Brooklyn Nets Use Signature Scent at Barclay Center

If you think about professional basketball and try to associate it with a scent, you would probably come up with Eau de Locker Room, stale beer or fried food, but an NBA team is out to change that. The Brooklyn Nets is now using a scent various described as "perfumey" "clean"
or citrusy"" to make their arena more pleasant for the fans.

The scent, provided by Scent Air, is intended to go with Barclay's high end look and menu. Barclay Center is a brand new, billion dollar facility owned by Russian oligarch Mikhail Prokhorov.

Scent Air also provides scent marketing for other professional sports teams including the Atlanta Hawks, St. Louis Rams, and Dallas Cowboys.

Prototype Smart Phone Attachment Adds Scent

A new attachment for smart phones allows users to add scent to their life through their phones. Social media friends can send each other scents and it will be able interface with other applications like games. Because this is a new technology that is not widely available, there are not yet apps that utilize it, but ChatPerf, the company that developed this new device, thinks that will be coming.

Watch Out Bloodhounds: Humans Can Track by Scent Too!

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Experimenters at Berkeley have discovered that humans can track by smell, similar to the way dogs can. With evolution, our sense of smell has become a less prominent part of our sensory survival arsenal and it was thought that although we could detect smells, we were not able to follow a scent trail to its source. Now, scientists have found that is not the case.

In the experiment, they dribbled chocolate essential oil in a field, leading to actual chocolate at the end. Volunteers were put into a suit that deprived them of all senses other than smell (blindfold for the eyes, ears covered and hands and feet covered to blunt the sense of touch). Then they were asked to find the chocolate.

Like dogs, they got on all fours and started sniffing the ground to identify the smell and follow it. They were observed to use the same methodology as dogs, which is sniffing from side to side. They were able to detect which nostril the scent was strongest on and continually criss-crossing the scent trail, making corrections based on which side the scent was strongest.

Of course, it is also true that humans can detect a much lower concentration of the scent molecules compared to a dog, but it still has interesting implications for scent marketing. What if, instead of or in addition to ambient scent, a store used a scent trail to lead to its higher margin products?

The Smell of White

Combine everything and you get a unique sensory outcome we call "white." With light, all colors together create white light. With sound, all different frequencies combine to make white sound. Now, scientists have created olfactory white.

To create this indescribable smell, they chose 86 different odor molecules and diluted them to the same intensity. Then they combined them in different configurations. They found that when the mixtures included 30 or more of the compounds, they began to smell alike, regardless of which odor molecules were in the mixture and even if they shared no odor molecules in common.

The neutralization comes about because no one odor is dominant and the smells range over the range of scents humans can detect, effectively canceling each other out. This even distribution of smells is highly unlikely to occur in nature, but scientists are hoping that like white noise and white light, olfactory white can be used in the study of olfaction.

Scientists Restore Sense of Smell Using Gene Therapy

Can you imagine what it would be like to never have had a sense of smell? Those born with congenital anosmia have never smelled a rose, or freshly popped popcorn, chocolate, or any of the smells that inform and enrich our lives. Now, for the first time, scientists have discovered a way to possibly give this missing sense to those without a sense of smell.

Scientists at the University of Michigan Medical School, working with colleagues at other schools, were able to restore the ability to smell to mice. The mice had a genetic defect which negatively impacted the cilia throughout their bodies. Cilia are instrumental in smelling and also affect other body parts and their functions, like the eyes and kidneys. The researchers used gene therapy to spur the olfactory neurons to regrow the cilia.

The mice were injected with the virus that causes the common cold that had the normal IFT88 genes loaded in it. When the mice got the virus, the gene loaded into their DNA. Within 2 weeks, they had a 60% increase in their body weight, an indication that they were eating more which is linked to a better sense of smell.

The therapy, which will not be available to humans for years, only addresses anosmia caused by cilia dysfunction, not that caused by head trauma, aging or chronic sinus problems. Because cilia dysfunction also causes other, more serious diseases, the therapy could be used to treat a host of other problems. Smells promising!

Happy Smells

The universal search for happiness is evident from the sales of anti-depressants hitting new highs, but maybe happiness is just a sniff away. Here are some happy smells that might make you skip that next prescription refill.

Roses or jasmine flowers - "A rose by any other name would smell as sweet..." Flower smells have been used for centuries in aromatherapy, and research at Rutgers University's Human Emotions Laboratory has confirmed that floral scents can triple the number of people's immediate happy thoughts. They can also promote more social interaction.

