Scent plays a crucial part in the environment you are attempting to create, where developing brand loyalty is key in these economically challenging times. Also known as sensory branding, this form of marketing has been around for decades. Visual and auditory branding are often the most dominant marketing tools, but sensory branding is one marketing tool that should not be overlooked.
So how can you adapt this marketing tool into your business and take advantage of everything it has to offer?
Scent Impact on Consumers
Scent communicates a reaction to consumers and impacts their everyday preferences and experiences.
According to recent studies, consumers are demanding a more engaging and pleasant smell as a part of the overall shopping experience, with around 90 per cent of shoppers stating they would speed up their visit or walk out of a store if they did not enjoy the ambient smell. As a consequence, deploying scent can considerably increase footfall and encourage sales, lingering and return business, which in turn will strengthen your brand and create a positive brand image.
Neuromarketing research, which applies to cognitive responses, has found that sense of smell is the sense which most connects to our emotion recollections. In the study, around 75 per cent of human emotions are related to a memory triggered by smells. Since smell works at a subconscious level, it is extremely effective for triggering an impulsive reaction from consumers.
How to Utilise Scent
It is crucial to take advantage of scent and to use smell to trigger positive associations in your customers, even if the products do not carry a distinctive smell.
Scent marketing is estimated to now be a $200 million industry as marketers use it to sell everything from fried chicken and whiskey to baby products.
It has long been used to increase the appeal of brands, as it creates an emotional association with the product, thereby increasing customer loyalty. Companies such as https://moodmedia.co.uk/project/scent-marketing-for-businesses/ can create the right scents for businesses such as casinos, hotels, gyms, retail shops, theatres and museums, helping to create a memorable and enduring experience for your consumers.
For instance, lobbies in hotels can use infused scents such as Black Tea and Jasmine to create a relaxed ambience for guests, whereas high-fashion stores may choose rich scents to suggest luxury.
