Pets

Implications - Pet food brands are changing up their marketing strategies, which often focus on bulk quantities and health, and are creating product lines that prioritize sophisticated, almost adult-like dishes for pets. These items are able to evoke trust and create automatic associations with nutrition and quality, catering to consumers who prioritize indulgence in their purchase decisions.

Homework Question - Conceptualize how your company could rebrand its product/service in a way that caters to the indulgence-minded consumer. [More]

Implications - Brands are cementing more positive relationships between pet owners and their beloved pets by creating products, services and benefits that are strictly made to help them bond. These products and spaces come as busy consumers not only seek to alleviate guilt associated with not being at home, but at a time in which the lifestyle benefits of such facilitated bonding become increasingly prioritized.

Homework Question - How could your brand enhance its customer’s work-life balance? [More]

Implications - With pet ownership now often involving long periods of being away from said pets, consumers are turning to robotic companions and specialized entertainment services that keep their dogs and cats company. Going past alleviating consumer guilt regarding less-involved pet care, this shift speaks to the consumer desire for more dynamic approaches to lifestyle habits and responsibilities.

Homework Question - How could your brand create more dynamic approaches in the solutions it is trying to sell? [More]

Implications - Mirroring the paleo diet, wild pet foods are meant to provide pets with diets that they would traditionally experience in the wild. With human food trends often translating into the pet food space, it comes as no surprise that we would see this adaptation appear, especially when you take into account the alleviation of guilt that serving pets with an elevated diet provides busy owners.

Homework Question - Does your industry set or follow trends? How might an understanding of rooted consumer desire help you to hack this system? [More]

Implications - Tapping into consumer lifestyle habits, modern pet products and accessories are offering eco-friendly and sustainable alternatives for traditional pet care needs. Utilizing recyclable and biodegradable materials, brands are offering pet products that not only fulfill its desired function but also satiate a need for more conscious lifestyle habits. Such a shift in pet products showcases a consumer desire for sustainable consumption in all aspects of their routine, including those of their extended family.

Homework Question - How can your brand better integrate itself into your core consumer's lifestyle? What habits and desire can you appeal to? [More]

Implications - The concept of pets being seen as not extended parts of families, but actual members of them, is being targeted by brands that are offering humanized services that cater to people with animals. These products and services allow for a unique form of indulgence that puts a distinct twist on familial bonding.

Homework Question - How could your brand allow for unique forms of indulgence within its area of expertise? [More]

Implications - An alternative to leaving pets in "doggie hotels" or with friends, many consumers are opting to take their pets on trips with them – and brands are adapting to this fact by prioritizing the convenience and comfort of such trips. This shift enhances the bond between consumers and their pets, and gives pet-related brands a good opportunity to enter and establish an emerging market.

Homework Question - How can your brand help shape or cater to an emerging consumer preference in its area of expertise? [More]

Implications - Looking beyond mere mobile applications, pet owners are seeking out products and services that offer their pets smarter, more intelligent solutions to their day-to-day needs. Tapping into areas like AI and biometric tech, these products not only provide automated services but more intuitive and predictive solutions for owners and their pets.

Homework Question - Think of your most streamlined product or service. How could you elevate that experience even more with the use of AI or other technologies? [More]

Implications - Fresh pet foods are becoming more common as brick-and-mortar spaces offer dishes made specifically for dogs and cats, or brands offer food products that pet owners can make fresh at home. This shift reflects the increased importance of bonding with pets, becoming top of mind as urban consumers lead busier lives, allowing them to assuage some of the guilt associated with their absences.

Homework Question - How could your brand offer more personalized solutions to consumers' busy lives? [More]

Implications - The popularity of "superfoods" has resulted in the marketing of pet food products as including these varied ingredients, with everything from algae to beets enhancing the health of pets' meals. These superfood pet products appeal to hyper-conscious pet owners, particularly those within Millennial demographics, due to their framing as artisan and ultra-nutritious.

Homework Question - How could your brand adopt a popular product/service from an adjacent industry? [More]