Good experience designers recognise the importance of engaging all the senses when designing experiences. One of those sense is smell.

The Neuromarketing blog reports on recent attempts to actively incorporate smell in their experiences.

The first, a chain of California gas stations, tried infusing the smell of fresh coffee at the pump, to get customers to refill their coffee mugs as well as their gas tanks. The post didn't say what the results were, but it sounds like a bad idea to me.

The second, milk marketing, tried infusing the smell of chocolate chip cookies alongside milk ads at San Francisco bus shelters. Unfortunately, the smelly ads only lasted one day before the local council received complaints from 'environmentalists' and stopped them. Sounds like a good idea to me. Milk and chocolate chip cookies. Mmmhh.

Take a look Martin Lindstrom's Brand Sense book if you want to find out more about sensory branding.

What do you think? Are smelly ads a good idea? Or are they just more advertising pollution?

Post a comment and get the conversation going.

Graham Hill