Office Depot is capitalizing on the Internet popularity of felines by including a new cat theme in its 2015 Elf Yourself mobile application, which enables users to upload headshots of themselves onto cartoon figurines for a shareable holiday greeting.

Office Depot has seen more than one billion elves created on Elf Yourself since its inception in 2006, with predictions set to skyrocket even more for app usage this winter season. The brand has recognized the massive popularity of cat videos and GIFs on the Internet, and is hoping to entice more users with a cat dance option that sees the personalized elves dance around scratching posts as well as the furry friends.

?With the research that has been conducted, customers are using their mobile devices every day to search for products and pricing before coming to and while shopping in our stores,? said Rachel Davis, director of content and social media at Office Depot, Inc., Boca Raton, FL. ?Providing access to Elf Yourself through a mobile app supports the on-the-go lifestyle of these shoppers.

?Elf Yourself is a fun way for Office Depot to be visible on users' home screens while being a part of the holiday conversation.?

Ringing in holiday spirit
Office Depot will undoubtedly experience an uptick in brand awareness with the release of this year?s updated app. The brand has previously seen 480 million users in more than 200 countries make their own personalized elves via the platform, which enables consumers to take or upload a photo of themselves to superimpose on a dancing figurine.

Individuals can engage in the holiday spirit by uploading up to five photos of themselves or friends and family and choosing a dance theme from 15 options, now including the ?Cats!? dance.

Other choices span from Hanukkah clips to a Hip Hop greeting.

The app then develops a custom video that users can share with friends across social media and email, or embed into blogs and Web sites.

Office Depot is making a smart move by attempting to ride the coattails of the cat phenomenon taking the Internet by storm. YouTube played host to more than two million new cat-related videos last year, which grabbed nearly 26 billion views.

The new Elf Yourself cat theme showcases the animals in festive scenes, interspersed with dancing elves. The video?s audio features a cat rendition of holiday classic ?The Twelve Days of Christmas.?

Capitalizing on the popularity of these YouTube videos will likely result in even greater app traction for Office Depot, a strategy that could come in handy when trying to keep the brand at the forefront of consumers? minds during the holiday shopping season.

Consumers happy with their Elf Yourself video can click the icons at the bottom of the app to share it on Pinterest, Twitter, Facebook or email, or embed the link in a site post. They may also download it for personal viewing at any time.

Individuals that do not want to download the application can create videos on desktop by visiting the ElfYourself.com site.

Circling back to commerce
Office Depot has ensured that a commerce element is also present in the Elf Yourself desktop service. Users can look at the bottom left corner to spot gateway buttons to additional elf content, as well as gifting ideas for coworkers.

The gifting button brings consumers to a section of Office Depot?s site that offers curated picks for those looking to purchase the perfect present for someone at their workplace.

This could be the perfect sales conversion tool for indecisive customers who wait until last minute to buy office presents.

Office Depot has recently undergone significant changes to its mobile and desktop offerings, proving that it is ready for a strong fourth quarter.

An Office Depot executive at the Mobile Shopping Summit 2015 reported that the brand initially offered uniform features across its mobile application and site, only to find that differentiating the platforms led to higher sales, as shoppers use them for different purposes (see story).

?We think consumers will enjoy [the app],? Ms. Davis said. ?Given the popularity of cats on the internet: more than two million cat videos were uploaded to YouTube in 2014, generating almost 26 billion views, this adds a unique and new feature to Elf Yourself.

?The cat dance features a purr-fect mash-up of cute felines in festive scenes alongside the dancing elves, singing along to a cat rendition of ?The Twelve Days of Christmas.??

Final Take
Alex Samuely, staff writer on Mobile Marketer, New York