Is PetSmart’s Branding "Smart"?

PetSmart shoppers, in case you're wondering where the “smart” place to shop for you pet’s needs, the answer is now right in front of you. Recently the national pet supply mega store has changed their logo and is gradually changing its signage to go from PETsMART as seen here here to PETSMART with the “SMART” now in blue and “PET” in red, as seen here. It’s a subtle change, with the only real difference being the S has been enlarged and it along with “MART” changed from red to blue. Now instead of being a “mart for pets” the store is now the smart place to shop for your pet.

After doing a little research on the topic I found an explanation for PetSmart’s move from their VP of marketing saying the name reflects their desire to offer “smart solutions” for pets. All brands should focus on one core consumer value, the one thing it does better than anyone else and differentiates it from the competition. So PetSmart is positioning itself around “Smart”, since it’s already in the name this was a nice position to stumble onto – but is it the correct position? I think it could be but they will have to tell the consumer why its smart to shop at this pet supply store over competitors like PetCo, Wal-Mart or a local pet shop or grocery store.

Let’s break it down for them and answer the question of why shopping at PetSmart is smarter than shopping anywhere else. Being a pet owner myself and having frequented the store over the years I think I am in a pretty good position to help answer that question. Is it smart to shop there because of low prices? Not really, I can get the same dog food at the grocery store for the same price or less. Is it smart to shop there out of convenience? Well they do have a lot of locations, but making a trip to PetSmart for dog food I can buy at stores like Kroger or Wal-Mart, along with things I need to eat and any other supplies I need for the house would not be very “smart” of me now, would it.

Now why would it be smart to shop at PetSmart? Because they have the wide variety of the pet accessories and products I want. These products include toys, collars, supplies to clean up after my pet, chemicals to prevent my dog from killing the grass when he takes care of business out back and even a line of outfits in case I ever felt the need to dress Charlie, my 70 pound boxer, in a tutu. But this does not necessarily make it smart to shop there, no it means this is the place to go for true pet lovers, those who love their cat enough to spend hundreds of their hard earned dollars on a 6 foot tall multi-tiered climbing pole. The real brand position for the folks at PetSmart is that it’s a pet lovers paradise – that is what keep the shoppers coming back and that is what will bring new shoppers in the door.

Turns out the marketers at PetSmart do understand because they nail it in this spot. A spot so well executed that it almost brought a tear to my eye. But the spot ends with the tag “That’s Smart PetSmart” which seems forced after the previous 28 seconds were spent tugging at your heartstrings.

While emphasizing the smart in their logo may be convenient and send a subliminal message to the consumer that they are a smarter human being for going there – it’s not really what is primarily driving the PetSmart brand. So the expense and effort of overhauling a logo that’s change is so subtle that most customers would probably not even realize has changed seems like a waste in resources that could be spent on emphasizing the message that it’s the place for pet lover to shop. People love their pets, and PetSmart is the store for pet lovers; a good brand has strong emotional drivers and people’s love for their pets is almost as strong as their love for their own children – PetSmart needs to leverage that connection in all of their branding rather than focusing their subliminal tactics that will hardly do much to grown their bottom line.

Jake Crocker is a Partner and Brand Marketing Director at Martin Branding Worldwide, Inc.