Local playlists measurably improve hotel experience / HearDis! and Motel One present music study
Munich. What people feel in a place is shaped not only by architecture, design,
or service, but also by music. A
new European pilot music study by HearDis! in collaboration with Motel
One provides the first data-driven evidence of how local music
influences the hotel experience. The
results demonstrate clear positive effects on sense of place, guest
satisfaction, and cultural curiosity.
HearDis! has long been creating music programs for Motel One and The
Cloud One Hotels. These playlists form part of the Motel One Group’s
brand commitment to making cities and their identities holistically
tangible. The study examined the measurable contribution local music
makes to guests’ sense of arrival and overall quality of stay.
The findings show a strong impact of local music on the guest
experience. Guests exposed to local playlists were almost three times
more likely to feel connected to the destination than those listening to
non-local playlists. Overall satisfaction also rose significantly, with
guests rating their stay as good or very good rising from 66 to 79
percent. Local playlists also strengthened cultural curiosity and the
impulse to discover new artist.
The pilot study was conducted as part of the EU-funded Horizon Europe
research project OpenMusE, which investigates innovative and fair usage
contexts for music across Europe. Six Motel One Group hotels
participated. Each hotel played two brand-fit music programs across two
phases, identical in atmosphere and brand alignment. The sole variable
was content locality: one playlist without local references and one
featuring local artists, language, or regional context. Guests and
employees evaluated their experience anonymously without knowing the
study purpose, enabling a reliable comparison.
“Our guests should not just stay in a city – they should truly arrive,
emotionally and culturally. This study shows that music is a highly
effective yet often underestimated part of the guest journey” says Susan
Schramm, CMO of the Motel One Group. “Local music strengthens the sense
of place and measurably enhances the overall experience – regardless of
age, gender, or musical taste. This proves that music serves as a
strategic component of modern hospitality experience, which we will
continue to develop and scale together with Motel One,” adds Sören
Maisch, Director In-Store Music at HearDis!.
The study highlights that effectiveness is not driven by song
recognition, but by music’s ability to convey the character of a place.
Local playlists make a destination’s identity audible and create a
cultural connection between brand, city, and traveller.
Motel One and HearDis! will further develop and expand local music
programs to embed local profiles consistently along the guest journey
while increasing visibility for local artist.
Motel OneInken MendeDirector Corporate Communications & PRTegernseer Landstraße 165, 81539 MünchenTel.: +49 89665025-818E-Mail: imende@motel-one.comInternet: www.motel-one.com
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