Dating app fatigue is part of the current social moment. A context that Fresh Step has used as insight for its latest campaign. The cat litter brand transformed Bumble over Valentine’s weekend into an adoption channel, integrating real profiles of available cats into the app’s regular flow.
The campaign, developed with Autumn Communications and BBDO Chicago, allowed American users to swipe right on cats rescued by Best Friends Animal Society (BFAS). When the match occurred, the user was redirected directly to the animal adoption process or to a page with cats available in their area.
Fresh Step covered adoption fees totaling up to $10,000 in cities such as Houston, Los Angeles and New York, and offered free cat litter coupons at Walmart to new adopters.
According to brand data, cat owners are more emotionally open
The activation was supported by research developed by Fresh Step together with YouGov on the relationship between cat ownership and romantic behavior. According to the brand’s data, cat owners are more emotionally open, less isolated, and more active in the dating environment.
One of the most telling data is that cat owners are five times more likely to swipe right specifically because someone appears with a cat in their photo (11% vs. 2% of those without a cat) because the animal is considered a sign of empathy and stability. Deb Crandall, Marketing Manager at Fresh Step, explains that the study confirmed consistency with the current perception of companionship and emotional connection.
Native integration in a sensitive environment
Dating apps are personal spaces, where intrusive advertising generates rejection. The creative solution consisted of integrating the cats as real profiles within the Bumble environment, respecting their usage logic.
The texts for each profile were developed together with Best Friends Animal Society to give each cat a differentiated personality. The production included a Valentine’s Day themed photo session at the Los Angeles adoption center, with photographer Lori Fusaro, taking care of both the romantic tone and the humor. The result was an activation in which the user could adopt directly from the experience.
The campaign was supported by a PSA (public service announcement) starring Ariana Madix, the host of “Love Island USA”, produced together with Electro. In the piece, Madix plays with the idea that human romantic drama could be avoided by adopting a cat, thus combining irony and authenticity.
The initiative is part of a broader brand renewal process that includes a packaging redesign and product improvements.
Fresh Step has thus converted a saturated environment such as dating apps into a useful channel that, far from interrupting the user experience, re-signifies it.
