The Influence of Background Music Popularity on Consumer Online Shopping Behavior: A Model Analysis
Authors: Zhang Hui , Liang Xinjie , Cao Yingping 
Published: June 2024

With the popularity of online shopping, online e-commerce is paying more attention to the impact of sensory marketing on consumer behavior. Previous studies suggest that music plays a significant role in enhancing the online shopping experience for consumers. However, the specific patterns of consumer impulse that music induces are yet to be fully discovered. Therefore, the study aims to explore the influence of music popularity on online shopping behavior in reference to the familiarity on emotion regulation. The results can create a better auditory environment for users' shopping experience and give a guidance for merchants to choose music that fits their brand positioning.MethodThirty participants (15 females) between the ages of 19 and 33 (M = 23.8, SD = 3.2) were recruited and all had years of online shopping experience. Participants were evenly assigned to three groups(no-music group, non-pop music group, and pop music group). The task scenario of participants is to buy a pair of sports shoes, so we simulated the current mainstream e-commerce shopping website to make online shopping pages of sports shoes. We first got 50 popular and 50 non-popular songs based on popularity on the charts of various music platforms. Then 10 of each the most popular and the least popular songs were selected from each of the two groups based on user feedback. Participants were asked to browse eight goods while listening to music in a quiet indoor environment. In terms of objective data collection, eye tracker was used to record participants' browsing time, browsing track and focusing position. After that, we used a questionnaire to collect the subjective evaluation. The questionnaire mainly includes three parts: recording emotions before shopping, recording behaviors during shopping (direct purchase, add shopping cart, share and collection), and recording experiences after shopping (ranking of purchase intention, emotions and music feelings). Finally, we conducted a qualitative analysis of semi-structured interviews to improve the experimental design.ResultsA t-test of the experimental data revealed that the duration of participant browsing markedly increased when shopping with music, in comparison to shopping without music (p<0.05). Compared with non-pop music, the subjects were more familiar with pop music and listened to it for a longer time. During the experience with popular music, the emotional arousal of the participants significantly increased in the shopping context (p<0.05). More precisely, the heightened shopping excitement contributed to an elevated rate of adding items to the cart and sharing these selections.ConclusionOur research shows that music popularity significantly influences online consumer behavior. Specifically, in terms of the connection between music types and shopping experience, pop music first increases users' attention to goods. In addition, familiar music enhanced the arousal dimension of mood, thus promoting the arousal of desire to buy. These insights enhance our comprehension of the strategic use of background music in e-commerce shopping contexts. Based on the conclusions of the research, a better auditory experience can be created for users in the shopping scene in the future. In terms of business application and marketing strategy, it can also guide merchants to strategically use music to influence mood changes and promote product consumption.