At the International Exhibition of Products and Services for Pets, ZooIndustry 2026, held at the Expoforum Convention and Exhibition Centre, entrepreneur and marketing course author Alexey Shtabkin delivered a presentation titled “Marketing with a tail: how to become a leader in a narrow niche and generate 2,026 leads per month.” The expert explained how pet business owners can increase sales through search-demand analysis and content marketing.
According to Shtabkin, many companies miss out on a substantial share of potential customers because they fail to take users’ actual search queries into account. For example, veterinary clinic owners often do not create separate web pages for specific animal symptoms, individual breeds, or narrow veterinary specialisations, even though these are exactly the types of queries people actively search for online. Searches such as “veterinary ophthalmologist” or “cat is lethargic” can generate up to 70% of traffic. Statistics show that only 9 out of 350 veterinary clinic websites in Moscow and the surrounding region have more than 1,000 pages, despite the fact that websites of this scale dominate search results.
The expert paid particular attention to the seasonality of demand. Using the example of cat vaccination services, he demonstrated how advertising campaigns prepared in advance can help businesses increase sales during peak periods. If demand peaks in December, the campaign should be launched as early as October.
One of the most striking examples was a case involving a Maltipoo kennel that increased its number of leads from one or two per month to 2,272 per month within a year. This was achieved through detailed analysis of search queries and competent website optimisation. Shtabkin also noted that high-quality website articles can not only attract traffic but also convert it into real leads. In his view, content should be more detailed and more useful than that of competitors.
“Articles in the format of ‘How?’ and ‘Why?’ do not simply bring in traffic; they convert it into leads if they are more detailed than competitors’ articles,” Shtabkin noted.
The expert urged pet business representatives to make more active use of search-engine data and competitor analysis in order not to lose potential customers.
“The user searches—you provide. That is the formula for leadership,” he concluded.
ZooIndustry 2026 is being held alongside the North-West Veterinary Congress. The exhibition covers 9,000 square metres and brings together 130 companies from Russia, Belarus, Turkey, and China. Its business programme includes more than 30 events. Key topics include the new tax system, product labelling, and retail’s transition to online formats. The exhibition runs until March 5.