
Shifting Pet Food Habits for Increased Sales with Decision Disruptor
The CHALLENGE
A leading pet food brand had built deep loyalty among pet owners, yet one corner of the portfolio wasn’t seeing the same results. Consumers viewed wet food in a limited way—only as a solution for specific dietary needs as a less flavorful option.
Purchase routines were largely habitual, made on autopilot in the pet food aisle, with little incentive to explore or reconsider. Adding to the challenge, many shoppers weren’t aware that the brand had both wet and dry options.
The APPROACH
To unlock growth, the brand partnered with Burke to employ Decision Disruptor, a behavioral science tool that applies the GBC (Goals-Beliefs-Context) framework to help brands decode the subconscious forces driving consumer decisions.
DECISION DISRUPTOR
This tool identifies the drivers of behavioral change and creates a plan for disrupting the choice process. With that plan in hand, our teams can go further and help execute several strategies.
Through this lens, our team of researchers, creatives, strategists, and behavioral scientists helped the client team reframe the role of wet food across three key areas:
Messaging Adjustments
Wet food was repositioned not as a necessity, but as an enriching addition to a pet’s diet (something indulgent and flavorful).
Product Pairing
Burke guided the development of combination packs to encourage trial.
Retail Enhancements
With consumer behavior decoded, Burke recommended retail and packaging shifts to introduce new cues at the point of decision.
The OUTCOME
By aligning messaging, product offerings, and retail strategy around the real drivers of behavior, the brand broke through the autopilot routines that had restrained wet food growth. Consumers no longer saw wet food as an either-or decision. Instead, it became a flavorful add-on they could feel good about.
The brand now has the tools and insights to disrupt default decision-making in ways that are both intuitive and effective, helping wet food become a more integrated, everyday choice.
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