USER PROBLEM

The subtle shift from dog “owner” to “parent” represents more than a “feed them like family” mindset. Beyond taste and health reassurances, dog parents struggle to find confirmation that they are fulfilling their dogs emotionally.

BUSINESS CONTEXT

Our brand was struggling to maintain relevance in core segments due to a shift from consumers to other treat forms and the growth of smaller brands that delivered higher consumer satisfaction. The brand was also failing to attract the next big generation of dog parents—Millennials. We sought to defend our position while reinventing the brand with new innovation platforms.

APPROACH

I designed a comprehensive learning plan rooted in a Jobs-to-Be-Done assessment in order to understand where our products were falling short against competition. After prioritizing a Job, I conducted further empathy work through mobile diaries, it became clear that our brand failed to meet the emotional criteria that today’s dog parents are shopping against—subsequent benchmarking confirmed this. Dog parents relish in the positive feedback they receive when treating their pets, and Milk-Bone wasn’t delivering.

With this in mind, I launched a new product development process grounded in design thinking principles, beginning with crafting a number of driving user insights to focus on in idea development. I designed and facilitated a cross functional ideation that featured immersive user learning experiences and a participatory design session with feedback from real dog parents. After collectively generating over 150 ideas, we drafted more defined innovation platform concepts. I managed iterative testing with users (focus groups) and internal stakeholders, ensuring along the way that our concepts had the breadth and depth to breathe new life to the brand.

OUTCOMES

What was once a dry innovation pipeline was now flooded with 12 new validated concepts that had the potential to evolve the brand—each garnering above average consumer adoption and strong financial potential.

Milk-Bone’s line of joy-inducing, taste-forward biscuit treats launched in the market with 2 forms (Chunks and Dipped) in 2021, followed by an additional 2 forms (Stacked and Stuffed) in 2022, with expectations to grow 2x over 2 years with ~50% incrementality to the brand’s portfolio.

RESPONSIBILITIES & KEY ACTIVITIES

Jobs-to-Be-Done
1:1 Interviews
Mobile Diaries
User Journey Mapping
Trend Safari
Ideation Design & Facilitation
Participatory Design
Iterative Concept Refinement Focus Groups
Concept Testing