Chocolate chip cookies baking in the oven, freshly cut grass on a hot summer day, a bouquet of fresh flowers on a windowsill. A whiff of a familiar scent can take you back to another time and place faster than any other sense. It is the one most powerfully tied to memory and also most readily linked to emotion. Harnessing this influence and using it to generate consumer attention is the driving force behind the growing field of scent marketing. Some researchers show that, when used correctly, scent marketing can create a stronger brand and client relationship and persuade customers to browse longer in your showroom or office.

The use of scent in marketing falls under the category of multi-sensory marketing, says Harald Vogt, founder and chief marketer behind the Scent Marketing Institute in Scarsdale, N.Y. “Eighty-three percent of all communication between advertisers and consumers is either visual or audio so there is a huge lack of other stimulation when it comes to attracting a potential customer,” he says. Scent marketing aims to grab the attention of today’s constantly pre-occupied consumer through something that we all have to do — breathe. “If you look at what is happening on the streets with people listening to an IPod, even watching videos on the device they start to block out stimuli they aren’t interested in,” he says. “You have to find other ways to get through to the consumer and one of the most efficient ways is scent. The majority of people can smell, we all have to breath so it is almost a no-brainer to use it for marketing purposes.”

Perhaps that’s why so many larger companies are beginning to add scent to their arsenal of marketing strategies. From Westin Hotels and Resorts to Coca-Cola to Sony, the list of companies exploring scent marketing is rapidly growing. “There is such an influx right now on how to grab the marketing dollar,” says Tracy Pepe, founder of Nose Knows Consulting in Brampton, Ont. “Designers who are aware of scent marketing are going to be more advanced than the ones who dismiss it and say ‘this isn’t my area’.” The design industry in Europe has already caught on to the powerful impact of scent marketing, says Pepe. She believes designers in North America who don’t educate themselves on it are simply going to be behind the curve. “Then they can’t be competitive in the industry to talk to their clients, they don’t have the knowledge,” she says.

Most of us already understand the importance of making a good first impression. Scent plays a strong role in that. Whether it’s a showroom or office, the idea is to create a welcoming environment. Rather than leave a space’s aroma to chance, scent marketing allows you to create a total environment including the clients’ olfactory experience when they enter your showroom. “When you walk in and are ready to spend a couple hundred thousand dollars in renovations for your home you want to be pleasantly surprised,” says Vogt. “The purpose of scent marketing is to create a pleasant environment where the potential customer feels at home. “The same way you would offer a client a cup of coffee. It’s another amenity you can offer a client when they walk in.”

Clearly, creating a positive experience with potential customers is critical to a business’s success but some early research also indicates it can potentially boost the bottom line. Carmine Santandrea, CEO of scent system manufacturer Scent Andrea in Santa Barbara, Calif. cites his company’s recent work with a gas company as an example. While pumping gas at one particular station patrons are getting a break from the stench of gas fumes. Instead scent cannons which look like surveillance cameras blast the aroma of freshly brewed coffee at the pumps. “We’re only testing and we’re showing an incredibly high sales lift of coffee,” he says. “A 300 percent sales lift of coffee being sold after customers fill up their tank. If you’re a coffee lover and you stand there for two or three minutes you’re not going to get away easily without buying a cup. A cup of coffee is more profitable for the gas station than 10 gallons of gas. So it has been an extremely profitable project.”

Whether increased profit or just a better all around experience is the goal, one of the key decisions when it comes to scent marketing is what scent to use. Once you have started the learning process on scent marketing the next step is deciding what scent to use — and there are many factors to keep in mind. First and foremost, say experts you must realize that no matter what scent you choose not everyone who walks through the showroom will have the same reaction to it. “If you’re using a scent that is too recognizable then you run the risk of some people identifying it as positive and some as negative,” says Vogt. Consider flowers for example. A particular flower might remind someone of her first date with her partner, while another person may smell the same blooms and think of a funeral.

The equipment you use to aromatize a professional space should be different than the candles or reeds you would use in your own home, says Vogt. “There is professional equipment out there that regulates scent, you can adjust and trim it,” he says. For the average showroom Vogt says professional scenting equipment will cost about $2000 American.

