Marketing Your Pet Products to the World

Ready to enter or improve your results in the pet product market?

There’s plenty of business to be had but smart pet brands recognize the importance of strategic pet product advertising and marketing, including direct response TV, online, print and catalogs.

Pet spending is huge. According to the American Pet Product Association (APPA), pet spending topped out at $58 billion in 2014 – but numbers are expected to rise even higher in 2015, all the way up to $60 billion for the industry overall. With nine in 10 pet owners seeing their pet as a member of their family, it’s clear why people are spending so much on their pets.

“The pet industry continues to outpace most other retail segments and for 2015 we are projecting to surpass the $60 billion mark, which shows the strength and vitality of this industry,” said Bob Vetere, President and CEO of the APPA at the Global Pet Expo during the report announcement.

Although the report included popular service categories like grooming, boarding, walking and daycare in their general spending numbers, pet products were a large part of that $58 billion in sales. The food category in the pet products industry was the leader in terms of dollars spent. While many categories of pet spending are one off purchases, like a new dog bed or a cat tree, for obvious reasons pet food sees repeat sales.

Pet owners care a lot about brands. When it comes to food, pet owners are becoming more selective and choosy with brands. Just like in the people food industry, buyers are looking for higher quality ingredients, specialty foods that cater to specific dietary needs and a focus on the overall health of their pets. Pet foods saw a growth of 3.2% between this year and last, while supplies ad over the counter medications increased by 4.6% to $13.75 billion overall.

Vetere also noted that there are increases in spending at both ends of the age range of pet owners. Baby boomers are more likely to pay a bit more for products in order to make their pets happy, and Gen Y owners like to shop for hi-tech pampering products and convenient services.

Entering this crowded market is not for the faint of heart, but pet product marketing can help any brand find new customers, build a larger client base and take in a piece of the coming $60 billion in spending.

Here are three ways that pet product marketing can help any brand perform better:

1. Pet product advertising can help you improve your sales results.

The first and most prominent benefit of pet product marketing is increasing sales results. Although marketing campaigns may not be asking for a direct sale, they improve your brand’s presence and can lead to strong sales figures down the line.

2. Pet product marketing helps your brand develop a strong narrative.

No matter what type of pet product you’re selling, you’ve got competitors (and if you don’t – you need to choose something else). In order to stand out, you need to be able to communicate a story about your brand that resonates with pet owners. That’s difficult to do without a strategic pet product marketing plan. In order to rise above the other competitors, use a pet product marketing plan to develop a newsworthy narrative that will introduce your product to customers and make your brand memorable.

3. Pet product advertising can help you reach out directly to your target consumer.

Through direct response pet product advertising your company can connect with your target consumers and sell to them directly. Whether you want to eventually enter national brand stores or prefer to stick with TV, online or print direct response ads, direct response pet product advertising can open you up to the exact pet parents who want your product.