Phewture of Advertising?

Well, aside from my shameless attempt at a humorous title, I think it aptly describes an idea I had (though it may not be that surprising or original).

So:

First of all, it's important to know about me that I am very much smell-driven, if there is such a thing. Ever since I was a young lad I've always been interested in the way things smell! Be it potpourri or soap or just the air outside, I frequently would smell things so much all the time that my nose was constantly burning and I usually had headaches (soap is the worst with the burn! Don't try it-I think it's the glycerin that gets up in there). Naturally, I grew out of this painful habit but still it is the primal pleasure of good smells that makes me really excited, especially the smell of the air outside in just about any condition of weather or atmosphere. I can't desribe the elation or joy I feel in taking in a good whif of the air outside. It's an unspeakable wonder to me.

This being known, then, today when I was outside smelling the late afternoon warmth I thought about the power of smell because the smell I smelled today brought back a very strong wave of memory-think of it! Small particles of scent in the air flew into my nose and landed on a nerve pad and then sent the information to my brain in the form of a smell which then triggered a memory to play itself out vividly in my head! A memory that landed me into a rather emotional state of nostalgia. So think, then, of the power of scent in advertising!

I know it's being developed to be able to send smell through the TV somehow-think of how effective Burger King could be finally if somehow you could smell their chargrilled patties as you watched them on screen! This is a simple example using the basic (and not ineffective) psychology of hunger. But what about other smells to evoke a certain response to a more intangible product, like insurance or FedEx?

What kinds of smells trigger impulses in consumers to buy a thing because that smell tapped into some part of their brain and convinced them to make a purchase? And is it ethical to tap memories or aut onomic, psychological brain processes? I suppose we'll just wait for techonology to improve-and I for one am pretty excited about a multi-sensory television, which in my mind is just one step closer to that food-producing maching on the Jetsons. You know the one: