Playing music in grocery stores is a smart strategy that could improve your bottom line. Researchers say the right playlist can enhance your store’s image, make your employees happier, and encourage your customers to spend more money.

While choosing the right music is essential, paying attention to the sound system you’ll use to share the sounds is smart. Your perfect system should surround the space with sound without creating echoes or dead zones.

At Pandora CloudCover, we can help you select perfect playlists and manage the sounds throughout the day. Our CloudBox is anideal sound system element for shops of all sizes.

Why Music Matters in Grocery Store Retail

Music does more than fill dead space inside a grocery store. A carefully curated playlist can have a profound impact on how customers act within your store and how much they’re willing to spend. Music can hide unwanted sounds and improve employee morale too.

Music Tempo Influences Shopping Behavior

Researchers suggest customers tend to move faster when up-tempo music is playing and linger when the tempo slows down. If you hope to shorten checkout lines and keep things moving, faster music helps.If you want customers to browse, slow down the sounds.

Enhance Brand Identity & Mask Unwanted Sounds

Music can also help you explain who you are and what you value. For example, your family-friendly upbeat playlist shows you’re a go-to resource for working families, while your jazz-based sounds suggest you’re there for adult luxury shoppers.

The songs you play can also help your customers focus on their shopping and not on distracting conversations or other forms of background noise. That makes shopping even more fun.

Case Study: High-End Grocery Chain Centrally Controls MusicAcross 40+ Locations

A large supermarket chain in California wanted to share only brand-approved music across multiple locations. That meant a partner that could provide centralized control and plenty of music to choose from. CloudCover was the perfect partner. Read the case study.

What to Consider When Choosing a Grocery Store Sound System

Shopping for a grocery store sound system is easy when you know what to look for. In general, start by assessing your space and its unique sound challenges. Then look for tools to fit your unique requirements. Pandora CloudCover’s CloudBox makes this process really easy.

Acoustics & Store Materials

Most grocery stores have plenty of reflective surfaces. They can include the following:

• Shiny floors
• Windows
• Plastic or cardboard products
• Suspended signage
• Uncovered ceilings

Those surfaces can cause sounds to bounce and echo, making music confusing or hard to listen to. Ceiling tiles, carpet, curtains, and other dampening materials can help to reduce echoes.

Layout, Coverage & Zoning

The size and layout of your store dictate how many speakers you need and where they should be placed. The larger your space, the more speakers you’ll need to avoid dead spots.

Large stores can benefit from music zones. One zone (like the checkout areas) might have fast-paced music, while another (like the high-end cheese aisle) might have slower sounds. Multiple speakers are required here as well, as overlapping audio can be unpleasant.

CloudBox can support these zone options, and it’s easy for grocery store owners to manage all connected speakers from one space.

Sound Quality

High-quality components and digital processing tools can ensure your music is played clearly and uniformly throughout your retail space. Crisp and balanced music is much more pleasant to listen to than muffled or distorted songs.

CloudBox offers the clear, crisp sound consumers deserve while shopping inside your grocery store.

Directional & Targeted Audio

Directional speakers can push sound to the spots where it's most needed. You can use technology like this to provide appropriate sound coverage in particularly noisy spots (like the shopping cart storage area) for a more pleasant experience. You can also share messages with customers standing in front of a particular product.

Control, Flexibility & Ease of Use

Grocery store owners have plenty to do everyday. Few can function as full-time DJs. The ideal sound system is user-friendly and easy for anyone to control quickly. A system like this can enable you to make changes throughout the day without interrupting your workflows.

CloudBox is remarkably easy for anyone to use and control, including people who have no experience with traditional sound systems.

PA & Announcement Integration

Announcements are essential tools for grocery store owners. You need the ability to tell consumers about your sales, specials, and deals when they’re standing inside the store. An ideal tool can integrate those messages with the music you’ll play.

Pandora CloudCover offers this type of announcement, and it’s easy to manage via CloudBox.

What Type of Music Should Grocery Stores & Markets Play?

There’s no one-size-fits-all playlist for grocery stores, and that’s a good thing. Each store has the opportunity to experiment and find songs that match its brand and customer base perfectly.

At Pandora CloudCover, our musicologists can help you create the perfect brand-specific playlist for your grocery store. You can make adjustments to those songs at any point.