Pepe says being informed about and using professional equipment makes all the difference between whether your scent marketing effort works or falls flat. “It is finding companies and working with the people who can add it to your design principles so that smell isn’t sticking out to the forefront, she says. “It gets interconnected with all the other pieces of the design. It gets added to the colour, the texture, the space. It becomes an extension and a trademark of the designer.”

Even though professional equipment offers features such as a timer to ensure scent isn’t piped through the space when it isn’t needed such as overnight, Vogt says the intensity of the smell should always be kept in check. “You really don’t want to over saturate the space,” he says. “You want to keep it just above the level of recognition. Like with music, if it is played loudly it’s annoying but if it is kept at a good level then it is pleasant and entertaining.” He also cautions against leaving those who are in the space all day in charge of the intensity of the scent. “After awhile you don’t recognize it anymore and there is a tendency to crank it up,” he says. “It takes some experience and some trial and error but you don’t want to overpower the customer.” Lisa Schmidt, director and founder of Omniaroma in Barcelona, Spain, agrees saying that the application of the scent should always be kept in mind so it doesn’t create an unpleasant experience for the client. “If so it will have the adverse effect,” she says. “No matter how good the aroma, it will be perceived as ‘bad’ if it is just too strong.”

As well as keeping the application in check, companies should consider the message they are trying to convey when choosing a scent for their space, says Schmidt. For example, a closet company where organization and cleanliness are paramount might opt for something uplifting. “If you know that your clients put a heavy emphasis on cleanliness then you would pick something with a lot of citrus or head notes,” she says.

The key behind making your scent work, say experts, is making sure it matches with the product or service your company is selling so as reinforce the message of the company. “Basically as long as you’re creating a pleasant atmosphere created by a universally accepted pleasant scent your customers will tend to linger longer in your store,” says Schmidt. “It’s not a question of what scent will make people spend more money. It’s a question of creating a scent that fits to the product and the environment and therefore creates a generally pleasant atmosphere.”

Looking into choosing a scent for your space can be a daunting task to say the least. So we turned to Tracy Pepe, founder of Nose Knows consulting from Brampton, Ont. for pointers. Here, five main categories of scents to consider:
Woods: This category consists of a combination of aromas, says Pepe. “Sandalwood, rosewood, patchouli, they are known as base notes,” she says. These scents create an intimate environment and have the ability to soften a space and make it feel warm and cozy. Pepe likens it to bringing a fireplace into the room.
Orientals: This category, which includes chocolate, caramel, vanilla, and very thick scents, consists of very rich base notes, says Pepe. “If you want a space that is ‘your space’, where it is very quiet — Oriental scents have that ability,” says Pepe.
Citrus: These are top notes and are at the other end of the spectrum from the previous categories, says Pepe. “What citrus does is it’s very refreshing, there is a stimulating principle to it, a feeling of clean,” she says. “Citruses have the ability to wipe out the energy of the smell prior and create a nice smell of freshness.”
Spice: This category consists of scents like cinnamon, cumin — things that are hot and vibrant. Pepe recommends these scents in spaces where you want an awakening or movement. “That’s where these spices really have an impact,” she says.
Medicinal: The scents in this section are very calming, cool tranquil scents such as lavender, chamomile and basil. These work when you’re trying to create a tranquil, calming environment, she says.

Top Scents

Though everyone has different experiences they associate with various aromas, the Scent Marketing Institute has found some common themes.
Feel safe, secure and nostalgic: Talcum powder
Be more alert: Peppermint, citrus
Relax: Lavender, vanilla, chamomile
Perceive a room as smaller: Barbecue smoke
Perceive a room as bigger: Apple, cucumber
Buy expensive furniture: Leather, cedar
Buy a home: Fresh baked goods
Browse longer and spend more: Tailored floral/citrus scents

Compiled by the Scent Marketing Institute

This article originally appeared in the Winter 2008 issue of Canadian Kitchen and Bath magazine.