How to Make Money in the $50 Billion Pet Industry

As an industry where we can literally jump from niche to niche on how we make money, we have opportunities like no other. One niche that actually relates to many of us, but not always exactly thought about for making money, is the pet industry. I have pets and I’m sure many of you do as well.

Yes, the country is in recession and people are saving up their money when they can, and lots of people are out of jobs… but the amount of money spent on our pets is still rocketing through the roof. Let’s take a look at a few quick stats from a recent report by American Pet Products Association.

• According to the 2011-2012 APPA National Pet Owners Survey, 62% of U.S. households own a pet, which equates to 72.9 millions homes
• In 1988, the first year the survey was conducted, 56% of U.S. households owned a pet as compared to 62% in 2008

Now let’s take a look at the actual US spending for Pet Industry Expenditures just over the past few years

• 2011 – $50.84 Billion
• 2010 – $48.35 Billion
• 2009 – $45.50 Billion
• 2005 – $36.30 Billion
• 2000 – $28.50 Billion
• 1994 – $17.00 Billion

As you can see… the growth among the pet industry is just astounding… and with the growth of more products and services being purchased through the internet, we may see $100 billion a year in spending in the not too distance future.

How Can You Make Money in the Pet Industry?

Everyone already knows about the huge pet store chains like Petco and PetSmart, but you don’t need to open a retail chain or carry inventory to make money in this industry, you don’t need to spend ten years in vet school either! There are actually many ways that you can get your piece of the pet industry, simply by creating information and resources online for pet owners, who come flooding to the internet every day. From daily searches on what type of food dogs can eat, to symptoms for why pets are sick, or to just place an order online for pet related food and purchases.

That is exactly what PetFlow did, which was actually started by the same guys who started Azoogle… yes, the affiliate network many of us currently work with! In just the past few years, PetFlow is now pushing millions of dollars in monthly revenue through pet food delivery services.

Pet Affiliate Networks – Easy Access to Pet Related Offers

Sure, PetFlow is the exception, as the founders of Azoogle have millions of dollars to start with and fund their new projects. How can the new guy or smaller affiliate start making money in the pet industry?

As mentioned earlier, millions of people are coming to Google every day looking for answers to their many pet related questions. Everything from foods, health or silly questions about their pets… in the end they are all important, and pet owners are more than willing to spend money on their pets when they need to, or find something with rave reviews.

There is a massive amount of pet related products available through Amazon.com, but who wants to get a low 5% commission on referred sales. Your best solution is to find pet related affiliate offers. Depending on the current affiliate networks you work with, you may be able to find some “As Seen on TV” related products that pay out in the $10+ range.

In addition to offers like PetFlow, there is also a wide selection of pet related daily deals sites, which pay around $1.00 for an email submit. A wide selection of “As Seen on TV” pet related products, and health/insurance offers. What I am getting at, is there are a lot of ways you can make money within the pet industry, without being limited to only focusing on products or an actual service. Create tight and quality review sites on one product or a tight group, and customers will come flying to your site, then earn you a commission on every lead and sale.

The pet industry isn’t going anywhere, and as more people show their support for pets and keep bringing them into their homes, the amount spent in this industry will just keep growing… are you getting your share?