Lemon - The bright scent of lemon oil has been shown to improve mood, give a boost of energy and reduce anxiety. In as study at Le Moyne College, researchers found that in the presence of a lemon scent, people are perceived more positively. (Lemony perfume for the job interview might not be a bad idea.)

Lavender - In aromatherapy, lavender is one of the most used essential oils. Scientists at the University of Miami School of Medicine found that smelling it improved mood, made people feel more relaxed and actually helped them solve math problems faster. Lavender is also used to reduce anxiety and even increase sexual arousal.

Liquorice - A study at the Smell and Taste Treatment and Research Foundation showed that the smell of liquorice makes people happier, and also is the #1 smell (combined with doughnuts) that makes men more physically aroused. Liquorice has been found to increase the availability of serotonin in the brain, helping to fight depression.

Sony Comes Out with Scent Capturing Printer

Chinese designer Li Jingxuan has created a scent capturing printer for Sony as part of a student workshop sponsored by the company to identify innovative technical ideas. The printer actually uses an electronic nose sensor which detects and captures smells and then uses pattern recognition to reproduce them. It uses aroma-based inks on special postcard sized photo paper with a clear film. When the film is peeled back, the scent is released. 

Great for vacationers and foodies, the printer easily can fit in a purse or backpack. The company hasn't yet said when the scent printer will be available.

Experiential Marketing Trumps Digital

If you are in the marketing field, all the buzz in the last five years or so revolves around digital marketing: web, SEO, social media, and mobile marketing. Yes, certainly these are all relatively new ways of reaching people and of course marketers are going to try to take advantage of them. However, as data has come in it appears that these may not be all they are cracked up to be, particularly in social media. Social media is a very personal medium and when companies use people's profile information to micro-target ads to them, they are regarded as "creepy." Another downside of digital marketing is that it is the ultimate hyper-crowded information overload setting, making any kind of brand attention and decision difficult at best.

The new buzz, as we in the scent and sensory marketing field have been saying for quite a while, is experiential marketing. The new science of neuromarketing has proven that the vast majority of buying decisions are made with the primitive reptilian part of the brain, where emotion rules supreme.

Marketers define experiential marketing as sensory experiences felt in relation to a product or brand. These sensory inputs are then paired in the customers' brains to an idea or value. For example, a common linkage is heavy = valuable. That is why men will frequently buy heavy jewelry for their wives and are flummoxed when the recipient doesn't like it. Another example was cited by Zev Auerbach in his presentation at ScentWorld, where high-end stereo manufacturer Bang & Olufsen intentionally weighted down their remote control unit to convey the tactile idea that it was expensive and well-built.

Scent also plays very easily into this strategy, as it is the only sense that is processed in that non-cognitive part of the brain. In a research study, people in two rooms were asked what they were planning to do that weekend. One room was scented with a lemon fragrance, while the other room was unscented. In the scented room, nearly half of the people said they were planning to clean, compared to 15% in the unscented room.

Similarly, we know that different fragrances can make people perceive a room as being either bigger or smaller than it actually is, and can even make people think that an individual is more slender than he or she is perceived to be without the scent.

The point of experiential marketing is to tap into these common associations, and also to create a pleasant environment for the customer so that this idea of pleasantness will subsequently be associated with Brand X.

Some conspiracy minded people are spooked by the whole idea of neuromarketing, pegging it as manipulative, or mind control. As far as manipulative, isn't all marketing and in fact, all persuasion of any kind in essence manipulative? The point is to persuade or influence the customer to take some kind of action, such as voting for a candidate, buying a product or making a donation. On the subject of mind control, experiential marketing and neuromarketing are more akin to mind reading than mind control. As with any kind of mind study, neuromarketing seeks to understand how people think rather than make them think a certain way. Although many decisions do take place in that reptilian brain, we still always have the option to use our higher cognitive processes to make buying decisions.

Australian Bank Banishes Stuffy Atmosphere

National Australia Bank has opened a new branch location featuring free Wi-fi, iPad stations, a children's area and olfactory branding. They are planning to open another four similar locations in the first half of 2012.

Scent, and indeed, most sensory strategies are slow to come to the mostly conservative banking and financial industry, but NAB is one of a few who are proactively improving their customers' sensory experience in their branch locations.

The company worked with designer Warren and Mahoney, who worked with them to do an analysis of the best retailers worldwide and incorporate research on the science of shopping. The idea was that the bank needed to compete effectively not only with other banks but also with other retail stores for the customers' time.

NAB has chosen a Persian lime and grapefruit scent," and was chosen to align with the brand's personality. According to Steve Mott with BetterBuyDesign consulting firm, "only a small number of U.S. banks have the kind of customer-centric retail approach for which a multi-sensory strategy wouldn't feel out of place."

