In the first episode from me Push Podcast I have the fantastic psychologist Dr. Adrian North interviewed, who ran one of them groundbreaking studies On the psychology of music.
Back in 1997, researchers stocked an English supermarket with four varieties of French and German wines, all of which were similar in cost, dryness and sweetness. For two weeks, the store’s speakers played either German oom-pah music or French accordion music. North and his colleagues changed the music daily and measured the effect on sales.
It found that 83% of wine buyers purchased French wine while the accordion music was playing, while 65% of buyers chose German bottles while the Bavarian music was playing.
North interviewed these shoppers as they left the store, but no one claimed the music had an influence on their purchase – but that was clearly the case.
Is the connection between music and purchasing behavior still relevant?
North’s study produced some important results, but it’s worth noting that this study is nearly three decades old and has a relatively small sample size of just 82 people.
So are the findings still relevant today?
Well, clean 2017Researchers at Montclair State University found that playing Italian music in a university cafeteria increased sales of their Italian dish (chicken parmesan). By playing Spanish flamenco tunes, they increased sales of paella.
It’s clear that music seems to influence what we buy. And maybe even what we want to eat?
In fact, during a recent trip to Paris, I couldn’t help but grab a coffee and a croissant at the local bakery every morning. Thinking back, I realized that they regularly played French cafe music. Maybe that’s what fascinated me.
What else can music influence? It turned out to be quite a lot…
In his book Pre-SuasionRobert B. Cialdini writes that music makes children three times more likely to help their peers. Likewise in Get it doneAyelet Fishbach shared how music can increase reps in the gym by 50%. And Nick Kolenda’s work in Imagine reading this book shows that sad music makes life’s exciting milestones seem more distant.
But probably the most influential music study involves (more) supermarket shoppers.
With Ronald E. Milliman study (aptly titled “Using Background Music to Affect the Behavior of Supermarket Shoppers”), he monitored the flow of customers as they navigated through a supermarket in the southern United States. Over nine weeks, he found that customers spent 38% more when playing slow music (60 BPM) compared to fast music (108 BPM).
Milliman and his team concluded that the tempo of the music influenced the speed of shoppers. In other words, a slow pace slowed the pace of shopping and gave customers more time to buy. Convincing, right?
In his wonderful book Sense hackingCharles Spence desperately tried to find companies that translated these findings into music and tempo (and were willing to talk about it).
One of the few public examples is Chipotle.
Spence said Chipotle carefully controls the tempo of music in all of its 3,500-plus stores. They deliberately play faster music at peak times to speed up their customers and shorten the long lines.
Chipotle’s in-house DJ is quoted as saying, “The lunch and dinner crowds have higher BPM songs because we need to keep customers moving.”
During quieter times, the store plays slower music to encourage customers to linger and keep the store busy.
So next time you’re enjoying your lunchtime burrito or reaching for a bottle of German wine, take a minute and ask yourself, “What music is playing?”