Sensory marketing is the strategy employed to engage a potential customer through the five senses—smell, touch, taste, sight and sound. It's about creating sensorial experiences to influence purchase decisions by appealing to customers’ perceptions and using the power of emotional association.
Classic examples are the smell of coffee as soon as you enter a Starbucks, or the soft jazzy music playing in high-end restaurants. Sensory marketing focuses on elevating the customer experience by creating an atmosphere, connecting them to specific sensory triggers that will then remind them of the brand or the product.
But how does this translate to influencer marketing, where customers can’t physically interact with products?
Influencers leverage sight and sound to replicate the in-person sensory experience online. From descriptive storytelling and close-up product visuals to ASMR techniques and immersive video content, they create an experience that makes audiences feel like they’re touching, smelling, or experiencing the product themselves.
Let’s explore how online sensory marketing is shaping influencer content—and how you can incorporate it into your own strategy to stand out in social media.
Sensory marketing is about engaging customers and building a loyal connection by using the most powerful triggers: sight, taste, smell, touch and sound. When more than one sense is engaged, it creates a more memorable experience and, if done correctly, a sense of longing.
Online, sensory marketing relies on two main senses: sight and sound. Since physical interaction isn’t possible, brands and influencers compensate by creating highly immersive and visually appealing content that mimics real-life experiences.
Big brands like Jacquemus, Gisou, and Rhode use sensory-driven content to enhance their ads. Nowadays, they are the ones winning the marketing game, because they understand that an online sensory experience can still feel tangible when done right.
Two key methods that make online sensory marketing effective:
Let’s break them down!
In-depth product descriptions about its packaging, weight, texture, aroma, and more, will help customers imagine the product like they are holding it themselves.
A great example of this is the perfume industry. Perfume content creators manage to influence people on purchasing a specific fragrance without them actually smelling it nor trying it. How?
Tech content creators are also amazing at sensory marketing. How many of us have purchased an electronic after watching a video review of it?
These content creators are great at not only communicating all the products’ benefits, but also at creating an experience that makes consumers feel the product before ever touching it.
Here’s a good example and why it works:
When partnering with content creators, you can ask them to implement physical evaluation by doing the following:
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As Forbes stated, “In marketing, tapping into consumer emotions isn't simply a feel-good practice—it drives sales. Emotional marketing forges a potent connection between a brand and its audience, translating into increased loyalty and purchases.”
And the strongest way to create sensory impact online is through associating products with emotions, moods, and aspirational lifestyles.
Rhode has quickly positioned itself in the skincare industry thanks to its successful sensory marketing campaigns. They incorporated food as a sensory trigger, understanding that associating a product with something pleasurable, makes consumers more likely to engage with it.
The power of association in sensory marketing also creates a sense of longing. When songwriter Charli xcx released her album “brat”, its neon-green branding combined with club music created an aesthetic that quickly struck a chord with the online community.
Soon, everything was “brat makeup”, “brat outfit”, even “brat summer”, and so everyone wanted to take part in the trend either by creating or consuming brat content.
Influencer partnerships quickly jumped to this trend as well, incorporating it in clever ways where the products were softly promoted with the excuse of taking part of the brat trend.
The influencers you partner with can implement the power of association in their content by doing the following:
Sensory marketing is rapidly shaping the next wave of influencer content, and as marketers, it’s important to stay on top of upcoming trends. So, we have prepared a summary of what’s coming for you to check it out:
Influencers specializing in satisfying sounds and immersive audio experiences are gaining traction and winning in engagement rates.
ASMR stands for Autonomous Sensory Meridian Response—in simpler words, it’s a tingling sensation that begins at the scalp and travels down the spine, triggered by audio or visual stimuli.
Because this tingling sensation is very much associated with a relaxing and soothing experience, users are increasingly choosing ASMR content in a sea of overstimulating posts. In 2023, ASMR content was streamed for over 110 million hours!
From Youtubers fully dedicated to creating relaxing ASMR videos, to lifestyle TikTokers who post ASMR-inspired restocking videos, audio-driven content really has the power to improve the viewer’s experience and you should be implementing it in your campaign’s content!
Live video shopping is a combination of live-streaming and real-time shopping, where creators provide viewers with the opportunity to purchase products in real time through links embedded in the stream.
How does it work? Influencers demonstrate products live to their audience, while interacting with them through real-time chats. Viewers can then click on product links directly to purchase the items being showcased, without ever leaving the live-stream environment.
The two most popular platforms to do live-video shopping are Instagram and TikTok. Instagram Live has integrated shoppable tags into live videos, allowing viewers to purchase products featured in the stream directly.
On the other hand, TikTok has also embraced live shopping events, where influencers showcase products and encourage viewers to purchase via links. This is all thanks to their very successful e-commerce platform within the app: TikTok Shop.
