Don't overlook the music in your restaurant

"If we wish to know people, we must listen to their music." This quote from Plato could, in fact, be applied to your restaurant. If you want to satisfy your customers, you need to play the music that they enjoy.

Well, the choice of music in your restaurant really sets the mood and is an element you do not want to neglect – as it is very important. With the right music, you can set the ambience to match your concept, motivate your team (yes, very important!), and even affect the menu and beverage choices your diners make.

Music, a component often separated from the customer experience in a restaurant

An essential element that defines a restaurant today, beyond the menu, is its concept. The concept itself consists of many different parts – menu, decorations, ambience, and much more. Even the music is an important element when establishing the concept.

The most important part when creating a concept is knowing your customer base. The more traditional audience is more often attracted to a less noisy music choice. They appreciate a calmer background music, not modern styles with a lot of singing.

Another important component is to stay true and consistent to the concept. The content and the atmosphere need to align. A modern, daring restaurant is a better fit to more contemporary musical styles, unlike the more classic cuisines.

Finally, do not hesitate to vary the musical genres. Setup a playlist with a good mix to diversify the styles, and discover new artists or new tracks. There are services today that offer the full music setup to restaurants, they can help you set the right tone (tune) for your restaurant.

Tell me about your food, and I’ll tell you the music to play

According to a study published in the Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science, the volume of music in a restaurant will strongly influence the food ordered by your customers. Simply put: the louder the music, the more customers would tend to order unhealthier choices.

On the contrary, a calmer musical atmosphere would encourage them to make healthier food choices.

Thus, according to this study, 52% of customers would order unhealthy food when the music is louder. The same number is reduced to 42% as the music’s volume decreases.

Causation? It is simply a reflection of the body’s stress level: a higher volume increases the customers’ stress level, causing them to go for a unhealthier choices. On the opposite, quiet places with lower music volumes are more calming and allow customers to make their food choices mindfully, and thus to turn to healthier options.

Beyond being a sensory marketing tool for you to influence customers, music is proven to be an effective method of motivating teams. A survey carried out by SACEM reveals that 89% of the employees questioned say that a background noise motivates them during service.

You are now ready to fine tune your music choices to go together with your dishes – lets tickle your customers’ taste buds!