Some responses I get when I explain what I do are:

“Can you tell the shops to do something about the music they play, it makes me want to leave”!?

and

“Please fix the on hold music that I have to listen to, it drives me insane”.

So what is the music and sonic character of your organisation doing to your customers, employees and your business?

Is it damaging or enhancing your image?

By the way that’s what I do: make you sound good, that is.

Marcel

Call your business telephone number and ask to be put on hold.

Does your on-hold music and announcements make you cringe?

Is it too loud, distorted and obnoxious?

Does the “thank you for waiting we value your business” voice over sound patronising and lack integrity?

How does it make you feel?

It’s the little things in life that people get hung up on.

Just in case you’re wondering what lolly belle said here it is.

Lolly Belle said…
Sound design is impertive, but often overlooked to a brand.

For example, a phone call I made today to a large Australian music retailer …

I called them and was put on hold, however there was absolutely no noise - completely silence. I thought after a few minutes that the phone was dead so I called back and had the same thing again. Finally go through to the person, but only because I was so patient with the silence.

It seemed incredibly ironic that a music retailer of all people - a company who supposedly specialises in sound - would have a communications device that was silent!

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Thanks for your feedback Lolly Belle.

I’ve spoken to a few other people about this issue and this seems to be a bit of a recurring problem for customers or is that lost customers.

It’s odd that companies neglect to inform the person on the end of the line that they are still connected and that the queue is getting shorter.
Particularly as 90% of interactions with a company is via the telephone.
Pretty crucial touchpoint in my opinion.

On the other hand- silence in other situations can be very powerful.

Turn the sound off on a TV Commercial and watch the viewer come running back from making their cup of tea.

Equally some retail and public environments can benefit just as much from silence as they can from sound- the local library for example or the local aquarium- Who needs music when you’ve got bubbles and pumps.

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