Using Scent for Brand Identity and Differentiation
First time I got Corona (I participated in this pandemic twice already) I lost my sense of smell for about three weeks - a typical but still unusual symptom. It was a strange experience. The world around me seemed to have lost a certain 3D quality. I felt disconnected as I couldn't sense the smell of a person as I was hugging them. The joy of food was gone, as was the ability to tell when food was expired. It was difficult to think that I might never fully recover, that I would have to live in a drab and depressing reality.
I did recover and got a new sense of appreciation for this sense in the process. But all of us, it seems that we may all be out-evolving the sense of smell altogether. John Medina explains in his book Brain Rules, that there is a fight for real estate in the brain, the olfactory cortex competing for space with the visual cortex. He writes “about 60 percent of our smell-related genes have been permanently damaged in this neural arbitrage, and they are marching toward obsolescence at a rate fourfold faster than any other species sampled.” As we become more visually oriented, the sense of smell is slowly but surely losing the battle.
Now that we have a newfound sense of urgency to stop and smell the roses, and maybe a higher appreciation for a sense about to go extinct, let’s explore how it works, why it matters and how we can use it to shape the brand personality.
SCENT and BRAND RECALL
If you’ve read the previous article on Sonic Branding, you know that sound can generate emotion and trigger memories. Smell can do that too, but better. One of the chemical senses, it seems to accomplish exactly that - establish a chemical connection, far more intimate and strong than one that targets sight or sound alone.
The Proust effect
Marcel Proust, the 20th-century french writer coined the term “involuntary memory” and he famously described the effect in À la recherche du temps perdu (Remembrance of Things Past). The way his childhood memories came flooding back after tasting the lime-blossom tea and madeleine.
“No sooner had the warm liquid mixed with the crumbs touched my palate than a shudder ran through me and I stopped, intent upon the extraordinary thing that was happening to me. Immediately the old grey house upon the street rose up like a stage set… the house, the town, the square where I was sent before lunch, the streets along which I used to run errands, the country roads we took… in that moment… the whole of Combray and of its surroundings… sprang into being, town and gardens alike, all from my cup of tea.”
This involuntary, sensory-induced, vivid, and emotional reliving of events from the past is now commonly known as the Proust Effect. And we will come across it again when we will talk about taste.
Smell, emotion, and memory seem to be so closely linked because of the brain’s anatomy. The olfactory bulb, responsible for processing scent inputs, is located right in front of the brain, in an area directly linked to the limbic system, which is involved in memory, and behavioral and emotional responses.
On its way to the cortex, the seat of reason and language, smell picks up emotional associations from the limbic system and binds itself to emotions and memories. So when we become aware of a smell, we perceive it as a ready-made package complete with personal meaning. In a way, smell short circuits conscious thought.
Triggering Brand Recall
This unique ability to conjure a memory or emotion in an instant is precisely where the power of scent branding lies. Understanding cause and effect, in this case, can help us plant a hook into the memory of our potential clients. Much like a jingle that plays over and over in our minds, the scent can also create that sense of recognition.
A unique scent signature will stay with you long after the event
There is however a caveat. The experience and the memory retrieved are unique to every individual. Unlike common color associations, it is essentially impossible to predict the emotion someone attributes to a smell, even if it is the smell of cookies. Good smells can be associated with bad experiences as well.
From a branding perspective, this is not a huge obstacle, as the goal is not to make people relive their childhoods, but to create a new and powerful connection with a brand in the present.
SCENT and BRAND DIFFERENTIATION
Smell is particular in other ways too. Humans can detect light between 90-750 nanometer wavelengths on the electromagnetic spectrum. We can hear between 20-20’000 Hertz. And we can tell how far apart colors or sounds need to be in order to differentiate them on the spectrum. We seem to know a lot about sight and sound, but smell isn’t so straightforward. There is little agreement on how smell works.
Smell is the strongest tool we have in our efforts to make sure the brand is recognized as being unique, over time and without confusion.
On the question of how many smells we can identify, all we can point to is “a lot!”. One scientific article puts this estimate around 1 trillion different odors, but even the more conservative estimates at 10’000, while lower by many orders of magnitude, show potential for great variability. Most of the smells we come across naturally are a mix of different molecules that can essentially combine into an infinite number of distinctive fragrances, each of which can point to a unique brand personality.
In a predominantly odorless world, a “perfumed brand” stands out in the minds of clients, helping to differentiate it from the competition.
SCENT and BRAND IDENTITY
Beyond creating a pleasant experience for your customers, fragrances communicate a feeling, an identity, letting others know who you are and what you value as a business.
Smells are not decodable. Nor can they be inventoried, for no inventory of them can have either a beginning or an end.
- HENRI LEFEBVRE, Philosopher
We are still far from understanding how every smell impacts us if that feat is at all attainable, but naming and categorizing is an important first step.
The fragrance circle used by Drom, a global scent company founded in Germany in 1911 is one of the first attempts at scent taxonomy. But on close examination, it is a mess. It is mixing notes - like musk and spicy, with styles - like Fougère and chemical functions - like aldehydic (an odor profile reminiscing of almonds, waxy and fatty in texture). This is not to criticize early efforts, but to show that scent is complicated.
