Cancer survival rates in humans continue to improve as early detection and advanced treatments evolve. Oncology is a perfect example of how veterinary medicine is keeping pace with human medical progress.

My dog Bella was diagnosed with a stage III malignant mass cell tumor at age three—a virtual death sentence without the proper course of action. She needed specialized radiation therapy just like that offered in humans. When we learned that NC State Veterinary Hospital had 90% average 3-year survival rates with such treatments, it was a no-brainer to go for it. Four years later, the investment (if you can look at it that way) has paid off in ways we never imagined it would. Bella is more engrained as a family member as ever—evidenced by the half-dozen hugs my two-year-old son gives her daily.

The standards of veterinary care available to pet owners today are nothing shy of marvelous and not only benefit owners in extending healthy lifespans of pets, but are connected to human medicine. The North Carolina Animal Cancer Program is strengthened by a liaison between and NC State Veterinary Hospital and Duke University Medical Center, with support from the National Cancer Institute. Associated research is helping the organizations better understand cancer biology and treatments for pets and humans alike.

Not all pet owners are willing to take advantage of optimal products and modes of care for their pets, but I, like 44% of my fellow dog owners, am veterinary dependant and will spend what I must to enable my dog to continue enriching my family’s life.

This ad from Pedigree uses the amazing high-frame count technology of the Phantom camera to capture a moment in a way that most pet owners have never seen. It simply and elegantly shows pet owners the anticipation, focus and happiness that pets experience when being fed or given a treat. Notice that there is no voiceover by Pedigree touting the benefits of the food. Or telling the consumer that pets will enjoy it. Pedigree lets the visuals do that. Why? Because that would take the viewer out of the moment. And in a way, they are selling that moment to owners. They take the mundane act of feeding a pet and uncover a whole new side of the story for the owner. Pet owners know that their pets like to be fed.  They know pets wait by a door or paw at a food bowl when hungry. What they undoubtedly have missed out on until this point is witnessing every part of the moment that the dog experiences.  By helping a pet owner understand the subtle, almost human-like reactions a pet has, the ad positions the brand as truly understanding the deep relationship that many pet owners have with their pets.  And even better, Pedigree positions themselves as the brand that brings this reaction out of pets. Of course, not all pet owners would really connect with this moment. But the pet owners that are spending the most on their pets, certainly do.

According to Trone’s last two economy surveys, most Americans (well over 80%) were worried about the state of the economy.  A solid majority (over 60%) also expected it would take at least three years for the economy to recover.  In fact, over a quarter of all Americans thought recovery would take 5 years or even longer.

A survey of leading economists recently released by the Associated Press may well explain why Americans view the economy as mentioned above.  According to the article summarizing the survey:

The pillars of Americans’ financial security — jobs and home values — will stay shaky well into 2011.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20100412/ap_on_bi_ge/us_ap_economy_survey

Among the key predictions of these economists were:

• The unemployment rate will stay stubbornly high the next two years. It will inch down to 9.3 percent by the end of this year and to 8.4 percent by the end of 2011. The rate has been 9.7 percent since January. When the recession started in December 2007, unemployment was 5 percent.
• Home prices will remain almost flat for the next two years.
• The economy will grow 3 percent this year, which is less than usual during the early phase of a recovery and the reason unemployment will stay high. It takes growth of 5 percent for a year to lower the jobless rate by 1 percentage point.
• Sales of previously occupied homes, the biggest chunk of the market, will tick up to 5.4 million this year and to 5.9 million in 2011. That would mark continued improvement from the low of 4.9 million in 2008 and be in line with sales in a healthy economy.  But there’s a catch.  Sales are forecast to rise in part because of another anticipated wave of foreclosures. That will keep prices from rising — and consumers from spending freely.

Given the expectations of these economists and the related financial uncertainty among consumers, the market is going to become increasingly competitive.  Engaging the consumer at every point along the purchase cycle will be essential to winning purchases.  To these ends, a fully integrated and seamlessly executed market communications strategy is indispensible.

 Walmart had seen this, too, and had embarked upon a strategy of playing even harder ball with their vendors (um, sorry, I mean partners), removing many national brands from their shelves.  The allure of doubling their retail margins with private label products, while reducing actual consumer cost at the same time, was too tantilizing.

If you’ve paid any attention to the pet industry the past few years, you recall stories about it being virtually recession proof, or maybe you’ve been baffled by the share of wallet pets command in the U.S.–$47.7 billion is expected to be spent this year. A common thread tying these reports together concludes a new generation of high-bonded pet owners, often called pet parents, has emerged. On the surface, it’s hard to argue the recentness of the trend, but we should all take a step back and realize the notion of pet parenthood precedes the advent of anthropomorphized dog food and veterinary acupuncture.

