Crossmodal Congruency Between Background Music and the Online Store Environment: The Moderating Role of Shopping Goals

Despite the robust evidence that congruent background music in the physical store environment positively affects consumer reactions, less is known about its effects in an online context. The present study aims (1) to examine whether congruency via multiple elicited crossmodal correspondences between background music and the online store environment (e.g., perceived lightness, loudness, and coldness of the cue/environment) leads to more positive affective, evaluative, and behavioral consumer reactions and (2) to investigate the moderating role of shopping goals on this crossmodal congruency effect. Previous research showed that low task-relevant atmospheric cues like music can have a negative effect on consumers when they visit a website with a purchase goal in mind. An online experiment was conducted with 239 respondents randomly assigned to a shopping goal (experiential browsing vs. goal-directed searching) and a music condition (no music, crossmodally congruent music, or crossmodally incongruent music). Our results show that crossmodally incongruent background music (vs. no music) leads to more positive consumer reactions for experiential browsers and more negative consumer reactions for goal-directed searchers. Conversely, crossmodally congruent background music (vs. no music) has a positive effect on experiential browsers and no adverse effect on goal-directed searchers. Additionally, the presence of crossmodally congruent background music leads to more positive consumer reactions than the presence of crossmodally incongruent background music, independent of the shopping goal. We extend previous research on multisensory congruency effects by showing the added value of establishing congruency between music and the store environment via multiple elicited crossmodal correspondences in the online environment, countering previously found negative effects of low-task relevant atmospheric cues for goal-directed searchers

Multisensory experiences at travel fairs : What evokes feelings of pleasure, arousal and dominance among visitors?

This exploratory study concerns the evocation of multisensory experiences at travel fairs. In this context, stimulation of the senses is vital in engendering feelings of pleasure, arousal and dominance. The purpose of this study is to explore the ways in which travel fairs evoke multisensory experiences and internal responses in consumer visitors. To accomplish this task we gathered ethnographic data (pictures, videos and audio recordings) together with interview data from visitors, and applied the classic stimulus-organism-response conceptualization to the data analysis. The findings contribute to existing knowledge concerning the management of retail atmospherics in shedding light on customer experiences beyond (dis)-satisfaction in the little studied context of travel fairs. Our findings imply that the travel fair encompasses visually dominant stimuli whereas tactile stimuli are somewhat lacking. Although visitors to these fairs seem to find the experience manageable and pleasurable, the aspect of excitement is somewhat lacking. We suggest that the visually dominant environment that is characteristic of fairs should move in a multisensory direction in terms of offering visitors experiences that are more appealing. It is also crucial to manage the volume and intensity of senses effectively to prevent information overload and sensory overstimulation.Peer reviewe

Enough is enough! Understanding environmentally driven multisensory experiences

The importance of sensory perception and sensory stimulation in creating pleasant consumption experiences has received increasing attention within recent years. Yet, while numerous studies investigate antecedents and consequences of sensory perception specific to a certain sense (vision, touch, audition, smell, and taste), limited research addresses sensation from a broader perspective by examining what constitutes sensing in sensations. Multiple studies are employed to investigate the totality of sensation rather than any sense specific sensation, by framing sensational experiences within the long tradition of atmospherics research. Here, the construct of need for sensation is conceptualized to reflect the notion of totality of sensation. Following a comprehensive review of common overlaps among three main research areas – atmospherics, servicescape, and sensory marketing – exploratory research guides the development of a new scale measuring the construct need for sensation. The current study posits need for sensation as the manner by which consumers extract value through multiple sensory inputs, both focal and non-focal. This new need for sensation scale encompasses two dimensions namely sensory enjoyment and sensory avoidance, which both can be administered simultaneously to reflect different facets of need for sensation. The scale is validated as part of an experimental design to examine how different environments and levels of sensory stimulation impact consumers. Findings show that high intensity of sensation environments lower the consumer\u27s ability to accurately complete perceptual and cognitive tasks. However, these high intensity surroundings also elevate hedonic value leading to a more positive and value-added consumption experience. With regard to need for sensation, high need for sensation individuals express higher levels of hedonic value, satisfaction, and positive affect in stimulating environments; thus, confirming the validity of the new scale to detect individual differences across consumers. Results further affirm that while high need for sensation individuals gain more pleasure from a highly sensory stimulation experience; their performance is not negatively impacted. Overall, this research integrates atmospherics, services, and sensory marketing research to advance the marketing discipline. Key findings provide a starting point for an extensive stream of research focusing on sensory value-added consumption experiences

