Kärcher jumpstarts product launches with Bazaarvoice Sampling

Kärcher launches new products and enters into new categories at scale

For brands to stand out in competitive environments and increase retail shelf space, strategic innovation is key. Developing the best products is one part of the equation. Driving consumer awareness and trust in the new products as soon as they hit the shelves is equally critical.

Kärcher, the leading provider of cleaning technology worldwide, leads the way in product launch success by leveraging user-generated content (UGC) throughout the entire process.

Whether it’s releasing a new version to an existing line of products or entering an entirely new category, the pressure is on to find success. Reviews play a vital role in guiding Kärcher’s product decisions, getting shoppers excited to try them, and sustaining the product’s success for years to come.

Demonstrating the value of new products and instill shopper confidence with 280,000 reviews

Kärcher uses Bazaarvoice Sampling to jumpstart content collection by getting new products into the hands of highly-targeted, engaged shoppers. Products go live with product description pages full of UGC, driving initial conversions and strengthening the brand’s relationships with retail partners.

“One of our major retailers challenged us to generate as much content as possible for the launch of our new products in garden care, including dozens of lawnmowers, chainsaws, and leaf blowers,” said Kevin Wiredu, Senior E-Commerce Specialist at Kärcher. “Having reviews in place just before the retailer releases our products gives consumers the confidence to try our new products right from the start. It’s a key to our success.”

The first sampling campaigns generated hundreds of high quality reviews quickly and with little effort, as 98% of Bazaarvoice sampling members who received products submitted a review.

“The campaign execution was very simple and straightforward. It only took two weeks from the time we sent products to customers to the time they reviewed them,” said Wiredu. “And the quality of the reviews also stood out. We get lots of pictures and videos from sampling customers that we rarely get from organic reviews. This visual content gives other customers a better view of the machine and how others are interacting with it.”

Multiple areas of the business saw the value in sampling, including the marketing, product, and channel sales teams. This inspired Kärcher to include sampling as part of their go-to-market strategy. Rather than waiting for retailers to ask, the brand continues using sampling to support other launches.

Winning new customers in new product categories

UGC is especially effective at showing shoppers that Kärcher specializes in lots of product categories—not just pressure washers.

“In some countries, Kärcher is mostly known for pressure washers. But our product range is so much more wide,” said Wiredu. “For example, we recently introduced the new category called electric weed remover. These were completely unique and unknown to consumers, so shoppers had nothing to compare them to. That’s why reviews played such an important role in getting consumers confident in the products.”

Kärcher has collected more than 80,000 reviews from sampling and other efforts, which are syndicated to retail sites in the Bazaarvoice Network. The brand currently has 280,000 reviews across 73 retail sites, and 76% of all reviews on those sites only have syndicated reviews.

Customer-centric, data-driven transformation

Customer feedback fuels important business decisions. To make new products that consumers will love and make existing ones even better, Kärcher uses the Bazaarvoice Insights dashboard. This gives the brand a low-effort, cost-effective way to understand what shoppers like about products, what they want, and what needs improvement.

“Without much market research, UGC is our way of collecting insights, especially at the time of entry,” said Wiredu.

For example, reviews recently surfaced a need for Kärcher to adjust how it positioned one of its new garden products.

“Because the product was completely new, we noticed from reviews that many customers didn’t understand the product’s purpose or how to use it. Customers expected the product to do a lot more than it’s actually intended. So, we adjusted our messaging on the product pages, packaging, and in the user manual to make it more clear. This is something we wouldn’t have known to do without reviews,” said Wiredu.

With a dedication to constant innovation and giving customers the confidence to purchase its products, it’s no surprise that Kärcher continues to maintain its position as an industry leader.