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...

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.

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.

Sniff Your Way to Profits

I am delighted to be writing my first blog for Scent Marketing Today, and thank Tony for this opportunity.

At my recent presentations for the Luxury Marketing Council in Tampa, West Palm Beach and Miami, I showcased Environmental Scenting Technology, and my focus was all about "Celebrating the Senses". I was delighted to see Spence Levy from Air Esscentials and his colleagues at my Miami presentation.

Many people from all industries are fascinated about the subject of fragrance, but some are a little leery about it because they don't really know much about it or understand it. Today, Scent Marketing is the new branding frontier, and it is a growing industry!

Our sense of smell is the strongest sense that we have after sight and yet it is the most ignored! Without our sense of smell we can’t enjoy food because scent and taste are so intertwined, and as a result people get depressed and their lifestyle becomes severely impacted.

Many Fortune 500 companies are now recognizing the power of scent, and as a result are ‘scent-branding’ their properties to create a memorable experience for their guests, and to ensure return visits to their casinos, hotels, spas, and retail stores. Even corporate event planners are utilizing scent to create a multi-sensory experience for their guests, and are incorporating ambient aromas for themed weddings, events, and special occasions.

Supermarkets are now enticing customers to buy food by incorporating environmental scent in the air.. and much like the Pavlovian response....when you smell the tantalizing aromas of coffee, delicious roast chickens and scrumptious deserts, the cash registers reflect that craving and start to ring as consumers purchase those items.

Today, ambient scenting can be programmed into individual hotel rooms! By selecting your desired scent when you check in at the front desk of an hotel, you can let them know what fragrance you like, and it can be controlled and activated from the front desk so that when you walk into your room, your favorite scent is already wafting in the room! This is an initiative that has already begun in Paris and we are bringing it to the USA. Talk about customization and establishing a home-away-from home ambience!

This particular technology was developed in France by whiz guru Yvan Regeard of Exhalia and Scenterprises Ltd is the USA partner. Our environmental scent presentation is compelling and the product is amazing. We can deliver fragrance though computers, DVD’s, videos and television. Yes! We have Scent-o-Vision in a delivery system that offers amazing aromas for all kinds of interactive, multi-sensory video games, computer programs and TV cooking shows. We have interest from every major fragrance company and also from national Television shows for this application.

We offer 3 product lines to diffuse perfume interactively in association with multimedia contents:

• Scent Marketing products- for fragrance sampling; point of purchase programs, and store events;

• Hospitality Systems product line - Systems for olfactory marketing professionals and for air treatment,

• Home Systems product line-- wonderful ambient home systems

Today there are many wonderful delivery systems from a range of companies for all types of spaces: small, large and medium areas. There are nebulizers which diffuse liquid into vapor which is barely discernible; diffusion through scented pellets with fans; saturated pads that are placed in scent cubes where the air flow draws in the air and then diffuses it through the fan; scented gels which are diffused through digital scent technology through which the scent is synchronized with software and activated via the sound and images in videos and TV television.

The digital world is realizing that the use of fragrance for interactive video games such as “World of Warcraft”, TV cooking channels and flower and garden shows are much more experiential if the viewer can actually smell the wonderful aromas from their computers, DVD’s, videos and television.

Read my articles on environmental scenting in the following magazines:

GLOW BEAUTY MAGAZINE
http://viewer.zmags.com/publication/5f7fa368#/5f7fa368/124

VUVUZELA MAGAZINE
http://www.vuvuzelamagazine.com/magazine/index.html
see page 26

SCENT MARKETING HAPPI MAGAZINE
http://www.happi.com/expertsopinion/2011/03/03/scent_marketing

My recent interview on blog talk radio by Karen Krymski from “Women Power Up” discussed the world of scenting. It was broadcast live on April 12 and can be downloaded and listened to at your leisure at: http://www.blogtalkradio.com/womenpowerup. Log onto Scent Branding Discussion with Sue Phillips.

Fragrance, aroma, scent, perfume….. Whichever name you give it, it is the new marketing frontier for branding, and goes beyond just applying it to a lady’s wrists or pulse-points! It is the most powerful sense we have that triggers memories and emotions. Today, fragrance can seduce us personally and environmentally!

Inhale, apply, enjoy and you and your clients will also sniff their way to profits!!!


Scentfully,
Sue
President, Scenterprises
http://www.scenterprises.com/
sue@scenterprises.com

Sales Are Depressed When Consumers Feel Pigeonholed…But Scent Can Help

A recent study from the University of Minnesota, Yonsei Universtity in Korea, and Concordia University, Montreal found that when consumers are concerned about feeling stereotyped, they buy less. Consumers who are members of a group that are subject to a negative stereotype hesitate to buy from those company representatives who are outside the group.

The study focused on women as the group and brought up the stereotype “women aren’t good at math” before the subjects were to meet with a financial advisor. Sales were lower when these women met with men as opposed to with women. The researchers found that the subjects did not even have to believe in the stereotype themselves, but merely be aware that there was one that they might be judged by.

The experiment was repeated with auto repair and auto purchases with the stereotype of “women don’t know about cars,” with the same result. Subjects reported higher anxiety when meeting with a sales person outside of their group (females), and were reluctant to purchase.

Interestingly, the presence of a soothing scent, in this case vanilla, relieved the subjects’ anxiety and neutralized the anxiety caused by the anticipation of being stereotyped.

The lesson for companies trying to sell to people who may feel pigeonholed? Be proactive and calm their anxieties using scent. You’ll see a big boost to your bottom line!

Intro to Scent Marketing

Informative, tongue in cheek video about scent marketing...Enjoy!