The Impact of Emotions Stimulated by Sensory Marketing Events on Customers’ Perception of Prices in Price-Setting

In the bustling world of commerce, a price tag is often treated as a cold, rational number, a simple calculation of cost and profit. Yet, for the person standing in the store aisle, that number is rarely processed in isolation. It is filtered through a complex web of feelings, memories, and immediate physical sensations. This is the realm of sensory marketing, a field that explores how the sights, sounds, smells, and textures of a shopping environment shape our decisions. When a store plays a specific song, scents the air with a particular aroma, or offers a soft touch to a product, it is not merely decorating the space; it is actively trying to influence the emotional state of the customer. The central question driving modern business research is whether these emotional shifts, triggered by the senses, can actually change how a person perceives the cost of an item. If a pleasant atmosphere makes a customer feel good, does that good feeling make a high price seem more reasonable, or a discount feel more valuable? Understanding this link is crucial for businesses trying to navigate a competitive market where customers are increasingly driven by experience rather than just logic.

A recent study by Ihor Balandin from Babeș-Bolyai University dives deep into this connection, proposing a structured way to measure how sensory events alter the emotional landscape of a shopper and, in turn, their willingness to pay. The research does not rely on guesswork or broad assumptions about human nature. Instead, it constructs a three-stage model to trace the path from a sensory stimulus to a final price decision. The first stage examines how specific tools, like a scent or a sound, generate an emotional reaction. The second stage investigates how that specific emotional state changes the way a person views a price. The final stage uses these findings to build a pricing strategy that aligns with the emotional reality of the customer. The author suggests that by understanding this chain of events, companies can move beyond static pricing models and adopt strategies that are responsive to the emotional climate they create in their stores.

To illustrate this framework, the researcher designed a series of conceptual experiments using a car dealership as a theoretical laboratory. The goal was to demonstrate how manipulating the sensory environment could shift how visitors feel about cars and their prices. The team introduced five distinct sensory elements into the showroom: diffusing the scent of new leather, playing radio content typical of a driving experience, handing out soft, pleasant-to-touch souvenirs to every visitor, installing neon lighting that mimicked classic car dashboards, and placing small, car-shaped lollipops in the display area. These elements were not just turned on or off; they were applied at different levels of intensity, ranging from a subtle background presence to a strong, noticeable force. The study outlines how emotional responses could be tracked through surveys and physiological measurements like heart rate, though the specific data presented in the paper are conditional examples and modeled calculations rather than results from actual physiological tracking.

The illustrative results of this sensory testing reveal a clear pattern in the model. Not all sensory inputs work equally well in the example. The most powerful positive emotional reactions in the modeled data come from two specific sources: the soft, touchable souvenirs given to every visitor and the small, car-shaped lollipops. When these items are presented at a medium to high intensity in the example, the modeled data indicates visitors report significantly better moods. Interestingly, the other elements, such as the strong leather scent or the bright neon lights, do not produce the same consistent positive effect in the model and, in some cases, even cause negative reactions when pushed too hard. This finding suggests that the "more is better" approach does not always apply; the right sensory tool at the right intensity is what matters. The study identifies that a soft keychain or a small plush toy, given freely, is the most effective way to lift the emotional state of the customer in this theoretical scenario.

With the most effective sensory tools identified in the model, the research moves to the second phase: testing how these improved moods affect price perception. The researchers apply the successful sensory elements—the soft souvenirs and the lollipops—to a new group of visitors in the example while presenting them with different price scenarios. They measure how these visitors react to the current market price, a lower price, and a higher price. The modeled data shows a distinct shift in perception. Visitors who are exposed to the positive sensory stimuli, particularly the soft souvenirs, view the existing price of the car much more favorably than those who have not. In the example, under the influence of this positive emotional state, customers are willing to consider buying even when the price is higher than usual. They perceive the cost as more acceptable, and their readiness to purchase increases. Conversely, when the sensory environment is not stimulating positive emotions in the model, customers are much more sensitive to price increases and less likely to buy.

The study concludes that emotions are not just a side effect of shopping; they are a lever that can be pulled to influence pricing power. The research proposes a new set of strategies for businesses based on these findings. If a company can successfully create a positive emotional atmosphere through sensory marketing, it may be able to implement an "emotionally oriented pricing strategy," where prices can be set higher because the customer's positive feelings make the cost seem fairer. Alternatively, if the emotional response is mixed or negative, the data suggests that discounts and promotions become necessary to offset those feelings and encourage a sale. The research also highlights that these strategies must be tailored to specific groups of people and specific environments. What works in a car showroom might not work in a grocery store, and what creates joy for one group might cause irritation for another.

Ultimately, this work offers a roadmap for businesses to move from intuition to evidence-based decision-making. By systematically testing which sensory tools create the best emotional responses and then measuring how those responses change price perception, companies can optimize their pricing strategies with greater precision. The study does not claim to have solved the mystery of human behavior with empirical data, but it provides a clear, measurable framework for understanding the invisible link between a soft toy in a hand and the decision to sign a contract. It suggests that the future of pricing lies not just in the numbers on a spreadsheet, but in the carefully curated sensory experiences that shape how a customer feels in the moment of purchase.