PetSmart, Inc Essay

PetSmart, Inc. is the largest specialty retailer of services and solutions for the lifetime needs of pets with more than 885 pet stores in the United States and Canada. It supplies a broad range of pet food and pet supplies that are competitively priced. Many of its stores have in-store cat and dog boarding facilities called as pet hotels. PetSmart provides online pet supplies and pet care information, pet training, pet grooming and pet adoption services. The web site of PetSmart is fairly well developed and communicates a good amount of online information to its visitor with links to specific pets like dogs, cats, fish etc. It also provides a link that will help the visitor to locate the store closest to him. The website has an excellent link called petsmartcharities through which PetSmart is able to clearly communicate its social initiatives of saving and providing a lifelong loving home for every homeless pet. It is also very successful in communicating how the visitor can participate in their social initiatives through the purchase of flowers, collectible dog or cat ornaments and wrapping paper and also silver logo charms as gift for pet-loving friends or family members. The mission or the very purpose of the existence of the company that is ‘providing a lifelong loving home for every pet’ is not clearly communicated to the website visitor and can be identified only if the visitor is looking for it. The website is also ineffective in delivering the message with respect to the ethical values and practices of the company in conducting its business. This is a very critical message in today’s business environment for all the stakeholders of the company, specially the informed investors and the customers. A company’s website is a powerful tool for communicating vital information to the concerned. The company should include a clear mission and vision statement at the very beginning on the webpage ‘about us’. A separate link communicating about its core business values, ethical practices and an ethical code of conduct as followed by the company should also be provided.