From Lead Generation to Engagement

In a world where the customer journey no longer follows a linear path, marketers face a growing challenge: how to truly engage people to deepen a relationship with a brand and not just move them along the funnel.

The customer experience is becoming more and more complex and multi-channel. According to the ‘messy middle’ concept, consumers do not act rationally, nor do they make quick decisions. Instead, they move continuously between the exploration and evaluation phases, going through dozens of touchpoints influenced by algorithms, reviews, emotions, and often imperceptible sensory stimuli. As a result, the classic sales funnel has given way to the flywheel model: a circular system in which every interaction, impression, and experience becomes part of a cycle that fuels engagement, loyalty, and advocacy.

To succeed in this ever-changing environment, brands must create experiences that connect, not just convert. This is where multisensory marketing — a strategic approach that engages multiple senses to create deeper, more memorable brand experiences—becomes not only relevant but essential.

The early 2000s saw the rise of smartphones, e-commerce, and social media technologies that revolutionised the way brands interact with their consumers. These innovations, however, also generated a common side effect that persists today: a ‘sensory vacuum’. This term refers to the growing tendency to prioritise digital-only experiences at the expense of more ‘real’ ones. In this vacuum, touch, smell, sound, and even physical presence are often neglected, resulting in interactions that, while efficient and scalable, can feel impersonal and sterile.. 

In the physical world of retail, people can touch products in their inviting packaging, smell fragrances, hear relaxing music, and generate an overall response linked to how they feel in that particular context, while in digital environments, these dimensions are often completely flattened out or left out altogether. This disconnect has prompted researchers and companies to investigate how the absence or presence of sensory stimuli affects the customer experience, and the results consistently point towards a substantial gap. 

An EEG study published in 2021 found that customers allowed to touch products in-store showed beta brain activity in the right side of the brain, associated with greater sensory and emotional engagement. In contrast, those who were not allowed to touch showed signs of frustration and cognitive overload. Touch, therefore, is not a plus but a neurophysiological necessity capable of establishing an emotional connection and perceiving the product in a more positive light.

Longitudinal studies on olfactory and tactile stimuli have also shown that appealing to these senses significantly influences behaviour and purchase intention. Music, ambient scents, and textures are all elements that act as ‘invisible influences’ in customer decisions.

Overall, while digital channels have evolved massively in terms of exposing certain people to messages and becoming extensively used, they have also lost many of the sensory cues that once helped build trust, memory, and emotional resonance, all elements that are necessary for the message and brand to be remembered.

We now live in a phygital world, where the lines between physical and digital experiences are increasingly blurred—and naturally, customer expectations have evolved to match this new reality. Today, people seek a fluid yet coherent experience, rich in emotional stimulation and engagement – whether it is visiting a store, scrolling through a feed, or opening a box at home.

Despite this new trend, many brands design touchpoints without considering the importance of the senses. They track clicks and optimize for conversions but forget what really drives loyalty: emotions.

According to recent research, only 17% of companies claim to shape their marketing strategy based on a holistic customer journey, while others still rely on fragmented and tactical campaigns. This is where experiential marketing offers a strategic advantage: by activating the entire spectrum of human perception, brands can not only attract but also retain attention, building emotional memory and creating connections.

Designing customer experiences around the senses means following the footsteps of brands that have realised that physical contact, smell, sound, and sight are not accessory elements to a winning marketing strategy but vehicles of meaning and memory. Take the example of  Apple: every detail of the unboxing of an iPhone is calibrated to arouse emotion. From the sound of the packaging sliding to the minimal elegance of the materials, it is a sensory experience designed to stick long before the product is switched on.

In the hospitality sector, high-end hotels are already experimenting with similar strategies, offering guests immersive anticipations: personalised room fragrances, fabric textures that evoke the comfort of the rooms, and small gourmet samples that anticipate the culinary experience they will savour when they visit. The objective is to make the stay come alive even before it begins, stimulating the imagination through the senses.

In the beauty world, international cosmetics brands such as Lush or Sephora accompany digital launches with initiatives that encourage customers to touch, smell, and experience products physically, creating a bridge between the online and the real world. This hybrid approach multiplies contact points and strengthens the relationship with the customer, turning interest into engagement and engagement into action.

Customer expectations change constantly, and what works today may be obsolete tomorrow, but one thing remains true: we remember what we feel.

For this reason, multisensory experiences are not a fad. They are the natural evolution of brand connection, and they are meant to increase in popularity as we become more digitally connected. Just as we went from print to digital and from product to experience, today’s marketers are facing a new dilemma: how to design touchpoints that you can actually touch. Once a solid relationship between the customer and the brand is established, the sales will follow.

Standing out isn’t enough. You need to be heard, remembered and felt.