Procter and Gamble - Bold

This is the second entry of my recent communications with consumer giants Procter and Gamble. In the first entry I spoke about my poor experience with their Olay face wipes, and now I shall tell you about my issue with my recent purchase of Bold.

It wasn't so much of a complaint concerning the product itself; Bold 2in1 Gel liquid is a fantastic detergent product that effectively washes my clothes and linen. The cleaning power is great, softness is comparative to using a secondary fabric conditioner and the long lasting scent is consistently fresh and pleasant. I normally purchase the 18 wash liquid bottle (in Lavender and Chamomile which is my favourite scent because it's so relaxing) but on this occasion I purchased the larger 28 wash bottle.

As much as I adore this gel liquid, when I began using the larger sized bottle of Bold I realised something that could quite possibly be effecting many consumers who may well be avoiding the product altogether. Maybe not so much a flaw in the design but definitely a poorly - even narrow minded - design.

I have a condition called Fibromyalgia which, without getting all medical and technical and off topic, is a syndrome of a multitude of ills that includes muscle pain and weakness. I found that the specific design of the bottle which is almost almond shaped made it quite difficult to dispense the gel, especially as the bottle became less full. The opening point is sited at the bottom of the bottle, obviously to work with gravity and make the squirting out job easier, but the membrane like dispensing hole is so strong you need have plenty muscle in you to force the gel out. I actually found myself squeezing until I hurt yet still had barely managed a dribble of a dose, and so I needed the assistance of my partner to do it for me. I find this totally ridiculous that in this day and age I am unable of operating what should be a simple household helping hand - a washing detergent of all things!

I emailed P&G because I felt there must be so many other people out there who will be experiencing the same trouble as myself, many potential customers that P&G are not meeting the needs of (and subsequently losing the profit of), including the frail elderly and those who have difficulties, whether through illness, injury or handicap. I received a reply within a matter of days.

Considering the nature of my feedback I didn't feel I received an adequate response. I raised some crucial points concerning difficulties with dispensing their product and I was provided with a condescending bullet point list of tips, including a reminder to shake the bottle first, and secondly to re-establish the air back into the bottle following use, squeezing with both hands. I think this is a silly requirement to be able to use a simple product anyway; the requirement for not only two hands but two very physically strong hands.

P&G hardly came to my rescue when I was in dire need of it but they did happily sent me some vouchers out in the post: two vouchers consisting of one at £5 and another at £2 to use against other P&G brands such as Bold and Lenor. I'll just try to avoid the large bottle in future.

Becky