Maybe that is why they are having such trouble...

Vanderbilt Emergency Room Uses Ambient Scenting to Reduce Stress

This small diffuser is available through Air Esscentials.

IAG on the Road to a Successful 2012

Happy new year! This year is going to be a great year for the members of the Independent Aroma Group.

We are back in action, following our very successful participation in ScentWorld Expo in December. We had a lot of interested people come up to our booth and as a result of the show, are in the process of adding three new vendor members and three new distributor members.

With the addition of these new members, we will now have expanded coverage throughout Asia, Oceania, Latin America, North America and Europe, as well as exciting new products. If you are an IAG member, please check your email and our LinkedIn group for new member introductions. If you are not yet a member, start the new year off right by joining the only global scent marketing buying group.

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The Smell of New Zealand

According to a survey conducted for Ambi Pur, the smell of salt air epitomizes New Zealand the best. Runners up included the smell of sheep and dairy farming, fish and chips and a hangi cooking (this is a native New Zealand method of cooking food by burying it in the ground with hot rocks).

Kiwis typically spend their holidays at the beach, so the smell is usually associated with pleasant memories.

Over three quarters of those surveyed use air freshening products, and the preferred scent for them is vanilla.

SCENTFULLY YOURS: Preview "Fall is here and you can change your fragrance just as the seasons change!"

SCENTFULLY YOURS: Preview "Fall is here and you can change your fragrance just as the seasons change!"

Are You One of the Lucky Winners of the "Love Is in the Air" Giveaway?

The Independent Aroma Group is happy to announce the names of the lucky winners of our "Love Is in the Air" Giveaway. This concludes our giveaway, and we thank all of you who participated.

May - Danyel Gafsou, of Via Scent in Israel is the winner of a Scentevents kit, complete with diffusing fan and three scented bead pouches. The Scentevents kit is a great, affordable solution to scent parties, meetings, entertainment and other events. Thank you to Scentevents for donating this prize.




June - Mindaugas Stongvilas, from LT Kvapai in Lithuania is the winner of an Aromasol scent diffuser, valued at $160. Great for home or retail store use, this diffuser has a built in timer and intensity dial and covers an area of 300 square meters. Thank you to Air Esscentials for donating this prize.



July - Stu Levinson, from Unimac Graphics in the US is the happy winner of free admission to ScentWorld Expo, a $999 value. ScentWorld is the largest scent and sensory marketing conference in the world, and features world renowned experts speaking on topics such as the latest research, technology and scent applications.


August - Marian Coman from Framinor Grup SRL in Romania is the winner of a signature scent created by Alpha Aromatics, a $2,500 value! Alpha Aromatics is a boutique fragrance house, where personal service and attention is an integral part of any fragrance creation project. In fact, Chief Perfumer Roger Howell is personally involved in each and every fragrance. Thank you, Alpha Aromatics.



Congratulations to all of our lucky winners! We hope to see all of you at our booth at ScentWorld Expo.

Whether you won the giveaway or not, I encourage you to check out on our site, www.independentaromagroup.com, for more useful information about how you can work with top scent manufacturers and worldwide distributors to boost your business.

British Airways to Fly High With Signature Scent

British Airways has announced that it will be using scent branding on its flights to "improve the experience on board [their] aircraft," according to a statement from the airline. In addition to making the flight more enjoyable, the signature scent is meant to stimulate passengers' recollection of their positive experience on BA. The scent is part of British Airways' new marketing campaign, "Making Flying Special."

BA has been interested in scent for a long time. In 2008, their travel site High Life featured an article called Scents of Destination, about wearing personal fragrance in different locations. In fact, since at 1999, British Airways has been scenting its business class lounge at Heathrow Airport with the smell of freshly cut grass and the ocean. BA was also a sponsor of the Fragrance Foundation's 2011 Jasmine Awards. It was only natural for them to take the leap into in cabin scent marketing.

British Airways is not the first airline to use scent on its flights. Singapore Airlines has been doing so for the past 18 years. Their signature scent, Stefan Floridian Waters, is delivered via fragrant hot towels given to passengers as well as in the perfume worn by flight attendants. Along with other components of their strategy, Singapore Airlines' scent marketing has helped them build one of the strongest and most distinctive brands in commercial aviation.

New Technology Delivers Scent at POS and Beyond

Scentevents has come out with a new computer controlled technology to deliver multiple scents on cue, activated by motion sensor or requested by the user. The patent pending device, which is commercially available now, is called the 4D scent media player.