Experiencing the sense of the brand: the mining, processing and application of brand data through sensory brand experiences

Purpose - This article aims to develop an integrative framework based on a convergence of embodiment, ecological and phenomenological theoretical perspectives, to explain the multiple processes involved in the consumers’ mining, processing and application of brand-related sensory data through a sensory brand experience. Design/methodology/approach – This research adopts a qualitative method by using face-to-face in-depth interviews (retail managers and customers) and focus group interviews (actual customers) with 34 respondents to investigate sensory brand experiences in the context of Chinese shopping malls. Findings - Results show that the brand data mined through multisensory cues (visual, auditory, olfactory, tactile and taste) in a brand setting are processed internally as sensory brand experiences (involving sensory impressions such as fun, interesting, extraordinary, comforting, caring, innovative, pleasant, appealing, convenient), which influence key variables in customer-brand relationships including customer satisfaction, brand attachment, and customer lovemarks. Originality/value – This study has implications for current theory on experiential marketing, branding, consumer-brand relationships, consumer psychology and customer experience management

Sensory marketing: the role of sensory stimuli in consumer behaviour in retail environment

Consumidores são seres humanos individuais, com o desejo crescente de imprimir às marcas e aos produtos, a sua personalidade. A visão holística com que o marketing sensorial aborda esse facto trará ao retalho do futuro um entendimento dos ambientes como palcos de experiências, lugares que proporcionarão o prazer da vivência pré-consumo; um movimento ainda embrionário no mercado. Com as estratégias de marketing, acionadas através das pistas sensoriais, o objetivo é que os consumidores vivam a experiência em pleno, criando awareness e a consequente recompra (Pine & Gilmore, 1999; Schmitt, 1999). O consumidor está cada vez mais informado e exigente, refinando as suas escolhas e mostrando mais sofisticação na forma como se expressa e identifica, relativamente às marcas. À medida que os consumidores avançam nesse caminho, a comunicação e as estratégias de marketing das marcas devem voltar-se para atender a exigência dos consumidores (Húlten et al., 2009; Schmitt, 1999). O mercado atual requer uma adaptação à mudança dos hábitos dos consumidores e a indústria tem um papel fucral na criação de produtos e serviços que atendam as emergentes procuras. Com o aumento da concorrência, as empresas devem destacar-se, proporcionando aos clientes táticas que visem a vivência de experiências associadas à oferta dos seus produtos ou serviços. Neste parâmetro, o seu desenvolvimento, incentiva o afastamento do marketing tradicional, dando lugar a estratégias assentes no marketing de experiências de Schmitt (1999). O marketing de experiências coloca o desejo e as emoções do consumidor como objeto central do momento de consumo. Na sua abordagem, o autor salienta dois pontos importantes: os modelos experimentais estratégicos (SEMs) e os provedores de experiências (ExPros). Os primeiros (modelos experimentais estratégicos - SEMs), definidos por cinco tipos de experiências distintos, podem ser combinados de forma a fomentar a criação de experiências para os consumidores, sendo colocados em prática através dos segundos (provedores de experiências – ExPros). Os provedores de experiências (ExPros), por sua vez, traduzem-se na forma prática de exploração dos modelos experimentais estratégicos, através de: meios de comunicação, identidade visual e verbal, media eletrónica e pessoal, presença do produto e da marca e, ambiente envolvente. Pode-se então afirmar que as lojas que representem as marcas a nível holístico (lojas conceito) são apontadas como modelos de provedores de experiências (ExPros). Sob esse pressuposto, o marketing de experiências promove a atuação das empresas a nível emocional, de forma a explorar os estímulos sensoriais (tátil, visual, olfativo, gustativo e auditivo). O objetivo é proporcionar uma experiência positiva para os consumidores durante a sua jornada de consumo, nas lojas de retalho. A experiência de compra, marcada por um momento prazeroso e memorável, fará com que o consumidor associe sensações