Tide Detergent Has Won the Heart of Americans and Here's Why

Did you know that there is a 38 percent chance that your clothes have been washed in Tide in the last week? Unless, of course, you do not wash your clothes or you are currently going "au naturel".

Even for those of us who are really into fashion and hygiene, it is hard to be excited about something like laundry detergent. People don't generally line up around the block to buy detergent like they do for iPhones. However, Tide has some how broken the chains placed on detergents and moved from a household item of necessity to a household item that is loved.

Tide is a product that is often used by families for generations, it has been able to retain brand loyalty. It has gained some serious market share and it is becoming a fortress for other brands to try and move, even fellow Proctor & Gamble detergents.

So how did Tide become at the heart of America? That answer lies in both history and in our olfactory abilities.

Before World War II, Americans would have to wash their clothes by hand and with traditional soap; this was even more arduous by the fact that the soaps at the time did not dissolve in the hard water. People wanted a synthetic soap or detergent that would dissolve in water (whether they voiced it in those words or not). It was in 1945 when chemist Dick Byerly, from P&G, discovered that if he made a mix of one part alkyl sulfate with three parts sodium tripolyphosphate. The compound lifted the stains from clothes like a magic wand and immediately got rushed to the production line.

The product got its brand name when Richard Dupree, P&G president at the time, noticed how clean the sand at the beach looked after the tide washed over it.

A major part how how P&G's marketing turned Tide into a home necessity was the fact that they managed to get a box of Tide into washing machines that were sold in stores, as they were just hitting the sales floor and getting popular. This allowed homemakers to use Tide before they had a chance to try anything else, creating brand loyalty right away.

As for the olfactory, the scent of Tide is associated with comforts of home. It is like baking cookies to laundry detergent; it makes us think of home, mom & dad, and comfort. That is a trait that is priceless for a product that is used in the home. Or any product, really.

Americans spend $2.8B on Tide every year.

Do you want to become like Tide, even get set on the right path? Then contact Integraphix, a Los Angeles creative agency. As a Los Angeles marketing company, we have the resources to help your business to move to the next level.