- A fluffy cat and a talking goat are featured in home marketing campaigns to stand out.
- Agents believe the animals will attract attention in a sluggish housing market.
- The unique approach has generated interest and enquiries, with one home selling for $1.115m.
A fluffy cat who wanted to be in every photo and a talking goat in a tartan hat have found themselves fronting the marketing campaigns for their owners’ homes.
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The agents involved believe the animals will help the homes stand out in a sluggish and saturated housing market.
Tremains agent Benedict Ryan told OneRoof that Mishka the cat photo-bombed her way into the listing for 10 Astelia Way, in Waipahihi, Taupō.
The 17-year-old cat kept getting in the way of the photographer during the shoot, so her owners decided to make her formally part of the campaign.
Ryan hoped Mishka’s appearance would grab people’s attention and said she had already received several enquiries about the property from buyers who noticed the cat in the main photo.
Max the goat has become a talking point for people looking at 179 Mcgregor Road, in Ngahinapouri, Waipa. Photo / Supplied
The lifestyle property is being sold with two of Max's cousins. Photo / Supplied
She joked that Mishka was a bit of a show-off. “There are two [cats], but Mishka prefers the camera better.”
Further north, in Ngahinapouri, Harcourts agent Gary Stokes has enlisted the services of Max the goat to help sell a four-bedroom home at 179 Mcgregor Road.
He said that as soon as the vendors showed him a photo of their beloved pet wearing a tartan hat, he knew it had to be part of the marketing campaign.
He even took it a step further, using AI tools to create a video of Max speaking about the home in a Scottish accent.
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Max died some time ago, but his impish spirit lives on in Stokes' video and listing.
“If we have kids arrive, they say, 'Where’s the goat?'" he said, adding that Max's two cousins were on hand to greet visitors at the fence.
Stokes said 179 Mcgregor Road was the perfect home for city-dwellers wanting to move to an affordable lifestyle property. “It’s an older place that’s been done up.”
In Christchurch, Harcourts agent Connor Cleine has seen the boost a friendly pet can have to a sales campaign.
Maisey the cavoodle outside her home on Bennett Street, in Saint Albans, Christchurch. The photo pulled at the heartstrings. Photo / Supplied
He recently sold a bungalow on Bennett Street in Saint Albans, using a photo of the vendors’ cavoodle outside the property.
Maisey appearance in the listing tugged at people’s heartstrings, he said. “People who came to the open home definitely commented on it.”
It was subtle enough that it wasn’t in your face, he said, but noticeable enough to make the listing a bit different. “I don’t know if it was that intense a selling feature, but people saw it and definitely thought it was cute.”
Cleine did not think using a pet would be a deterrent for anyone who didn't like pets, because it just made it a bit more fun, adding that the decision around purchasing a house went far deeper.
Enlisting the help of the pretty pooch certainly didn’t do the sale of the Bennett Street bungalow any harm because it sold at auction this week for $1.115m. However, Cleine was unsure whether the buyer was a pet lover.
- 179 Mcgregor Road, Ngahinapouri, is for sale for $990,000 and 10 Astelia Way, Waipahihi, is for sale by negotiation
