Scent Marketing Success: Step 3 Of 10

Continuing our series on scent marketing we come to number 3 – designing the perfect scent.

Creating the appropriate scent requires profound olfactory knowledge and sophisticated technology. Both can be found at big flavor and fragrance houses of which there are about 5 in the world. However, some of the smaller scent industry players are suited to meet your demands in smaller quantities as well.
Early in the process you will be asked for a “fragrance brief”, so be prepared to explain your brand properties and values as well as your target demographics. A talented perfumer will be able to translate those into a scent and present you with a selection of creative ideas in sample form. These “Signature Scents” will become your brand’s property and can cost anywhere between $25,000 and $100,000. They are the more expensive alternative to “library scents” that are already developed and waiting for the right customer in the scent manufacturer’s archives.

Most scents (with Chanel No 5 having been the first in the 1920’s) are a synthetic representation of reality.  There is simply not enough natural vanilla, rose and lavender available to satisfy market needs at an affordable rate. By no means are synthetic scents less realistic than natural ones or even dangerous. Natural scents are available but their cost/benefit ratio is still unclear.

Cooked food scents (so called “savory” scents) are the most difficult to produce since the perfumer not only needs to have access to flavors but in many cases also has to consider the effect of heat on the “real” scent of, say, coffee, baked bread, barbecue sauce or a steak.

Consumer research has shown that there is no “global scent” that would appeal to a worldwide audience – which generates a problem for multinational brands trying to add a scent to their corporate identity. If you’re a brand manager facing this, the proper solution is to identify consumer preferences in key markets and to develop a scent based on one common denominator.

Contributed to Branding Strategy Insider by: Harald Vogt

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