We all listen to music from time to time. Driving in our car, at home to relax, in an elevator or maybe its overhead in a department store while we shop. Music is there to set the mood, encourage passion, and to get us emotionally involved.  The right music is important to go along with your On Hold Message as well, you want your clients and customers to be emotionally involved when they contact your company.  At VoiceTech America we set a mood for your message and company. From upbeat and happy to mellow and laid back. But it is also important to note that the music is not the key focus of the message. It’s the right balance is important. We balance the Music on Hold along with your message by ramping it up at the beginning; bringing it down during the actual message and ramping it up again in-between the paragraphs. Some clients let us choose the music while others will pick their own from our music library. It’s a creative process when marrying music to script.  What sounds great solo will not always be the best with the spoken word, especially when taking to mind your product or service.  Keeping in mind the tempo and the flow of the script it’s important to not let the music over power the message and dilute the theme.  We set the mood with music and set the message with voice.  If you are choosing the music avoid choosing a music bed based on your personal preferences, for example you like mellow, laid back smooth jazz and your company is a gym or athletic equipment manufacturer. A high-energy company would be best served by a high energy beat that is upbeat and heart pumping. A good match is important for your image. Remember” Theater of the Mind” is important. We discussed  “Theater of the Mind” in the On Hold Message Blog.

Lets talk about “Royalty Free Music”. We talk to prospects from time to time who say, we don’t need On Hold Messages because we play the radio or we play one of our own CD’s when we put someone on hold. There are a few things you must understand if you are currently doing this. First, you may own the CD you are playing but you Do Not own the content or music that is recorded on that CD. To use that CD in a business situation or environment you need to get permission from the artist or songwriter to pay that CD or get a special license from BMI. If you are playing the radio there is also something’s to be aware of, playing the radio over the phone at your business is also considered a re-broadcast and requires a special license as well. Radio stations pay a lot of money to play music. How do you think the artist and songwriters get paid? We also think it is not a good idea to play the radio especially if it’s a local station and an ad comes on and it happens to be one of your competitors advertising the same product or service as your company. Large fines have been levied on businesses anywhere from hundreds to thousands of dollars per song. Even if your business gets a license to play your CDs or to re-broadcasts the radio it is far less money to have VoiceTech America to do a custom message and take that worry off of your shoulders. We will set the mood and make your company or practice shine. Remember, Message on Hold and Music on Hold is our business and we do it right and legal for you.