For Memorable Advertisement; Choose Cute Cats and Comedic Skits

One uneventful day during summer, I remember scrolling through social media and coming across a video with compilations of memorable advertisements. They were all entertaining and the trend that I noticed is that they all contain either comedic skit, emotional story, or some catchy tune promoting the products. One of them is a car commercial that is filmed in the style of a music video by my favorite band and the song is pretty catchy, I found myself listening to it a couple of times and even consider getting that kind of car when I have the chance to because of this association. It is interesting how influential advertisements can be when done right. I continue to look at different kinds of ads for entertainment. Then I stumbled upon a video titled, “[ENG SUB] Seiyuu as cats in Japanese CM,” an advertisement made by the housing company, Panasonic Homes, featuring cats that were voiced by well-known voice actors in Japan engaging in multiple short amusing scripts about the desirability and benefits of the houses. It caught my attention right away and have to rewatch it even though I am not planning on buying any house. The dynamic voice acting over a video of cute cats to match the conversation, the comedic nature of their discussion, and soft background music along with the occasional intervention for smooth transitions between scripts, advertising why you should choose Panasonic Homes all contributing to make an impact on the audience and making the advertisement memorable.

Structure, Scene, and Arguments Made

This advertisement is divided into six sections talking about the different aspects of the house with the flash repetition saying to choose Panasonic Homes for emphasis between the scenes. In the first section, the cats are introduced, sitting outside with snow falling in the background and a cooler color scheme in contrast to the warm glow of the house inside. The scene is accompanied by soft and soothing music. One cat makes the comment about how the house looks warm, while the other seems skeptical due to the lack of kotatsu, a heater under a table along with a blanket that keeps the heat in. This skepticism gives the opportunity for cat one to make a claim relating to the product’s full-house ventilation feature that will keep the whole house warm without the additional need for kotatsu, which does not extend the warmth throughout the house. The scene takes a comedic end of cat one hitting cat two as the calming music gets cut off and replace with the hitting sound effect you would hear in cartoons, along with the main message on the screen for emphasis.

Fig. 1. This scene is also directed towards the audience who are not convinced about the full-house ventilation system to not underestimate it.

All the sections follow the same format as the first, but in the second scene, the cats talk about the house’s ability to filter out fine particles, PM 2.5, which can cause or worsen respiratory problems such as asthma or bronchitis. This can imply that by staying in this house the owner can live healthily and breathe in clear air.

In the third scene, another claim regarding the low electricity bills despite having an air conditioner for the whole day during summertime, hearing this can persuade people as many would want to save money. The scenes end with the same intermission to remind the audience of their brand, Panasonic Homes.

Fig. 2. This screen repeats a couple more times until the end of scene four.

For the fourth scene, one of the cats finally got inside the house after their first failed attempt, where one of them got stuck. This time it is to promote the comfortable environment of the house and how you will feel happy living in the housing by Panasonic Homes. The use of cats helps strengthen the claim because cats are known to be picky and would only lay down if they are truly at ease.

In the fifth scene, both cats are now inside the house, their postures are relaxed and laying down on the floor in contrast with their sitting position outside. They then discussed the benefits of choosing Panasonic Homes in case of an earthquake, which is prevalent in Japan. They guarantee that the house will be fully rebuilt for free if suffer damages from earthquakes. At this point, the intermission messages change to advertise the rebuilding guarantee, so it doesn’t get too repetitive.

Fig. 3. This text on the screen highlights the important question that most audiences might have and clear their doubts, building trust in the company.

The sixth and final scene is more focused on comedy, the cats are outside again, but this time the snow has stopped and the glass window makes it looks like they are on a television screen and we are watching some comedic routine. This leaves the audience feeling happy and relaxed and the final message that they can associate with this feeling is to choose Panasonic Homes. The company’s name is the last thing we see, hear, and have the clearest memory on.

Fig. 4. This is the alternative transition scene and the final thing we see before the commercial ends.

Although the formatting and the scripts are very similar for all six sections; claims about the products accompany by comedic acts, relaxing music, funny sound effects, and promoting the company’s name; the main attraction that makes this advertisement enjoyable are the actions made by the cats and the voice acting. Their body movements, their eyes that widen when something exciting happens with the high energy in their voice, the panic along with frantic movements when one of the cats got stuck while trying to sneak into the house, and the relaxing posture with the soothing voice once the cats are inside.

Fig. 6. The last scene for comedy purposes to get people in a good mood and have a positive association.

Strategies and Effects

A person goes through many advertisements every day, whether they are online pop-up ads, ads when watching youtube videos, or even just posters and billboards outside, they are everywhere. In order to make sure that their ads stand out, the company, Panasonic Homes, decided to make out featuring cats and famous voice actors. Cats capture people’s attention, there are millions of videos thriving on youtube of cats just existing. A good example of this is in the article, “Why Cats Might Be the Key to Your Marketing Strategy,” which talks about the great success of website hosting company GoDaddy by using cats in the advertisement.

Cats are effective, and so are the well-known voice actors, Sugita Tomokazu and Kaji Yuki with their recognizable, dramatic, and fun voice acting combining with the cute cat visuals, people are going to be interested. This is one of the “5 Most Common Advertising Techniques,” the association and connection with the customer through having voice actors voicing cats makes it feels like you’re watching a movie creates a strong psychological connection in the customer.

Audience

This advertisement is enjoyable for all kinds of people, this is more directed towards people who are in their late twenties or early thirties, just graduate and are looking for a place to live. It is influential towards kids and teens watching on TV by building familiarity and positive association with the brand. It is effective for people who are looking to buy new household applications, such as a television, microwave, or security camera through the repetition of Panasonic Homes, the company’s name.

Effective Advertising

I spend a lot of time online during quarantine, visited multiple websites, watched many videos, scrolled through numerous posts, and ads are everywhere, short videos promoting the products, lengthy videos giving statistics about the products, or just demonstrations of the products. I believe that one of the most effective ways to advertise your product or brand would be to create a positive association whether through a catchy tune, emotional script, symbolism, animals, celebrity, or comedic script that will leave an impression on the viewers and they will unconsciously remember the brand or products through these associations. In this Panasonic Homes commercial, they use lovable cats, famous voice actors, amusing stories, and repetition of the brand, making this an interesting, memorable, and effective advertisement for their target audience.