As advertising continued to enter the household with the growth of television and radio, the American housewife became a significant target market for manufacturers of cleaning products. Companies sought to gain an insight into what motivated these women when it came to choosing a particular brand of detergent, washing machine, or household cleaner. The joy of completion - a creative memo on a new kind of Joy for dishwashing, for example, examined the effectiveness of a television advertising campaign for the Joy brand, as well as consumers’ attitudes towards packaging design. The findings of these studies were essential for the product development and advertising of famous brands such as Kleenex, Fab, Surf, Lux, Persil and Tide, which all feature in the collection.

Companies also explored the industry more generally, in both the United States and further afield. How the consumer really feels about dry cleaning, for example, examines consumer attitudes towards laundry services, whereas report number 1262A provided an analysis of the future of the detergent market in Venezuela.