Marketing to customers’ sense of smell isn’t just for the cologne and perfume industries—you can do it at your pharmacy. Use scent marketing at your pharmacy to promote positive impressions of your business and keep customers in your store longer.
The sense of smell is one of the strongest senses tied to emotion and memory. That’s why baby powder might bring back fond memories of your grandmother, or the smell of coffee brewing makes you feel warm and cozy. On the other hand, nothing will clear people out of a room—or a pharmacy—faster than a bad odor.
Certain smells cause us to make assumptions about a business. Without realizing it, your current and prospective patients will use their sense of smell to gather information about your pharmacy. What is their sense of smell telling them about you?
Give your business a boost by positively marketing to your customers’ sense of smell. Here’s how.
Sell with smell
Attract your patients’ noses with smells that will make them feel comfortable and create positive perceptions of your pharmacy.
Take the classic example of realtors baking cookies before an open house. The smell of freshly baked goods permeates the home, relaxing potential buyers and (ideally) improving the chance of purchase.
You can use the same concept at your pharmacy. Increase sales by using positive scents to encourage patients to stick around a little longer. A pleasant-smelling atmosphere may make patients linger over your front-end section or talk with your staff longer than usual. Either one is good for your business.
Create a pleasant scent in your pharmacy by brewing fresh coffee every morning, for example. Or, fill your pharmacy with scrumptious smells by offering patients baked goods once in a while. You could also simply spritz the room with a pleasant-smelling spray.
Some retail stores today even pump designated scents into their air ducts. Customers begin to recognize and associate that smell with the store, which creates a brand scent. If you choose to do something similar at your pharmacy, just be sure to select a commonly liked scent. Your patients will start to link that smell with your pharmacy, which will leave a positive impression in the back of their minds.
A clean atmosphere
Don’t forget to rid your pharmacy of unpleasant smells. As a healthcare provider, you especially don’t want your pharmacy to smell like garbage, strong food or other unpleasant odors. On the other hand, you likely don’t want your pharmacy to have that “clinically clean” hospital-like scent, either. Find that optimal balance.
To best market your pharmacy by the sense of smell, think about how scent ties with your brand. Remember that emotional connection drives customer loyalty and word of mouth, which will keep your current patients at your pharmacy and get you more new customers. So, consider how you want patients to identify your pharmacy by their sense of smell and then cater to it.
Marketing to the Senses Series
Learn more about each of the five senses and how they can improve your pharmacy marketing in our article series.
What Do the 5 Senses Have to Do With Marketing Your Pharmacy?
What Does the Sense of Sight Have to Do With Marketing Your Pharmacy?
What Does the Sense of Hearing Have to Do With Marketing Your Pharmacy?
What Does the Sense of Taste Have to Do With Marketing Your Pharmacy?
What Does the Sense of Touch Have to Do With Marketing Your Pharmacy?
