NEW YORK, Feb. 15, 2011 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- interclick, inc. (Nasdaq:ICLK) announces results from the Company's latest audience insight survey on pet owners. Pet care is one of the fastest growing categories in retail and understanding the drivers behind pet owner purchasing is key for advertisers wanting to reach a critical audience encompassing 62% of U.S. households. interclick also finds pet owners to be highly influenced by online sources, evidenced by the Company's recent partnership with the Humane Society of the United States.
interclick surveyed 569 pet owners, finding that nearly 40% of pet owners budget up to $50 a month to spend on their pets at major retailers, contributing to the nearly $48 billion the American Pet Products Association estimates that Americans spent on their pets in 2010. A number of factors drive that spending: price, organic, veterinarian recommendations, brand names and word of mouth from friends and family.
The survey found dog owners to be highly influenced by word of mouth from trusted sources and least influenced by price. In fact, dog owners spend 25% more at major pet retailers and are 50% more likely to "spoil" their pets with branded or organic food, compared to cat owners.
Price and veterinarian recommendations have more weight with cat owners, who tend to shop at neighborhood grocery stores.
"As this segment relies heavily on recommendations by friends and family, we encourage brands to build campaigns with creative tools that enable sharing," said Maria Pousa, Director of Marketing at interclick. "In addition, brands catering to pet owners should cement their social media presence, as the Web reorganizes itself around self-identifying groups and online communities and sources garner more trust."
interclick confirmed the power of plugged in pet owners this past November, when they assisted the Humane Society of the United States with a campaign promoting Missouri's Puppy Mill Cruelty Prevention Act (Proposition B) a statewide ballot initiative to establish basic standards of care for dogs in large-scale commercial breeding facilities.
Missouri is home to more commercial dog breeding facilities than any other state, and interclick worked with the Humane Society to bolster support for Proposition B through online advertising.
"We believe interclick's technology positively impacted the vote by reaching the right audiences to generate issue awareness and motivate citizens to go to the polls," said Carie Lewis, Director of Emerging Media at the Humane Society of the United States.
Donating more than 14 million impressions to the statewide, "Yes for Prop B" campaign, and utilizing a combination of data targeting techniques to rally voters, interclick helped the campaign reach nearly three million additional voters in the week before the poll. More than a million voters came out and voted for Proposition B, which passed by 56%.
interclick's survey also looked at gender and age differences in pet owners, as well as pet popularity and where pet owners prefer to shop. These additional insights from the survey can be found at .
About interclick
interclick, inc. (Nasdaq:ICLK) is a technology company providing solutions for data-driven advertising. Combining scalable media execution capabilities with analytical expertise, interclick delivers exceptional results for marketers. The Company's proprietary Open Segment Manager (OSM) platform organizes and valuates billions of data points daily to construct the most responsive digital audiences for major digital marketers. For more information, visit .
About the Humane Society of the United States
The Humane Society of the United States is the nation's largest animal protection organization — backed by 11 million Americans, or one of every 28. For more than a half-century, The HSUS has been fighting for the protection of all animals through advocacy, education and hands-on programs. Celebrating animals and confronting cruelty — On the Web at humanesociety.org.
CONTACT: Ogilvy PR Public Relations Siobhan Aalders (212) 880-5341 siobhan.aalders@ogilvypr.com