Customer Reviews

Whiff! The Revolution of Scent Communication in the Information Age

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I've always considered smell the most evocative of senses, the one most likely to trigger a visceral, emotional reaction or specific memory. Whiff! explains the reasons for this, and goes on to demonstrate by example and suggestion why scent, the original communications medium, can be the most powerful "new" form of communication in the 21st century -- not only for business and marketing, but other civic and social applications. Just when you think Brumfield is going off the deep end with his suggestions and prophesies for the application of scent, he startles you with a real-world example that shows his imaginings are merely the evolution of trends already in place.

The frequent citations in the book keep it from being a breezy read, but they add credibility to the overall case Brumfield et. al. build in predicting a surge in scent-based communications applications and vehicles.

I met Brumfield prior to the publication of the book when he spoke as one of three panelists discussing non-visual branding; as a result, I struck up an acqaintance and, later, engaged him in a business relationship. Brumfield's passion for his topic is sincere and deeply-held.

His book goes well beyond the branding uses for scent, but anyone interested in scent as a marketing and branding mechanism will be fascinated and better formed for having read Whiff!

Rich Roher

Scent branding, aroma marketing? It sounds like a review for a new animal planet program or a sci-fi channel mini-series. Or maybe just a nifty new Bath and Body Works advertisement. The last is closest to the truth but it is only a whiff of the potential uses of our sense of smell. Scent is a cutting edge marketing technology being used today to enhance and influence the shopping experience of the modern consumer in every industry from retail to hospitality and beyond. This book is a must read for anyone involved in marketing, advertising, branding, communications or even the geek interested in cutting-edge, out of the box ideas.

A very interesting read for anyone interested in any aspect of scents and marketing. Timely and informative, should be required text in Marketing classes. Enjoy!

To say that retail marketing has gone too far wouldn't be going far enough. We are now in the realm of Pheromone enhanced packaging to lure lusty women to purchase cooking products... and if you are in that line of work, is it fair? No. But if you don't know what they're doing, and how to do it yourself, you'll never survive.

This book Whiff! exposes the Wizard behind the curtain, gives insight into our own buying habits and ensures a more even playing field for the bootstrapping entrepreneurs launching the next big thing. Seriously, if you want your customers to buy anything, you need to read this book. :)

Whiff is so smart and full of interesting relevant facts for marketers. It should make all of us stop and think about how we approach business. Endorphin Branding should be incorporated in all of branding conversations. It makes sense. Look forward to more insights from Russell and James

Whiff takes us on an incredible journey through the world of aroma and Scent Marketing. It is an in depth and vivid portrait of a new phenomena which walks us through the dynamics and importance of scent in the market place. Russel Brumfield picks up where Martin Lindstrum left off in Brand Sense. Lindstrum opened many eyes with his cutting edge book on Multi-sensory branding and made strong arguments why the sense of smell is the most important of all the senses. Brumfield picks up the scent trail and runs with it. Although Whiff is loaded with a great deal of science and marketing information, it is an easy read. Whiff is jam packed with interesting thought provoking information. As a Scent Marketing industry professional, I was amazed at the amount of information Russell has amassed of which even I was unaware. While Whiff could be an industry text book, Russell's glib writing style keeps you turning the pages. I highly recommend Whiff as a must read -especially for brand owners seeking to stay ahead of the curve.

If you are a fan of business/behavioral trends books like Blink, Sway, A Whole New Mind and The Wisdom of Crowds, you'll love Whiff. Russell Brumfield applies a new branding paradigm to a multitude of industries in fun, fast-paced manner. Best of all, it is backed with plenty of quantitative evidence and case studies. Scent's potential goes way beyond marketing to wellness, fraud protection, retail, homeland security and fashion. Did you know certain scented oils have been proven to reduce deadly MRSA hospital infections far better than toxic chemicals? Nobody is better positioned than Russell to explore this new world, a serial entrepreneur, scent marketing guru and renaissance raconteur. Scent's potential to transform the ways we buy, interact with each other and run our lives is nearly unlimited because of how it bypasses the brain's normal filtering process. When you read this book, you feel the same excitement as the early days of the internet. From the start, you'll sense Russell's hearty enthusiasm for scent's unlimited future, spurring on your own creative juices.

I've always been aware that certain smells seem to trigger unexpected emotional responses, but I didn't have a clue as to just how closely scent and memory are linked in all of us (it turns out that I'm not the only one who gets melancholy over a whiff of Play-Doh), let alone how this phenomenon impacts day-to-day decisions. This book lays out the psychology of scent so seamlessly that you might not realize how much information you're absorbing until the next time you walk into a department store or food court or automobile dealership and it hits you that your sudden impulse to buy that new purse or cinnamon bun or "new car"-scented convertible wasn't actually impulsive at all, but a conditioned response to a carefully engineered stimulus. The applications and statistics discussed make it clear why "endorphin branding" might be considered controversial--it's almost too effective a marketing technique to be considered "fair" by businesses which aren't yet utilizing it.

I really did not think the book was all that good. My decision to purchase the book was influenced by the bonus offer which would have allowed me access to several websites and information offered by other authors/speakers for 30 days. However, approximately 15 days after purchasing the book, I tried to access the bonus offer only to find that the web site had been diabled. No bonus offer as promised and a so-so book.

Wow! This is one of those books that brings to the surface what we intuitively know
to be true.

Fellow marketing and advertising professionals will quickly recognize that scent is
a new, largely untapped opportunity.how many businesses do you know with a scent
policy or strategy, or have even considered how their customers react to the scent
of their products, services or environments?

If they are right, the authors of Whiff! have uncovered what promises to be a huge
new industry, with implications for businesses, large and small in all categories,
from retail, manufacturing, hospitality and healthcare to the military. Winning,
progressive CEOs and companies will get it.the others will have to play catch up.

Well footnoted, it's clear the authors have gone to great lengths to show how
scientific research is making strides to decipher the secret language of scent.I've
read a few other books on scent, but none that have gathered and summarized so much
of the research into one place, while still making it a fun, easy read.