Build Customer Loyalty Through Music

In a post-pandemic world, there's a real opportunity for brick-and-mortar businesses to leverage sensory modalities — especially visual, tactile and auditory — to create a unique experience for their brand. Many of the nation’s largest retailers are transforming their stores from places where consumers simply transact into multisensory experiences to increase brand affinity and loyalty. Music is a driving force of the experiential evolution, and retailers that leverage it to create a memorable customer experience touchpoint are at an advantage.

The Mind and Music Connection

U.S. consumers make upwards of 90 billion visits to businesses every year. During these visits, a staggering 79 percent notice the music that's being played. For this reason, many successful retailers use music to connect with their customers.

Businesses can use music to differentiate themselves from competitor brands. For example, Danish food and beverage leader Joe & The Juice has an in-house music manager who focuses on curating brand-fit playlists through its commercial streaming partner. The brand plays mostly upbeat electronic music in comparison to competitors that may focus on low-key, acoustic music. The reason behind this choice is Joe & The Juice is aiming to attract young professionals on the go and spark a more youthful and vibrant atmosphere when in its locations.

From one location to 500 locations, the music a retailer plays should reflect the brand’s image and align with the customer it wants to attract and sustain.

Music Impacts Purchasing Behavior

In this MRC Data report on how U.S. consumers view background music, 39 percent say the right music influences repeat visits to a retailer, 54.9 percent have stayed longer at a business because of the music, and 41 percent would spend more time and money in a retail location if they're enjoying the music. This Gant study surveyed a national retailer with 500 stores around the world and found that sales increased by an average of 37 percent when brand-fit music was played instead of random music.

Consumer behavior research reinforces that brand-fit music increases a customer’s overall satisfaction with the in-store experience, and it has the ability to affect behavior such as time and money spent at a business. It’s clear that retailers need to employ music in day-to-day operations to take their business to the next level. The question is how they can play music legally and consistently.

Music as a Service Technology Bridges the Gap

In recent years, B2B music streaming platforms have emerged to offer retailers a catalog of songs cleared for commercial use with on-demand and customization capabilities, including scheduling features, explicit lyric and content filters, centralized multilocation controls, and more. Leading technologies are allowing these platforms to offer retailers larger music libraries, curated playlists by genre, sound and business type, and mobile apps for easy customization and control. Select B2B music providers take the guesswork out of licensing fees and cover both the recording and performance license in one affordable monthly or yearly subscription payment.

Not all auditory experiences are created equal. The opportunity lies with retailers that deliberately select music that aligns with their brand ethos and demographic. Those that recognize the value of giving their customers a curated experience through music will see a lift in the bottom line.

Ola Sars is the CEO, founder and chairman of Soundtrack Your Brand, the world’s fastest-growing music platform for businesses.