What my dog’s anxiety is teaching me about market awareness

I have a problem.

Actually, my dog, Aggie, has a problem … but I’m paying for it, so it’s MY problem.

The problem is car anxiety.

She struggles to feel relaxed and secure when riding anywhere with me, and often pants and shakes during the ride.

So I’m now working my way through the dog anxiety market. Not as a copywriter, but as a customer.

Being able to observe the process of market awareness unfold in real time on MYSELF is a goldmine of consumer psychology.

At least for the dog market. And at least for the current solutions available.

Here’s how it’s gone so far:

[Unaware]:

First, I didn’t realize I had a problem.

I used to take Aggie in the car all the time and she was fine with it.

But I always took her in her crate, so she felt secure.

Eventually she outgrew the crate, so I just let her ride in the car without it.

But things changed quickly. Eventually, I became …

[Problem aware]:

At some point in the last 6 months, Aggie started to pant heavily whenever she went in the car.

Eventually it got so bad that she would tremble before even getting in.

Now we have a problem.

So I moved on to the next stage …

[Solution aware]:

After some research, I realized there are many solutions to this problem.

Supplements like melatonin and CBD, car boxes and buckles for security, and even a special, tightly wrapped garment called a “Thundershirt.” 

For the most part, none of these are really working. The car box shows some promise, but that’s it.

And now, I’m in one of the highest stages …

[Product aware]:

I’ve tried a lot of solutions. I’ve got a few more to try, too.

Whichever one actually ends up working will be the winner.

But it's been a headache. And I've tried so many things in such a short amount of time.

Here's the takeaway:

Through this process, I’ve observed an interesting phenomenon.

Market awareness today happens MUCH faster than ever before for many markets, due in part to Google and Amazon.

With a quick search query and 2-day shipping, you can move from “problem aware” through “solution aware” and on to the “product aware” stage very quickly.

This is MUCH different from 30 or 40 years ago, when people couldn’t research or try solutions as fast.

Of course, this isn’t true for all markets all the time.

But it does mean that proper research — and knowing which market awareness stage you want to target — are more important than ever before.

David Patrick