Arylessence claims fragrance planning gives competitive edge

Fragrance is an essential part of the development of any personal care product. One of the first things a consumer will do when trying out a new product is to smell it to see if it has the right kind of fragrance.

“Using a winning fragrance is the fastest way for a product to connect with consumers,”​ said Cynthia Reichard, Arylessence executive VP.

Fragrance can be make or break​

This means that getting this aspect of the product right during development is a make or break for its success in an already over-crowded consumer category.

Arylessence says its 12-part plan includes fragrance planning tools, insights and methodologies to help marketers identify fragrance opportunities to develop scents that can give personal care players an important competitive edge.

“Great consumer product fragrances don’t just happen,”​ said Arylessence president Steve Tanner.

“They are carefully planned to reflect brand values, attract consumers, and build a compelling identity for each product line,”​ he added.

Shrinking sales mean added competition​

Recent market data from the NPD group shows that the market for personal care as a whole is expected to shrink at a rate of around 2 percent this year, while the market for luxury goods already shrank by 7 per cent in the first half of 2009.

Increasingly the big personal care players are pointing to the successful launch of new products as a means of buoying their results in these difficult times, but equally NPD analyst Karen Grant says that consumers are likely to reject a product almost immediately if they do not take to it and fragrance can be a deciding factor.

Arylessence claims its fragrance planning can help to cultivate the right fragrance for specific personal care products with the help of its TrendWatch database, which taps into current consumer behavior and lifestyle trends.

Tapping into consumer trends​

From a careful analysis of this data, the company claims it can tap into what the consumer is thinking, helping it to determine the types of personal care products that they are buying.

As well as tracking consumer reasoning, the data base can also be used to track trends on product usage, helping to determine how a scent is used and how competitors make adjustments to their products.

Finally, the planning can help to set out guidelines for making adjustments aimed at improving a product’s scent, as well as helping to devise an optimum means of marketing the product while showcasing its signature fragrance.