It’s interesting how marketing needs and trends reflect human desires and growth paths. In our lives, we continue to see an influx of technology - it makes our lives easier and more efficient, but on the other hand, we are all victim to an oversaturation of technology and social media. The positive and negative effects are well-documented and we aren’t here to get into them today.

What we will get into is 2020 marketing trends for pet stores, and how the broader, industry-wide marketing trends can be narrowed down and focused for the local, independent, family-owned pet stores that Pet Engine Marketing partners with today.

2020 Marketing Trends for Pet Stores

In case you don’t want to read the entire piece, here are our major takeaways:

Artificial intelligence in global marketing will continue to grow, but this technology is not out of reach for small businesses such as pet stores. Automation, machine learning, and AI-optimization can all be big factors in improving your pet store’s marketing strategy in 2020 if done correctly.
Customer experience is the biggest buzzword in marketing today as more and more consumers “ignore” marketing messages and connect with brands they feel connected to. There are ways to improve, or even manufacture connection, from a marketing standpoint.
Teen activist Greta Thunberg was named Time’s Person of the Year 2019 for her outspoken message directed at world leaders on the consequences of climate change. Sustainability was a major growth area and trend in the pet industry in 2019 and it’s here to stay in 2020 as consumers and brands look to align themselves with the environment.
2020 has a few sporting events and a presidential election that will see a rise in TV viewership and advertising, bucking the trends. If you have the budget and an idea, marketing your store appropriately during these events might not be a bad idea.

The Continued Influx of AI in Marketing

Machine learning and the use of artificial intelligence has been a growth area in global marketing for years. It's no surprise that these global trends, overarching ideas and themes, and expensive technologies take a little bit of time to trickle their way down to smaller businesses like pet stores.

And (we think) we know what pet store owners are thinking: there’s no way I can afford AI-based marketing, or there’s no way that I’d know how to set it up. The thing is, the tools that are at your disposal right now are using machine learning to provide better results for you. These are the same tools that are our bread and butter at Pet Engine Marketing. We’re talking primarily about Facebook and Google.

Since so much of their revenue comes from advertising (over 90% for FB and over 80% for Google), it is in their best interests to make their platforms easier, more efficient, and more effective for advertisers. That includes pet stores, whether you’re spending $100 per year or $10,000. These companies know that you have options as to where you spend your money, and if your marketing dollars aren’t bringing ROI, you will spend them elsewhere.

So, they are already using machine learning, automation, and AI to benefit you. You just have to know how to activate it the right way. That’s where we come in. Give us a call to see what we can do for your pet store marketing strategy in 2020.

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The Customer Experience Remains #1

Consumers are more inundated than ever before with marketing messages from multiple channels. They’ve started to tune them out. That’s why drawing the line between privacy and the public will be critical for your pet store’s brand. Brand discovery, i.e. bringing in new customers, will still happen on public channels, but customer conversion, loyalty, and advocacy will all happen as a result of personalizing the customer experience.

Loyal customers help to increase the reputation and awareness of your brand as they’ll talk about your company and products with their friends and family. Happy customers make great (and free!) brand ambassadors and influencers.

Personalization is, at this point, completely expected from your existing customers if not your new ones, and it gets easier to personalize communications the more interactions someone has with your brand. For more information on how to personalize your marketing communications for your pet store, join our free community for pet store owners and get our best content delivered to you monthly.

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How to ensure your customer’s experience stays personal for your pet store? As a small business, you have a natural advantage over big box stores like PetSmart or PetCo.

“The future is private.”

Ensuring that your employees are knowledgeable and friendly is critical. Management over online inboxes and reviews is critical as consumers will go to private channels to escape noisy and impersonal public feeds in search of engaging one-to-one connections. Having a polished and personable online presence is critical. Pet Engine Marketing can help you out with 2/3 of those! Think you can take anything Mark Z. says with a grain of salt, but we feel he’s right on this one.

Sustainability is Here to Stay!

Sustainability was a big piece of cause marketing in the pet industry in 2019 and it will continue to be that way in 2020 and for the foreseeable future. Teen climate activist Greta Thunberg being named Time's 2019 Person of the Year solidified that tending to the planet's future is top of the agenda for many.

Pet stores will have different audiences with different values, buying preferences, and so on. But there will always be a market for sustainable products. Aligning yourself with partners that focus on sustainability and the environment are easy ways to get your pet store’s customers to spend a few extra dollars here and there, as well as make an impact.

That sustainability-focused market is growing, too. Demand for purpose-based and purposeful brands is rising, and as more young people (millennials and Gen Z) get pets and move into homeownership, they will be looking for products and brands that fit their lifestyle from a value-based perspective.

With product-heavy businesses like pet stores, there is abundant room for innovation in disposing of single-use plastics and other product packaging materials. Finding a way to improve your store’s waste or recycling habits before your local competitors can be a major way to bring in new like-minded pet parents.

2020 is Event-Heavy

Although TV advertising numbers are trending downward (Source: eMarketer) for a handful of reasons, it’s worth keeping in mind that 2020 will be an event-heavy year. Take a look at some of the major world events that will be drawing crowds towards their television sets:

Summer Olympics in Japan
UEFA Euro 2020 in Europe
US Presidential Election

These events will have butts in seats and it might not be a terrible idea to consider some top-of-the-funnel brand awareness marketing on local channels during these events. But if you’re going to do it, do it right! Make sure your message and production are top-notch because you don’t want to waste the TV spots that you’d be purchasing.

Also worth considering: these events provide ample opportunity for marketing through other means such as email and social media! It’s probably a bad idea to send an email blast during a major debate, but it might not be a terrible idea to provide some social commentary from your store’s Twitter feed during it.

2020 Marketing Trends for Pet Stores
Conclusion

In 360 days we will look back at this. We might have hit the nail on the head, or we might be dead wrong, or somewhere in the middle. Despite having a 2020 vision the future can be difficult to predict (had to throw that one in there).

These 2020 marketing trends for pet stores should be used as you are taking January to (hopefully) plan out your major marketing campaigns, events, and goals for your pet store. Keep in mind that AI and machine learning can make your life easier and your results better. Customer experience is still #1, and sustainability is a topic we should all look at to improve the world around us. Don’t forget about the major events and see them as major opportunities to align your marketing means with them

What are you looking forward to in 2020 from a marketing or business growth standpoint? What’s worked for you in 2019 that you’re looking to continue? What will you be trying to improve on in 2020? We’d love to hear from you, give us a follow and share your thoughts!