Communication and the sweet smell of persuasion!

Thanks again to my friends at e science news (Fri October 23rd 2009) for reporting another fascinating piece of research. This work by Brigham Young University looked at the link between behaviour and scented air. They observed two control groups in exercises that indicated levels of trust, fairness, and generosity. They found clear evidence that the group in the room with "clean" lemon scented air were significantly more virtuous in their response to the exercises.
Wow! The implications of this are immense!  Is this the cure for the problems of Saturday night binge drinking in town centres ...will stewards at football grounds subdue feuding fans with air fresheners?
What about the opportunities for those of us in communication and persuasion? Lemon scented newsletters? Incense sticks during appraisals? Kew Gardens could become the conference venue of the year!!


This latest research corresponds well with our growing understanding of the "science" of communication, in particular the powerful impact of external stimuli on sub-conscious interpretation and reasoning.  Interestingly, the participants in this research didn't notice the "clean lemon" smell.
But it certainly is another reminder that there is a lot more to getting your ideas across and winning hearts and minds than just getting up on your feet with a powerpoint presentation.

Bob Howard-Spink is a partner in Persuadability. For tips and advice on getting your message across more persuasively visit http://www.persuadability.co.uk/