"Functional music" increases willingness to buy and customer satisfaction
Subtle background music gives pharmacy customers a sense of security, thereby strengthening their trust in the pharmacy’s services. Customers also feel more at ease while shopping. And the majority of employees view the use of «functional music» in the pharmacy as positive. These are the findings of a scientific field experiment conducted by the University of Cologne.
In collaboration with the Hamburg-based think tank Responsive Acoustics (ReAct), which specializes in sound and communication concepts, more than 350 customers and pharmacy employees were surveyed.
"For companies in 'high-trust environments' such as banks or pharmacies, the perception of the attributes of trust and security are particularly decisive for purchasing behavior," says ReAct Managing Director Wilbert Hirsch. "Our study therefore focused on the question of whether this perception can be positively influenced by acoustic room staging."
Two aspects were examined: How the customer perceives the background noise in the pharmacy and how comfortable they feel during their visit. In both cases, customers rated their visit more positively when specially composed music was playing in the background. The background noise in the pharmacy was perceived as safer and thus created a special atmosphere of trust. On a scale of 1 (low) to 10 (high), the average score was 8.81. Customers who were interviewed during a music break rated the atmosphere of trust significantly lower. The retail experts at the University of Cologne found similar results for the perception of well-being.
"Those who feel comfortable stay longer, are more likely to buy and will be happy to come back"
ReAct develops suitable soundscapes for the most diverse types of stores or goods - acoustic background music without vocals, in which sound color plays a decisive role alongside volume and frequency. "40 percent of all environmental impressions are perceived through the ears. We use a very special form of acoustic spatial staging that is played just above human perception. The tempo of our soundscapes is significantly lower than that of the pop music that has often been used in the past," explains ReAct founder and film music composer Hirsch.
Monika Imschloss from the Seminar for Retail and Customer Management at the University of Cologne also confirms that the general conditions are crucial for shopping. "Customers react sensitively to the background noise in a store. The sound atmosphere has a decisive influence on their purchasing behavior. In short: those who feel comfortable stay longer, are more likely to buy and will be happy to return."
However, not only customers, but also the pharmacy employees surveyed appreciate relaxing background music. Almost two thirds of them would like to see soundscapes used at their workplace in the future. The musical setting has a positive effect on the mood of employees. They feel more at ease, are more relaxed and can interact even better with customers.
