Using smell to sell

We automatically connect smells with emotions. This trick can be used to influence potential customers and make them feel positive. You only need to work out where you want your olfactory journey to take them.

The sense of smell is a wonder of nature

Smell is the most special of the five senses. Unlike sight and sound, smells are not processed, instead they go directly to a very old part of the brain and immediately trigger emotions. This is why certain smells are etched in our memories. Even if we no longer remember what the pattern on the wallpaper in our grandma’s living room looked like, we can still remember the smell of the room and if we smell something similar it immediately evokes memories. We can use these properties of smells in a targeted way. The more subtly you go about it, the more successful it is. A strong, sweet-smelling scented candle can put potential customers off, but when used sparingly, smells can help you achieve a lot.

Smells remember us of our childhood

No one knows this better than Maurice Joosten. As olfactory space designer and creative director of the Japanese company @aroma, he has spent almost 20 years developing special fragrances for companies. He knows how to use different smells and fragrances in a targeted way based on their aromatherapeutic properties: “Smells subtly trigger emotions. It’s not about recreating a specific smell, but instead about using multi-layered fragrances to convey a feeling.”

Every smell has a target

It’s no accident that the kitchen departments in large furniture stores are usually right next to the customer restaurant, but experts like Joosten don’t use such straightforward techniques. They adapt the fragrances that they create to the environment and the products being sold. “Let’s say that I want to get customers to stay longer somewhere. They need to be made to feel welcome, relaxed and comfortable, they need to build trust. This can be achieved by creating a fragrance that combines woods, grasses and herbs, for example. These fragrances work best if you want to sell country-style or rustic kitchens with lots of wood everywhere. If you’re trying to sell more design-oriented, modern, technical kitchens, then revitalising, citrus-based fragrances with notes of lime, lemons and spices are much more effective. With these types of fragrances, customers – and even members of the sales team – will feel more energetic, fresher and more alert.”

„Smells can elicit emotions. People should feel comfortable, inspired and energised.“

Maurice Joosten

Natural smells stimulate

As cooking and enjoying food are sensory experiences, using smells in these areas is a great way to trigger positive emotions. Smells that remind people of nature – light floral fragrances like geranium, neroli or orange blossom – stimulate the senses, while sweeter smells or delicate vanilla fragrances are perfect if you want to make people think about baking. “Finesse is required here,” explains the expert. “Fragrances should have several layers. For example, you can combine citrus with pepper or other spices. This gives your fragrances multiple dimensions.”

When chosen carefully, fragrances can also help to shape memories. People may unconsciously have positive memories of a location because their brain reacted positively to a certain smell while they were there. This might result in them coming back. Smells have a very subtle effect and so they should also reach customers’ noses in an equally subtle way. “A short, two-second burst of fragrance every few minutes is enough to release it and spread it as a fine mist,” explains Joosten. “It’s important to ensure that the air can circulate properly within the space for this method to work effectively.” Smells can have a major influence on us – even more so when cleverly combined with visual and acoustic stimuli.

mauricejoosten.com