Drom fragrance wheel
Even 100 years later, specialists don’t fully agree on a scientific, measurable approach. Most modern scent wheels separate scent into four broad categories: floral, oriental, woody, and fresh. This is akin to separating the color spectrum into primary colors: blue, red, and the rest.
WHERE TO START: Using Scent for Brand Identity
The Fragrance Wheel
For one, the Drom wheel is one of the few that does propose that fragrances have certain intrinsic qualities. Take Oriental smells, for example - these are generally perceived as mysterious, passionate, exotic, and seductive. If your brand values revolve around the same cloud of attributes, then vanilla or clove should definitely be in the mix.
Going around the first inner circle of the wheel, you can identify qualities that you would like to associate with your brand, and pinpoint the scent profile that fits best with your message.
2. Your intuition
In lieu of a scientific method, we can rely on a more intuitive approach. Imagine the brand as a person - a living, breathing, perfume-wearing person. And then think - what kind of fragrance would they wear? You can, and probably will, base this on the people you have come across in your life, and so on your own experience that shapes your intuition. For example, the stereotype is that adventurous active people tend to wear fresh perfumes, reminding of natural smells, with open scent profiles, while the more romantically inclined tend to prefer the floral and woody notes.
3. Perfume ads
You can also reverse engineer this process. Perfume ads do a great job embodying the ideal customer for a particular fragrance. How similar is that person on the poster to your brand persona? How close is it to your client’s persona as well?
Before reading further, test your intuition around the Dior perfume, based on the ad. Do you have a feel for how it smells? Is it fresh, floral, does it smell sweet?
Perfume profile: Eau Sauvage by Dior is a Citrus Aromatic fragrance for men, launched in 1966. The top notes are Lemon, Bergamot, Basil, Rosemary, Caraway, and Fruity Notes. The middle notes are Jasmine, Coriander, Carnation, Patchouli, Orris Root, Sandalwood, and Rose. The base notes are Oakmoss, Vetiver, Musk, and Amber. This is a fresh perfume that can be easily recognized among other fresh fragrances. The clear and fresh scent of lemon and bitter-fresh rosemary are combined perfectly with masculine, woody nuances of a base. (source: https://www.fragrantica.com/)
What about this next one?
Perfume profile: Gucci Guilty Pour Homme Parfum by Gucci is an Amber Woody fragrance for men. The top notes are Juniper, Lemon, and Lavender; middle notes are Orange Blossom, Nutmeg, and Spanish Labdanum; base notes are Patchouli, Dry Wood, and Musk. For those looking for a declaration of love free from the rules and definitions of society, the scents are designed to act as emblems of the connection between like-minded, eccentric lovers. (source: https://www.fragrantica.com/)
Alain Delon embodies the approachable good-looking man, adventurous, searching, and always moving while Jared Letto is playing the part of the sensitive, eccentric lover. The two are representing two distinct personas with different goals and values, and surely different perfumes.
I brought up these examples of personal perfumes because the industry is quite developed and refined in the way they communicate the brand personality. But the same principles apply to fragrances for home or office. Even without the scent profile, we can understand what these perfumes smell like, and who they are for. Our intuition is generally spot-on.
SCENT and MOOD
The science is lagging in many aspects, but this hasn’t stopped us to get curious about fragrance and the effects it can have on mood or health. If anything, curiosity has always been the precursor to science.
When it comes to translating specific smells into emotions, we can take a page from aromatherapy - which quite literally promises to use aromas to influence the brain state. It is a holistic healing treatment that uses natural plant extracts to promote health and well-being.
Be it fact or placebo, there is an entire industry of essential oils that has mapped scents to certain desirable moods and emotions. Below are a few common recommendations:
To relax, reduce tension and anxiety use cedar, lavender, or frankincense
To calm down use jasmine or camomile
To increase focus and cognitive performance use lemon or rosemary
To increase alertness and activity in the brain use peppermint or orange
Photo by Brooke Lark on Unsplash
Scent Branding is an opportunity
There is this tendency to miss something only when it’s gone. How often do we imagine a better reality before we even know it exists? Right now, we don’t really feel the need for brands to have a scent, simply because we don’t have the expectation. But when scent is part of the experience, it can surprise and delight us. It can enrich our lives enough to make the difference from potential client to loyal fan.
Hyatt Place has been using signature fragrances since it was founded in 2007. The Scotch and Soda stores in Amsterdam have their own smell that I can recall so clearly in my mind. Bali, where I live at the moment, shapes my experience with its daily offerings of incense. A strong memory that I know I can revive at any time from any corner of the world, as long as I can burn an incense stick. Some of these scent associations are on purpose, some are a by-product of ritual.
And still, the world would be a better (smelling) place if we would cater to our senses fully. A rich, layered experience makes you feel more alive and present. We all need more of this in our lives, and businesses can play a big part in creating these experiences in their own space, from shops to lobbies and offices.