Sensory cues and shoppers’ touching behaviour: the case of IKEA

Abstract

Purpose – The presented research aims to depict shoppers' touching behaviour in relation to the introduction of visual and olfactory sensory cues at point‐of‐purchase in a retail setting. In the field of retailing research, there is a paucity of knowledge on how visual and olfactory sensory cues impact on consumers' touch behaviour.Design/methodology/approach – The author presents a review of theoretically relevant work from retailing and consumer psychology, and an original study examining the impact of visual and olfactory sensory cues on consumer touch behaviour. The study was a field experiment in the glass department of the Swedish retailer IKEA. The design was quasi‐experimental with a convenience sample of shoppers assigned to a control group (n=451) and an experimental group (n=435).Findings – In the reported study, the author finds significant differences between shoppers' touching behaviour in a manipulated point‐of‐purchase compared to a conventional one. The findings show that visual and olfac...

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