Commentary

The holiday music conundrum: Are you 'tuned' into your customers?

While Christmas carols were once ubiquitous in fast food chains, today's restaurant owners are taking a different approach to their content strategies.

December 20, 2018

By Danny Turner, global SVP, Creative Programming, Mood Media

While melodies about chestnuts roasting on an open fire have been circulating during the holidays for decades, but given the fact that nobody actually eats them, today's restaurants are dishing up a more palatable serving of seasonal tunes. Why the shift?

It has to do with the changing times and diner's changing tastes. Spurred by emerging technology, the way in which we consume music these days is more acutely personalized than ever before. Gone are the days of radio hosts competing to see who can start the holiday music earliest or play the most-familiar holiday classics. With the rise of podcasts and highly personalized options on streaming platforms, media has become much more individually curated, and much more intimate, rather than merely dictated by a handful of local radio stations. Broadcasting has turned into "me-casting."

We're seeing personalized Pandora stations, streaming Spotify channels and tailored iTunes playlists. Customization is at our fingertips, quite literally. Personalized stations are a click away via our smartphones. And with these new advances, newer holiday classics are having a harder and harder time gaining familiarity on traditional airwaves. There's even less runway for "new" holiday songs to gain fluency in the public eye (or ear) and less exposure to holiday songs overall.

Given the recent media advancements, restaurant environments are quickly shifting to meet the changing expectations and consumption habits of today's diners; this shift is so profound it even extends to the number of holiday songs we're currently hearing this season. While Christmas carols were once ubiquitous in fast food chains, today's restaurant owners are taking a different approach to their content strategies.

So what are we seeing this holiday season at our favorite diners and eateries?

For one, fast food establishments have become more cognizant that the holidays mean different things to different diners. Restaurateurs are increasingly mindful that not everyone LOVES a barrage of holiday tunes. In fact, our favorite restaurants can be a respite from the holiday rush. Some are taking a universal seasonal direction filled with festive songs about family and friends, rather than those with defined religious themes.

It's important to embrace the holiday thematic in an authentic way that's true to your specific restaurant experience and brand attributes. If your restaurant is a grab-n-go style, I'd opt for more upbeat pop tunes with a degree of familiarity. If you run an upscale eatery, I would consider cueing up alternative versions of classics, fresh seasonal remixes, instrumentals or newer more “seasonal” themed selections over mainstream pop medleys. Ultimately, your playlist should feel aligned with the dining experience that you've created the other 11 months of the year. And remember, it's vital to take a moderated approach —100 percent holiday music, 100 percent of the time is never a good idea.

So how can restaurateurs freshen up what has the potential to be a stale holiday experience?

Increasingly, we're seeing restaurants take old favorites that still spark an emotional connection with diners, and making them feel current again with new artists and fresh iterations. Remixed holiday classics parallel what we're seeing in pop music in general. As EDM and electronic tones have become so dominant, you can easily find multiple versions of great holiday music remixes. Currently, I'm loving this sort of reggae/dub remix of Billie Holiday doing "I've Got My Love To Keep Me Warm." The music successfully combines a fresh sound into decades-old, original lyrics for a new spin on an old classic. Remixed classics have the potential to both bridge generational gaps and contemporize emotional conductivity. We can all connect with the melodies, but the tunes don't feel as tired and dated.

As we hit full throttle this holiday season, it would befit restaurateurs to leverage emerging technology for more personalized dining experiences. The restaurants who are open to newer concepts, cognizant of taking a metered approach and remaining true to their core dining experience, are the establishments who will come out on top this season. Remember, there's no singular solution or prescribed methodology. It's about identifying what's right for the experience that you're trying to create. You know your diners better than anyone else. If they're hurrying out the door with takeout in hand, it's safe to say you'll want to re-examine your holiday playlist.

Cover photo: iStock