Smart music control for businesses

Have you ever been in a silent shop or hotel – with no music playing in the background? What was your impression? If you are like most people, you probably felt uncomfortable, and after looking around a bit, you quickly left, headed towards a friendlier, more welcoming place. On the other hand, have you ever left because the music was too loud or unpleasant, making you feel stressed and uncomfortable? Music is a key element to creating the perfect environment. The right music has the potential to put people in the right mood, create brand image, attract customers and increase sales opportunities and revenue.

5 excellent reasons why playing the right music will benefit your retail business

1. Create and differentiate your brand
   The tempo, loudness, style of the music you play can help communicate your brand’s personality to customers, even before they enter your door. Music is such an effective cue to a brand’s image that it’s often enough to hear notes streaming out of a store to recognise the brand’s and products’ personality.
2. Build the right atmosphere
   Music plays a big role in creating and enhancing the retail or hospitality experience, to the point that four out of five small retailers believe that they would damage their store’s atmosphere if they stopped playing music. Research shows that the music you play affects not only the environment but also the client’s moods and feelings.
3. Create a private space
   By masking the sounds of voices and movements, background music helps create personal space for your clients, giving them privacy as they walk around, dine or relax.
4. Encourage people to shop
   If you own a retail outlet, research shows that music can influence what shoppers choose and how much they buy. A 2005 study revealed that people tend to spend more on impulse buys when pleasant music is playing. The effect was present even when people did not notice the music playing in the store, showing that music has a subconscious (yet very real!) effect on shopping habits. More interestingly, the type of music played can act as a trigger for specific purchases. Classical music, for example, has been found to influence shoppers to buy more expensive items. Scientists believe that it may be because classical music evokes feelings of high quality and elegance, and thus influences shopping decisions in that direction. If you run a high-class store, you may want to consider playing classical tunes as a backdrop to your customers’ browsing. In often-quoted research published in Nature in 1997, researchers played various types of music in a wine store. They found that when French music was playing, people would buy more French wines; when German music was playing instead, people bought more German wines. Amazingly, the shoppers themselves were not aware that the music had had any influence on their wine choices.
5. Increase productivity
   Music is not only for the clients, but employees and managers also benefit from it too. An effective music strategy can be a great tool to boost staff morale, concentration and productivity. Many scientific studies support that people tend to work faster and complete their tasks more accurately and creatively when listening to music.