. This will help humanize your company or equally, shift the focus to what you desire to project.

• B- Search for meaningful partnerships
  

Grumpy Cat began her journey with a sponsorship from Friskies cat food (obvious), and has now moved on to the home page of Venture Beat as the latest Foursquare ambassador while advocating for cat adoptions. Let’s be honest, who would have thought a cat would be reminding you of Foursquare? Now their image is that of a philanthropic and compassionate company.

• C- Grab hold of your traction and start converting!
  

Now that you’re in a position of mass recognition with your new and fruitful partnership, grab hold of everything you do, curate it for your audience, and watch the ROI. Crucial side-note: DO NOT forget that you are doing this to enhance your image. Watch what you do and DO NOT compromise the integrity and value of your product. 

To wrap it all up: Don’t turn away from everything, but don’t do thing the way your intuition calls. Take your product and make something completely different out of it. Remember that your subjects are endlessly malleable and that anything can be related as long as you establish a solid connection. On another very important note: Don’t forget to maintain value and aim only to increase it. Listen to your audience and they will work with you as well.

You too can haz successful campaigns with uber-relatable subjects, just think outside the box.