When potential renters enter your apartment marketing office, you’ve got 15 seconds to make a powerful first impression.
Research shows that the first 15 seconds of a shopper’s experience sets the tone for the overall perception. And during those precious few seconds, your guests are gathering sensory information that helps creates their first impression and will likely influence their decision to lease.
If you were to look at those 15 seconds on a slow-motion video, you would see your potential renters:
• Glance around the office to see if the décor and furniture match their socio-economic status and lifestyle.
• Gauge the receptionist’s level of friendliness – or lack thereof.
• And perhaps most subtle of all, sniff the air.
Wait: sniff the air? Whatever for?
Scent: What Your Visitors Will Remember
You might be surprised to know that we humans constantly use our noses to judge our environments. And most of the time, we don’t even realize it. Because our senses of sight and sound are so dominant, we make the majority of conscious decisions about our environment based on these senses.
But our noses play a special sensory role as well and one that is often more telling than what we see and hear.
Consider these facts:
• Research has proven that the human sense of smell is our strongest sense and the one tied most closely to memory and emotion.
• Because of this close tie, 75% of our emotions are initiated by smell.
• A Rockefeller University study shows that in the short term, we remember 35% of what we smell versus 5% of what we see and 2% of what we hear.
That’s why your potential renters have their noses in action when they walk into your apartment marketing office. They’re looking for clues as to whether or not your property is welcoming, clean and a match for their lifestyles.
And if you can convince them of those three things, you’re more likely to have a signed lease in your hand at the end of their visit.
Scent : The Greatest Apartment Marketing Tool Your Clients Will Never See
From retailers, hotels and fitness clubs, to healthcare waiting rooms, senior care facilities and veterinary clinics, more and more businesses are discovering the scientifically-proven benefits of scenting spaces.
Most are using new state-of-the-art scent distribution systems that disperse fragrances evenly over large spaces. These cold-infusion scent distribution systems atomize essential oils, convert them into molecules and disperse them throughout the environment.
Thousands of scents and scent combinations offer just as many ways to connect with potential renters and make a powerful first impression.
Here are three ways you can use scent in your apartment marketing office to do just that.
#1: Use scent to make your apartment marketing office welcoming.
For some, such as newlyweds or graduates, renting a new apartment is an exciting adventure. For others, including those recently divorced, widowed or forced to relocate for work, searching for an apartment can be an unwelcome necessity.
For either group, you can employ scent to make them feel welcome and even lift their mood.
For example, researchers have found that the scent of the vanilla bean elevates the sense of joy and relaxation. In fact, one Florida hospital imaging center found that the scent of vanilla helped curbed claustrophobia and tensions, leading to a decrease in the number of people who need sedation during procedures as well as a 50% drop in cancellations.
Or consider the effects of pine scent. A Japanese study found that participants who took a walk through a pine forest reported significantly lower levels of depression and stress. The research also revealed that those who were anxious felt more relaxed after experiencing the scent of pine.
The point here is to choose a scent that makes visitors connect with a positive emotion and feel welcomed.
#2: Use scent to make your apartment marketing office smell clean.
Even though you likely keep your leasing office clean as a whistle, you might be unaware of odors lurking such as leftover Chinese, a pot of stale coffee, or those week-old flowers on your cadenza.
But your clients come in with fresh senses of smell and they will notice it all. So it’s best to be proactive with scent and use it to communicate a fresh, clean smell in your office.
Possible scent choices include:
• Aroma Impression scents ‘Royal Palm’ which can neutralize odors as well as make your office smell clean and fresh;
• ‘Southern Spring’, which also neutralizes odors and evokes the familiar smell of a beautiful spring day.
• A citrus scent featuring lemon, orange and/or grapefruit notes which are used in household cleaning products, giving these aromas a strong memory correlation with cleanliness and order. Evoking those memories reinforces the impression that your office is kept clean.
#3: Use scent to make your property match your target market’s lifestyle.
When potential renters visit your leasing office, you can assume they feel your property is congruent with their budget and lifestyle. You can reinforce that feeling by using a scent that matches the demographic of your target audience.
This is especially true if your property offers luxury amenities such as a pool, clubhouse, an outdoor cooking area, fitness room, and other perks.
• If your property caters to specific demographics such as young couples and families, try a fun, youthful scent such as green tea or even pina colada.
• If your demographic is older and more established, consider a floral scent, which will remind them of a time when they literally stopped to the roses.
Again, you’re hoping to make an emotional connection with your target demographic – a connection that makes them feel at home.
Remember: You Have 15 Seconds
Remember that you have just 15 seconds to make a first impression in your apartment marketing office. And that impression can set the tone for the visitor’s overall perception of your property.
Don’t leave those 15 seconds to chance. Use scent to get ahead of the experience and be proactive. It could make all the difference in reaching your leasing goals for the month.
Ready, set, scent!
