Mars Petcare’s leadership team needed a sharper, data-backed understanding of shifting trends within the dry dog food category.
As more consumers entered the market, especially through products like puppy and dental treats, Mars recognized a strategic opportunity to connect with these new buyers early.
To stay ahead of the competition, Mars Petcare aimed to track evolving consumer priorities and understand how competitors were positioning their products.
However, without granular insights into market shifts, tracking these trends—and distinguishing established preferences from new opportunities—proved challenging.
Mars Petcare needed a solution that could deliver both breadth and depth of insight to capture the attention of emerging audiences and anticipate where the market was heading.
Harmonya’s data-driven Insights Platform provided Mars Petcare with a comprehensive view of key themes in the dry dog food category. By analyzing enriched product data, Mars could zero in on critical areas driving consumer interest, such as quality nutrition, health benefits, ingredient sourcing, and ethical production practices.
With these insights, Mars Petcare could separate long-standing consumer expectations from newer, “under-the-radar” trends.
For example, "ethical sourcing" emerged as a significant theme, allowing Mars to stay alert to competitors gaining traction in this area. By identifying these shifts early, Mars Petcare could refine its messaging and strengthen its brand’s relevance in the eyes of both new and loyal customers.
Through Harmonya’s Insights Platform, Mars Petcare achieved three critical outcomes:
•Enhanced Market Positioning: By identifying "quality" and "nutrition" as top consumer priorities, Mars could confidently focus its brand messaging to resonate with consumer values, reinforcing its position as a leader in the dry dog food market.
•Early Detection of Emerging Trends: The platform flagged "ethical sourcing" as an emerging trend, along with new competitors entering the category. This early insight empowered Mars to develop proactive strategies to stay competitive.
•Accelerated Consumer Testing: Mars applied these data-backed insights to test product packaging and new benefits with consumers, speeding up their response to market shifts and ensuring alignment with consumer needs.
•Top Drivers: "Quality", "nutrition", "weight management", "healthy teeth", and “no fillers” emerged as the strongest motivators for consumer choice in the dry dog food category.
•Emerging Themes: "Ethical sourcing" and "sustainability" surfaced as growing priorities, highlighting opportunities for Mars to lead with transparent, value-driven messaging.
•Digital Trends: Online platforms proved to be trend incubators, with emerging themes often appearing here before reaching physical stores—reinforcing the value of digital-first insights.
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