We already know the visual tricks that supermarkets use to encourage us to consume… but the marketing strategies don’t stop there. After sight, another of our senses is subtly manipulated to make us spend more.
In clothing stores, in car dealerships, in casinos, in cinemas, in airports or even in supermarkets… Everything is thought out down to the smallest detail to influence customers and encourage them to purchase. A route designed to make you stay longer, scents diffused to tempt you, “cheap” products installed near the checkouts to catch your eye in the queue: the examples are endless.
This is the whole principle of “sensory marketing”. While our brains first rely on rational elements like the price or features of a product to decide to purchase, brands use this strategy to bypass our thinking, so that emotions and instinct ultimately take over logic. Our senses are constantly manipulated, far beyond sight or smell. And it also happens through hearing. Yes, you have probably already noticed it while doing your shopping: there is music in the supermarket. But it is not chosen by chance!
Major brands study the tempo of their playlist very closely to subtly manipulate our perception of time and our speed of movement, and therefore, our purchasing tendencies. This is not a simple urban legend, several studies have already proven it. In the 1980s, researcher Ronald Milliman conducted an experiment in real conditions in a large supermarket by testing three situations: without music, with fast music (more than 92 BPM) and with slow music (less than 72 BPM). In his study entitled “Using background music to influence customer behavior in supermarkets“, published in the Journal of Marketingit reveals that on days when the music played had a slow tempo, the store recorded 38.2% more sales compared to days with upbeat music. Under slow music, people unconsciously slow down their pace. By walking slower, they spend more time in front of the shelves, which drastically increases the likelihood of an impulsive purchase.
More recently, in 2023, another study confirmed this observation. Researchers at the University of Bath in the United Kingdom found that background music inflated the bill by more than 10%… but only from Monday to Thursday. During the week, customers often shop after work and are therefore more tired. Soft, pleasant music acts as an “anti-stress” that deactivates their budgetary vigilance. On weekends, the effect is almost zero because customers are already relaxed and more rational.
You will have understood that even when applying effective methods to save money on shopping, our brains are so easily influenced that simple background music can be enough to ruin all our efforts! Maybe it’s better to browse the aisles with your own headphones and fast-tempo songs… or head to the supermarket on the weekend, when the stress of work is less likely to take its toll on your wallet.
