This is a comprehensive approach to effective dog food branding that will expand your audience, convert strangers into devoted consumers, and eventually scale your business. It covers valid information you’d need to do this rightly. But then the information in this post is totally applicable to any pet product branding asides dog food.
Without further ado, let’s set the ball rolling…
Dog Food Branding: Overview
Pet products have a huge industry that is continually growing. According to Statista, in 2018, customers in the United States spent over 72 billion dollars on pet products and services, representing 56% of all households in the country.
And all it takes is a few minutes of conversation with a pet owner to realize one thing: they adore their pets.
Basically, pet owners want the best food for their fur (or feather!) kids, and they are willing to pay a premium for a product if they believe they are getting top quality.
So if you sell dog food or carriages, your company would definitely need exceptional branding allround to express its value and stand out in the congested pet market.
Small and medium-sized businesses often begin by piecing together an Instagram filter here, a phrase there, and a few essential colors on the website. While the early “all hands on deck!” stages of a startup are exhilarating, most firms eventually reach a point where they need to look at their branding through a more strategic lens and create a visual identity that will carry them to the next level.
So if your brand’s potential hasn’t been achieved, or you’re not attracting the customers you want, it’s time to create a unified brand strategy that will inspire your visual designs, colors, fonts, photography, and content.
Dog Food Branding: Why You Need it
According to Sarah Julian, owner of Offleash Communications, a branding, and marketing consultancy that works with numerous pet product companies, “under-branding” is a huge issue in the dog food sector. And by under-branding, she meant using just heart-warming photos of adorable puppies to represent your firm or having a mission statement that is industry-wide, such as “to help pets live long, happy lives,” which is what every dog food or dog product company aspires to. This isn’t a distinguishing feature.
There are several ideas on how to create and sustain a dog food brand in today’s market. To begin with, you must recognize that you can no longer rely on a strategy of broadcasting your marketing and hoping the right people see it. Rather, you must own your brand, your story, and your relationship with your target market in order to draw them in. But how do you go about it?
Your Brand Attributes Are the Key to Your Dog Food Branding Success
It’s never too late to upgrade, recreate or tweak your branding methods for dog food, no matter how long you’ve been in business.
According to Management Study Guide, brand attributes are;
a bundle of features that highlight the physical and personality aspects of the brand. Attributes are developed through images, actions, or presumptions. Brand attributes help in creating brand identity.
MSG (Dog Food Branding)
In other words, the first step in creating a successful brand is to determine your company’s brand attributes. Brand attributes are the qualities that your target audience perceives as the basics of your brand; which makes it a vital aspect of dog food branding.
Let’s pretend your brand is a person who walks into a pub. They make a good first impression, meet some new people, tell a few stories, and then go.
What would others say about that individual after they’d gone?
More significantly, how do you want your brand to be described when you’re not present?
Your answers will take you in the direction of your company’s brand attributes.
For the most part, some marketing components, such as social media platform trends, will change over time, forcing your firm to develop; nevertheless, unless you choose to pivot and rebrand, your company’s brand attributes will not change.
Read Also: 7 SMALL BUSINESS BRANDING IDEAS THAT WILL YIELD YOU MORE PROFIT
The brand attributes of a corporation serve as the cornerstone of the overall brand because they remain consistent over time. As your company learns which marketing and design methods work best to attract your ideal customers, your marketing and design team will convey these brand traits in a variety of ways.
But then are you unsure of who your ideal consumers are? Our complete target marketing guide will show you how to pinpoint your perfect customer (right down to their name and after-work hangout spot!) so you can attract more of them.
Dog Food Branding: How to Identify Your Brand Attributes
Here’s a quick exercise to help you determine the brand attributes of your dog food company and go about branding the right way:
- Make a list of words that describe the culture of your company. What words would your employees use to describe your business? What is the overall picture of your company?
- Make a second list of words, this time with the characteristics of your potential customers in mind. Do they give a damn about how safe your dog food is? Do they aspire to have their dog play fetch with them? What adjectives would you use to characterize them?
- Make a third list of terms, this time including desired feelings that your buyers should feel after using your product. Are they ecstatic that they’ve finally discovered a safe alternative to the norms they are used to? Is it because they know their pet is in good hands that they are at ease?