positivas à marca (Pine & Gilmore, 1999; Schmitt, 1999; Urdea et al., 2021). O marketing sensorial e o estudo das pistas multissensoriais congruentes vêm complementar as práticas tradicionais de marketing e dar respostas sobre como trabalhar o ambiente de retalho. As lojas de retalho, como palcos de experiências, precisam estar alinhadas às novas tendências de consumo, de forma a manterem o seu ciclo de vida (Pine & Gilmore, 1999). Nesta linha de pensamento, o Marketing Sensorial é definido como “[...] marketing que envolve os sentidos dos consumidores e afeta as suas percepções, julgamento e comportamento.” (Krishna, 2012: 332). Krishna (2010: 412) define ainda congruência sensorial no marketing sensorial como “[...] o grau de ajuste entre as características de um estímulo”. Por outras palavras, refere-se à congruência como um grau de ajuste entre a harmonização das pistas sensoriais, num determinado ambiente. Devido à recente tendência dos estudos com uma abordagem multissensorial (mais do que um estímulo sensorial), o objetivo da investigação desta dissertação foca-se no impacto de múltiplos estímulos sensoriais no comportamento do consumidor, no ambiente de retalho; explorando, também, a congruência entre os sentidos. Esta dissertação contempla como metodologia uma revisão sistemática da literatura, que consiste num tipo de investigação científica que mapeia os estudos anteriores e permite identificar lacunas e pistas para investigação futura. Permite ainda sintetizar os resultados de diversos estudos e identificar que tipos de metodologias foram usadas numa determinada área. A revisão sistemática da literatura é um instrumento essencial para acompanhar o desenvolvimento do conhecimento científico num determinado tópico, sendo indicada para auxiliar na tomada de decisão na área profissional ou para facilitar os investigadores em estudos futuros (Alves et al., 2016; Moher et al., 2009; Page et al., 2021; Tranfield et al., 2003). Nesta dissertação, a revisão sistemática reúne e sintetiza, através de uma análise descritiva, registos de pesquisa sobre a questão de investigação formulada, nos últimos 11 anos (2009-2020). Os estudos foram extraídos das bases de dados Web of Science e Scopus. Como tópico emergente, de acordo com o número de publicações a ganhar maior expressividade desde 2019, a análise do tema em questão proporciona uma descrição detalhada sobre os tipos de retalho contemplados. O setor que mais recebe atenção quanto à investigação do ambiente de consumo é o retalho offline, mais concretamente, lojas físicas de bens de consumo e foodservice. Outros tipos de retalho offline também são analisados, porém com menos expressividade (ambiente em centro comercial e saúde e bem-estar). Nos últimos anos (2019-2020), valorizam-se os estudos que focam no retalho online e offline. Turismo e desporto são também sectores que recebem um grande interesse quanto ao estudo do seu ambiente de consumo em eventos; e hotéis e cruzeiros, respetivamente. Na análise dos estímulos sensoriais mencionados nos estudos, verifica-se que os estímulos visual e auditivo são abordados na totalidade dos artigos. A investigação relativamente a outros estímulos (tato e paladar) deve, portanto, ser desenvolvida (Doucé and Adams, 2020; Fürst et al., 2020). A abordagem da congruência entre os sentidos é escassa na literatura contemplada na investigação, com representação de apenas um quarto dos artigos publicados. Existe uma lacuna neste sentido, dando oportunidade a pesquisas futuras (Biswas, 2019; Helmefalk, 2019). Quanto aos artigos que estudam a congruência, os estímulos visual, auditivo e olfato são o conjunto mais explorado, demonstrando que esta denominação e este número são os estímulos, efetivamente, mais estudados. De acordo com os critérios usados, apenas um artigo aborda todos os cinco estímulos sensoriais de forma integrada, o que reflete a escassez de estudos de mais de três estímulos na investigação na área da congruência. Ainda sobre os estímulos presentes nos estudos de congruência, o tato e o paladar são os menos explorados (Doucé and Adams, 2020; Fürst et al., 2020). Relativamente aos tipos de estudo em geral, estudos exploratórios e experimentais são os que ganham destaque, representando mais de metade das publicações. Os estudos experimentais, com investigação no terreno, têm maior expressividade quando três estímulos são explorados; e estudos exploratórios