Sanitize

Lysol leverages its clean reputation to launch a hygiene consulting business

Wednesday, July 29, 2020 by Snacks
_The Hygiene Consultants have arrived_

The Hygiene Consultants have arrived

Crank out the case interview books... Reckitt Benckiser is the consumer packaged goods company that makes Lysol. Now Lysol sales have surged a lemon-scented 70% during the pandemic. To expand on its success, Lysol's launching a new business line:

  • The Deloitte of Hygiene: Lysol is offering its cleaning products and sanitizing expertise to the travel and hospitality industries. It's positioning itself as a hygiene expert.
  • Case study: With its sanitizing know-how, Lysol tells the Bellagio that the mini bar needs to be sprayed down exactly 57 times.

"Hygiene Consulting" could be big... Travel and hospitality have been decimated by the pandemic. Hotels and airlines know that the only way to get customers back is to make them feel safe. Instead of complimentary continental breakfast, hotels are touting obsessive cleanliness. Lysol has capitalized on that concern to bag some big corporate partners:

  • Hilton is partnering with Lysol, leaving a sticker on your bed that shows the room was cleaned according to "Lysol standards." Also: Lysol wipes everywhere.
  • Delta is working with Lysol to research and develop new protocols and disinfectants for flights, starting with the airplane lavatory. The cleaning routines will be Lysol-certified.
  • BTW: Lysol's not the only Hygiene Consultant. Clorox has been a hygiene partner for United Airlines since May.
THE TAKEAWAY

The value of brand equity... AKA brand clout. Brand equity is the extra value companies can squeeze from our perception of their brand. It's the reason why people pay $160 for Apple AirPods instead of $50 for generic wireless buds. Lysol and Clorox probably aren't more effective than a rando sanitizer that kills 99.99% of germs, but their brands allow them to capitalize on reputation. Hotels and airlines think they can piggy-back off that, too.

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