Scent interacts with the deepest parts of our subconscious. By directly stimulating the limbic system, it has an incredible power to influence our sensations and our mood. Not only can it elicit emotional reactions and even specific patterns of behaviour, but it can also prompt targeted functions in the autonomous nervous system and endocrine system. It also interacts with our long-term memory.
So, our sense of smell is nothing short of a “mood stimulator”. If targeted specifically, it can act as a trigger for certain emotional states such as calm, relaxation, tranquillity and comfort for mind and body. For some time now, olfactory marketing has been exploring these vital connections; it has worked out how to tap into scent notes to soothe and lift the spirits, in settings where the sensory experience is a cornerstone of the relationship between a brand and its audience.
Fragrances that foster a sense of wellbeing when inhaled are crucial in places such as Hotels and Spas, retail settings, luxury boutiques and key locations within department stores.
Choose the right aromas to evoke comfort and relaxation
Some fragrance notes can generate an instant sense of wellbeing: they stand out as particularly welcoming, calming ‘incentives’ for the remotest areas of the brain.
If you’re looking for a brand fragrance that has a reassuring, comforting, reviving or soothing character, you can use specific sensory strategies that leverage the best scent accords to devise olfactory journeys that prove irresistible for your guests’ subconscious.
Scent Company’s scent designers work daily alongside leading luxury brands, to source and select the most suitable notes for their olfactory marketing project. Every choice made is coordinated with the client’s brand identity, with the aim of building an immediately recognizable olfactory identity.
In the hospitality sector, ambient fragrances are now an essential part of the designer’s toolkit, for immersive spaces that aim to offer a truly first-rate guest experience. Today’s guests want to be pampered in multi-sensory settings; places that recreate a “cosy” atmosphere, but with a distinctly luxe feel. Exploring the potential of scent marketing is now essential for hotels and spas: it enhances their branding efforts and completes the guest experience, surrounding them with fragrances that have the power to boost “feel-good hormones” such as serotonin.
This is a proven tactic for building positive associations between a fragrance and the customer experience. It also helps to generate indelible memories. By nebulizing wonderfully soothing scent notes, the brand becomes a pleasant, immediately recognizable lasting memory in the guest’s mind. Did you know, recent studies have shown that more than 90% of hotel stays were influenced by the ambient fragrance? Not only that, but more than 65% of guests agree that, in a hotel or spa, the level of relaxation and their perception of the brand were connected with the fragrances in the air.
The same concept applies to luxury retail and department stores. Even in this hyper-digitalized era, human beings are still deeply connected with the physical perception of the world around them; direct sensory stimulations play a key role in their purchase decisions. So, a relaxing fragrance is the ideal sensory input for retail spaces or large malls looking to give their shopping areas a cosy atmosphere, or make visitors feel relaxed, calm and contented, without a care in the world.
These are the most comforting, relaxing notes
Some scents can calm the mind more than others, and envelop whoever gets a whiff in an aura of pure pleasure. So, which fragrances are best at soothing the senses? They include white flower bouquets, which are often used in perfumes designed to inspire inner calm. Fresh and heady, the petals of white lilies, frangipani, lotus flower, jasmine and orange blossom are some of the best contenders if you’re looking for the right scent note to create a relaxing ambience.
The “smell of clean” is another effective olfactory prompt for spas, hotels and wellness centres, and even retail settings that want to conjure an image of order, hygiene and attention to detail. Some scents have the power to magically bring to mind the mild scent of laundry drying in the sunshine, or freshly-washed sheets, triggering particularly positive emotional responses. This is one of the hottest trends in scent marketing today; the accords used are designed to inspire a feeling of freshness and newness, offering experiences that are both compelling and reassuring at the same time.
If the idea is to convey a warm, welcoming, cosy environment, then mossy, woody accords could be the key. These fragrances are often blended with amber, resinous and velvety notes, for spaces that instantly slow the mind, relieving stress and anxiety. Mossy smells are known for their mood-lifting properties; they have strong appeal for the mind, and can activate all the most powerful pleasure receptors, invoking the sensation of a warm embrace.
Some of the best-loved scents are also those that can carry the mind elsewhere, to places that may be geographically far away, but are familiar to guests’ psyches. Take for example fruity or citrus notes, such as fig, orange, mandarin or bergamot: they instantly whisk the emotions to the coasts of the Mediterranean, replete with imagery of beauty, relaxation and sheer indulgence. The same effect can be achieved by marine scents that evoke a sea breeze: something that’s universally associated with peace and quiet, happy times and energizing experiences.
Used alone or in an accord with citrus, lavender, rosemary, lemon and other heady aromas, these notes are ideal for spas and hotels that want to bring their surrounding ambience indoors, or design bespoke, stress-busting olfactory architectures for specific destinations.
Scent your spaces and create fragranced collections
Working with Scent Company will allow you to pinpoint the exact aroma you want for your relaxation areas, using only high-quality raw materials and technologically advanced scent delivery systems. In addition to installing diffusion points that work with your scent marketing project (they can be linked to your HVAC systems, complete with remote control apps) you can also design bespoke fragrance collections.
Scented candles, rattan scent diffusers, room sprays, eau de parfum, scented waters and fragranced membership cards will all work to release the exact olfactory note that your visitors first fell in love with. They can be used as refined décor accents, and also make charming free gifts, to help build loyalty between your brand and the customers you want to keep coming back.
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