são os que apresentam maior destaque quando são explorados os cinco estímulos. A maioria dos autores usam apenas um método para a recolha de dados e apenas um utiliza três métodos. Estudos com mais do que três métodos de análise não se encontram presentes na base analisada. Métodos tradicionais de recolha de dados são os mais utilizados, sendo o questionário o principal, apresentando maior importância para a abordagem quantitativa. Segue-se a observação participante e a entrevista. Qualitativamente, realizou-se uma análise das palavras-chave usadas pelos autores nos artigos, identificando “Marketing Sensorial”1 como o conceito principal, seguido de “Comportamento do Consumidor”2. As conclusões apuradas sugerem que o tema do marketing sensorial é ainda pouco explorado. Cronologicamente, é um tópico de estudo recente com oportunidade de desenvolvimento na investigação. O registo de autores a publicar sobre o impacto das pistas multissensoriais no ambiente de retalho é ainda reduzido. Daqui decorre que mais relações entre as pistas multisensoriais devem ser investigadas; a este ponto, deve ser adicionado ao objeto de estudo maior complexidade. Também a congruência entre maior número de estímulos multisensoriais deve receber maior atenção, para que se entenda o impacto do ambiente no comportamento do consumidor em contexto do retalho. Os sentidos tato e paladar apresentam ainda vastas oportunidades na investigação de marketing. Os estudos têm-se focado em estímulos com menos complexidade de análise e de investimento financeiro (visão, audição e olfato). Assim, identifica-se a oportunidade de se aprofundar outros sentidos como tato e paladar (Doucé and Adams, 2020; Fürst et al., 2020). As lacunas podem direcionar futuras investigações de forma a que os seus resultados contribuam para uma robustez da literatura, assim como no auxílio da gestão de marketing, particularmente na tomada de decisão.Consumers are individuals with a growing desire to match their personality to brands and products. The holistic vision of sensory marketing approach brings to the retail of the future an understanding of environments as stages of experiences, places that will optimize the pleasure of the pre-consumption experience; a still embryonic movement in the market. With marketing strategies driven by sensory cues, the goal is generating a full experience for the clients, creating awareness and the consequent repurchase within retail contexts. This research aims to map previous studies using a multisensory approach to understand the impact of sensory stimuli on consumer behaviour in the retail environment, and exploring the congruence between the senses. A systematic review of the literature was used as the methodological approach. This approach is an important instrument to develop replicable reviews in a scientific manner, to observe the development of studies on a specific topic, and offer support to future research and to decision-making process in the professional area. In this study, the systematic literature review compiles and synthesizes, through descriptive analysis, articles regarding the research objective, in the last 11 years (2009-2020). As an emerging topic, gaining expression since 2019, the analysis provides a detailed description of the types of retail. The sector that receives the most attention, in terms of researching the consumer environment, is offline retail. The approach of congruence between the senses is scarce in the coverage of this research, representing only a quarter of the published articles. There is a gap regarding this topic, providing an opportunity for future research. A multisensory approach in sensory marketing (addressing three or more stimuli in a single empirical study) is still an unexplored area (Biswas, 2019; Helmefalk, 2019). Chronologically, it is a recent topic with an opportunity for research development; in this case, to know more about the relationship between multisensory cues. Also, the study of congruence between more multisensory stimuli should be deepened, to understand the impact of the sensory environment on consumer behaviour in a retail context. The senses of touch and taste still present notable opportunities for further investigation (Doucé and Adams, 2020; Fürst et al., 2020). Gaps can lead future research to contribute to the robustness of the literature and support marketing management in the decision-making operations

