Thursday, March 15, 2007

It’s All About Sight & Smell At Globalshop 2007

A Classic Car Tri-Panel Display - Video Credit: ecj-Symblogogy

It’s All About Sight & Smell At Globalshop 2007

Just walk the floor of the Globalshop 2007 and have your senses be assaulted.

Long held as one of the most visually appealing tradeshows in the western hemisphere, Globalshop brings together every enterprise that involves itself with the design, display and promotion of spaces that sell merchandise and establish the brand reinforcement.

There were many companies that had the usual shelving and flooring treatments, but what would catch one’s attention quickly were the sense based adornments and attention getters. The most effective were those that plied one with interactive visual images or the waft of chocolate in the nose to turn ones head.

EPSON showed what could be done with a camera(s) and a special projector that displayed an image which reacted to the movement of a person or thing passing through a particular space. The projected interactive effect is quite astounding.

Virgin Megastores on Hollywood Boulevard tested the interactive floor image generator with great success.

“The key to this is interactivity and getting the customer to stay longer in the store,” says John French, strategic business manager for digital signage at EPSON.

Virgin Entertainment Group chief marketing officer Dave Alder, finding that buzz around a promotion that marketers covet, say the signage has created quite the “talking point” in the store.

“It’s rare today to find an entertainment store that actually entertains its customers,” he says. “Unlike many other entertainment retailers, we work hard to add value to the shopping experience by adding a true sense of fun. The digitial signage marketing initiative is a significant part of this experience.”

Ohhhhhh, but for the sense of smell. Heck, one could get fat by just standing by a booth in one place all day (the smell was of a very grand and rich chocolate).

One such booth was run by a company that would be easily described as a Musak type of company (ala Xerox for copies, and Kleenex for tissues) … but don’t tell them that, they do music and a whole lot more ONE BETTER! That “one better” is a service called SCENT.

That company is the Austin, Texas based DMX and as they say in their sales mark tagline “sight. sound. science!” - in this case, they design environmental "scentscapes."

Excerpts from the DMX website -

Did you know that the largest movie theater chains pump the scent of fresh popcorn into their lobby? When they did, their popcorn sales increased by over 35-40%.

The smell of fresh baked chocolate-chip cookies, Douglas Fir Christmas Trees, and even that soft Coco Chanel No. 5 ladies perfume that your ex-girlfriend used religiously are all very strong memory triggers. They can, and do, remind you of people, places, things and events both good and bad in your life.

Because we experience the world around us with our senses, our sense of smell is every bit as important as what we see and hear.

Just as the smell of warm apple pie could comfort you and make you hungry, so could the smell of sweaty gym socks turn your stomach. As the manager of a commercial space, these environmental factors are no longer outside the scope of your control. You can shape a person’s perception and use all the most effective tools to get people to smile when they think of you.

In a world where one may be bombarded with over 3,000 advertisements each day, why not take advantage of the one type of communication vehicle that can’t be blocked out and THE one that you know people will remember?
Reference Here>>

As DMX would be keen to say – Differentiate yourself and be remembered. Get SCENT!


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