Paw-esome Thinking: How We Helped a Client Maximize Dog Leash Sales by Leveraging Pet Adoptions
By John Rushin, Senior Account Manager at Frontside Consulting
Image courtesy of LifeHandle
As a digital marketing agency, we have worked with many clients over the years, each with a unique set of challenges and goals. LifeHandle, the creator of a patented cross-body sling system that serves as the base for a dog leash, child carrier, and gear hauler, is a client with whom we’ve had a long-term relationship. As a new company just exiting the start-up phase LifeHandle was doing well and enjoying success with its line of unique, practical, everyday-use products. However, they had a recurring problem. After strong holiday season sales and a solid Q1, sales of their top-selling product, the Hands-Free Leash System dropped through Q2 and well into Q3 year after year.
As the agency managing their paid digital advertising, it was incumbent upon us to help them find the reason behind this clustering of sales. Further, we needed to develop a viable solution to either capitalize on these periods or find a way to increase sales in the off periods (or, ideally, both). Initially, we tried to find patterns in the data, such as sales trends over time, geographic distribution of sales, and customer demographics. Despite building new audiences and campaigns, testing (and re-testing) copy and creative, and running numerous promotions all our efforts were in vain.
Image courtesy of LifeHandle
In Q4 of 2022, with the dreaded sales drought only a few months away we decided to take an outside-the-box approach to the problem. We looked beyond the data and started considering the context in which the leash systems were used. We realized that people buy dog leashes not just for their existing pets but also for new pets.
We started to explore if there was any correlation between pet adoption rates and LifeHandle's leash sales. We gathered data on pet adoption rates from various sources and compared them to sales data. To our surprise, we found a clear correlation between the two. During the times of year that pet adoption rates increased, so did LifeHandle's leash sales.
We were thrilled to have discovered this insight, which had eluded our client for so long. Armed with this knowledge, we were able to help LifeHandle maximize leash sales during the times of the year when pet adoption rates were highest by targeting audiences most likely to be adopting a pet.
We also suggested that they collaborate with pet adoption agencies and shelters to offer special promotions or discounts to new pet owners who buy LifeHandle's leash. This would increase sales and create a positive association between their brand and pet adoption, aligning with their values.
And it’s working! Currently, LifeHandle is seeing the highest volume of Q1 sales from Google and Meta ads since they came on board with Frontside as a client.
Image courtesy of LifeHandle
In conclusion, sometimes the most effective solutions to complex problems come from thinking outside the box. By looking beyond the data and considering the broader context, we were able to help our client solve a long-standing problem and develop new opportunities for growth. We are proud to have been a part of LifeHandle's success story and look forward to continuing to help them achieve their goals in the future.
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