Mar 9, 2009

Retailers’ bag of tricks includes smell and lightingBy Nicole PaitselDailyPress.com

Bargain is the new black, and marketers have caught on.

But when is a sale a deal?

Retailers have developed myriad techniques to entice customers into the store, over to their products and eventually to the checkout line. Understanding the often subliminal messages is one way to sift through the barrage of sales.

“Consumers are less affected by interruptive marketing now,” says Daniel Stein, founder of Evolution Bureau, a California-based digital advertising agency that services companies like Microsoft, Office Max and Burger King. “Everything is about immediacy and consumer control.”

Watch for these tricks the next time you step into your favorite store.

The smell of freshly cut grass at the home and garden store is no accident. Some retailers spray the scent into the air, since it subconsciously provokes shoppers to spend more time in the store.

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