Dettol moves from personal hygiene to 'clean homes'

Every successful product that exists either suffices a need or solves a key problem. But how does a company sell its products when the consumer doesn't realise the need and doesn't know that the problem exists? It educates, and that's the task at hand for Pankaj Duhan, chief marketing officer, RB South Asia Health. Duhan has set out to create a category in the FMCG space in India with the launch of Dettol Disinfectant Spray. The new offering from Reckitt Benckiser is a hard and soft surface disinfectant which rids domestic surroundings of harmful bacteria. The closest surface disinfectants we have had so far are essentially floor cleaners, the likes of Lizol and an all-encompassing chemical combo called Phenyl.

Although the Dettol spray is new in India, it has its origins in Lysol disinfectant spray, another key RB brand which was launched in the US in 1963. It was later introduced in its new avatar as Dettol Disinfectant Spray in the UK in 2003. Dettol's portfolio in India includes soaps, antiseptic liquid, hand wash, body wash, bandages, shaving cream, hand sanitiser, dish wash liquid, and now the new spray. It doubles up as a room freshener and is available in two fragrances, Original Pine and Spring Blossom. Both have been launched in formats of 170 gm bottles at an introductory price of Rs 159.

Globally, the brand competes with products like Procter & Gamble's Tide fabric spray, Clorox Company's Clorox spray and wipes, etc. The global surface disinfectant market is segmented into liquids, wipes, and sprays. Research firm Markets And Markets suggests that the global market is dominated by North America, followed by Europe and high growth is expected from the Asian region with economies like China and India leading the charge.

The problem: Dettol's study suggests 80 per cent of women think that their homes are clean and germ free. "We found that most household objects that look germ free and clean contain as much bacteria as things we consider dirty, say trash bags, toilet seats, etc. Disinfectant liquids like the Dettol liquid cannot be applied on all the surfaces," says Pankaj Duhan.

But Indians don't recognise the problem in the first place. "Brands have multiple objectives. While providing solutions is one, they also play a role in educating. We will educate consumers about the sources of illnesses, the pockets where germs thrive and then help them find solutions," Duhan explains.

Conversations around germ-caused illnesses peak around the monsoon with a spike in diseases like diarrhoea, cholera, etc. With a winter launch, RB is looking at cashing in on conversations around cold and flu viruses, including the H1N1.

The product is targeted at mothers. "Dettol always talks to the mom as she is the guardian of the house. We are looking to target millennial moms who would be more inclined to adopt newer methods of disinfecting homes. While the broader TG is the germ concerned mom, I think adoption will be much higher among millennials," he says.

Dettol spray is being launched nationally, including both urban and rural geographies. "I expect the awareness to have a more urban India skew and similarly in areas where education is higher and people access the internet. In the geographies where there are increased personal and home cleansing rituals, adoption will be a higher," Duhan adds.

While there isn't a competitor at the moment, a smaller and a newer brand PeeSafe which is into toilet sanitiser sprays for travellers, recently came up with a proposition 'Clean is not sanitised', something very close to the new Dettol proposition - #CleanIsNotGermFree. "I don't look at competitors a lot and compare. We actually look at propositions which have a very wide ranging usage - on sofas, on curtains, on pillows, on toys, on toilet seats and many such. While it is primarily meant to be used inside homes, Duhan says, "We have seen use cases inside cars outside India over the years but it will happen in India as consumers evolve."

The product has been present in the global markets for decades. Why did India seem ready now, we ask. "The intention is not to borrow from the Western markets but to look at needs surfacing in India, and the stage of the consumer evolution in terms of adopting new habits and practices. The Indian housewife and mom has been adopting a lot of new age mechanics over the last few years to figure out the evolution and presence of germs," Duhan responds.

For long, Dettol's portfolio in India was inclined towards personal hygiene. The brand is now looking into widening into hygienic living and a clean home. The brand's launch of a kitchen detergent (in 2013) was the first step in that direction. "That is the campaign – 'Mera Ghar Dettol Ka Dhula'. It is not just about keeping your body or cuts and wounds germ-free, but also about the disinfection needs of your home," Duhan says.

Speaking about the communication, he adds that it will be first about education and then about the solution. "It will be a 360 degree campaign with a strong digital presence. We would like to have conversations unlike linear mediums and are planning to use key opinion leaders and influencers to start the conversation on social platforms. The launch phase will be followed by a leverage phase and we have a more than a year long campaign planned for this," he adds.

After using TikTok extensively for brands like Moov and Veet, the platform doesn't figure in the media plan for Dettol Spray. This ties back to the product TG – Indian moms. "We are not looking at Tik Tok for this particular campaign because it doesn't fit in. It ties back to the TG and the messaging. We want to have conversation around germs in the house, etc., with moms. The medium tends to have a great appeal when it comes to personal wellness, say, looking good/feeling good. It is fantastic when it comes to targeting all India including tier 2/3 cities. We have had successful campaigns," Duhan explains.

However, Dettol's new launch comes amid the economic slowdown and reports about FMCG players cutting advertising and marketing costs. "We've seen some impact in some of the categories where the category growth rates have come down. On the ad spends front, we haven't cut back at all," he maintains.