Pet Industry Marketers: Attract That $60B in 2015 Spending

Pet Industry Marketers: Attract That $60B in 2015 Spending

Last week at the Global Pet Expo 2015, the American Pet Products Association (APPA) released its 2015 numbers on pet spending. The APPA’s annual comprehensive report covers pet spending in the segments of food, supplies/over-the-counter (OTC) medications, veterinary care, live animal purchases and other services.

Overall, pet spending reached $58 billion in 2014. But get ready. In 2015, pet owners are going to bust through all previous spending records by shelling out a projected $60 billion. Wow!

Let’s look at the highlights of that report, and what they mean if you’re responsible for marketing pet products or veterinary services.

Dog walker Kingston RI local pet business web content

Is your local pet business website missing this critical content?

Is your local pet business website missing this critical content?

If the mission of your website and/or Facebook efforts is to bring more customers to your local pet business, you may want to give yourself a reality check on the LOCAL aspect of your content.

After all, people in your community use LOCAL phrases to look online for the products and services you offer. They type into Google, Bing and other search engines: “[your town] pet supplies,” “pet groomers in [your town],” or “veterinary care in [your town].” Since search engines need to SEE the location information in your website text and other online marketing content (your blog, social media and YouTube videos), these basic phrases need to be included on every page if possible.

Seems like a no brainer, right?

Well, sadly, MOST local pet businesses forget to put their location in their web content. I recently audited nearly 100 different local pet business sites and found that many of them were missing their location or the area they serve. Plus I get calls from small local businesses, asking why they aren’t showing up in search engine results. I take one look at their sites and I can’t find their location… or it’s buried on only a single page of the site. I have to ask, “Where are you?”

If I have to ask this question to a local business, that’s a serious problem because Google won’t list that business in local search results. Luckily, it’s easy to fix. Here’s how in 5 easy steps.

PetCopywriter.com blog post photo of ToeGrips.com FAQ page

3 Ways to Turn Customer Questions Into Magnetic Pet Website Content

I’m guessing your pet business or veterinary company gets the same questions again and again, day after day. Customers and prospects want to know how your product works, how it solves their problems, what colors it comes in, and much more.

And while you’re happy to answer those questions, you may not have thought about this: all those questions can be the foundation of terrific content for your pet or veterinary website.

“How to” questions are some of the most popular queries in Google and other search engines. I just did a quick search and found these popular ‘How to” inquiries in the pet world: how to crate train a dog, how to train a kitten to use the litter box, how to brush a dog’s teeth, and many others.

You can bet people are searching right now in Google, Bing and even YouTube to find a how-to solution your business can provide. Therefore, why not make the most of this opportunity?

Here’s how to turn your common questions into magnetic pet website content that attracts more customers.

Dog Stroller Website Results in Google

Get More Customers to Stroll Over to Your Pet Website

Dog strollers — they’re everywhere. The airport, the mall, the coffee shop. A neighbor pet owner explained why. “My little dog can’t keep up with me on my long walks. When he gets tired, I plop him in the stroller and keep going.” Aha — I get it!

Here’s why this matters to you.

Does your pet web content speak to your target audience in a way that shows, you “get” it?

By echoing the thoughts of your reader in your content, your website will:

  • Pop up on the Google results page
  • Guide prospects to your site
  • Delight new visitors so they buy from you!

Here’s how it works.