It’s time to take our brand experiences to the next level - our latest article in Gifts Today magazine
Written by Stephen Spencer
As buyers and suppliers prepare to head to Harrogate for Home & Gift, many are no doubt eagerly anticipating the location and its amenities as much as the show itself.
This is because the North Yorkshire town presents a charming and inspiring experience for all the senses, with its grand hotels, manicured gardens, boulevards of smart shops, and iconic eateries.
Another trade show that is equally keenly anticipated is Maison&Objet in Paris. Not just because the French capital is an attractive destination but because, compared with some other exhibitions, the real offer at Maison&Objet is the way in which every effort has gone into presenting product, concept and range with style - exemplifying the philosophy of Harry Gordon Selfridge, founder of London department store Selfridges, who said: “Excite the mind, and the hand will reach for the pocket.”
There’s a concept driving these emotions and motivations, and I call it ‘Ambience’. A study by Rockefeller University in New York suggested that customers remember 1% of what they touch, 2% of what they hear, 5% of what they see, 15% of what they taste, and (a whopping) 35% of what they smell.
This amounts to 58% of the way in which the experience is received and appreciated by customers. Making no claims for any scientific basis, I have a theory that the remaining 42% is experienced through the sixth sense: the sense that everything has been curated to deliver a consistent, authentic, and compelling experience of the brand proposition.
On the High Street today there are numerous near-defunct leviathans who have long departed from Harry Gordon Selfridge’s mantra. Indeed, the customer experience can be so drab that it’s a miracle anybody shops in them at all.
But amongst these overgrown weeds are a combination of bright, purposeful, value-led start-ups, who know their concept and are laser-focused on their customers. And some larger brands still behave like a start-up. Think Anthropologie, which is one of the few large stores that can guarantee to put a smile on almost every customer’s face.
To paraphrase management adviser and co-author of ‘The Experience Economy’ Joe Pine, the question for every retailer is: what would my shop look like if I could charge admission?
In the case of Anthropologie, if they added coffee to their offer, I would definitely pay to enter the store and, in return, I assume they would offer a membership card, to give me the option to avoid the charge in return for my deeper engagement with the brand.
Looking ahead to the festive season, another question for retailers is: if your Christmas experience is the ultimate in multi-sensory, experiential branding, what would it take to apply the same focus, commitment and investment to the rest of the year?
Of course, we have many opportunities, from Valentine’s Day and Easter to Mothering Sunday and Halloween - and more national and international themed days than you can shake a stick at. I believe that drawing on your brand’s own heritage, as well as that of your physical location, adds even more opportunities to make every day a festive occasion.
Even if you are ‘only’ celebrating stillness or sustainability or community, how can you create that excitement, delivered through as many senses as possible, and then step back and review the experience to ensure what you have created is truly authentic, compelling, and consistently delivered through every touchpoint?
In this rapidly-changing world, there is a race to create immersive experiences. Often technology-driven, these pop-up diversions are even being talked of as the future of the High Street. It’s true that physical retail Gifts Today needs to change in order to survive, and that the future of town centres and their communities is inextricably linked to that evolution. What retail offers, however - and gift retail especially - is the opportunity to create and facilitate human connection.
The late great sales trainer Zig Ziglar used to say, “people buy on emotion and justify on logic”. A differentiated retail experience, offering a coherent concept, delivered with values based on sustainability and kindness, and above all facilitated by an engaged and engaging team, can drive sales and moreover loyalty. It’s the one area where physical retail can compete with the dreaded A-words (Amazon and Algorithm).
At Christmas, the die is cast. Nearly all the retailer’s costs are sunk. The question is: how much of a contribution will every customer make to those costs? And how will your brand experience optimise that? It’s time to take our brand experiences to the next level: delivered through curated sight, sound, touch, taste and (remember, whopping), smell. AR, VR, even blended reality, can’t compete with that.