Whether it’s cooking, cleaning or even taking out the trash, consumers are increasingly looking for ways to elevate the everyday. That doesn’t necessarily mean they’re looking for solutions that are fancy. It’s more about breaking up the monotony and helping people make their home lives a little easier, a little more convenient and a little more fun.
Simply put: “People don’t want things to feel like chores anymore,” Tom Mirabile, trend strategist and expert resource to IHA, told attendees at an education session at The Inspired Home Show 2024.
Home cleaning is an area especially ripe for opportunity. While there are some people out there who find cleaning to be soothing, there are many more who view it as a necessary evil…and some who avoid it at all costs.
Role of Social Media
Did you know #CleanTok has even more views than #BeautyTok? The New York Times reports that as of February 2024, there have been roughly 110 billion global views of #CleanTok videos compared to 78 billion global views of #BeautyTok content. (Figures were reportedly provided by TikTok to Unilever.)
“Finding order in chaos will always be appealing, especially when the world may be feeling chaotic,” Jessica Ek, senior director of digital communications at the American Cleaning Institute, told Bustle late last year.
After spending just a few minutes on CleanTok, it’s easy to see that people are tired of the drudgery of cleaning. They’re looking for hacks to save time and save energy. Sometimes they’re looking for people to encourage and inspire them, like a cheerleader. And yes, in some cases, they’re just looking for entertainment.
As with beauty-related makeovers, video is especially compelling for capturing “before” and “after” cleaning transformations. Especially if time lapse footage is used or the labor-intense parts are left out.
Translating Interest Into Sales
Yet unlike the beauty industry—where sales have continued to increase since the pandemic—home environment sales have been on the decline.
You could attribute some of that to lifestyle changes and less need for new cleaning tools. But it’s also worth noting that a lot of the cleaning-related videos on social media don’t involve brands. A good amount don’t even involve items made for home cleaning. Toothpaste, Elmer’s Glue and parchment paper are just a few examples.
That means the door is open for retailers selling home cleaning products or tools to get in the social media mix. This could be either through their own marketing or by teaming up with influencers already established in the cleaning space. It also might be a reason to sell through in-platform stores such as TikTok Shop, YouTube Shopping and Shops on Facebook and Instagram.
Expanding Product Assortments
Any kind of new product innovations are likely to inspire consumers, but especially when they’re designed to make home cleaning a little easier, a little more convenient and/or a little more fun. There’s also plenty of opportunity to market or re-position existing products as ones that elevate the everyday or take the “chore” mentality out of cleaning.
Think about products that cut down on elbow grease, are easy to store/fold up, look and feel fun and stylish (vs drab and utilitarian) or elevate the cleaning experience in any way. Case in point: Brabantia’s Linn Steam Board, which fits all Linn clothes racks, but is also portable for effective wrinkle removal with less time and effort than ironing.
Also appealing: Products with self-cleaning functions, items that can be put in the dishwasher (vs needing to be hand-washed) and those that skip a step. Example: This Bath Stone™ Mat by Dorai Home that dries instantly under your feet, unlike cloth bath mats that absorb moisture, generate bacteria and require frequent cleaning.
It’s good to point out that effective cleaning solutions can be either low-tech or high-tech. For instance, when it comes to tough, stuck-on messes, some consumers might gravitate to the Super Eco Scrubbi by Gleener (complete with strong, naturally antibacterial coconut bristles) and others may be motivated by the electric spinning action offered by Spin Power’s Electric Spin Scrubber.
Video and/or audio recordings of all education sessions at The Inspired Home Show 2024 are now available online.