Cuteness
Cuteness is quite literally the cutest place on the web.
Replete with adorable videos of puppies, cat memes and lists with names like 17 Sleepiest Kittens to Ever Take a Nap, Cuteness is a hub of useful information about the pets in our lives.
Featuring articles about why cats hold grudges and whether or not dog siblings recognize each other, Cuteness is an oasis of calm in a harried, bedraggled day.
In October of 2016, the site’s owner, Santa Monica-based Leaf Group, hired me to help develop Cuteness’ editorial initiatives, which included on-site content, email, social videos, as well as tackling audience growth through organic search.
The bulk of our revenue at the beginning of the 2-year project was primarily advertising revenue, but due to our growing appeal with brands like Chewy and Purina, we had added sponsored content as a significant revenue driver when my time with the team came to an end in 2018.
We prioritized video as an essential socially-driven tactic in our brand building strategy. My team produced original videos in the Leaf Group studios that featured paid actors, script writers, and professional production companies.
However, even more popular than our large, full-scale productions, were the Cuteness DIY projects — our How to Make a Cat Castle Out of Cardboard Boxes went viral with over 22 million views on Facebook and over 5.5 million views on YouTube.