My recent trip to the Westminster dog show provided great perspective. The event, one of today’s biggest celebrations of dogs, has been around for 134 years, before the invention of doggy seat belts or automobiles for that matter. I was humbled to imagine proud pet parents similar to those surrounding me at the show existed more than a century ago.

From pets’ places in ancient Roman society to Queen’s Elizabeth’s famous corgis, the sentiment of pet parenthood runs deep and rich. But only now is it becoming widespread. So why has the industry seen exponential growth far exceeding the rate of pet ownership? And what’s with the fuss about the new role pets play in our lives?

It’s clear that the notion of pet parenthood is not a manufactured phenomenon, indeed authentic emotional bonds of such cannot be. And a theory that a more suburban, less tight-knit, community-based population is using pets to replace interpersonal emotional bonds doesn’t quite explain it. In fact, strong pet-owner relationships have always been highly celebrated and a variety of factors have converged to allow more people than ever to share them.

The pet parent came well before the pet store, but above all it is thanks to a quickly evolving industry that more dogs and cats are considered “babies.” A demand for best-possible veterinary medicine to protect human-pet bonds has always existed in some capacity. The wish for pets to have a human-like dinner isn’t new. What is new is that products and services to provide for and nurture long-standing bonds of pet parenthood have advanced tremendously the past decade. Standards of care are elevated. A recent Trone study indicates 43% of dog owners are highly “vet-dependent” and will spend amounts for their pets’ well-being that would have been deemed extraordinary not long ago. How much farther can the industry grow? If we examine the history of pet-owner bonds and realize just how many more owners stand to naturally ratchet up into the notion of pet parenthood, an educated guess would suggest this not so new phenomenon will continue to become even more common place, as a fast-developing industry enables it.

“Good dog! That’s a good boy,” you shout as your dog has managed to successfully catch the bright red Frisbee in his mouth and bring it back to you in his daily ritual of fetch with not only his very favorite toy, but with his very favorite human. You tousle the fur on his head, you rub his belly, you love him and he knows it. As he looks up at you with those big round eyes, what is he thinking? What would he say to you if he could share his appreciation? We like to think that he might throw back a “good human. That’s a good human!”

The most successful social media campaigns focus on a greater cause and movement. They provide something bigger than a brand or a product. They pull you in and make you feel. The emotional impact of a successful social media campaign should leave you wanting to spread the word and come back for more. Once developing the Good Human campaign for VPI Pet Insurance, Trone was able to take the campaign components, which focus around commending owners nationwide for providing the best care for their pet, and turn it into a captivating social movement.

By visiting ThatsAGoodHuman.com, pet owners across America can make a vow to be a good human to their pets by scratching behind their ears or brushing their teeth more often. They can vow to trim their pet’s nails or find something new that they and their pet can do together. They can even personalize their vow like Eileen from Liberty, MO did when she vowed to “let Shepherd go outside whenever he sees a squirrel.” Once a vow has been made, pet owners are asked to upload a picture of their pet and vote for one of four charities before seeing their vow up on the wall of thousands of pet owners that share in the love and devotion to their pets.  Once each charity hits 5,000 votes, VPI will donate $1,000 to that charity and from that point on, every 5,000 votes a charity receives, VPI will continue to donate. So inevitably, not only are pet owners taking a vow for their pets, but they are contributing to a charity that helps thousands of pets across the country.

The state of the economy is clearly going to crimp gift giving plans for most folks this year.  However, it appears our pets will continue to make out just fine.  A report recently published by MSNBC shows that while 84% of consumers say they are going to cut back on gift giving this year, only 23% are going to do so with their pets.  (You can read the full article here: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/27582273/from/ET )

This finding certainly comes as no surprise to me.  Earlier this year we reported findings from a Trone consumer survey that showed pets to be the last place consumers planned to cut spending, faring better than even our children.  (Trone report here:  http://www.trone.com/index.php/category/consumer-snapshots/pets/ ).  What we know is that for a large percentage of “pet parents” their pets are much more than mere “animals,” they are part of the family.  In fact, we have identified 8 distinct segments of dog owners and 6 segments of cat owners.  Contained within these segments are 44% of dog owners and 33% of cat owner who are highly bonded with their pets.  For these consumers, their relationship with their pet drives spending, and is a much better predictor of how much they’ll spend caring for Fido than any socioeconomic variable. 

So, if you’re in the market for a Shark Attack Hoodie, you’d better hurry.  There are only 17 shopping days till Christmas and it looks like demand for doggie gifts will be at an all-time high!

Back in February of 2008, Trone conducted a segmentation study of over 2,500 U.S. dog and cat owners.  One of the key findings to emerge from this study was that 44% of all dog owners and 34% of all cat owners have a pronounced tendency to rely on their veterinarians when making product-related decisions as well as in proactively maintaining their pets’ physical well-being.

