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Dear Business Owner,

Your customers don't like to wait. But sometimes, you unavoidably have to keep them waiting in a reception, waiting room or lobby to be attended to; or even on a waitlist for an upcoming product. Waiting in itself is not the problem. However, today's customers are accustomed to getting instant responses. They are able to access products or services on demand and at the tap of a button. As such, they may interpret having to wait at your establishment, even for a short time, as poor service leading to a bad customer experience. This is because, according to research, perceived wait time feels longer thanactual wait time. Behavioral economists know this, which is why they recommend altering the waiting experience to change the customer's perception.

''Perceived wait time feels longer than actual wait time, according to research.''

The tactics of changing wait perception are also applied when you preorder something online. The brand may influence your perception and get you to feel anticipation/excitement or even feel special for being part of the exclusive few

to get the product instead of dissatisfaction for waiting.

As a business with a physical location, you can also change the waiting perception of your customers and improve their experience. How?

Ambient scenting is a surefire way to do this. In an International Journal of Affective Engineering article, authors Alejandra and Toshimasa analyzed waiting experience of some subjects in orange and lavender scented rooms, compared to a non-scented room. They found that the aura of the waiting room (reception or lobby) was perceived differently with the presence of specific scents. The subjects felt the waiting space was warmer, brighter and generally more welcoming.

They rated the waiting room as more comfortable and as memory inducing, associating the scents with specific places or personal memories. What's more, the specific scent, whether orange or lavender, induced positive moods. Overall, the researchers concluded that the most relevant difference between the scented and unscented rooms was more psychological- the scented rooms positively impacted the mental perception of the waiting space, improving the waiting experience

You can transform your customer wait time into a pleasant experience that will positively change your brand perception. This is a small adjustment that could make a huge change in addition to other ways to reduce customer wait time. Why? Because the effect is more psychological than physical. Again, we often remember things differently from how they happened when emotions are involved.

Brian,
Founder, Noryan
info@nor-yan.com

You want to use scent to create an atmosphere that is pleasantly perceived and that can induce an a emotional connection.

If you need more information on how this can be implemented for your business, kindly contact us at Noryan and we will get to work. Wishing you all the best with building an unforgettable brand.