How supermarkets trick you into spending more

Hear that sound? It’s the sound of spending too much at the grocery store.

If you find yourself guilty of running into the supermarket and coming out with everything on the shelves, then earplugs could be the solution to stopping your shopping temptations.

Researchers have revealed the sneaky hack stores use to sway you to spend more — and it won’t be music to your ears.

Shoppers buy as much as 10% more when music is played in the store but only during a tough workweek.

According to researchers from the University of Bath’s School of Management, shoppers tend to be mentally drained and exhausted when they shop between Mondays and Thursdays, purchasing 10% more when music is playing as they peruse the aisles.

The study, published in PhysOrg, reasoned that pleasant music playing in-store lifts the mood of shoppers, making their decision-making on shopping items more intuitive rather than needs-based.

By Fridays, however, the power of music has lost its spending persuasion. At the end of the week, people are generally happier and more relaxed without needing a smooth tune to get them there.

“The way they process information and make decisions on purchases changes, and music no
longer impacts on shopping spend,” the study noted.

“During the week people are short of time and many get their grocery shopping done after a full day at work,” said Carl-Philip Ahlbom, from the University of Bath’s School of Management.

“Pleasant music appears to have a mentally soothing effect which impacts the way people shop,” he continued. “At the weekend people are essentially happier, and so the positive power of music is less noticeable.”

Ahlbom noted that playing music when people are shopping on the weekend may even mean people buy less, possibly, because it’s adding more stress to an already busy environment.

Shopping isn’t the only thing music impacts. Research published in 2022 showed that AC/DC actually helped surgeons in the operating room — making them quicker and more accurate.