They say a picture is worth a thousand words, but just how many words is a scent worth? Given that our sense of smell is so closely linked to our memories and emotions, it is fair to assume that scent is worth much more than any collaboration of photos and text. Most images and slogans can be easily forgotten, but it takes much, much more to forget a specific scent.

Smells can bring back a memory effortlessly, even just a faint whiff of something familiar can transport you back to a certain time, place, or person. How many times in your life have you smelled something which instantly served you an emotion and furthermore a reaction? Harnessed with that power, marketing to your audience suddenly becomes much easier. Showing a potential customer a picture of a cheeseburger and fries will only get you so far, but having someone see and then smell it will entice them in ways which weren’t possible through images and text alone.

Because of scent’s strong impact on our brains, it should come as no surprise that marketers are beginning to see the advantage of using scents in their print marketing. While this isn’t a new concept (fragrance companies have been doing this for decades) it is beginning to pick up speed in marketing for far more than just perfumes and colognes. From political campaigns to shampoo ads, scents are becoming more common not only in the pages of magazines but in direct mail as well.

If all of this sounds awesome but completely out of your marketing abilities, think again! TAG now has the capability to print on scent varnished stocks, meaning that the sky’s the limit for your scent inspired print campaign. In fact, TAG just recently completed a chocolate scented print order for a client, allowing them to appeal to their clients in a new and exciting way. In an attempt to provide clients with a “sweet” holiday mailer, Jack Morton sent out recipes for a tasty, homemade hot chocolate. But the sweetness went far beyond the recipe on the card because it was printed upon stock that was varnished with a chocolate scent!

Producing a scented print ad isn’t significantly different than creating a traditional one. The hardest part will be picking which scent you want to use! From beer to barbeque, to new car and nectarine, your scent choices are as unlimited in the print world as they are in the world around us.

In an age where most people are served email after email and countless pieces of direct mail, grab your potential customer’s attention with something they’ve never encountered before. Go beyond their weary sense of sight and bring their sense of smell into the equation. It won’t be long before you discover what scent is worth to you!

Scents & Fragrances

The following are a listing of standard scents available for scented printing. Custom scents can also be created.

Food

Fruits

Miscellaneous

Spices

Stinky

Veggies & Nuts

Flowers & Plants