Beyond Pet Industry Trends We love pet industry trade shows. From Global Pet Expo to SuperZoo to the Petfood Forum, we attend these industry shows because, as brand development and marketing partners to pet product companies, we’re part of the industry. There are a lot of good trendspotting roundups (rounds-up?) from this year’s Global, so we… Continue reading <span class="meta-nav">→</span>
Pet Marketing Insights The above list isn’t a sampler of pet industry trends. Rather, it’s a list of realities that we, as a brand growth firm and full-service marketing agency, treat as basic facts informing our pet marketing insight, strategy, and tactics. What really gets us excited are the deep cross-connections among trends and consumer behavior… Continue reading <span class="meta-nav">→</span>
Much like healthy foods for humans, healthy pet foods are booming. As increasing numbers of people view their pets as members of the family, they understandably seek out foods meant to support their health rather than simply buying the cheapest or most convenient food. Popular health features range from the generic “natural” to the inclusion… Continue reading <span class="meta-nav">→</span>
Cast your eye down the pet food aisle at your local grocery store, or wander through the relevent section of a nearby pet store, and two label claims will stand out: “natural” and “super premium.” Pet foods from all brands—and at all price points—will lay claim to those designations, and since neither of those claims… Continue reading <span class="meta-nav">→</span>
I confess: I’m obsessed with tomatoes, particularly in the late summer and fall. Much of my summer has been dedicated to conducting a sustained defensive action against the local squirrels to preserve my plants—a war which, I am happy to report, I am currently winning. I come by this obsession honestly, as the third generation… Continue reading <span class="meta-nav">→</span>
Online dating is difficult due to (among other reasons) its dependence on the written word. It’s difficult, through writing alone, to communicate important things like tone, temperament, and personality—characteristics crucial for compatibility. Photos, too, have significant limitations. Early matching services knew this and used video profiles (a lot of mainstream dating sites, for many—and we… Continue reading <span class="meta-nav">→</span>
Smithsonian.com’s K. Annie Smith recently published a fascinating post on the improving market share of traditional instant or ready-to-drink (RTD) coffee. In the United States, those brands haven’t fared well recently; the rise of Starbucks and the specialty coffee trend have shifted consumer tastes in a more high-end direction, and capsule coffee brewers have captured… Continue reading <span class="meta-nav">→</span>
Food Safety Modernization Act Since the Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA) was signed into law in 2011, the food industry has been faced with the prospect of greatly increased safety and transparency regulations. Today, those changes are still being rolled out—from much more frequent FDA inspections to stricter requirements for produce—and some regulations are still… Continue reading <span class="meta-nav">→</span>
During my teenage years, I worked at a local frozen custard stand. Our uniforms consisted of button downs and bow ties. We punched in with paper time cards. Orders were taken and called out in paperless fashion. It wasn’t quite Mayberry, although it did have a distinctive charm marked by nostalgia. Coupled with delicious frozen… Continue reading <span class="meta-nav">→</span>
Transparency. It’s what consumers have come to expect from the brands they buy, especially when it involves their food. It’s why many brands have turned to transparency campaigns to communicate their commitment to consumers. From the geographic origin of ingredients to how – and by whom – they are grown and harvested, consumers expect more… Continue reading <span class="meta-nav">→</span>
During the power outage that halted Super Bowl XLVII, one tweet made a bright impression, becoming one of the most retweeted messages of all time. The tweet itself: “Power out? No problem.” It was accompanied by an image of a dimly lit Oreo and the caption “You can still dunk in the dark.” In addition… Continue reading <span class="meta-nav">→</span>
Starbucks has been slinging (can you sling a latte?) its incredibly popular Pumpkin Spice Latte for around a decade. While they didn’t invent the spice combination, they’re at least partially responsible for the increased pumpkin-spicing of our drinks and desserts every fall for the past ten years. Drinks and desserts are one thing, but now… Continue reading <span class="meta-nav">→</span>
When it comes to food ingredient labels, consumers are savvier than ever, and those shelf-smarts have, over the last few years, begun extending to ingredient lists for our pets’ food, but all is not yet perfectly clear, even for the shrewdest of label readers. As with human nutrition, pet ingredient lists, due to terminology, don’t… Continue reading <span class="meta-nav">→</span>
The holiday season is staring us down. Seeing Thanksgiving tchotchkes in stores already is stressful, but what’s more stressful about this season is budget planning. If, like us, you’re responsible for marketing products and building brands, this tends to be a precarious time of year, as you’re simultaneously carrying out the remainder of your marketing… Continue reading <span class="meta-nav">→</span>
From the samples to the demonstrations to the entertainment factor (yes, even the tchotchkes), trade shows make us happy. We especially love trade shows that combine the subject matter and disciplines that hit our collective sweet spot. Perhaps no show does that better than SupplySide West. If you’re reading this, you’re probably aware that we… Continue reading <span class="meta-nav">→</span>