The Power of Music in Customer Behavior: A Neuroscientific Approach
As a music therapist and lifelong music enthusiast, I dare say that the power of music is infinite and surprisingly mutable. From a neurological perspective, it is scientifically proven that listening to music stimulates a large portion of the human brain by activating its circuits, regions, and enhancing connectivity. Who hasn't been moved, laughed, or even cried upon hearing a song they love?
Just like in many everyday contexts, what a customer experiences in a commercial space that has carefully selected its music can have a significant impact. Both the identity of a brand and the desired experience or message it wants to convey can be represented through a combination of songs, lyrics, and rhythms.
After extensive and groundbreaking research, science has confirmed that music has the ability to stimulate and restore our executive functions. This is crucial when considering the desired behavior of a consumer: attention, decision-making, organization, and planning. These are all functions that consumers engage when they are in a commercial space. In this way, actions such as staying in a store, stopping to look at something, or even recalling a brand can be influenced by the music that is chosen.
I'd like to focus on the factor of attention for a moment, understanding it as the ability to select and concentrate on a task, as well as to remain focused for a defined period of time. In the same way, attention stimulates thinking and memory, both key components for consumer frequency and a brand's top of mind. Music has the ability to stimulate these attention processes and, therefore, can lead a customer to stay longer in a space, becoming a powerful tool for attraction.
Lastly, but certainly not least, we must highlight the emotional value of music and the pleasure it can generate. From a scientific standpoint, neuroimaging studies have confirmed that music can modulate activity in various brain structures that are essential for emotional responses. It’s clear that in order to create a pleasant environment for customers, playing the right song at the right moment is essential.
That being said, and as Brandtrack suggests, every piece of music should be selected with care and with a specific goal in mind. A brand that wants its customers to stay for a short time, stimulating turnover, is not the same as one that aims for a longer, more relaxed consumption experience; it all depends on the business strategy in place. Considering the power music has over us, it’s evident that its proper execution can be a great tool to enhance businesses around the world.