Key takeaways:
- PetSmart’s latest campaign parodies the dramatic tech product launch format to highlight what it calls its real innovation: the in-store experience.
- SVP of Marketing Bradley Breuer says the humor is “the hook,” but the strategy behind it is “no joke.”
- Digital sales have grown by double digits, but Breuer says the store and ecommerce work best together.
Pet owners have heard plenty about artificial intelligence lately. So has PetSmart’s marketing team, and the pet retailer is betting that consumers are ready to laugh about it.
The Phoenix, Ariz.-based chain launched a campaign this summer that parodies the tech industry’s signature product reveal format, complete with made-up jargon and a mock logo, to make a straightforward point: sometimes the best experience is a real one.
“We think there’s sort of a cultural shortcut of the big tech product launch format, this dramatic reveal, the made-up logos and implication that everything that came before it was somehow obsolete,” said Bradley Breuer, SVP of Marketing at PetSmart, in an interview with Retail TouchPoints. “We really think that the most meaningful innovation in pet retail isn’t some app feature or groundbreaking product.”
What the Ad Actually Says
The spot opens with a deadpan pitch for a brand new concept called “Store,” described as “a 360 pet care experience.” A narrator ticks through its features with the cadence of a Silicon Valley keynote: “Touch grass, achieve total coat optimization and enjoy built-in human intelligence on your phone or right here.”
Breuer says the campaign is designed to remind customers what makes PetSmart different from a pure ecommerce competitor.
“The humor is the hook, and the strategy behind it is no joke,” Breuer said. “We wanted people to know what our innovation is in this category, and it really is the store.”
How PetSmart Is Investing in the In-Store Experience
PetSmart has been building out programming designed to give customers a reason to show up in person.
The retailer hosts monthly birthday and “gotcha day” celebrations, where pet owners can bring their animals in for a photo and a treat. It also runs “Adopt Joy,” a once-a-month adoption event run in partnership with PetSmart Charities. Seasonal events tied to Valentine’s Day and Easter, along with programs like “meet the pets” and “feed the fish,” round out the calendar.
There’s a practical angle, too. In Phoenix’s brutal summer heat, for example, PetSmart has been reminding customers that its stores are air-conditioned and dog-friendly, a place where pets can cool off without burning their paws on hot pavement.
“There’s just such a great experience to be had, and as a reminder, you can always bring your dog in,” Breuer said.
How PetSmart Uses AI
For all its ribbing of the tech industry, PetSmart isn’t avoiding artificial intelligence. The company has deployed an AI-based tool to help its more than 50,000 store associates quickly pull up care guides and product information, particularly for the wide variety of specialty pets it carries.
Breuer frames the technology as a support system for knowledgeable employees, not a replacement for them. “Knowledgeable associates is one of our key differentiators,” he said. “So many of them have a deep wealth of knowledge that they can help people right on the spot.”
He acknowledged that customer-facing AI tools are also on the roadmap but said the current campaign is intentionally stepping back from that conversation. “I think people have been deluged with so much about AI that this is kind of a refreshing moment — there are still things where real life matters.”
Digital Sales Are Still Growing
The campaign’s satirical tone shouldn’t be mistaken for indifference toward ecommerce, either, and the omnichannel experience is highlighted in the ad.
Digital sales at PetSmart have grown by double digits over recent quarters, driven in part by its auto-ship subscription program. More than 95% of its ecommerce orders are packed and shipped directly from store locations, a model Breuer describes as a key part of the company’s value proposition.
“Digital and the store are what makes us a very valuable proposition,” he said. “Pet parenting is both predictable and unpredictable. You might want something on auto ship because you need it once a month at your door, but you’ve also got a training issue, or you just want to come in and spoil your pet.”
Breuer also pushed back on the assumption that digital growth comes at the expense of foot traffic. When a store shopper buys both in-store and online, they tend to visit physical locations more often, not less.
“What you actually get is a more loyal customer who actually comes back to our store more, because you’re building an emotional bond,” he said.
Store Expansion Continues at a Steady Clip
Pet trends on the rise at PetSmart are both what you would expect (“Cats are having a moment,” Breuer said) and not, such as jumping spiders and aqua-scaping, which is the creation of an underwater landscape with just plants, no animals.
PetSmart continues to open new stores, though Breuer described the pace as modest. The company evaluates new locations on a market-by-market basis and opens where it sees an opportunity to serve a community. PetSmart currently has 1,699 locations in the U.S. and Canada.
Driving traffic remains a central strategic priority. In brick-and-mortar retail, Breuer said, foot traffic is still one of the most important measures of long-term health, and everything from the in-store events calendar to the summer heat campaign is designed with that in mind.
“Finding reasons to drive people in and visit our store is really a critical part of our strategy,” he said.
