How Music Can Drive More Retail Sales

The term “visual merchandising” is somewhat of a misnomer, because it’s not limited strictly to visual elements. Visual merchandising refers to the process of presenting a product or products in the most appealing manner possible, usually with the intent to attract more shoppers and generate more sales. While this can done using visual elements like signs, colors and mannequins, it can also be done using music and sounds.

According to one study Donovan and Rossiter, 1982, music affects shoppers’ behaviors via the pleasure-arousal-dominance (PAD) model. Researchers discovered that the type of music played in a store affects shoppers’ mood and behavior. When a store played music that was appealing to the part of the brain that’s associated with pleasure, it triggered a release of hormones and chemicals like oxytocin, dopamine and serotonin, all of which are associated with feelings of happiness.

Playing music also offers the benefits of increased shopper satisfaction. Whether they realize it or not, shoppers want to enjoy their shopping experience — and this means engrossing themselves in the environment. There’s more to a shopping environment that just visual elements, however; the shopping environment consists of visual elements, music and sounds, and even smells. By incorporating all of these elements into your visual merchandising efforts, you’ll improve shopper satisfaction, which should have a positive impact on your sales.

So, what type of music should you play in your retail store to drive more sales and boost shopper satisfaction? It really depends on the type of retail store as well as the store’s target demographic/audience. With that said, however, it’s generally best to focus on music with positive vibes and an upbeat tempo. Playing slow music and sounds with an equally slow tempo may have a negative impact on shoppers’ mood, discouraging them from taking action and buying your store’s product.

A separate study conducted by researchers at the Association for Consumer Research reinforced this belief, finding that loud music with a fast tempo encourages shoppers to move around with greater purpose while subsequently spending more time buying and less time shopping. So if you’re looking to boost sales (and you probably are), it’s recommended that you play music with a fast tempo for maximum results. This, along with traditional elements and practices of visual merchandising, will go a long ways in boosting sales

If you have any questions at all about visual merchandising, please give us a call at 800.241.6897 or email us at /contact-us/.