The Greatest Marketing Tactic Ever
Jul. 7, 2021 • Written By Ray Yip
What if we told you there was one thing that could guarantee you increased foot traffic into your brick and mortar location. One thing that would guarantee you repeat visits every time someone walked by. And what if we told you this one thing would cost you less than your weekly coffee budget.
“That’s crazy!”, you might say. “Impossible!”, you’re thinking to yourself, while at the same time wondering “I wonder what it could be…”
Are you sitting down? Are you ready to be blown away by the super-secret, super-simple, greatest marketing tactic ever? We hope so because here it comes…
DOG TREATS.
That’s right, dog treats! It’s simple, yet genius.
According to the Canadian Animal Health Institute (1), there are approximately 8.2 million dogs living in Canada, with 41% of households having at least one dog.
A study by Rover.com titled “The Secret Lives of Cat People and Dog People”, shows 74% of Canadian pet owners factor their furry friends into financial decisions, and 76% of dog people prefer to spend time with their dogs over people. Millennials are adopting pets as starter families and Baby Boomers are welcoming pets as extended family, and behaviour is adapting accordingly.
So how exactly does having dog treats in your store help capture this market? It’s simple. Dogs know.
We have a dog, a 95-pound Goldendoodle named Simon. He comes with us everywhere we go. And he knows the stores that have treats available for him, whether we’ve been there before or not.
We’ll be walking down the street and all of a sudden Simon will stop and turn his head towards a store, and low and behold when we walk in the store clerk will ask if our dog would like a treat! Simon is happy and we always spend a little extra time looking around the store, oftentimes making a purchase.
And forget about it if we’re walking by a store that he’s gotten a treat from in the past. His excitement starts to pick up when we’re doors away, and by the time we enter the store he’s smiling like a goofball.
But don’t just take our word for it. Next time you’re out for a walk, pay attention to how dogs behave as they walk by stores. You’ll start to notice they veer towards certain stores more than others. We’ll bet we can guess which have treats on hand and which don’t.
So, next time you pass by your local pet store, why not pick up a bag of dog treats? Your new four-legged friends will thank you with a wagging tail, and their parents will thank you with their patronage!
Note: We suggest sticking to vegetable-based treats to avoid any allergy issues. A fresh bowl of clean water outside your door also works wonders but doesn’t always bring the people inside.