Sound Systems: How Music Can Make Or Break Your Restaurant Business
Music is a very powerful medium of expression. From bringing people together to helping relieve their stress, music has the ability to make or break situations. This is especially true with commercial establishments like restaurants and bars, as the music plays an indispensable part in creating a great ambiance. Whether your customers consciously listen to it or not, the music you play in your restaurant provides them with positive customer experience.
If you are working on boosting sales and customer dwell time, it’s high time you considered investing in a good quality sound system. As the quality of your sound system is just as important as the choice of your playlist it is important to upgrade your restaurant audio system for the better. To help you make an informed decision, here are some simple guidelines for the same.
Essential elements of a commercial sound system
To design the perfect sound, it is important to leverage the three essential elements- choice of music, coverage and audio control. By getting each of these elements right, you can enhance the audio quality of your restaurant's sound system. Let's get into more details the elements to be considered.
Studies show that playing “brand-fit” music can increase the revenues by 9.1 percent as it directly affects the customer’s emotions. This is because the kind of music played in a commercial establishment like a restaurant has a psychological effect on consumers. For instance, slow and soft ambient music in restaurants can increase the customer’s time. So before you choose music for your establishment, have a clear idea as to what your F&B establishment stands for.
You also need to choose a reliable streaming service for your audio system. One cannot simply play music from youtube or online music services as these often have advertisement interruptions. Further, the music you play in your restaurant should be licensed as playing unlicensed songs could end up costing you your business. For licensed music, you can rely on streaming services like Spectrio or another Custom Channels.
The next important factor is the coverage of your audio system. For optimum overage of your restaurant space, you need to have a combination of speakers, and subwoofers in the right positions.
If you have a large restaurant that requires different music in different areas, divide your restaurant into different zones. Decide how you want to stream music to each of these zones. For instance, you may want a different sound system for your dining area and the washrooms. Depending upon the experience you want to provide your customers, different equipment may be required.
When it comes to controlling your audio equipment, ensure that the access is restricted to your employees and is not available to your customers. If needed, use concealments as part of your interior design so that the equipment is not visible to customers. As well, restrict your audio your network by setting up passwords.
Finding the right audio equipment
Every good sound system will have a source. While speakers and amplifiers can keep your audio signal clear, the source must be optimized properly for a better signal. For instance, if you are streaming music from your laptop, ensure that the device sound card is an updated version. For record players and live DJs, use top quality source equipment to get the best sound signal.
Next, you may want to invest in a good mixer to control the audio frequency levels. A mixer is especially useful when the restaurant venue has multiple sources. For instance, a band performance will have different instruments played simultaneously. With the help of a mixer, you can bring desirable audio effects to your restaurant. You can also opt for the number of channels depending upon the music being played.
The next component is the amplifier. After the mixer has adjusted the frequency levels form the source, the amplifier will boost the signal. When looking for an amplifier, remember that the wattage is your highest priority. Technically, higher wattage gives louder music. However, this also depends on the venue size. For smaller restaurant venues, the music doesn’t have to be too loud. In such cases, you can opt for a lower wattage amplifier.
The final component of your restaurant music system is the speaker. As an indispensable part of the system, speakers also demand one of the biggest chunks of the budget. However, remember that the quality of music should start from the source and must not depend just on the speakers.
When choosing the speakers, consider its size and weight. The science behind them tells us that for low bass frequencies, larger drivers are required. For higher frequencies, smaller speakers work better. Use a combination of different speaker sizes if your brand-fit music demands it.
Lastly, some bar, night club, and high end restaurants consider adding a subwoofer(s), which helps with putting sound elements that are lower frequency into. These are often are sound elements (lower frequency) that cannot be picked up by the speakers. Subwoofer help to add more depth to music.
Final verdict
Our technical experts at Dynamic AV can recommend a sound systems from renowned brands like KEF, Bose, Australian Monitor, and JBL. Relying on reputable brands will ensure that your restaurant's sound system is durable and feasible to run longer hours.
By taking care of all the requirements of playing licensed music that suits your restaurant’s brand image and choosing the best quality equipment, you can elevate your customer experience and services every day.