Candle manufacturers are constantly evaluating new fragrances as the fragrances are seasonal and change with fashion trends.  While there has been continual innovation in the product development of candles, with many new premium and mass market categories of candles launching all the time – from cosmetics to fabric care companies – sensory research in this area has been slow to change. Up until now candle fragrance testinghaspresented a number of challenges, making it inefficient to select which ones to take to market as well as potentially dangerous. Being able to test consumer appeal for different variants is vitally important for candle product developers as fragrance plays such a central part in consumer decisions for candles. But how easy has it been to test various prototypes?  How available or optimal have the traditional methods of evaluation been for gaining the best information about consumer appeal which then guides decisions about which variants to take to market?  And are we focusing enough on whether consumer acceptance differs depending upon whether a candle is tested cold or in ‘burn’ mode?
 
Testing in cold and burn mode – how do they compare
 
Often there is a bottleneck in terms of evaluation. Many companies only get professional evaluators and consumers to test multiple fragrances for candles in cold mode.  While this replicates the point of purchase, it doesn’t provide insight into the response to the fragrance ‘in-use’. Repeat purchase requires understanding the fragrance appeal in the burn mode. But there are never enough safe places to test candles in burn mode. Attemptsto test candles in burn mode have posed serious fire risks and resulted in burning test candles in inappropriate places. Even when fire risks have been minimized, there has been the additional challenge of avoiding cross-contamination and bias of color or form.
 
As sensory research specialists, who regularly conduct fragrance evaluations in this category, we wanted to observe differences which might exist between the two consumer touchpoints. We needed to know if consumer acceptance differed depending upon whether they experienced the fragrance “in use” or “on the shelf”?  And were there implications for only testing in one format?
 
But how do you test a candle in burn mode in a safe and consistent environment? In our study we used our qPOD (Portable Olfactive Evaluation Devices) platform to accurately explore the scent in burn mode. There were two key elements we were looking to understand:
 
1)    how sensory differences between a diffused candle fragrance in burn mode vs. cold mode may impact consumer appeal and purchase decisions.
2)    validate that multiple candles can be tested in burn mode in one room safely without cross-contamination with the use of portable olfactive devices.
We asked a sample group of women, aged 21 – 55, to smell two fruit candle fragrances and two candy sweet fruity(Gourmand) fragrances in both the burn and cold modes.  To replicate the point of purchase experience, they sniffed the candles in cold mode. Then to replicate the ‘in-use’ experience, four different candles in burn mode were evaluated in the same room, each placed in separate evaluation devices.  With this method we were able to avoid cross contamination and danger from fire.
 
The consumers were allowed to sniff each fragrance for as long as they needed to form an opinionto complete the survey.  The consumersthen indicated which descriptive words they associated with each fragrance and how likely they were to purchase the different variants. 

  
 
Q Research Solutions found that fragrance descriptors trended similarly in cold and burn mode – for both the fruit and Gourmand fragrances.  However, consumers liked the more complex, full-bodied fragrances dramatically more in burn mode. Fragrances tested in burn mode received more key “definite” intent to buy votes.  In addition, according to the consumers, the fruit scents had a more pronounced personality in burn mode. In conclusion, it makes a considerable difference for a candle maker’s strategic decision making to be able to test fragrances in both cold and burn modes. While the insights gleaned from testing in both modes are complementary, it is clear that understanding how a consumer responds to the fragrance when it is in “burn” mode, can be different and fundamental for getting repeat purchase.
 
About the Authors:
Rhoda Makled is SVP, sensory and consumer insights, and Deborah Wright is vice president, fragrance innovation, at Q Research Solutions.