The effects of e-store atmosphere on consumers' buying behavior

Consumer behavior in traditional stores is already a vastly studied field of research. In contradiction to consumer behavior in a e-retail environment, which is still lacking a lot of research and has to be studied more. This literature review tries to better understand the dynamics of consumer behavior in a e-retail environment and to give an overall introduction to designing a functional e-retail website. This is done by researching the effects of atmospherics in a traditional store environment and adapting those principles to the e-retail environment. Studies on e-retail environment are also used as much as possible. The findings of this literature review suggest that many theories about traditional store related consumer behavior have been proven, but many of those related to e-retail are just assumptions and more research has to be done. Fortunarely there are some principles that have been also proven in a e-retail environment and it is a good basis to create a functioning web store for a company

Haptic Sensory Perception and Customer Experience in a 360-Virtual Store: Does Time Spent Play a Role?

Building on stimulus(S)-organism(O)-response(R) theory, this research examines the effects of haptic sensory perception on user experience and satisfaction in a 360-virtual store. We postulate that time spent in a 360-virtual store reinforces the effects in the S-O-R model. The results support the theory that haptic sensory perception triggered by a 360-virtual store (stimulus) improves customer experience (organism) and that the experience further enhances virtual store satisfaction (response). We find that the time spent in a virtual store reinforces the former effect, but not the latter effect. The results of an experiment involving 587 respondents further suggest that this finding only holds true to users who are merely browsing, but not to users tasked with searching for a specific product in the 360-virtual store. We encourage management to create sensory cues in virtual stores to improve user experience and satisfaction, and virtual in-store stimuli to increase time spent in the store

Emotional Responses to Multisensory Environmental Stimuli: A Conceptual Framework and Literature Review.

How we perceive our environment affects the way we feel and behave. The impressions of our ambient environment are influenced by its entire spectrum of physical characteristics (e.g., luminosity, sound, scents, temperature) in a dynamic and interactive way. The ability to manipulate the sensory aspects of an environment such that people feel comfortable or exhibit a desired behavior is gaining interest and social relevance. Although much is known about the sensory effects of individual environmental characteristics, their combined effects are not a priori evident due to a wide range of non-linear interactions in the processing of sensory cues. As a result, it is currently not known how different environmental characteristics should be combined to effectively induce desired emotional and behavioral effects. To gain more insight into this matter, we performed a literature review on the emotional effects of multisensory stimulation. Although we found some interesting mechanisms, the outcome also reveals that empirical evidence is still scarce and haphazard. To stimulate further discussion and research, we propose a conceptual framework that describes how environmental interventions are likely to affect human emotional responses. This framework leads to some critical research questions that suggest opportunities for further investigation

The Impact of Sensory Marketing: Analysis of its Attributes Towards Online Perfum Users’ Behavior

