Nina Marciano
ARTICLE
How to Forecast New Pet Trends
Tomorrow’s Pet Trends Aren’t in Transaction Data: How Consumer Intelligence Anticipates Pet Market Growth
by
Sr Copywriter
With a writer's instinct and B2B-to-DTC range, Nina brings Nextin's trends and insights to life for food, pet, and wellness audiences.
What’s the best way to spot new pet trends that have the potential to encourage pet market growth?
As brands seek niche insights and data to find a competitive advantage, they may find pet market research that highlights polyphenols — from a company selling polyphenols. On the other end of the spectrum, pet market forecasts grounded in purchase data can provide a valuable retrospective, but in the form
of high-level analytics. And oftentimes, this data relies on what pet parents bought in the prior 52 weeks, but doesn’t anticipate their underserved needs and emerging demand drivers.
Transaction-based data tells us where the category has been. But consumer research through the lens of category expertise and supply chain insights? That’s how you anticipate the future of the pet market.
Consumers Can’t Buy What Retailers Don’t Have
The data collected from retailers scanning UPC codes can only tell you about products currently on shelves. Scanner data is invaluable for capturing a 10,000-foot view of what’s moving to monitor performance and inform promotions, couponing, displays, and more. It might tell you consumers are buying dog dental chews, but not that they would be more likely to purchase a dental chew made with prebiotics. Transaction data also can’t tell you that they’re more likely than the average dog owner to allow their dog on the sofa or bed. In other words, purchase data captures the what, but not the broader picture and motivations fueling the why.
If your pet insights rely only on what’s currently performing, you might miss a chance to capture opportunity by filling a gap in the market.
This is where Nextin Research plays a pivotal role. It dives deep into consumer motivations, attitudes, and behaviors — and how they influence purchase decisions. Beyond that, Nextin connects the dots between co-occurring need-states, behaviors, and demand-drivers, even those that seem contradictory. Dog owners who are more likely than average to purchase dog foods made with cultivated meats are also more likely to seek “all-natural” pet products — a compelling dichotomy reported in the Dog Market Insights Report from Nextin Research.
By homing in on these consumer sentiments and motivations, pet brands can effectively guide formulation and adjust messaging to resonate with pet parents.
What can you do with different types of pet market data?
Scanner Data | Nextin Research |
|---|---|
Recaps which products sold in the past 52 weeks | Anticipates what products consumers are seeking in the next 1-3 years |
Good for in-market moves: product portfolio reviews, pricing strategies, pinpointing under- or overstocks from a retailer lens | Good for long-term innovation and assortment planning |
Identify what consumers bought within a specific retailer or retail channel | Identify white space and where the market is headed |
Helps you understand what consumers want | Helps you understand why they want it |
An overview of pet market sales in the prior period | Insights-rich research that captures demand-signals that point to where the pet category is headed |
Informs portfolio and channel management | Informs strategy for high-stakes innovation, investment, and brand planning |
From Consumer Demand Signals to Pet Market Forecast
Nextin Research by MarketPlace synthesizes proprietary consumer research, pet category expertise, scientific breakthroughs, and macro forces to deliver insights with foresight. Nextin is the inside track for innovation leaders, suppliers, brands, retailers, and investors who are driven to stay ahead of the category.
Comprising a team of recognized thought leaders in the pet category, Nextin brings a future-facing perspective to industry events and associations, including the NASC Annual Conference, Petfood Forum, Petfood Industry, SupplySide, International Probiotics Association, and more.