British Airways have plans to make them smell better

I hear British Airways are planning to create a fragrance that they spray in their planes [see article in Business 2 Community].


I like this idea.


It makes sense given that the smell of aeroplane chemicals and the body odour of other passengers are not always that pleasant.


Supermarkets have understood the positive power of smell for a long time, although it  can attract some media flack [Mailonline]


I think it is a dimension of brand experience that can be very powerful when it evokes positive and fond experiences - think cut grass, burning fireplace, or home cooking.

If British Airways get it right then good luck to them. I guess it is worth a try.

Real-time marketing paths the way to delight consumers

There is an excellent article in Adpulp: How To Win Big in 2012: Create Exceptional Brand Experiences For Your Clients’ Customers.


The article talks about 'real-time marketing' and how companies have to recognize that change as the new normal.


I totally agree.


The artticle tells a fabulous story about how Porterhouse Steakhouse made real-time one-to-one marketing possible by listening on Twitter. They basically saw a tweet from a fan jokingly asking for a Porterhouse after a hard days travelling (he had just landed at an airport 23 miles away). They responded by sending out a  tuxedo-clad waiter to meet him with his requested steak.


As the article says, this is textbook case of 'surprise and delight'.


I love it.


This type of brand behaviour is at the heart of what I mean when I say that to win brands need to surprise / delight / WOW their consumer.


We live in a time where there is huge opportunity to listen (to consumer's social conversations) and respond. 


Brand organisations that get this and start to deliver brand experiences like the Porterhouse story will win, because it will drive advocacy and usually loyalty.

5 Experience Enhancers That will Build Competitive Advantage

There is an excellent article in Forbes written by executives at PricewaterhouseCooper: 

"The Key to Customer Loyalty: The Total Shopper Experience."

The article offers excellent advice based on a study by PcWs that is designed to help businesses identify often hidden sources of value that lead to exceptional, differentiating customer experiences.

They recommend developing an experience action plan that’s built on the customer knowledge - extracted from your loyalty program—and that activates the following five “experience enhancers”. These points echo many of the things I have said in my previous posts:

• Focus first and foremost on the shopper experience - front line staff are key
• Make satisfied customers your brand ambassadors - your customer can be your best advertising
• Help consumers avoid risk - remove any psychological hurdles to making a purchase, e.g. shipping costs
• Embrace the any-time, anywhere economy - make it easy to search and find you
• When something bad happens, fix it - bad news travels fast

They end by saying: "Businesses that understand what their customers value most in the purchasing experience, and that build strong psychological bonds with them, will pull ahead of their rivals and strengthen their customer loyalty."

This is great advice.