A study Trone conducted just this past month (2,553 U.S. dog and cat owners) confirmed 1) the propensity for this segment of pet owners to engage their vets to a much greater degree than other pet owners and consequently 2) the considerable influence that vets have on these pet owners.  Here are some noteworthy facts unveiled in the current study:

When comparing vet dependent dog owners to other dog owners*…

• % visiting their vet at least twice per year: 58% vs. 15%
• % who consult with their vet on dog food: 86% vs. 11%
• % who consult with their vet on dog treats: 67% vs. 3%
• Of those who changed a basic product for their dog in the past two years, the % who did so based on advice from their vet: 69% vs. 2%
• % who would spend over $2,000 to treat a terminal illness during the last two or three years of their pet’s normal life expectancy if the vet told them the problem could be cured: 53% vs. 27%; More than $5,000: 26% vs. 12%
• % who indicated their spending on products for their dog has actually increased during the past year: 34% vs. 18%
• % who anticipate spending more than $5,000 on veterinary services over the lifetime of their dog: 53% vs. 27%

Considering the large market share represented by vet dependent pet owners as well as their greater per capita spending on their pets, they are simply too valuable to be overlooked.  Given the importance they place on “finding the right product,” pet products companies looking to advance in the marketplace should consider how to best turn these pet owners into brand advocates.  Previous research conducted by Trone demonstrated the relative “online savviness” of vet dependent pet owners, so a well thought-out social media strategy should be an integral part of building brand advocacy.

Taking into account the size of the constituency it serves as well as the influence it wields, the veterinary channel is an indispensible link in connecting brands to pet owners as well as in maintaining brand loyalty.  Manufacturers of pet products would be well-advised to incorporate the veterinary channel into their overall brand strategy.

*Similar trends were found among cat owners.

My friend Jill told this story recently: a friend of a friend of her mother read on the Internet that pet owners shouldn’t clean floors with Swiffer wet products as they purportedly contain the same chemical as antifreeze.  When Jill asked her mom if she believed that, she said, “Jill, honey–it must be true. I Googled it and read for myself on the Internet.”

To paraphrase the cartoon caption: on the Internet, nobody knows you’re sharing a myth, a half-truth or a bold-faced lie. It’s on the Internet; lots of people are reading it as evidenced by its optimization on Google so therefore, it must be true. By the way, the Swiffer story is pure fabrication. What’s amazing is that it’s still out there after five years!

And therein lies the dilemma with relying on the Internet for the definitive word; anyone and everyone can speak with authority. And it seems the louder the voice, the greater the optimization, the more validity is given. Unfortunately, the Internet has created a whole new breed of muckrakers, many of whom seem more ill-informed than purposely untruthful.

In our work for pet clients, we’ve seen on the Internet a fair amount of ignorance if not out-right fabrication. One website in particular–which I won’t name because they’re already too nicely optimized–touts itself as a fair, unbiased source of information for pet owners. It’s far from being either fair or unbiased. It gets a lot of traffic so it’s easy to assume that visitors are reading and accepting what they read. Because the web is so convenient and pervasive, it’s not difficult to make this leap: most pet owners are turning to the Internet for information and advice.

That’s a scary thought, but here’s reassurance. While pet owners might read and research online, we know from Trone Brand Connections consumer studies that the overwhelming majority talk to their veterinarian and take his or her advice. That doesn’t suggest that we and our clients should ignore online information, especially attempting to correct misinformation, but must ensure that we’re engaged and communicating with most pet owners’ preferred source of information and education–the veterinary community.

What you don’t do for your dog says as much about you as what you do for them.

The new campaign for Alpo dog food capitalizes on this thought brilliantly. By showcasing the ridiculousness of pet owners dressing up dogs and paying for pet massages, it focuses on getting back to the basics of what it means to be a real dog and dog owner. It invites its target to laugh with the brand at other types of dog owners who go overboard with their dog pampering. It brings the realness back to dog ownership that these owners have never forgotten. Now I must admit, I wouldn’t buy Alpo even though I don’t dress up my dog. I am a very different type of pet owner that would never think of giving my dog anything but the best food and care possible. Said plainly, I see Alpo as a cheap and more importantly less healthy brand of dog food. Not good enough for my pup. But I am not their target. Their target buys dog food from a grocery store not a pet store. And they don’t let their dog eat better food than they do. But even though I am not their target, I find these ads amusing, honest and funny in a way that stories about peas and carrots could never be. After all, dogs were once wild animals forced to hunt for their food.

With everything from downloadable posters, stories about dogs lost to pampering that need to be “found” and even viral videos of people going into doggy spas to “rescue” the dogs by giving them Alpo, this campaign brings their headline “Quick, get that dog some Alpo” to life. The tagline “Real dogs eat meat” hits close to home for both the target’s way of thinking about feeding their dog as well as how they think about feeding themselves. Bravo to Alpo for truly understanding their target and how to talk to them.

Here is the campaign website.