Mood Media Corporation excites with ‘sensorial’ sales

Mood Media Corporation (TSX:MM /AIM LSE:MM) is a leading international in-store media specialist. The company uses a mix of music, visual and scent media to give consumers the ultimate brand experience and drive incremental sales at the point-of-purchase.

“Our technology is at the cutting edge of the sensorial in-store media market and our brand-enhancing services can help drive growth in a wide range of businesses. The return on investment with our solutions is much higher than other options like traditional media advertising. This means our service is one option retailers, and a broad range of businesses, cannot afford to ignore.”
-Vanessa Walmsley, SVP of Corporate Marketing, Mood Media Corporation

The group works with a wide range of businesses including specialist retailers, department stores, supermarkets, financial institutions, fitness clubs, restaurants and bars. Operating through its two principal divisions; In-Store Media and Retail Point-of-Purchase, Mood Media Corporation works with more than 800 retail chains in more than 30 countries throughout North America, Europe, Asia and Australia.

Decks, DJ booths and cool club tracks are some of the cutting edge ideas High Street fashion label Guess uses to create an in-store atmosphere fitted to the tastes of its trendy young shoppers.

And there is no better way to do this than through the unique expertise of 'sensorial' in-store marketing specialist, Mood Media Corporation (MMC).

Almost three quarters of shoppers aged 18-44 say they like hearing in-store music while they shop, according to a recent study by MMC. This is a fact the company keeps in mind when providing its clients with unique audio solutions, which it combines with exciting visual and even 'scent' services.

It fitted out the UK flagship store of Guess with fully integrated audio, visual and scent solutions in early 2010 and is in the process of rolling out its branded music service to stores throughout Europe.

The retailer recently-opened its flagship store on Brompton Road in London in September 2010 and was keen to utilise each of the three elements underpinning MMC's media solutions - audio, visual and scent - in order to entice its customers to spend longer in store and ultimately purchase more.

Audio tailored to customers' tastes

MMC works with each of its clients to choose playlists that are specifically tailored to their stores' customer demographic, so that shoppers will enjoy spending more time shopping.

The Guess flagship store has a custom music channel, designed to match the channel used in its US stores, through which it can play tracks that have been carefully chosen by Guess in association with MMC. It is composed mainly of upbeat vibrant chart and club tracks, delivered via MMC's media hard-drive, the MP7000. Content is updated via an integrated network, fed directly from its media centre.

MMC has also supplied the store with a full DJ booth, which is kitted out with the latest Pioneer CDJ decks and mixer.

In general, the company's music solutions include advice on choosing a 'playlist' from its impressive collection of 1.8 million 'rights-included' tracks, creating a branded radio station or partnering with upcoming artists to enhance a customer's brand experience.

Over two-fifths of 18-44 year-olds at 42% in the MMC study stated audio was most important element of in-store media, but half of those aged over 44 opted for in-store 'scents' .

The scent of success

Attractive in-store fragrances can create a memorable welcome and give customers a reason to stay longer. MMC subtly introduces the client's bespoke scent to stores by using a unique 'nebulisation' process, which offers 100% room coverage without heavy scenting.

Guess has chosen to use a version of its own fragrance, "Seduction", throughout the store to create a sensorial shopper experience worth returning to.

MMC has a range of scents to choose from, including the scent of grass in DIY stores to remind shoppers of springtime. These enhance the harmony of a brand experience and create a positive brand environment.

Visuals with an eye on sales

MMC uses a web-based visual software application, which is built specifically for POS communications, to allow Guess management to easily control the visual and audio broadcasts in-store. TeamCo's schedules can be as simple or as complex as Guess wishes them to be so as to ensure the right blend of visual and audio media is playing in-store at all times. Different content can be used throughout the day to appeal to the particular consumer demographic in the store at any given time and also matched to any 'zones' within each store. 

The player is loaded with eye-catching content created by MMC from a range of images provided by Guess. This broadcasts across a video wall, consisting of two 46" NEC LCD screens in portrait, stacked above each other. Guess plans to install similar solutions in its stores in Syria, Cannes and La Defense, France. The content is used in the Accessories store to reinforce the brand and draw attention to the latest collection.

MMC's digital signage solutions can include interactive, innovative and eye-catching content that works with touch-screen technology, LCD screens and electronic point-of-sale systems.

Why in-store media?

So how does in-store marketing work? Firstly, the most important consideration is what the customer wants to achieve and how they want to be seen. MMC works closely with businesses to identify their business objectives and create an individual solution that reflects the brand.

The advantage of in-store media is that retailers can communicate with consumers at the most crucial time - at the point-of-purchase, when purchasing decisions are really made.

In-store media is more than a pleasant experience for consumers - it makes the most of a customer's ROI on marketing spend. Stores can experience a 40% sales uplift advertising on in-store radio, an 18% sales uplift in stores that play the right music versus silence and a 25% category uplift from advertising across multi-media in-store networks, according to a 2010 study by the Co-operative.

Broad reach

MMC works with a broad range of retailers, including Thomas Pink, Timberland, Niketown and HMV, the Nuffield Health gym chains, hospitality providers such as Hilton and financial institutions such as ING.

The company also works with a range of small, single-site businesses. No matter the size or type of business, MMC has an in-store media solution to suit their needs.