The 4D scent player can work with scent diffusion devices provided by ScentEvents or with third party diffusers. The idea is that large brands can integrate the power of scent into their other marketing communications. For example, a company can set up a free standing kiosk in a mall or other public area that runs an ad or video or even a series of them for different products. The scent can be timed to coincide with the image on the screen to emphasize the visual and audio marketing message. Another option is to allow the user to interactively choose the scent they want to smell. Or, depending on the location and application of the system, the scents can be placed on a loop so that they are released on a timer. Different smells can be combined to create a large range of fragrances in the same device.

The natural product for this device is perfumes and scented personal products, since it would allow customers to sample the scents before buying, and thereby spur more sales. However, its uses are limited only by the imagination.

We know that scent is uniquely effective in provoking memories and emotion. Travel companies like cruise lines, resorts and airlines can incorporate the smell of seasonal destinations (pina colada, salt air, refreshing cold air for ski resorts, etc.). Hotels can use their signature scents, reminding previous guests of their stays and inducing a feeling in keeping with the hotel's ambiance and branding. Restaurants can make patrons hungry using tempting food smells, and malls can increase holiday spending with pine and other seasonal scents.

You can contact Scentevents for more information and pricing.

A Whiff of the Past

Our everyday life is experienced using all of our senses. Yet when we learn about the past, it is usually only through the senses of sight and sometimes hearing. But that is about to change, as sensory historians bring smells from the past to life.

Perfumer Christophe Laudamiel told the Boston Globe, "Scents are very much linked to memory. They are linked to remembering the past but also learning from experiences." Historians are now using technology to recreate smells that can give us insight into how people lived their lives. For example, history buffs can discover how women viewed themselves and their femininity in 1927 by sampling the jasmine and leather notes in a popular Chanel perfume and can compare that to today's perfumes to see how their views have changed.

Another perfumer, Roman Kaiser, has been traveling the world to capture the scents of plants that are close to extinction. These scents have been captured and reproduced synthetically by his employer, fragrance house Givaudan. The fragrances can be used commercially, but also can be studied by botanists to give them clues about the evolutionary and ecological journey of that particular plant.

Other perfumers are preserving and recreating scents from the past. One organization in France, Osmotheque, keeps many of these historically important fragrances for posterity. New perfumes can be based from these fragrances, like the perfume Kiss Me Tender, which was inspired by a perfume from the 19th century. Laudamiel is working to bring this historical fragrance project to the US. This cutting edge perfumer will be speaking at ScentWorld this December.

Some historical museums imbue the scents of the time into their exhibits. The Jorvik Viking Center in York, England does just that, exposing visitors to the odors of a fish market and a latrine. Bonn University's Egyptian Museum is working to recreate a pharaoh's perfume from the residue in a 3,500 year old bottle. While it is impossible to know what the people of the past felt or associated with the scents of their time, the addition of fragrance can at least give us a more complete understanding and experience of our history.

Are You Missing the Point (of Sale)?

Companies spend millions of dollars on television, radio and print ads to drive customers into the stores to buy their products. But did you know that up to 80% of purchase decisions are made at the point of sale?

Major brands are starting to pick up on this reality and realign their spending accordingly. A recent study for the Grocery Manufacturers of America showed that some brands are spending more money on point of sale, or shopper marketing, than on digital marketing. In fact, there is a whole new specialty called shopper marketing, that asserts that companies should focus first on what goes on inside the store and then work backwards from there. Large ad agencies, such as Saatchi & Saatchi and WPP are getting in the game as well. WPP just purchased Los Angeles based POS marketing company Lunchbox, whose clients include Unilever, Walmart and Kimberly-Clark.

What does all this mean for scent marketing companies? A lot! Both ambient scenting and scented packaging are highly effective point-of-sale strategies. Work on getting new business by targeting these specialized shopper marketing agencies and making your case for adding scent to the mix.

New York Grocery Chain Implements Scent in Multiple Areas

Supermarket Chain NetCost Market has launched scent marketing in its Brooklyn and Staten Island stores, and plans to install scent machines in all of its stores.

NetCost uses specific food fragrances to stimulate sales in its different departments. The meat department has the scent of smoky bacon, while the produce area smells like grapefruit or strawberry. Managers have also tested other food scents like chocolate in the candy aisle and rosemary focaccia in the bakery and have been very happy with the results.

Sales have steadily been going up of products in the scented areas. A NetCost spokeswoman said that, "Because of the scents, I think fruit sales are up probably 7 to 8 percent." Other areas, like the bakery and candy sections were added later, and sales are climbing there too.