Achieving consumer buy-in for refill and reuse

Introduction

For a reuse model to scale, strong foundations of policy, investment, streamlined logistics and infrastructure are all needed to facilitate a seismic shift in how we use resources. What we often find missing in the conversation is the acknowledgment that consumer buy-in is lacking.

At Root, we always ask the obvious question “What are the reasons that prevent us, as consumers, from buying into a reuse and refill model?”. Here are some of the key barriers that brands need to overcome to unlock scale.

‘Design in’ desire

What refillable systems have you seen that truly entice you to try them? What examples of reuse and refill would you say are a pure pleasure to use? What systems keep you coming back for more because it is designed so well?

One of the skillsets often absent in refill projects is design. Most of the reusable solutions we’ve seen are not aesthetically or ergonomically pleasing. They feel industrial and undesirable. It’s short-sighted to apply single-use packaging principles to a reusable system. It’s a completely different ball game.

We helped map out a simple refill subscription and collection model for one of our clients, tracking the user journey for the customer across a number of uses. Our learnings fed into working sessions that upskilled their design team and enabled us to ‘design out’ friction and ‘design in’ desire.

Customer-first reuse and refill strategies

When we design for reuse and refill today, many brands seem to miss out the ‘use’ phase. They might cover off the functional, commercial and environmental aspects, but they don’t consider what the user wants.

It’s important to consider:

• What are your customers’ expectations on delivery, frequency, ergonomics, and experience?
• How do they expect your brand to behave?

It’s short-sighted to apply single-use packaging principles to a reusable system. It’s a completely different ball game. The required high-level ‘system thinking’ of a reuse and refill model can feel intangible to some brands. Their business models were never designed for reuse, so it’s a difficult concept to get their heads around.