5 Reasons Your Business Should Have a Signature Scent (And How to Choose It)

Bad smells attract pests. Good smells attract people.

You might not expect to hear the words “signature scent” from a pest control provider. But, over our 120+ years of serving businesses like yours, we’ve learned that commercial odor control and air freshening services not only help create a pleasant environment for your employees and customers but is also a factor in preventing pest problems.

That’s because stink tends to indicate sanitation issues, such as rot, decay, mildew and waste. These are all unpleasant to you and me, but they smell great to pests. You can learn more about how preventing bad smells can help you stay proactive against pests here.

On the other hand (or in this case, nostril), good smells — like the options available to you in commercial air fresheners — have some unexpected benefits for your business. While there are a variety of other factors that attract pests, don’t let foul odors be one of them.

What is a signature scent?

For commercial businesses, a signature scent is a carefully crafted aroma that enhances the ambiance and leaves a lasting impression on visitors. It helps create a unique and memorable identity that sets the business apart and fosters a more inviting atmosphere — hopefully leading to more business for you. Read on for five reasons you should consider having a signature scent in your building.

5 Reasons to Have a Signature Scent

1. Support your Integrated Pest Management (IPM) efforts. Ensure your IPM plan is in place with a proactive approach and customized treatments to help prevent areas in your business from smelling like the gross, stinky things that draw flies, roaches, rodents and more.

2. Scent is connected to memory. People can remember 35% of what they smell, compared to only 5% of what they see. When it comes to business, that equates to stronger brand recall.

3. Scent can evoke the emotions you want. Both our sense of smell and our emotions are related to our brain’s limbic system, allowing scents to trigger strong emotional responses. You can use this to your advantage to make guests or patients feel more relaxed, or to serve up a scent associated with happy memories and experiences.

4. Scent is linked with motivation. The olfactory bulb, where smell is processed in our brains, also impacts motivation. A study by a major shoe brand found that customers were motivated to pay up to 10% more for shoes in a pleasantly scented store, while invigorating scents have been shown to impact worker productivity.

5. Scent can keep customers browsing — and spending. Studies of environments from electronics stores to casinos have demonstrated that people linger longer and visit more product categories in scented environments. For one particular casino, it added up to 45% more revenue!

How To Find Your Signature Scent for Your Business

At this point, you may be thinking that good scents make great sense for protecting and increasing your business. But how do you nail the perfect scent for creating the best emotional connections and brand memories for your customers or employees? Just ask yourself these questions.

1. Whom do I want to attract? Businesses can take advantage of the close ties between scent and our emotions to draw the customers they want. Luxury brands serve up indulgent scent creations, while a brand focused on attracting more female customers turned to a signature fruity-floral mix. For you, the right move might be selecting a scent that most people will have positive memories of — for example, the freshness of Apple or the comfort of Conifer & Laurel.

2. How do I want them to feel? Scent is closely linked with our feelings. Think about how you want your customers and employees to feel in your space and choose your signature scent accordingly. For example, you might want to help people relax in an environment where they’re waiting to be served. In a healthcare or spa setting, soothing scents should be on the menu. Consider options like Green Tea & Thyme or White Tea & Ginger.

3. What do I want them to do? As you now know, scent can motivate our actions, too. You may want people to linger in your communal spaces or store longer. Or you might want to help your team perform at their best. A study by one Japanese company found that a citrus scent increased employee productivity by 54%. For something both delightful and invigorating, select a scent such as Sunny Citrus or Crushed Lime Mint.

Explore Orkin® Scent Services

In commercial spaces, it takes more than a spray bottle or home plug-in to create a consistent scent that delights and never overpowers your customers. If you’re wondering about the best way to start scent marketing in your business, we can help. Orkin has done the work of finding the most effective Scent Services system for you.

AirSpa™ is our commercial air freshener system that helps you create a unique environment with refreshing and memorable scents. The powerful diffuser converts liquid scent into a dry vapor that floats evenly across large, open spaces. The effects can be matched to your square footage and can even be connected through your HVAC system for widespread coverage. Our customers tell us they love the fresh signature scent options and how convenient it is to control using their phone.

We’d love to help you smell the difference for yourself. Check out our full suite of odor control and air freshening products or schedule a free consultation with an Orkin Pro™ today.