How Unilever changed the narrative around dirt to deliver a 900% sales boost
As Unilever approaches the 20th anniversary of Dirt Is Good, its vice-president of marketing says the platform is “absolutely one of the reasons” people choose its laundry brands over rivals.
It seems dirt is not only good, it’s also rather profitable. This according to Unilever, which has seen a 900% increase in sales since launching its Dirt Is Good platform for laundry brands such as Persil in the UK and OMO in Brazil and China in 2004. Indeed, the global platform has boosted sales from €400m (£354m) a year two decades ago to €4bn (£3.54bn) a year today.
The platform was created to unify all Unilever’s detergent brands with one key message, that dirt isn’t something we have to put up with, instead it should be embraced as a life well lived.
Tati Lindenberg, vice-president of marketing at Dirt Is Good, believes this upending of the usual message from laundry brands is what resonates with customers.
