Brands Love Pets on April Fools’ Day

April Fools’: It’s the day that the internet loves to hate; but if a brand can create a funny, mesmerizing or ludicrous idea, they may just be able to go viral. Its implications? Brand recognition or loyalty, an increase in e-commerce sales or giving your brand a more human face…or as it turns out this year, a furrier face.

I noticed that there has been a large swing towards “prank campaigns” in 2014 that involve cats and dogs. People love to gush about their pets and often share pictures of the cutest ones they can find, so why wouldn’t they want to share campaigns who have recruited the cutest-of-the-cute?

Thus, I’ll be showing you 10 of the April Fools joke campaigns of 2014 that contain pets!

1. AskMen.com - These guys got the infamous Mensware Dog, a Shiba Inu, to fill the whole page. Best part? The dog in Pharrell’s hat.

2. LinkedIn: Cats You May Know (CYMK) - I like this one because of cats (obviously), but also because it showcases their features and best tips for using CYMK, which also happens to be great tips for using LinkedIn itself.

3. Missouri University of Science and Technology: Doge-ified - Shiba Inu’s are so hot right now, coming off being a Top Meme of 2013 and the Mensware Dog’s popularity. Luckily M.U.S.T. got on the train before it becomes totally outdated. All I can say? Wow. Much doge. Such science. Very smart.

4. Museum of Modern Art: Pet Membership - Take your pet to a place you’ve never been able to before, a museum! Its a cute idea, but I wish this campaign had a landing page or blog post explaining their “initiative” rather than just a tweet.

5. Moo.com - Pug Delivery: Rather than go the drone route, Moo thought of a new way to deliver its cards. Pugs! As you may know, EVERYWHERE is Pug crazy, so this was an office favorite. What I like about this campaign is that they had a slogan to go with it - “A delivery option that’s sure to put a smile on your face”.

6. American Well: Puppy Connect - While I didn’t know about their company before today, they did use April Fool’s Day as a way to showcase their product. “Puppy Connect” connects you to a webcam with playing pups and then the app connects you with a real doctor. I think this campaign was great because it brought their brand to light and taught me all about their product, but with dogs instead of doctors. The video is cute too!

7. REI - Adventure Kitten Gear: Cute kitten with hiking gear? This cat could give the new Call of Duty dogs a run for their money. REI had a site built out with a “Your Kitten Might Also Like” section like what you see elsewhere on the site, which makes it feel a little more real. What also makes it feel real? The prices of that gear, even in kitten size. Ouch!

8. Google Chrome App: Qwerty Cats - This app gives your cat 4 buttons to choose from (M. E. O. W.) and will then translate what those string of letters mean. The point of this campaign? Not really sure, but the again, when are any of Google’s April Fools pranks for a reason?

9. Warby Parker’s Pet Line - Warby Barker: Warby Parker actually bought a domain name for their “new line”, which is pure dedication to the prank. They feature a Pug in a monocle, so you know it has to make the list. When you try to buy a product, it lets you know that the monocle you wanted is a trick, but steers you towards their real site, as well as the Humane Society.

10. Cats by Opera: Opera, the browser, came out with a blog announcement and video for their new browser for cats. The video shows footage of a cat using an iPad with Tongue Touch Interface, PawPredict, and Catified Speed Dial. While none of the features translate to anything the regular Opera browser offers, the campaign does bring publicity that Laptop Mag’s Best Android Browser article never could.