The PO should can the music

I read with horror the news that the Post Office is testing a live radio service in its retail outlets (MW September 6).

Tesco appears to be more enlightened. It has found that music in stores can have an effect and that music can be used to direct buyers to certain ideas and items. But overall, its more careful and researched thinking is that, as music is such a personal part of our lives and that it has a direct emotional impact, it can be equally distracting and sometimes deeply irritating for shoppers.

Staff often hate it, and who said that everyone likes rock and roll and chart hits? What about the growing population of older people who might prefer silence, or the music they grew up with?

For Consignia to say this is a chance to build brand awareness is clearly bonkers: the Post Office has to be one of the best known brands in the country.

Simon Larter

Account director, PR

The Opus Group

Hampshire