Marketing Rant: Music on Blogs

On a personal level, music on websites annoys the ever loving crap out of me! It annoys me on MANY levels.

• I'm either looking at beads or dogs. What about those topics screams "needs a sound track?" 
• Who decided YOU (the blogger) should be the DJ for MY life?
• What if I'm already listening to my own music? I often have my tv on. My dog is making noises and I'm usually on hold for some annoying dreaded service with hold music. Why add to the riff raff of my life???

I feel so strongly on this topic that I readily admit that during the whole One World One Heart Blog hop, if there is music, I'M OUTTA THERE! But all that is just me being a curmudgeon.

Since is this a blog about my handmade bead business...let's look at this from a marketing standpoint. First of all, what if even a few of your customers feel the way I feel? You've already pissed them off. And for what? So you could be all cool and have music on your site?

 

"Notes"  - Made to order focal by Abigail Lyn

But the one that gets me is... I always think my average customer is somewhat like me. Middle-aged, stressed and doing too many things at once. When I had a 'real' job, the only time I had to shop on line was... during down time at the office....waiting on hold for a client, waiting for all the troops to show up for a meeting, or killing time until I could walk out the door. NOTHING gives away the fact that you are surfing while at work faster than some lame arsed music suddenly blaring out the computer! And now, you've pretty much guaranteed that user will NOT visit your website during business hours again! And if that's the only time she surfs... GOODBYE POTENTIAL CUSTOMER!

And what if your viewers' musical taste differs from your own? Let's face it. Musical tastes vary widely. My three closest friends could never stomach so much as a car ride together with each having a different musical ear that would drive the others nuts (Chopin, show tunes and Eurotrash club music).  Do you really want your customer's to know of your love for British punk? You might think you're cool but your customers might think you're a dork!

If you still feel inclined to have one of those annoying gadgets on your site, at least give your viewers the options to turn them ON.