Sensational Mail is a new direct marketing solution enabling advertisers to build sensory triggers into their direct mail.

Consumer purchasing habits cannot be described as rational. Asked why we have chosen ‘that product’ or ‘that brand’, our answers are not straightforward.
Multi-sensory marketing enables marketeers to deepen their brand’s emotional appeal by connecting more deeply with the consumer.

Some senses are directly related to the product purpose. Wine must perform well on 'taste', perfume must perform well on ‘smell’ and iPod must perform well on 'hearing'.
When brands engage more senses, particularly those not obviously related to the product, they can attract extra customer interest. It is in this less obvious area where marketeers can enrich their brands beyond more than one obvious sense.

Not only does iPod perform well on hearing, the design has a 'look' and 'feel' that defines iPod.

A brand needs rational and emotional appeal to overcome customer inertia and differentiate itself against competitors. Get multi-sensory right and the prize is substantial.

Direct Mail is the only communications medium that can engage the five senses and through which consumers can physically hold the brand message.
No other media can compete with its touchy feely potential. It also allows brands to communicate with consumers when their guard is down, providing brands with QUALITY TIME with their audience.

Creative methods available via Sensational Mail include the ability to:

Add a scent or your brand’s signature fragrance to DM, using the latest micro-encapsulation technology.

Fragrance can be added to all types of paper and self-adhesive labels, fabric, plastic and metal. When the consumer touches the micro-capsules, the fragrance is released.

Capture the flavour of food or drink on a wafer thin gel strip and attach it to your DM for people to taste.

Put your sonic logo in a sound chip that can be sent to your customer.

This new proposition is supported by the global BRAND sense study commissioned by brand guru and visionary thinker Martin Lindstrom. This looked deeply into the way we use our five senses in relation to brand propositions and communication. The two year study by over 600 researchers took in 20 major brands in 13 countries.

This insight supports the Sensational Mail initiative with evidence for the power of touch, sound and smell as tools for greater brand engagement as follows:

• 83% of all branded communication is purely visual leaving only 17% for the other four senses
• The senses of smell and taste are greater emotional drivers as they are connected directly to the emotional and memory part of the brain (the limbic system)
• The sense of smell is proven to enhance memory recall which is an important factor in creating brand loyalty
• The sense of taste is almost three times more powerful at driving brand loyalty than vision and smell twice as powerful
• Research demonstrates that consumers recruited into a product purchase through the emotional sense of smell show higher repurchasing behaviours and are more resistant to competitor price based offers
• A US candle manufacturer increased sales by 20% after they used scented ink in their Direct Mail catalogue campaign.

Benefits of Sensational Mail

1. Greater impact for enhanced interruption and acquisition
2. Holds attention longer
3. Higher recall
4. Increased value of purchase
   A consumer test carried out by Doctor Alan Hirsch of the Chicago Smell and Taste institute demonstrated the average increase in perception of value of Nike trainers in a scented room was $10.33. When perceptions of value are increased average values of purchase will also increase.
5. Bringing the product experience into the communications
   Many products create sensory impact when used, which forms part of the emotional bond with consumers and enhances the overall brand experience. Unlike digital media, Sensational Mail can bring this sensory product experience into communications, allowing consumers to experience the emotional appeal of the brand.

Emotional connections provide:

• Higher margins
• Protection from price based competition
• More effective communications
• Increased brand loyalty
• Greater advocacy

The following table is purely illustrative.

If all this wets your appetite, give us a call on 0870 243 0532. Or you can email royalmailmarketing@clientmail.eu.com. We can show you how, using Direct Mail, you can engage your customers’ senses and make a more emotional (and therefore more profitable) connection.