Don’t Be a Scrooge Add Holiday Music To Your In-Store Mix
It’s the most wonderful time of the year! …. Or is it?… All most shoppers want is to make the holidays perfect for their family and friends, but for many consumers, holiday shopping can be both tiring and tiresome. Spending the day fighting holiday traffic, as well as fending off crowds of other shoppers, dealing with harried customer service types is enough to eave anyone mentally and physically exhausted.
By the time some shoppers arrive at your store, what they really want is a great holiday shopping experience. While the right holiday music can coax those tired shoppers into the holiday spirit, mood, smart business know that when it comes to overhead background music, it boils down to the type of music played – as well as at what volume and how often – can make the decision on whether to keep shopping, or have them running for the exit.
Our elves have been hard at work putting together some tips, as well as what you should avoid, in order to a list on how to create a successful holiday playlist in order to get your customers in the holiday shopping mood.
This is your brain on “Jingle Bells”.
Background Music affects the way customers shop. It turns out there’s quite a bit of research indicating that music affects our shopping behavior, even when we’re not aware of it. Studies show we spend more on flowers when romantic music is playing in the background. We choose more expensive bottles of wine when listening to Vivaldi. We linger in restaurants playing slow-tempo music, which leads us to order more food (not to mention drinks) and run up a longer tab. Given that happy shoppers are likely to spend more, playing Christmas background music holds a good deal of intuitive appeal for store owners.
Choose the right playlist (or you might drive customers crazy).
While the holidays represent a joyous time, not everyone will appreciate the madness of the holiday shopping season, coupled with the endless repetitive loops of cheesy holiday hits. That’s why savvy marketers understand that they really need to think about the customer, their brand and how what holiday tunes they’re going to sling this season. In a nutshell, song selection and timing are hugely important to a successfully holiday playlist.
For as much good that holiday music can do with a brand experience, choosing the wrong music can open you up to creating some potential damage with the misuse of it.Proceed with the caution that no holiday music should be played too much, no matter what it is. “When you play 100 percent Christmas music, it can be fatiguing. A heavy rotation of holiday music can drive customers nuts (not to mention your employees). We recommend a 60/40 blend of holiday and regular music, even during the height of the season.
When should you begin playing holiday music?
As stated above there are two very important items when it comes to overhead holiday background music at your business — song selection and timing! The best way of introducing holiday music onto your playlist is to slowly ease it into your business in between the usual tracks you play.
So, when is the perfect time to slip a few Christmas songs into your lineup and gradually increase the number of holiday songs throughout the month? The real answer really lies in that it depends on what your business does, who it serves, etc. However a suggested rule of thumb is; in-store holiday music in retailers will begin around the 15th of November and between the 25th – 31st for most other businesses.
Final Thoughts…
The holidays can be a hectic time for shoppers and business owners alike. Choosing the right holiday music can boost your brand while enhancing your customers’ holiday shopping experience. Holiday music is one of the most influential components of Christmas season marketing, but remember, don’t get carried away though. Too much exposure to holiday music can have a negative effect on shopping behavior.
If you’re ready to discover more about the many benefits of the right overhead background music, then contact Original On Hold today. Our music designers are ready to help create the perfect playlist to boost your brand.
