Expert: Sean Trapani - 8/22/2007

Question
Why are advertising agencies obsessed with putting dogs on their websites?  Usually under the creative department bios,  eg:  Jim Smith - Creative Director, Jane Smith - Graphic Designer, Fido - Creative Dog.  This is often accompanied with a picture of the dog.  It can't be as simple as "people like dogs".  Is it a running industry joke?

Answer
Hi, Neil

I've never done any quantitative studies on agency website imagery (and pray I never have to), so I'll take your word on the ubiquity of the four-legged mascots.

My optimistic side: Agency creative folks are warm, fun-loving people who play hackey sack in the hallway, quote Steven Colbert hourly and spend their lunch hours rushing back home to walk their pets.

My cynical side: It's all a big scam. Ad agencies know that people still love to look at pictures of puppies and babies. They know that potential clients (and current ones) look at their websites, so they're always trying to "sell" the agency. "Awww...what a cute puppy. Maybe I won't tell them how much their headlines stink up my office."

And as with any proposition, the truth is probably somewhere in between the two extremes.


Prof. T