Marketing Strategy on Dog Food in EEUU # Marketing estratégico para comida de perros

Strayer University
DEPARTAMENT OF MARKETING
Marketing Strategy on Dogs Food in EEUU
Presented by:
Researcher Adviser:
Marketing 100
Arlington, Virginia
2004
Table of Contents
Introduction
I would like to initiate my own business by selling dog food My goal is to become one of best providers for
dog food and eventually capture the market of food for others pets. The brand name for my product is
Happy and Healthy and the slogan is Food for Champions. My market focus is every family in America
who owns a dog. Any dog owner would like to find the perfect formula to give their dog a long, healthy life.
For that reason, my product offers the nutrients and flavor needed to keep a dog Happy and Healthy.
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Chapter 1
The SWOT Analysis for dog food
• Strengths:
Dog food is a relief for the consumer because it saves time and money when feeding a dog. In our days,
buying dog food is very easy since we can order food through the Internet and also telephone orders.
Definitely, dog food is a growing industry. According to AltaVista.com there are around 500 pets stores in
the US such as Petco, Pet store, Pet Smart, etc. George Fahey, an animal scientist with the University of
Illinois states that the industry of pet food is growing from 4 % to 7 % a year, and the market for other
animals is dropping or inactive. Mr. Fahey said, "It's a growth industry. Each day, all over the US we have
more people that are willing to spend more money on their pets. "People all over the world want the
prepared foods, and the U.S. and Canada supply most of it."
A report from The American Pet Products Manufacturers Association (APPMA) indicates that in 2002
Americans spent more than $29.5 billion on food, supplies, veterinary and other services for their pets.
The APPMA also estimates that the industry of pet supplies and pet food will continue to grow 19%
through 2007 with an annual increase of over 3%.
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• Opportunities:
My focus is to provide healthy dog food with good flavor. Currently, in the US 70% of dogs die of heart
attack due to over weight. Based on this fact, I strongly believe that offering healthy food with good flavor
such as dietetic wet food, organic dry food, vegetarian food, and snacks made of tofu, etc. I will capture the
attention of the consumer.
When we talk about consumers, we are talking about the convenience of buying dog food that cannot be
substituted with another food. It is a lot easier to buy canned food that can be stored for long time instead
of preparing homemade food after a long day of work. The consumers will be pleased to know that Happy
and Healthy meets the standards of nutrition needed to keep their dogs in good shape.
Due to the diversity of dogs, Happy and Healthy offers a variety of products to satisfy the demand.
Dog breeders are potential consumers and probably the most loyal ones to a brand product when they find
the right one. Therefore, Happy and Healthy is ready to introduce a premium line of product for dog
breeders.
• Weaknesses:
The costumer of dog food is usually not loyal to any special brand because at the first rejection of the dog
the consumer will switch to another brand. Also, if the customer does not find the brand that they usually
buy, they will select another one. My solution to this tendency is to offer a new variety of products such as
dietetic food, treats made of tofu and a new diversity of vegetarian food as well as organic with good flavor,
and also that will satisfy the nutritional standards needed for a balanced diet.
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In order to produce high−quality dog food, I will have to use premium ingredients without artificial colors
and preservatives. This will implicate a high cost in production; therefore, my final product will not be
cheap. This is a significant weakness that could prevent the growth of my business. However, one way to
deal with this problem is to emphasize the high quality of ingredients used in Happy and Healthy when my
product is promoted.
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• Threat:
To start in this business I have to identify my direct competition such as Pedigree, IAMS, Purina, Alpo,
Puppy Chow and Premium Dog Food. These brands have the control in the market of pet food. This kind
of competition makes every day more difficult to be successful in this business. To get in the business I
have to develop the same kind of marketing strategy that my competitors do such as price, advertising on
media, telemarketing, web page, yellow pages, banner ads. By doing this, my business will be at the same
level of publicity and popularity.
Chapter 2
Marketing Strategy for Dog Food
2.1 Product Strategy:
Happy and Healthy is a product designed to offer different choices of foods for puppies, adult dogs, older
dogs, obese dogs, and work dogs, you should reject claims that food may be appropriate for any dog.