Purpose: The tendency of consumers to purchase online today is enormous and requires the role of sensory marketing in providing a positive and memorable experience to all. In addition, since sensory marketing whether in online or offline settings can unconsciously govern shoppers’ judgement and purchase behavior, this paper aims to understand how multi-sensory information processing in the online environment is diverted from offline in the cosmetic perfume industry by leveraging previous research to analyze its effect on offline stores and emphasizing the present study on online retail stores.   Theoretical framework: The research study conducted by Petit et al. (2019) attempts to explore more about digital sensory marketing and multisensory technologies. However, offline and online settings would have different effects and since perfume products require the use of our senses, there would be obstacles that prevent us from using our senses when sold online. This requires us to understand sensory marketing in the online shopping environment.   Design/Methodology/Approach: This paper uses an exploratory study approach to gain in-depth understanding of the topic. The qualitative study is essentially built on primary data sources, through naturalistic observation and semi-structured interviews with 9 Generation Z individuals who are Indonesian citizens and have undertaken frequent perfume purchases online. A snowball sampling method was used in finding respondents for this study while interview results were analyzed using thematic analysis.   Findings: The paper highlights the significant impact of sensory marketing through the use of sensorial cues, sensorial attributes, and individual differences in sensory perception. Ethical considerations when utilizing sensory marketing are also being emphasized throughout this study.   Research, Practical & Social implications: Results of this study can encourage future research to help bring benefits for website/internet site designers, content managers, online perfume retailers, as well as academicians in general.   Originality/Value: This paper draws attention to the growing use of online channels by cosmetic perfume industry actors and sheds light on the importance of sensory marketing practices in affecting online user behavior by answering what and how questions using exploratory studies.

How multisensory experiences in virtual environments affect intention to return: The role of cognitive flexibility, sense of power and personality traits

The technology advances made every day are creating opportunities for business. Virtual Reality has been the focus of several studies. However, virtual reality has been stated to fail in implementing some senses, such as tactile, smell and taste. In this study, we cross two sensory experiences, one with the senses of sight and sound and the other with the sight, sound and smell. The experience takes place in a Virtual Café and measures the impact it has on the intention to return. The choice of the different sensory experiences was based on the concepts of proximal and distal senses. For the purposes of the study, this dissertation further analyses the concepts of Sense of Power and Cognitive Flexibility and Personality traits is introduced as a moderator in this relationship. The type of sensory experience is introduced and used as a moderator on the relationship between Sense of Power and Intention to Return (behavior). This study concludes that multisensory experiences in a virtual environment, have no impact on return intentions. However, this study also concludes that cognitive flexibility has a positive impact on sense of power and that personality traits plays as a moderator in the relationship between the two variables. Furthermore, this study findings suggested the notion that senses can be psychologically more proximal or distal based on the maximum physical distance typically required for a stimulus to be sensed also applies to virtual reality environments.Os avanços tecnológicos concretizados todos os dias estão a criar oportunidades para as empresas. A Realidade Virtual tem sido o foco de diversos estudos. Contudo, a realidade virtual tem sido apontada pela inexistência de alguns sentidos, tais como o tato, cheiro e paladar. Neste estudo, cruzamos duas experiências sensoriais, uma com os sentidos da visão e audição e a outra com os sentidos da visão, audição e cheiro. As experiências tomam lugar num café virtual e mede o impacto que tem na intenção de retorno (intention to return). A escolha das diferentes experiências sensoriais teve por base os conceitos de sentidos mais próximos e sentidos mais distantes. Para o objetivo desta tese, vão ser também analisados os conceitos de sentimento de poder e flexibilidade cognitiva e as características de personalidade são introduzidas como moderador desta relação. Posto isto, este estudo conclui que as experiências multissensoriais num ambiente virtual, não têm impacto na intenção de retorno. Contudo, o estudo conclui também que a flexibilidade cognitiva tem um impacto positivo no sentimento de poder e ainda que as características de personalidade têm um papel de moderador na relação entre os dois. Além disto, este estudo sugere que a ideia de que os sentidos podem ser psicologicamente mais próximos ou distantes, com base na distância física normalmente necessária para um estímulo ser sentido, também se verifica em ambientes de realidade virtual