What’s so good about TikTok Shop is all the capabilities it offers:
According to Capital One Shopping, by 2027, an estimated 45.9% of users in the U.S. will purchase through the platform. Your creators could be the ones driving these sales—start finding TikTok creators now with our detailed Influencer Finder!
We all know how popular the term storytelling has become over the years when trying to create impactful marketing campaigns. But in social media, where images and video reign over text, it’s visual storytelling that's needed for a successful strategy.
Visual storytelling is about using different images, graphics and videos to tell a compelling story. It ranges from the “random photo dump” so popular among GenZs to “a day in my life” videos.
Even though a random dump seems very different from vlogs with a clear temporary line, each of these are strategically focused on color psychology, textures and motion-driven content to captivate the viewer’s attention and make them feel personally connected to the story.
A great example of this is creator @lnparkx, who makes vlogs and lifestyle videos as a marketing manager. While this is constantly the content covered in her account, she still manages to keep her audience engaged with her daily routines.
Ellen also knows how to leverage her lifestyle storytelling to promote brands she partners with. Through a “what I eat in a day as a marketing manager” with very clean visuals and a quick editing style, she introduced her followers to her favorite gummies, Olly Wellness. The video got 55k views and an estimated engagement rate of 2.60%!
Brands can implement sensory marketing strategies in their influencer campaigns by providing sensory marketing ideas and instructions in their campaign briefs.
It’s very important to give clear guidelines on how the content should look and sound like, as well as key talking points. Check this article to learn all about good influencer campaign briefs.
Here are the key aspects you should include in your brief if you want influencers to create sensory experiences with their content:
Moodboards give influencers an idea of how to start planning their content, and the basics on what it should look like.
They are the fastest way to communicate how influencers have to appeal to different senses online: colors, textures, content style and the overall feel.
Include screenshots and links to posts that serve as inspiration to help influencers have a better understanding of what the brand is expecting, and how they can make their content successful.
Audio is a super important component of a post, and can be a game changer when used properly.
Adding sound effects makes the content more immersive and keeps the audience engaged. Trending audios can give you higher chances of your content going viral, while the video’s original audio with ASMR elements can really elevate the sensory experience.
Voiceovers are also increasing in popularity: in 2020, the global voiceover market was valued at approximately USD 4.4 billion and is expected to grow at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 4.4% from 2021 to 202.
Voiceovers are also a powerful association tool: after a few videos, it becomes easier to spot your favorite creator by just listening, without having to check who posted it. Plus, the tone really marks the difference in each influencer’s niche: travel creators tend to talk fast and loud to include all necessary details in a short video, whereas skincare influencers tend to speak in a softer manner to provide a soothing experience.
Finally, voiceover videos accompanied by subtitles incorporate more senses and can increase average watch time and overall audience retention.
If you opt for music, keep in mind that if you have a Business account on Instagram, creators must share content with royalty-free music in it if you want to be added as a collaborator. Otherwise, Instagram’s policy won’t allow the collaboration post!
Sensory marketing isn’t only possible with in-store experiences, but can also be implemented online with influencer marketing. Influencers can use different senses (even without physical touch or smell) to create immersive content:
All of these techniques will make products feel tangible, even in digital spaces, and are great ways of leveraging emotions to build stronger audience connections.
As brands increasingly prioritize sensory-driven marketing, marketers and influencers who understand and master this strategy will stand out—and attract more high-value deals.
So, next time you plan your campaign’s content, think beyond just showing a product. Make your audience feel it.
Influencers can incorporate sensory language by vividly describing how products look, feel, smell, taste, or sound. For example, detailing the rich aroma of a coffee blend or the silky texture of a skincare cream helps followers form a mental image, enhancing authenticity and connection.
Autonomous Sensory Meridian Response (ASMR) involves audio-visual stimuli that elicit calming sensations. Influencers use ASMR techniques, such as soft-spoken reviews or product interaction sounds, to create immersive experiences that resonate with viewers, fostering deeper emotional connections with the brand.
By seamlessly integrating products into current trends or challenges, influencers maintain authenticity. For instance, participating in popular TikTok dances while subtly featuring a product ensures promotions feel natural and engaging, rather than forced.
Sound and sight are key sensory cues in online marketing, as they directly impact emotional responses. For instance, soft background music or ASMR techniques paired with high-quality visuals can trigger positive emotions and help viewers form stronger connections to the brand, leading to higher engagement and potential conversions.
Sensory marketing creates emotional connections by triggering sensory experiences that resonate with consumers on a deeper level. Whether it's the sight of a product's colors or the texture felt through a tactile description, these sensory inputs evoke feelings and memories. This connection strengthens brand loyalty and encourages consumers to form a bond with the brand that goes beyond the product itself.
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