- Make a fourth (and last!) list of terms that describe the brand voice of your organization. Is your pet product company hip, medical, professional, fun-loving, or something else entirely?
Finally, go back over the previous four lists and find the strongest term in each one. Your fundamental brand attributes are these four terms.
While each firm’s brand attributes will be unique, there are several industry-specific recommendations that your organization should consider when identifying your brand attributes. Consumers consider the following while purchasing pet products in general; including dog food:
#1. Is your brand reliable and secure?
Customers want to know that when they use your product, their dogs will be safe and unharmed.
Is your brand inviting, caring, or upbeat?
Pet owners have tremendously positive emotional attachments to their animals, and your brand can reflect those positive feelings.
Is your brand geared at a high-end, mid-range, or low-cost market?
There are tons of pet owners at every price point. However, if you want to target one of these sectors with your products, your visual branding is an excellent place to start.
Defining the Attributes of Your Company’s Brand
We’re going to get into the weeds of how to communicate your brand attributes through your company’s content and images, but the most fundamental rule of brand strategy is to make your brand attributes the North Star of everything you do.
Companies with strong brands (such as Uber, Starbucks, and Coca-Cola) maintain their standing by remaining “on brand” at all times. These businesses only post, share and create content that is consistent with their brand values.
Starbucks, for example, participates in socially conscious projects because their brand values community. Other firms, such as Nike, aren’t scared to become involved in politics because they’re known for their disruptive nature. These decisions are not made on the spur of the moment, but rather after careful examination of each company’s unique brand attributes.
Read Also: NIKE LOGO: The Story Behind Great Branding!!!
Colors, Shapes, and Packaging for Dog Food Branding
Now that you’ve determined your company’s distinct brand characteristics, it’s time to visually convey your brand through colors, forms, and visual design.
Keep in mind that when it comes to buying pet products in general, your clients are most concerned about their pets’ health, safety, and happiness. It is, therefore, critical that your dog food brand appears authentic and professional, regardless of how fantastic your product is or how long you have been in business. Your audience of worried pet parents will not trust a brand that appears to be too fresh or DIY.
The first thing that catches a customer’s eye and influences their subconscious opinion of your organization is visual branding (colors, forms, fonts, and imagery). In other words, to a large extent, contribute to whether or not a client will be willing to go for your product.
Furthermore, you can discover leaks in your dog food branding and generate suggestions for how to represent your brand attributes more effectively if you have a basic understanding of visual design and psychological principles.
Let’s go over these, one after the other.
#1. Dog Food Branding Using Shapes
Part of a designer’s duty, whether or not the general public realizes it, is to employ colors and shapes intentionally to elicit desired feelings in viewers.
As a general rule of thumb, when it comes to using shapes in your business’s branding:
Straight lines (squares, rectangles, and triangles) are symbols of trustworthiness, seriousness, and security.
Curved lines (circles) depict harmony, wholeness, movement, and femininity.
Depending on their brand attributes, dog food brands can employ either of these possibilities.
However, both strategies can benefit you; it just depends on the brand attributes you want buyers to associate with your product.
#2. Dog Food Branding Using Colors
When choosing colors for your brand, remember to put yourself in the shoes of your ideal client and imagine how they want to feel after using your product. Refer to the brand attributes you chose for your company above, and then do some basic color psychology research to see what colors correspond to those attributes.
Warmer hues, such as orange, pink, yellow, and red, are associated with more energizing emotions such as happiness, rage, and creativity. Cooler colors, such as green, purple, and blue, elicit feelings of peace and relaxation. This, however, is contingent on the shade, tone, and location of the hue in relation to other colors in the brand’s palette.
#3. Expressing Your Brand’s Personality
Even though customers are primarily concerned with their pet’s safety and happiness, you may still have fun with your dog food business’s visual branding. People who open their wallets to buy your items are genuine people who may be drawn to humor, pop culture, and seasonal themes that you may add to your business’s social media, website, and content marketing.
