The Use Of Sensory Marketing To Boost Brand Appeal

Introduction

For these reasons, sensory marketing has been used as an effective marketing tool in enhancing consumer perceptions of the long-term image of the brand (Gupta and Pirsch 2006) and ultimately leads to a financial gain for the firm. However, brands should be circumspect and select causes that resonate with the brand’s target market (Roy 2010). For example, a woman’s clothing retailer would raise funds for breast cancer research over driver’s education for teenagers. Similarly, a fine hardwood furniture manufacturer would promote environmental issues rather than support youth soccer as part of the sensory marketing campaign (Prasad 2011). 

TOMS

TOMS, known for its “One for One” business model, in which the company donates one pair of shoes to children around the world for every pair of shoes sold, recently received a backlash from the public who raised suspicions about its true cause. Research revealed that in addition to making negligible differences in the children’s lives, the TOMS campaign sustained the view of the poor as helpless people passively waiting for Americans to buy more shoes (Chapin 2015) to make their sensory marketing campaign successful.

Burberry

Since Thomas Burberry started the Burberry brand in 1865, his company was known for high-quality trench coats and its signature plaid. However, Burberry became a stodgy, lackluster brand and was in need of a new way forward. In 2006, Angela Ahrendts, CEO of Burberry, guided the company through a massive revitalization of the brand, rediscovering the brand’s story that centers on its iconic trend coat and moments in history (Rose 2015). Its trench coat is pivotal in communicating the brand’s authenticity and quality. For example, Shackleton (the British polar explorer) wore Burberry’s trench coat to the Antarctic, and Lord Kitchener (the British Secretary of State) carried it across Africa during World War I. Heritage is central to the brand’s story, as told on social media and an augmented reality app targeting millennials. Burberry also uses RFID chips that turn mirrors in its stores into screens to engage customers in its brand story (Rose 2015; Straker and Wrigley 2016). As such, its brand narratives are reinforced with emotive, unique but consistent messages that appear in different channels (Straker and Wrigley 2016).

Stimulating Excitement and Pleasure

As marketing emphasis has shifted from the product to the creation of consumers’ experiences, sensory marketing seems to be integral to stimulating excitement and pleasure (Douce and Janssens 2013). Sensory marketing engages and triggers consumers’ senses (i.e., sight, sound, feel, taste, and smell) (Krishna 2012). All these five senses elicit emotional responses to goods, services, and the environment with some notable differences such as the sense of sight being most powerful in detecting changes and differences in the environment (Orth and Malkewitz 2008) and the sense of smell triggering the most vivid memories (Fiore et al. 2000). 

Sensory Branding

As such, sensory branding influences consumers’ perceptions, judgement, and behavioral responses toward a particular brand (Krishna 2012). As Lindstrom (2010) stated in his book Brand Sense, a brand’s appeal to consumers’ senses allows them to experience the brand more profoundly and have an emotional connection with it at a deeper level.

Lululemon

Lululemon Athletica manufactures and sells yoga related sportswear and gear. Lululemon positions its brand as a way of life and uses targeted messages in a narrative for its consumers, which are about connections between yoga, spiritual living, and products. The result is transformative lifestyle that defines its consumers and enables a deep bond between customers and the brand. The brand story successfully embeds its message in all communication and media strategies, as well as store interiors. For example, it’s newly opened New York store uses “zen pods” and self-guided meditation to immerse customers in its brand story line and experience (Ruff 2018).

Conclusion

Bergdorf Goodman, Bloomingdale’s, Neiman Marcus, and sometimes NordstromJWN venture into the luxury field by featuring designer boutiques. The salespersons are carefully selected, and garments are chosen with some customers in mind. They may not always come – but that is the risk a fine store must take. After all, the relationship with customers is always very fragile – and all the more so when serving luxury shoppers. However, the showing of designer clothes at stores like Bloomingdale’s enhances the appearance of the entire store and supports other customer shopping.