• by Daisy Whitney , Op-Ed Contributor, September 13, 2012

It had to happen. The only question is why it took so dang long for a cat food maker to launch an award for best original cat video.

But give it up for Purina, which just rolled out an award for the best new Internet cat video of 2012 in a contest dubbed “The Friskies” that includes charitable donations of cat food and a $15,000 grand prize.

This is the kind of brand synergy that marketers should be looking for when it comes to Web video.

Cat videos have been among the most popular since the dawn of YouTube, and just last month one of the first ever cat video film festivals took place in Minneapolis. This isn’t the first time Purina has tapped animal videos, however. The brand has enlisted YouTube sensation Mishka The Talking Dog in TV commercials.

The Friskies contest is a simple and smart way for a brand to capitalize on an existing, and a tried-and-true, online video trend. This is a feel good project, it recognizes what consumers are already doing for fun, and it also has a charitable component not only for video creators but for the online community. Each time someone enters the contest, votes, or likes or shares a video, Friskies will donate five additional cans of cat food to cat charities beyond its initial 125,000 can donation, up to a total of 250,000 cans.

Entries can be made through October 12.

Personally, my favorite cat video ever is Catvertising.