Research Article

From Aroma to Ambience: Leveraging Sensory Marketing in Traditional Restaurants

Number: Advanced Online Publication Early Pub Date: November 13, 2025

From Aroma to Ambience: Leveraging Sensory Marketing in Traditional Restaurants

Abstract

The use of sensory cues in marketing can provide valuable experiences for consumers when visiting restaurants especially the traditional one through the five senses of consumers. This study seeks into how sensory cues affect customer decisions by using a hybrid analytical technique with PLS-SEM and fs-QCA on a sample of 352 consumers who visited local heritage dining places in Lake Toba, Indonesia. The results from PLS-SEM show that gustative, olfaction, and haptic signals make customers much more attractive, whereas visual and auditory signals have a smaller influence. The fs-QCA study also finds the best combinations of sensory signals that make customers more desirable. These results show how important it is to use both visual and gustative-based sensory marketing methods to make local heritage dining places more appealing to customers. Restaurant management should focus on original flavors, make the smells more appealing, and improve the overall sensory experience to draw in consumers. The study adds to our understanding of sensory marketing by showing how it may be used in local heritage dining places.

Keywords

Thanks

The authors would like to express their gratitude to DRPM for providing the funds for the Penelitian Kompetitif Nasional Dosen Pemula scheme in the implementation year 2024. The authors would also like to express their deepest gratitude to LPPM Satya Terra Bhinneka University and all parties involved in the completion and publication of the research findings.

References

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Details

Primary Language

English

Subjects

Tourism (Other)

Journal Section

Research Article

Early Pub Date

November 13, 2025

Publication Date

-

Submission Date

January 13, 2025

Acceptance Date

August 12, 2025

Published in Issue

Year 2026 Number: Advanced Online Publication

APA
Siagian, H. S. P., & Putri, H. (2025). From Aroma to Ambience: Leveraging Sensory Marketing in Traditional Restaurants. Advances in Hospitality and Tourism Research (AHTR), Advanced Online Publication. https://doi.org/10.30519/ahtr.1618662
AMA
1.Siagian HSP, Putri H. From Aroma to Ambience: Leveraging Sensory Marketing in Traditional Restaurants. Advances in Hospitality and Tourism Research (AHTR). 2025;(Advanced Online Publication). doi:10.30519/ahtr.1618662
Chicago
Siagian, Hendra Sakti Putra, and Hidayatna Putri. 2025. “From Aroma to Ambience: Leveraging Sensory Marketing in Traditional Restaurants”. Advances in Hospitality and Tourism Research (AHTR), no. Advanced Online Publication. https://doi.org/10.30519/ahtr.1618662.
EndNote
Siagian HSP, Putri H (November 1, 2025) From Aroma to Ambience: Leveraging Sensory Marketing in Traditional Restaurants. Advances in Hospitality and Tourism Research (AHTR) Advanced Online Publication
IEEE
[1]H. S. P. Siagian and H. Putri, “From Aroma to Ambience: Leveraging Sensory Marketing in Traditional Restaurants”, Advances in Hospitality and Tourism Research (AHTR), no. Advanced Online Publication, Nov. 2025, doi: 10.30519/ahtr.1618662.
ISNAD
Siagian, Hendra Sakti Putra - Putri, Hidayatna. “From Aroma to Ambience: Leveraging Sensory Marketing in Traditional Restaurants”. Advances in Hospitality and Tourism Research (AHTR). Advanced Online Publication (November 1, 2025). https://doi.org/10.30519/ahtr.1618662.
JAMA
1.Siagian HSP, Putri H. From Aroma to Ambience: Leveraging Sensory Marketing in Traditional Restaurants. Advances in Hospitality and Tourism Research (AHTR). 2025. doi:10.30519/ahtr.1618662.
MLA
Siagian, Hendra Sakti Putra, and Hidayatna Putri. “From Aroma to Ambience: Leveraging Sensory Marketing in Traditional Restaurants”. Advances in Hospitality and Tourism Research (AHTR), no. Advanced Online Publication, Nov. 2025, doi:10.30519/ahtr.1618662.
Vancouver
1.Hendra Sakti Putra Siagian, Hidayatna Putri. From Aroma to Ambience: Leveraging Sensory Marketing in Traditional Restaurants. Advances in Hospitality and Tourism Research (AHTR). 2025 Nov. 1;(Advanced Online Publication). doi:10.30519/ahtr.1618662

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