When I attend to expo, events or markets, I sometimes receive disapproving looks for my reusable tissues.
Most people are polite and don't show it. They might say something like, "Oh! I'm not there yet" and move on. A few—rare, but it happens—express it outright: a nice frown, sometimes a sticking-out tongue, or headshakes with "no! no! no!" words.
It has always amused me.
True! I love seeing people's psychological barriers and view them as a great challenge to loosen up and plant seeds in the minds of the curious ones.
But to loosen these blocks, we first need to understand where they exist!
WHAT MAKES A FABRIC TISSUE GROSS?
I often wonder: what disgusts people?
In phrases like "eww" or "I'm not there yet"... it implies something gross. But what?
Is it the act of blowing our noses?
Well, that's unavoidable. I get that fluids are taboo, and nobody likes to blow their nose... but wouldn't you agree it's better to blow into something than on the ground?
Is it blowing our noses into fabric?
I don't think it's the material itself because we blow our noses into paper, and we have no problem with that. In fact, it's highly unlikely that people prefer blowing their noses into stiff and irritating paper rather than into an extremely soft and comfortable fabric.
Maybe there's a block related to the judgment of others? Someone sees us blowing our noses into fabric = Eww. We're judged, and we feel bad?
The good thing is that our tissues look like disposable precisely to avoid this block! So this problem is addressed if you get Boaty tissues.
Is it washing the tissues?
Bingo! It's the idea of reusing the tissues that grosses people out:
For some, it's putting "dirty" stuff in the washer. For others, it's the fear that it won't come out clean. In short, the main psychological block against reusable tissues is intrinsically related to your appliance.
YET, OUR WASHING MACHINES WORK!
I have great news for you! Nowadays, there's an appliance called a washing machine. It's usually available in every household or nearby, and it washes all our things! No need to scrub on a corrugated board anymore. Put dirty stuff in, add soap, leave it, and find them clean at the end of the cycle!
Isn't it beautiful!!
Yup, a washing machine washes.
Do you think the dirt stays in the machine when washing work clothes after construction? Or rags after washing exterior windows? Do you think the dirty water stays in the washer, and your machine will remain brown? It's not like a bucket; it goes through multiple cycles and drains away.
And if your things don't come out clean, wash them again! You might have forgotten the soap or overloaded your machine? (Or maybe your appliance is outdated?)
But it's certainly not the fault of the tissues! They wash very well, and everyone who has washed them will tell you.
CONVINCING PEOPLE THAT THEIR WASHING MACHINE IS EFFICIENT
It's incredible that my message to popularize reusable tissues is explaining to people that their washing machine can wash.
Shouldn't it be the job of washing machine companies to do that? To tell people that their products work well, and there's no issue putting boogers and traces of poop in their machines?
In addition to saying that my products are great, I have to explain that everyone's washing machines work great and wash my products like a charm.
OTHER BLOCKS TOWARDS REUSABLE ITEMS
Beyond the gross factor, a block could be related to the chore of doing laundry.
The key here to understand is that it's not so much the chore of washing tissues that takes more time; it's our willingness to fold them.
Indeed, washing them isn't more complicated because we're already doing laundry! We can add our tissues to any load. As we said, it will wash, whether with our rags or clothes.
Honestly, I myself had a psychological block for a long time about washing my tissues with my laundry. So, I used to do a "Pre-wash" of the tissues and added my laundry afterward. Over time, I realized it wasn't worse than underwear or my kid's shirts (because they wipe their noses on their sleeves), so I dropped the "Pre-wash."
After that, they go in the dryer, and that's easy too. The remaining task is folding, like with all our clothes. Adding this step to your life might seem like a mountain, but truly, if there's one thing that's easy to fold, it's tissues. Ask your T-shirts.
And no need to fold them fancy! Fold them in half, or if you don't feel like it, stuff them unfolded into the box; that works too!
IN CONCLUSION
What about you? What was/is your real block? Fear of judgment? The chore? Putting something dirty in your washer or the fear that it might come out dirty?
As you can read, over the years, I've understood many things! In fact, I've always been attentive to everyone's limits and have always wanted to understand what blocked people regarding our products.
And the day I realized that I had to sell the washing power of washing machines, I was a bit stunned. But afterward, I said to myself: Bravo! You've found the knot.
The beautiful thing is that everyone already uses washing machines. I don't need to convince people to buy a washing machine to get reusable tissues. That's done! It's just about reassuring people about their appliances and showing them all the advantages that outweigh possible disadvantages so that everyone prefers fabric over paper
