Ever since Muzak started serenading patrons of hotels and restaurants in the 1930s, piped-in music has been part of the consumer experience. Without the throb of a synthesiser or a guitar's twang, shoppers would sense something missing as they tried on jeans or filled up trolleys. Specialists like Mood Media, which bought Muzak in 2011, devise audio programmes to influence the feel of shops and cater to customers' tastes. The idea is to entertain, and thereby prolong the time shoppers spend in stores, says Claude Nahon, the firm's international chief. Music by famous artists works better than the generic stuff that people associate with Muzak. The embarrassing brand name was dropped in 2013.
Online shopping is an under-explored area of merchandising musicology. A new study commissioned by eBay, a shopping website, aims to correct that. Some 1,900 participants were asked to simulate online shopping while listening to different sounds. Some results were unsurprising. The noise of roadworks and crying babies soured shoppers' views of the products on offer. Chirruping birds encouraged sales of barbecues but not blenders or board games.
Sounds associated with quality and luxury seemed to be
hazardous
for shoppers' wallets. The study found classical music and restaurant buzz caused them to overestimate the quality of goods on offer and to pay more than they should. That backs up earlier research which found that shoppers exposed to classical music in a wine store bought more expensive bottles than those hearing pop.
EBay wants consumers to avoid such unhealthy influences when shopping online. It has blended birdsong, dreamy music and the sound of a rolling train—thought to be pleasant but not overly seductive—to help them buy more sensibly. Retailers could presumably counter by turning up the Chopin. "Classical music does seem to be the way to go" if your only interest is the narrow one of squeezing as much money as possible from your clientele, says the study's author, Patrick Fagan, a lecturer at Goldsmiths, part of the University of London.
Few traditional shops are likely to use that tactic. H&M, a clothes retailer, airs "trendy, up-tempo" music from new artists, while Nespresso's coffee boutiques go for "lounge-y" sounds, says Mr. Nahon. Grocery stores, with a broad following, play top 40 hits. The tempo tends to be slower in the mornings, when shoppers are sparser and older, and becomes more quick and lively as the day goes on.
单选题
The brand name Muzak was dropped in 2013 because it______.
单选题
The sound of______may increase sales of board games.
【正确答案】
D
【答案解析】解析：根据题干定位到第二段。此题可用排除法。原文The noise of roadworks and crying babies soured shoppers’views of the products on offer．可以排除A项“道路施工的噪音”、B项“婴儿的哭声”。根据Chirruping birds encouraged sales of barbecues but not blenders or board games排除C项“鸟的叽喳声”。因此只能选择D项。从全文来看，古典音乐确能提升商品销售额。
单选题
The word "hazardous"(Para. 3)probably means______.
【正确答案】
B
【答案解析】解析：根据题干定位到第三段。生词的含义要联系上下文理解。下文提到pay more than they should以及shoppers exposed to classical music in a wine store bought more expensive bottles than those hearing pop，都是使顾客多掏钱或者买更贵的商品，因此可以推断与品质和奢华相联系的声音对顾客的钱包是有“不良”影响的，只有B项“危险的”是指不好的影响，因此为正确答案。
单选题
The sound which helps customers buy more sensibly______.
【正确答案】
B
【答案解析】解析：根据题干定位到第四段。本段首句中的such unhealthy influences与上一段联系紧密，表示要避免这种不良影响，因此下文指出有一种音乐可以使顾客保持理智的同时又多购物：It has blended birdsong，dreamy music and the sound of a rolling train—thought to be pleasant but not overly seductive—to help them buy more sensibly．因此B项正确，排除C、D两项。下文继续提到零售商的做法turning up the Chopin…Classical music，可见著名艺术家演奏的才是古典音乐，排除A项。
单选题
It can be inferred that a fashion shop should play______to attract customers.
【正确答案】
A
【答案解析】解析：根据题干定位到最后一段。本段讲不同的传统商店如何播放不同的背景音乐来吸引顾客。根据原文的H&M，a clothes retailer，airs“trendy，up—tempo”music from new artists可以推断出a fashion shop(时装店)应该也播放快节奏的新潮音乐，因此A项为正确答案。B项“lounge-y”music是像咖啡店之类消磨时光的店铺播放的，C、D两项的音乐则是杂货店在早上和之后的时间段里播放的。