Ideally, you’ll rotate playlists throughout the day to match the mood of your customers and the songs they’d like to hear. Up-tempo mornings and down-tempo evenings are common, but you may find your customers want something different. You’re in control with Pandora CloudCover.

Your Grocery Store Audio Solution: Pandora CloudCover’s CloudBox

CloudBox is the premier music management choice for grocery stores and markets of all sizes. Here’s why:

• Plug and play: You won’t need hours of setup time to get started.
• Always on: Music is stored locally and keeps playing even when your internet connection goes down.
• High power: All of your speakers can be controlled through the CloudBox.
• Low price: The CloudBox costs less than $100.

Why Grocery Stores Everywhere Are Moving to Pandora CloudCover

Music is key to the grocery store experience, but power and consistency matter. That’s why grocery stores nationwide are moving to Pandora CloudCover’s CloudBox. This simple, low-cost solution provides 24/7 access to business-friendly music every grocery store needs.

Pandora CloudCover’s tools include the following:

• Multi-location controls
• Zone customization
• Brand-specific playlists
• Ease of use

Try PandoraCloudCover for free for 14 days and experience the power and convenience for yourself. Terms and conditions apply.

Tips for Sound System & Equipment Setup in Your Grocery Store

Every sound system and speaker setup is slightly different. Still, most grocery store owners must consider the same items and make similar adjustments as they introduce music to their customers.

Small Grocery Stores & Neighborhood Markets (Under 5,000 square feet)

Small shops typically need just a few speakers strategically placed throughout the space. Add too many, and you could make it difficult for customers to hear one another and your staff members.

Try to place your speakers evenly throughout the space, so customers don’t just hear the sounds coming from one direction.And ask for feedback from your customers to ensure you’ve got the sound levels just right.

Medium-Sized Grocery Stores (5,000 to 15,000 square feet)

Larger grocery stores typically need more speakers than their smaller counterparts. Once again, you want to place your speakers evenly for full coverage that doesn’t seem to originate from just one direction. But each speaker likely needs individual control.

In a larger space, your speakers should be enabled to play targeted messages in one specific aisle. You should have enough to ensure people can’t hear that message when they’re not in your specified zone.

Large Grocery Stores & Supermarket Chains (Larger than 15,000 square feet)

Very large stores need plenty of speakers to ensure no dead zones or echoes. Spaces like this may also benefit from zones, allowing you to use music to guide your customers from one department to another.

The music you play in your entire enterprise should match exactly. Your customers shouldn’t hear something in one location that seems out of place in another. Partners like Pandora CloudCover make this quick and easy, as you control the sounds in all locations from one dashboard.

Frequently Asked Questions

What tempo of music is best for grocery stores?

In general, a fast tempo makes customers move through the space quickly. A slow tempo makes them linger. The ideal tempo for your store depends deeply on how quickly you want your shoppers to move.

Can I just stream personal Pandora or Spotify music services over the PA?

Personal Pandora or Spotify accounts do not have the licenses you need to play music in a retail environment. If you play music from a personal account, you could be subject to lawsuits and fines.

Can Pandora CloudCover help build customer playlists for my grocery store?

Yes. Pandora CloudCover musicologists can help to design playlists that match your brand.

How many speaker zones do I need in my store?

It depends. The larger the space, the more speaker zones you’ll need. In general, you need enough zones to allow for crisp, clear sounds in all spaces without overlapping or echoes.

Can sound systems incorporate my existing promotional messaging?

Yes. Pandora CloudCover’s plans come with the ability to create custom messages and intermix them with the music played through your speakers.

References

Using Background Music to Affect the Behavior of Supermarket Shoppers. (1982). Journal of Marketing.

The Effects of Background Music on Consumer Responses in a High-end Supermarket. (December 2007). The International Review of Retail, Distribution, and Consumer Research.

Legal Disclaimer:The materials on this website are provided for general informational purposes only and do not constitute legal advice. Any descriptions or references to products, services, or technologies represent opinion only and should not be construed as statements of fact.  The information is provided “as is,” without any representation or warranty as to accuracy, completeness, timeliness, or fitness for a particular purpose. We disclaim all liability for actions taken or not taken based on this content or any linked materials. Links to third-party websites are provided for convenience only, and we do not endorse or assume any responsibility or risk for their content, products, services, or potential damages arising from their use.

‍