Who says that we can’t travel faster than the speed of light? Smells transport us at faster-than-light speeds to the past, and can also be a warp-speed shortcut to powerful feelings.
Memories of mother or grandmother come back to life with the smell of items baking in the oven. We are instantly transported to previous travels in foreign lands and lovely holidays when we catch a whiff of a certain scent. We subconsciously create sensorial ambiences using smells. Think cinnamon, gingerbread and vanilla for the winter holiday period; fresh florals for the spring; or citrus fruits for the summer.
Why do these work? Because they evoke a sense of a time, place, person and even feeling.
Childhood is an important link to sense memories. In our work with Prime Timers (consumers over 55 years), we continually find that the most powerful memories generated by sensory exposure are often linked to when the study participants were children, or at a time when they were involved raising their children. The senses of smell and taste are most powerful, though distinctive touches, sights and sounds can also quickly evokes memories and feelings.
In recent work with children, they also talk about memory associations with various smells and tastes – and even mix up the senses in a delightful way: “…it smells tasty”; or “…it smells warm and happy”. Most interesting is the link to strong feelings and the effect of the association. Moods change and feelings can alter in an instant. A gentle smell of lavender can calm a child and slow his/her rate of breathing. Minty smells can help a child focus and concentrate. TV and computer experiences don’t yet have directly associated smells, but that is not to say that this couldn’t be established in the future.
Finding ways to create sense memories can build powerful connections to brands or products. Collective memories – memories that are shared with a large population – can be useful to shortcut with adults. Exciting is the opportunity to establish within brands, products and experiences some unique and own-able sensory focal points for kids so that they can experience warp-speed travel when they are adults.
Most importantly, though, outside of the commercial world, parents have an opportunity to build positive, familial emotion-smells that are unique and will ultimately be transporting, long after the child has grown.