Gauging the Masses

[VikingChick]

Is there a good way of gauging what fragrances customers would like? I’ve bought many FO samples that I love, but I feel as though they’re specific to me. (I’ve always been al little off-mainstream.) I love them but then wonder if the masses would like them. How do I know?

I guess a better way to ask this question is, in sellers’ experience, what do the masses like? I’m a recent convert to NS so anything from them is a bonus!

 

[Aromasuzie]

I notice quite a few fragrance sites often list their best sellers. I know from an Aromatherapy point of view, that citrus is very popular as it's easily recognisable, then there are floral, woody, spicy, green, sweet etc, I imagine that would cover most bases. Google fragrance wheel or families, quite fascinating.

 

[amd]

This took me 4+ years in business to figure out. Once I figured out what my target market is, and what scents those people like, I started selling well.

 

[cerelife]

I’ve always been al little off-mainstream.

A resounding YES to this!!
But I've found that my customers like (and now expect) something a little different and out of the ordinary from me.
Like amd said, you need to find your target market. For me this also varies regionally. For instance: my Voodoo soap collection isn't going to sell at a festival in Georgia, but I sell out every time in Louisiana. BUT I can use a different name for the exact same soaps in Georgia and they sell like crazy - Nurture's All Souls Day FO is "Papa Legba" in LA, but it's 'Funky Lime' in GA. Names are important!!

 

[KiwiMoose]

Black Raspberry and Vanilla seems to be popular. I don't really like it much myself, but it sells well. Also whenever I've done any of the perfume dupes they seem to do well - ambre lumiere, love spell ( it's a mainstay for me ), etc.
White tea is always popular, and bonus - i like it too! I often blend it with other things - citruses or florals and it seems to complement everything.

 

[Carly B]

Black Raspberry and Vanilla seems to be popular. I don't really like it much myself, but it sells well. Also whenever I've done any of the perfume dupes they seem to do well - ambre lumiere, love spell ( it's a mainstay for me ), etc.
White tea is always popular, and bonus - i like it too! I often blend it with other things - citruses or florals and it seems to complement everything.

KiwiMoose (and others)--when you use perfume dupes, what do you name the soaps? Do you incorporate the name of the perfume into the name of the soap?
If not, do you draw attention to the fact that the fragrance is a perfume dupe, or do you just notice that the perfume dupes sell better?

 

[amd]

When I use perfume dupes, I rename the soap. I do my soap labels such that they have a description of the fragrance on the label, so that's where I include "compare to..." info.

 

[Carly B]

Thanks, AMD! That looks like a good approach. I love your font, too.

 

[KiwiMoose]

KiwiMoose (and others)--when you use perfume dupes, what do you name the soaps? Do you incorporate the name of the perfume into the name of the soap?
If not, do you draw attention to the fact that the fragrance is a perfume dupe, or do you just notice that the perfume dupes sell better?

I call my Love Spell soap by the same name. We don't have Victoria's Secret stores here in NZ anyway.
I call Ambre Lumiere by the same name (I'd never heard of the perfume anyways)
I called Chanel #5 by the same name - and of course this is a famous perfume scent that everyone knows.
So yeh - I guess i call them all by the same name

 

[amd]

I meant to add, and didn't, one of the reasons that I don't keep the same name as the dupe is so that a customer can find me when they search for the soap. To explain a bit more... I run into customers quite a bit who will ask me specifically "are you the lady who makes the Bee My Baby soap?". They may not remember my biz name or my contact info, but they do remember the name of the soap.* If someone is ambitious enough, they might even google the name of the soap to see if they can buy it online. Because I do have a website, if they put in enough search parameters [Dark Night by itself pulls up a lot of Batman results] such as "Dark Night Soap South Dakota" they'll find me. Now if I named it the same as the dupe and the customer searches for Drakkar Noir Soap... they may never find me because that's what everyone calls the dupe. Search for Love Spell Soap sometime and you'll see what I mean. I don't want customers to find other soapmakers, I want them to find me.

*Just a bit of clarification on this, especially if you've been selling a while... you probably know that not ALL customers are like this. Most customers generally don't remember the name of the scent. If I had a dollar for every time a customer said "it was blue and had a fresh scent, and I bought it a couple years ago..." I wouldn't need to sell soap anymore. I feel like I have abandoned one of my precious children every time I tell the customer "I'm sorry... I've made 500 batches of soap in the last three years, I don't remember them all..." But, having a name other than the dupe name does help cover one of the possible situations that may cause a customer to remember you, and help them find you.

 

[fizzin_A]

You could ask your FO supplier what their best sellers are and that might give you some indication. Product test groups are another way to gauge the market if you have the means to distribute samples to folks you trust to give honest feedback. I've been a collector of spray on fragrances for many years as a consumer and am connected to several fragrance groups on FB so I have a good idea of what fragrances are mass appealing from that aspect as well.