The amount of audience you want to show in your brand will be determined by your brand attributes. If your firm sells medical supplies for dogs, for example, one of your brand attributes should be “serious.” In other words, you should probably avoid going too far with quirky and funny branding concepts.
Social Media for Dog Food Brands
Have you ever observed that when you ask someone whether they have any images of their dog, it takes them roughly 0.05 seconds to get out their phone and show you their collection of dog pics?
Simply put, whether your company manufactures food for dogs, cats, or fishes, one thing is certain: your consumers adore attractive animal photographs. Thousands of pet photographs are available on the net to help you draw attention to your social media accounts. When you’re creating social media material, keep this in mind.
Furthermore, the captions you use, the videos you make, and the educational articles you offer will all be determined by the specifics of your product and brand attributes.
Read Also: Social Media Marketing Tips: Top 29+ Tips for Small Businesses
Here are some more industry-specific social media and content marketing ideas to think about;
- Customer testimonials provide social proof that your pet products are reliable, therefore it’s critical to include them in your content plan on a regular basis.
- Photographs of dogs interacting with your products.
- Running a giveaway is also a wonderful concept. In exchange for being considered to win a big prize, ask customers to take a photo of their pets utilizing your products. (Giveaways are governed by different rules on different social media platforms, so make sure to read their Terms of Service first.)
- Images of quotes or memes: Before publishing memes, think about your brand voice, although for some firms, this tactic can entertain and engage your audience.
- Product Photography: Invest in quality product photography to make an impact on visually-focused platforms like Instagram.
- Behind-the-scenes content: Humans are naturally curious, and we enjoy peering behind the curtain to observe things like the company’s founder and the manufacturing process.
- Links to informational articles: If these articles and materials are published by your company with the goal of educating and building trust with your audience, you’ll get bonus points.
Designing a Website for a Dog Food Company
Your brand’s ultimate portal is your website. You may have 10,000 ecstatic positive reviews and the best product on the planet… However, if visitors arrive at your website and find a jumble of colors, poor loading speeds, and a perplexing purchasing process, you will lose their interest.
A well-designed and branded website will instill a sense of trust and security in your customers; plus keep in mind that trust and security are top considerations for your target market.
Here are some general guidelines and industry-specific suggestions to ensure that your website throws a positive image on your brand:
Basics of Web Design
It’s entirely fine if you whipped up your website in a fit of rage when scaling your firm — many entrepreneurs do!
However, as you try to establish your dog food brand and attract new consumers, it’s crucial to review your website to ensure that it reflects the branding and professionalism that you’ve worked so hard to establish over time.
Websites that are effective must be artistic, pleasant to the eye, easy to navigate, and responsive on all devices, including tablets, phones, laptops, and desktops. New visitors must be able to grasp the user experience, and the website must load rapidly; otherwise, viewers will lose interest and move on to another page.
Read Also: BUSINESS WEBSITE: What You Should Know Before Creating One
Some of the social media standards above apply to website design when it comes to dog food or pet brands in general.
Above all, keep in mind that your consumers adore animals and testimonials. They must have complete faith in your product before proceeding with a purchase. Hence it is critical for you to publicly display your reviews and testimonials rather than putting them away on a side page.
Tips to Update Your Website
Here are some suggestions to help you update your product website:
#1. Domain Name
This should be easy to remember and understand and should match your company name. If someone meets you at a farmer’s market but loses your business card, you want them to be able to readily access your website by typing in your company’s name. When possible, avoid using hyphens or extended sequences of words.
#2. SEO (Search Engine Optimization)
When it comes to brand awareness, your startup may not be able to compete with top-ranking brands. However, with some keyword research and a solid content strategy, it gets a little easier to deal with. Eventually, you may be able to increase your website’s ranks in search engines like Google.
#3. Keywords
When a buyer searches for your specialized product, such as “safe alternative to dog foods,” you want your website to pop up as one of the first results; far ahead of your competition. Keyword research helps you achieve this stress-free.
#4. Examine Your Website’s Text and Ensure It’s All Geared Toward Your Target Audience
True, 5-paragraph anecdotes about how we started our businesses are entertaining to write. However, the truth remains that most of your site visitors will always think about, “What’s in it for me?”
