Listen to the Retail Beat

Sometimes Jeff and I have a conversation about the music we play in the store.  Sometimes I tell him that a few of his selections are not "walkin' around, shopping music".  I think I have finally gotten through to him on this point.
Have you ever been in a store, ready to shop and all of a sudden you notice that something is missing?  And what is often missing is MUSIC.
When that happens, I begin to feel a little wierd, like the air is stale, people are watching me, I don't feel "upbeat" and I sort of want to leave the store. 
We are so accustomed to having a little white noise in our lives that when we find total silence, we just seem to be out of our element.  The same thing happens when you are in the movie theatre and all of a sudden, there is no soundtrack.  You begin to notice all the little people noises around you and it becomes very distracting.
Selecting "shopping music" is really a part of our job.  It can't be music which is too somber and slow.  It can't be music unfamiliar to most people.  It has to be music that sounds familiar, occasionally makes you want to sing along, kind of puts a skip in your walk and the world seems brighter and happier.
There is one time of the year when music becomes a little intrusive.  Holiday time, holiday music, right?  And if stores start playing holiday music before "the right time", then we notice that someone has jumped the gun on holiday music.
And there are those holiday tunes that sort of get on your nerves.  You've heard them over and over until you want to use ear plugs.  Those are the lyrics and melodies that roll around in your head even hours after you have been shopping.
Jeff has the largest collection of Christmas music I have ever seen.  He can't pass at $5.95 rack of Christmas C.Ds without stopping.  We literally have to forbid him from buying any more Christmas C.Ds.
So when you are out shopping the next time, tune into the tunes playing in the store.  Check the music against your own play list and see if that store has scored a few points with their choice of music.
At Sweet Tooth we are always trying to refine the Retail Beat!!