There is something your customers assess every time they walk into your business, something that influences whether they come back, and something you are probably not managing. It is called smell. And they will almost never tell you about it.
The odour problem is a silent one
A customer who is unhappy with the price says so. A customer who is unhappy with the wait complains. But a customer who is put off by the smell says nothing: they leave, they do not come back and, at most, they leave a vague review about an "average experience" without specifying why.
That is why smell never shows up in your complaints, but does show up in your repeat rate. It is a problem that produces no signal, and that is why it goes unresolved for years.
Why you cannot smell your own business
Olfactory adaptation means the brain stops registering the constant smells of its surroundings. If you have spent two years in your premises, you no longer smell what someone walking in for the first time smells. That is not a metaphor: it is how the olfactory system works.
The practical consequence is that you are not the person to judge it. Ask someone who is coming in fresh, and ask them as they walk in, not after ten minutes inside, because by then they will have adapted too.
The critical points by type of business
Restaurants. Washrooms, kitchen, bin area and cellar. The washrooms are the most critical: that is where the customer judges you alone and without distractions. More on restaurants.
Hotels. Reception and entrance, corridors, guest rooms and public washrooms. The first smell on arrival shapes how the whole stay is remembered. More on hotels.
Offices. The coffee area, washrooms and meeting rooms. A room still heavy from the previous meeting is a poor first impression for a client or a candidate. More on offices.
Gyms. Changing rooms above all, although it affects the whole space. It is the sector's most common image problem and one of the easiest to solve. More on gyms.
Neutralise before you scent
The usual mistake is to add fragrance on top of a bad smell. It does not cover it: it mixes with it and the result is perceived as worse than the original smell. First you neutralise the source (washrooms, kitchen, changing rooms, waste areas) and then you scent what is already clean. How neutralisation works.
What you can do
A professional nebulising system works constantly and to a schedule, with the intensity adjusted by zone and by time of day. The unit arrives configured for your square metres and with your chosen fragrance: it is set up in 5 minutes, with no building work.
On a monthly scenting plan, from €29.90/month + VAT per unit, with the fragrance included and replaced monthly. No minimum term and no upfront investment.
Call 911 09 70 50 or write to info@bendis.es.
Service for businesses · By sector and city · Diffuser catalogue
