Tidy Cats is addressing everyday cat offenses with “Special Litter Unit,” a three-part social series developed by Golin Ketchum. Designed to mirror a television series premiere rather than a standard product launch, the crime-procedural spoof stars Kumail Nanjiani as the leader of an elite investigative unit alongside creator Jordan Howlett as a rookie officer. Each episode centers on a specific pet-care challenge addressed by the Purina brand’s Performance+ line, including tracking, odor, and weak clumping.
The episodic rollout spans Tidy Cats’ Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube channels, supported by experiential marketing that featured a one-day “Litter Crimes HQ” pop-up in New York offering interactive missions and adoptable Petfinder cats, with Episode 2 and Episode 3 specifically generating above-norm intent for the Tidy Cats brand among cat owners.
Here’s what iSpot’s Creative Assessment platform revealed in response to the episodes among cat owners.
The Details:
- The “Episode 3: A Feline Finale” was the Special Litter Unit campaign’s standout spot on both creative and commercial measures. Overall response (as measured by Ace Score) came in +48 pts above norm, at the 84th percentile for the pet care category among cat owners:
- Four of the seven creative components delivered at above-norm rates as the spot grabbed Attention and stood out as unique in the category (Change) — the crime-procedural format earned notice as the brand intended. The characters led Single Best Thing citings at 23% against a 15% norm (+8 pts), while the brand and product were mentioned at normative rates.
- Product information landed adequately but wasn’t the driver. Information was +13 pts above norm (within benchmark range), and the message was chosen as Single Best Thing by only 9% against a 14% norm (−5 pts).
- Still, cat owners found this spot both Relevant/relatable and desirable with Top 2 box consumer intent at 65% beating the category norm of 57% (+8 pts). As the story sold the product more than any claim did, the “much more likely” response drove the gain at 39% against a 26% norm (+13 pts) – excellent conviction levels!
- Younger cat owners responded exceptionally well. The 18-35 response was +100 pts above norm (99th percentile), and while the 36-49 cohort was at norm, cat owners 50+ responded better than expected ( +26 pts above norm).
- Four of the seven creative components delivered at above-norm rates as the spot grabbed Attention and stood out as unique in the category (Change) — the crime-procedural format earned notice as the brand intended. The characters led Single Best Thing citings at 23% against a 15% norm (+8 pts), while the brand and product were mentioned at normative rates.
- Second-by-second trace results reflect high engagement across the campaign ads among cat owners, with unaided recall rising slightly in Episodes 2 and 3:
- Resonance for Episode 3 stayed in the upper part of the norm band through the full runtime, with only a slight dip in the final seconds, reaffirming the spot’s ability as a standalone.
- Emotional profiling reveals Curiosity sparked by the unconventional campaign approach, with humor and ingenuity response highest among viewers of the first episode:
- Viewer sentiment on “Episode 3: A Feline Finale” 1:45 reflects a breakthrough ad that generated strong positive sentiment and brand differentiation among cat owners.
- The cinematic approach and comedic tone differentiated this brand in a category typically dominated by straightforward product demonstrations. This elevated production value signaled premium positioning and multiple viewers specifically recognized and appreciated the casting choices, particularly mentioning Instagram influencers.
- However, the 1:45 runtime was a concern for a small section of viewers, and could challenge media flexibility and viewer patience on repeat views. A small portion of viewers also noted confusion about whether this was cat food or litter, suggesting product clarity could be strengthened in shorter edits.
- Viewer sentiment on “Episode 3: A Feline Finale” 1:45 reflects a breakthrough ad that generated strong positive sentiment and brand differentiation among cat owners.
Sample comments among cat owners on the “Episode 3: A Feline Finale” 1:45
“This is a home run as far as casting. JORDAN!!! It’s not so clever with the copy, but the acting and cinematography are fantastic. Grade: A.”
Female 36-49
“This was one of the best and coolest ads I have ever watched in my whole life and it was pretty much inspiring for me because I just like the way the ad was made and it is pretty good and it is very good overall.”
Male 18-35
“Great ad. Love the main stars. And I love the cat. Very clever and funny.”
Male 36-49
“I thought this was very unique and charming and I was surprised that it made me laugh and it also still explained what the product does.”
Female 18-35
“It was funny comparing kitty litter to a crime scene, although it seemed to go on a little too long.”
Male 50+
“Tidy Cats did it again! Hilarious, best commercial ever.”
Female 36-49
“One of the actors is an Instagram influencer, and I’m glad he was chosen for this which automatically made me interested in the ad.”
Male 18-35
“This ad was stupid and I didn’t see the relationship between a crime scene and cat litter.”
Female 50+
“I love this! Both of the characters were hilarious!”
Female 36-49
“Very original. Looks like a movie.”
Female 50+
“The ad was super interesting, and kept the viewer wanting to learn and see more.”
Male 18-35
“This ad was really funny and creative. I liked the chemistry between the two characters and, of course, the cat was adorable.”
Female 18-35
“This ad reminded me of a movie trailer. It was super interesting and you couldn’t tell it was an ad. I loved it.”
Female 18-35
“Creative, simple but appreciated the effort in the production.”
Male 18-35
“I mean, it was a very good ad. It’s cool, but you need to cut it down some. You can’t run an ad that long. You’ve got to get to like a 30 second version of that. Some of the cuts were just too long. They went on too long.”
Male 36-49
“I absolutely luv this ad with my guy from Instagram in it. Whatever he’s selling, ima buy.”
Male 36-49
- The campaign improved by roughly 100 pts on overall response from Episode 1 to Episode 3, so the creatives got stronger as a more complete story was told:
- Information was the biggest turnaround. Episode 1 fell −140 pts below norm with the concept cliffhanger working its objective. Episode 2 closed the gap to 40 pts below norm, while Episode 3 reached +13 pts above norm (read as at norm range).
- Purchase intent rose steadily as the brand/product became more clear and the concept made more immediate sense. Top 2 Box reached 56% for Episode 1 (at norm) but rose to 61% for Episode 2 (+4 pts). Episode 3 persuaded at a rate +8 pts over the 57% benchmark. Moreover, intent solidified as well with “much more likely” climbing from 29% to 32% to 39%.
- Results question whether Episode 1 is necessary while Episodes 2 and 3 drove intent as standalone creatives.
- Information was the biggest turnaround. Episode 1 fell −140 pts below norm with the concept cliffhanger working its objective. Episode 2 closed the gap to 40 pts below norm, while Episode 3 reached +13 pts above norm (read as at norm range).
- A strong female turnaround was seen across the episodes of the “Special Litter Unit” campaign while male cat owners remained the stronger audience throughout:
Ineffective creative, even if delivered to the right audience, results in missed opportunity and performance shortfalls. Great creative delivered poorly also results in failed campaigns.
Schedule a demo to find out how your brand can partner with iSpot to quickly solve both challenges simultaneously, delivering high-performing creative while boosting the effectiveness of planning and in-market execution to achieve—and outperform—campaign objectives.
Creative Agency: Golin Ketchum