Puppies need a different balance of ingredients, and cutting back quantities for obese dogs can seriously
deprive them of nutrients they need. Happy and Healthy present a diversity of products for every
nutritional needs of dogs. With the slogan Food for Champions Happy and Healthy hope to attract the
attention of potential costumer who cares about the health and good shape of their dogs. Once I have
established the market for dog food and earned the trust of the consumers
2.2 Price Strategy:
The price of the product will be at the level of well−known brand such as Pedigree, IAMS, PURINA, etc.
Happy and Healthy have noticed that the consumers prefer to pay a higher price for products that are well
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known, than to save PENNIES in products that are new in the market.
rage of prices for dog food
Puppy
3kg
Large Breed Puppy
3kg
Adult Maint Small Breed 3kg
Adult Maint Medium
3kg
Breed
Adult Maint Large Breed 3kg
Premium & Large
3kg
Premium
Lamb & Rice
3kg
Light & Large Breed Light 2.5kg
Senior
3kg
$26.95
$26.95
$23.50
7.5kg
7.5kg
7.5kg
$54.95
$54.95
$47.50
15kg
15kg
15kg
$95.50
$95.50
%00.00
$23.50
7.5kg
$47.50
15kg
$79.00
$23.50
7.5kg
$47.50
15kg
$79.00
$26.95
7.5kg
$54.95
15kg
$90.00
$26.95
$24.95
$26.95
7.5kg
6kg
7.5kg
$54.95
$47.95
$54.95
15kg
12kg
15kg
$93.00
$84.95
$95.50
Happy and Healthy will adapt this chart of prices to start the business
2.3 Promotion:
In addition to advertise Happy and Healthy through the media, i.e. TV commercials, local newspapers,
yellow pages, Internet banners, I would like to use billboard announcements in the metro rail system.
I will also to implement a new system that would allow metro−rail raiders to listen to commercials while
they wait for the train. To achieve the metro−rail advertisement initiative, I will have to request
authorization from the Metropolitan Transit Authority. Subsequently, I will proceed with all indications
and requirements from the authorities of the Metropolitan Transit Authority. Another strategy is to offer
promotion like Buy one and get the second free. I will also offer give coupons with 10,20 and 30% of
discount in the next buy.
I believe a tool that I can use to make sure that the consumer will come back would be the use of
promotional deals, such as with the purchase of 10 or more cans, you will get a 30% discount on
GROOMING APPOINTMENT. By doing this, I will ensure that the customers get the feeling that they and
their pets are important to my business.
2.4 Place:
To distribute Happy and Healthy nation wide, we will sign an agreement with the largest pet stores such as
Petco, PetSMart, etc. to show this product to the mayor number of consumers. Also Happy and Healthy will
be available in small stores in different cities to sell the product by myself. The service of delivery will be in
person, through telephone, and Internet. Happy and Healthy believes the importance to have a web
presence, so we will create our web page to show our variety of products and services. Please see the design
of Happy and Healthy web page on the next two pages.
*Advantages to go Online
• To provide customers a more effective way of shopping where they can view and order merchandise.
• To be able to expand business to other states without major capital investment.
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• My website will become a Virtual Store that will be accessible to customers 24 hours, 7 days per
week.
*Disadvantages to go online
• Some customers prefer to see merchandise in person, so they can evaluate the quality of
fabrics/materials.
• Customers do not like to pay shipping and handling fees.
• There may be some registration fees when customers visit the website.
Conclusion
The dog food is a growing market in the US, but is too competitive, and the consumer is not loyal to any
special brand. At the end the dogs are who make the decision in the market. The dog food is a wide market
because it offers a variety of products. The market is saturated by products made in the US, leaving a little
opportunity to foreigner brands.
The premium products are the most popular in the market being an important target to explore.
I would to point out that consumers who are animal lovers are willing to spend more money, day by day, in
order to keep their dogs strong and vigorous. For this reason, Happy and Healthy is the food for
champions.
Bibliography
• Celeste Yarnall. Natural Cat Care. Journey Editions. ISBN 1−8852−0363−2.
• www.news.gazette/dog/food.com
• www.newletters.com
• www.marketingstrategy/products/dogfood.com
• Contemporary Marketing by Boone and Kurts
• www.whole−dog−journal.com
• www.pedigree.com
• www.iams.com
• www.choppychow.com
• www.marketingstrategy/swot/analysis.com
• www.analysisfado.com
• www.productwatch.com
• www.naturaldogfood.com
&Taken from dogfoodprices.com
* Contemporary Marketing
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