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Electronic Training Collars
John Brynda, marketing manager for Innotek Inc., says that
educating consumers about the difference in product and the
variety available will help build electronic collar sales.
What are industry players doing to
help the success of the electronic training collar category?
John Brynda: I think, separately but equally, all manufacturers
have recognized the fact that consumers want a dog that exhibits
good behavior. The dog is part of the family, but it’s only
through appropriate behavior that the dog can continue to be part
of the family. Nuisance barking, too much extended barking -
behavior issues such as these need to be corrected.
It is important for retailers and consumers to recognize that
there are three different categories of products. There is the
relatively simple no-bark collar, which is a product that all
manufacturers have been hanging their hat on for years. The second
category is the in-ground containment system, in which a wire is
buried around the perimeter of the property and connected to a
transmitter: In this category, everyone knows the brand name
Invisible fence, which is a division of Innotek. The third
category of product is remote trainers, whereby the dog wears a
collar and the owner operates a hand held transmitter that acts as
the control device. This is the subcategory consumers need to
learn more about, it’s one of the most effective dog training
tools available.
What kind of education is necessary?
People hear the term ‘training collar” and think it is a very
crude, unsophisticated device to which the word humane doesn’t
apply. The inaccurate, obsolete term “shock collar” gives some
people distaste for using electronic training. The truth is that
the sensation produced by these products is comparable to static
electricity: it is not unlike touching a doorknob in winter or
pulling a towel out of the dryer. It is a little distracting,
true, but it need not be, and isn’t, a painful thing
Educating the consumer is a partnership between manufacturer and
retailers. The industry does it’s best to document product
features and benefits on the packaging. There is good point of
purchase support in terms of flyers or reference material
(signage). In each local community the consumer looks to the
retailer as the pet expert in any category, so the retailer does
him or herself a favor by reading up and understanding this
category as much as possible.
In coming years our marketing efforts need to be turned much more
to the consumer. We need to recognize that we have a missionary
responsibility to bring the world to the consumer. Here to date we
have spent a lot of time, money, and effort educating the
retailer, but we all recognize the need for better consumer
education. I would say that in the vast majority of cases,
counting on the retailer to educate is fine, but we do recognize
there is a need for improved consumer education from our end. Over
the years, the industry has defaulted to what the textbooks call a
“push strategy”. We are selling the product to retail and are
trying to push it out of our warehouse doors. In the coming years,
we would all be better served with a “pull strategy” where the
educated consumer comes into the store and specifically asks for
this product.
What are the benefits for retailers
involved in the category?
Retailers are astonished to learn of the margins. There are
tremendously impressive margins selling electronic training.
Retailers that are used to selling food and making a few pennies
off of every bag are delighted with the double digit margins they
can get from selling electronics. It is a special sell that needs
to be supported with strong planograms and signage, but the
results can be impressive.
A lot of retailers tell us that they are looking for a solution
for the customer who comes in with pet behavior problems. In the
research I see, the number one pet authority is the local
veterinarian. The secondary authority is the local retailer. The
retailer may not have a local solution for these behavior
problems, but they can direct the consumer to a product line and
say, “These are training products that, for more than a decade,
have been proven to work effectively.”
June 2003, Pet Business, Retailer Handbook
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