Awareness, Education Drive Swash Launch

Cincinnati — Procter & Gamble and Whirlpool Corp., Benton Harbor, Michigan, focused on shopper education and depth of awareness as they jointly introduced the Swash at-home clothing care system in late 2014. Designed to fit into a living space such as a bedroom or closet, Swash allows consumers to reduce or eliminate ironing, save on dry cleaning and better care for and preserve clothes.The manufacturer partners identified a number of insights that prompted the development of Swash. They discovered that people are reluctant to excessively launder or dry clean their clothing for fear of damage. At the same time, consumers have become resigned to the high cost and inconvenience of processes such as dry cleaning, ironing or steaming. Through consumer research, P&G and Whirlpool also learned that people are yearning for a better way to care for clothing in between laundering and dry cleaning.Since the Swash was a new product/concept, it was critical for the manufacturer partners to provide an understanding of what it is, how it works, its functional benefits and how it fits into the shopper’s life. “To drive awareness and education, it has been crucial to leverage earned media and influencers to build authentic awareness and lifestyle engagement,” says Clark Reinhard, marketing director for P&G Ventures, a division of Procter & Gamble. “This has helped consumers understand what Swash is and how it can change the way they care for their clothes – for the better.”In June 2014, P&G Ventures launched Swash.com, the official information hub. A social media campaign to drive website traffic has complemented the site, leveraging regional, digitally active influencers and conducting retailer-specific events and print/digital media that include special offers.“To keep Swash at the top of mind throughout the path to purchase, we are running a customer relationship management campaign,” Reinhard says. “To sweeten the deal, we have ongoing promotional windows that include price offers or Swash Pods giveaways.”P&G Ventures works closely with retailers to reach a wide audience. The group uses custom displays and tailors its content to individual stores. So far, it has had success with in-store demonstrations, with demos ongoing at Best Buy, Bloomingdales and Costco.“In-store, we use semipermanent displays that convey the values of the brand and prompt shoppers to explore the device,” says Reinhard. “Included is an interactive touchscreen with video content, printed flip books and take-home brochures, and scent cards for various types of Swash Pods.“[We want] to create an engaging experience for people while they’re learning about our product so that Swash stays fresh in their mind,” he adds, noting that the Swash-powered kiosk was named permanent display of the year in the 2015 OMA awards.A month after P&G Ventures kicked off the teaser site in June 2014, the group held an exclusive pre-sale and soft launch at Bloomingdale’s in New York City, followed by the official launch in September. “Throughout the campaign, we’ve had consistent media spend and an in-store presence.”The website, which offers free shipping and a risk-free trial, has had more than 1 million visitors since its launch. Also, Hollywood stylist Kate Young is a brand spokesperson for the product and was featured in a “Live in Levi’s” 30-day promotion.Arc Worldwide, Chicago, has been P&G Venture’s digital and in-store partner since the beginning of the campaign. “[Arc’s] leadership throughout the initial launch was so remarkable that we’ve signed them as our official marketing agency of record for the Swash brand,” Reinhard says.As for measuring results, Reinhard explains: “This is a continually evolving campaign based on research and purchaser behavior, and we’ve implemented an aggressive test-and-learn approach to arrive at solutions that work.”

Awareness, Education Drive Swash Launch

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