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Kim, Yu-Jin
- Science of Emotion and Sensibility
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- v.11 no.3
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- pp.427-439
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- 2008
In order to effectively communicate the fragrances of commercial perfumes to consumers, it is important to apply congruent colors to their bottles and packaging. This research investigated the cross-modal associations between colors and fragrances through two experiments. In the first experiment, bottle colors of more than 200 popular perfumes in the market were analyzed. Distinguishable color design patterns of the bottles were revealed in accordance with their fragrance types. The second experiment expanded the use of color-odor matching task to a test population of Korean participants. Participants selected colors evoked by fragrances of three test perfumes in a blind setting. These three perfumes had characteristic hues and their associated hues were similar with the real colors of their bottles. In addition, there were significant variations in color tone across fragrance notes, viz. the top notes, middle notes, and base notes. The results of the two experiments suggest the existence of robust cross-modal associations between particular colors and fragrances in commercial perfumery.
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