부산대학교 도서관

Recently, there is a growing interest in scent amongst consumers. As the importance of the scent marketing is increasingly recognized, an increasing number of stores are now using scent-marketing strategies to lure in customers with pleasant scents. Studies have shown that pleasant scents, especially when the scents are congruent with the image of the store or a product, are effective in boosting sales and also getting more positive comments on their products and service from customers. The major purpose of this research is to examine the effects of scent marketing on sales in the Korean market through analyzing the past research projects on in-store scent marketing and its effects on sales and case studies conducted in different countries. The study was conducted to examine the effects of scent marketing on sales at a street cosmetic store and the overall changes in attitude of a store through using various methods. For instance, the actual receipts are collected from the participants to record changes in sales accurately and various seeking and spending time are recorded and collected by observers. Surveys were conducted at the exit of the store to evaluate a store and service provided. The underlying assumption of the research is that even if consumers are able to detect a scent, consumers do not interpret it as a stimulus of marketing or influencer. It is hypothesized that scent marketing can have a positive impact on sales if consumers feel pleasant due to the overall scent of the place, regardless of the scent awareness. One of the participants in the survey did not notice the presence of the scent while she was in the store and even until she completed the survey. When the participant was asked whether she was aware of the scent of freesia in the store, she answered that she was not aware of the scent at all. In other words, the scent marketing can be still effective even when consumers are not aware of the presence of the scent and its pleasantness while shopping. Studies have found that in order for scent marketing to be successful, the scent should be pleasant and also congruent with products sold within the store. The 9 questions that were used in the study were carefully examined. Participants were generally positive toward the 9 questions including overall satisfaction of the scent, the image of the store in relation to the scent and the pleasance of the scent. The evaluation of scent was significantly increased after the scent was applied which means that the scent applied to the store is chosen properly as the stimulant to trigger the effectiveness of the scent marketing. First, it was expected that consumer evaluations of the store and their overall shopping experience will be improved in the presence of the scent. The finding of this study proves that the presence of scent improves customer service satisfaction and overall satisfaction with the shopping experience. Secondly, it was hypothesized that a pleasant scent in a store brings positive effects on sales. After carefully examining the difference between the amount of purchase that the participants made in the store while they were exposed to the scent and while the scent was absent, this study found that there was a significant increase in the amount of money spent when the participants were exposed to the scent. This leads to the conclusion that pleasant scent brings positive effects on sales when other environmental conditions are controlled. In addition, the study observed and measured variety seeking activities and time spent at the store under the assumption that scent can enhance consumer's shopping experience. The time spent at the store and the number of display stands (variety seeking activities) where a consumer stayed more than 5 seconds, were slightly increased but it was statistically insignificant. As the study examined the effects of scent on sales in the Korean market based on previous findings from related studies, people in retail business will be able to use this research as a reference when making scent marketing decisions. Further research is needed to improve the effects of scent marketing by addressing the controlling factors, type of scents and other environmental factors such as weather.