Brands are not just brochures and logos. They are feelings. They connect with consumers on an emotional level. Those emotions are very much tied to and often triggered by our senses – sight, smell, sound, taste and touch.

Think about one of your favorite memories. Is there a certain scent or sound you associate with it? Does that memory pop up when you taste a certain food or see something special like a painting? Those are the same kind of sensory experiences you want consumers to have when they experience your brand.

That’s not always easy in financial services, because we are not selling tangible goods. But there are other ways to tap into those senses. Umpqua Bank allows some of its business partners to display their goods in its branches. In San Francisco, one of its partners puts out chocolates. A credit union in the southern part of the country pays someone to spend 20 hours a week baking at one of its branches so consumers smell baked goods when they conduct their financial business.

Our sense of smell is actually the most sensitive of the five senses, which means scent can have a powerful effect on consumer behavior. The human nose can distinguish more than 10,000 different odors, and studies have shown that 75% of emotions are triggered by smell. Scent is such a big deal in business that companies pay a lot of money for scent marketing. They brand their own scent.

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