It’s, therefore, crucial that your website copy speaks directly to their goals, curiosities, and pain areas.
Dog Food Branding: E-Commerce
The first rule of online product sales is to make it as easy as possible for prospects to purchase from you.
If your clients can order things directly from your website, your job is to make the procedure simple and straightforward. Here are some tips to help you with this;
- Seek feedback from others on what should be added or deleted to make things easier. For example, asking first-time consumers to create an account may be a total put-off for those who don’t want to remember yet another password.
- Create a rewards program where consumers can receive product or shipping discounts to encourage customer loyalty. These kind of rewards programs are especially beneficial for a dog food company. This is because your company provides products that customers will need to buy on a regular basis.
Sign-ups for E-mail
Visitors should be able to sign up for your email newsletter right on the home page of your business’s website.
Offering a discount or coupon code in exchange for a customer’s email address is a common and successful strategy for product businesses to grow their email list and expose customers to their products. If someone is on the verge of making their first purchase, that simple coupon could be the push they need to buy your product – and potentially become a long-term customer.
On the flip side, emailing your consumers on a regular basis – but not continually – is a smart practice for pet entrepreneurs. The size of your staff, among other things, will influence your company’s unique email marketing strategy.
However, it’s fine if you have a small team and can’t send emails as regularly as you’d like; just send an email newsletter every two weeks. But then if you have a full-fledged content staff and want to email your list more frequently, you may certainly experiment to see what frequency works best for your team and your customers.
Read Also: EMAIL MARKETING LIST: Is buying a better choice?
Content on the Website
Websites can be used for a variety of goals, such as educating and entertaining visitors, driving purchases, and increasing brand awareness. The secret sauce that displays your brand voice to potential clients is the unique material you develop for your website.
Content is a broad phrase that encompasses a wide range of media, including blog entries, podcasts, videos, TV series, radio programs, and more. Consider who your target clients are and what mediums of content they prefer when selecting what types of content to develop for your dog food brand.
But then, tons of business owners make the branding mistake of focusing on their own preferences: “My favorite color is yellow, thus yellow is my major brand color.” I adore podcasts, so of course, we’re going to create one!” But, at the end of the day, your brand must be developed with your target customers in mind at all times. Basically, if your ideal customers listen to podcasts, watch videos, or read blog articles, then your brand should appear in these places.
Read Also: Reasons Why Content Marketing Is Important
Here are some ideas for content to provide on your dog food product website:
Case Studies: Did a pet owner benefit from your company’s ingenious product? Did one of your clients find that using your dog food made growth a lot easier? Highlight these success stories by using them as case studies in your company’s blog posts, videos, or podcast episodes.
Educational content: Take the most prevalent consumer objections and turn them into informative blog entries or a FAQ section on your website. For instance, you might publish an educational blog post titled “How to Increase Nutrition in Dog Food” and provide a link to your product at the conclusion.
Consider creating an infographic to change things up and display your content in a fresh and visual way. Templates are available on websites like Venngage and Piktochart, or you may employ a designer to create custom infographics that reflect your brand strategy in terms of fonts, colors, and voice.
How Do I Market My Dog Food?
Marketing your dog food starts with building a brand that satisfies the interests and expectations of your target market.
Who Is the Target Market for Dog Food?
The target market for dog food includes; dog owners, veterinary doctors, pet shelters, and so on.
Can Humans Eat Dog Food Safely?
Although dog food is created from substances that are theoretically safe for humans to eat, it is not designed to meet the special nutritional demands of humans. As a result, it isn’t inherently poisonous to people and may be harmless in an emergency. However, eating or picking any dog food brand raises your chances of contracting a foodborne illness.
What Is the 3% Rule for Dog Food?
3% or the “With” Rule. According to this regulation, any product label that uses the word “with” in the description must also include at least 3% of the specified amount of meat. Examples that are frequently used are Made with Chicken and Dog Food with Beef. The rule of “flavor.”
What Labels Should I Look For on Dog Food?
Name of the product and brand, or a unique identity. Amount expressed in terms of product weight, liquid measure, or count, based on the food’s formulation. Guaranteed analysis that defines the quantities of particular nutrients. The ingredients must be given in descending weight order
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