Wait, is THIS why we end up spending entire days at Target?

No matter how hard you try to stay away from that red and white superstore, you’ll end up in Target one way or another. And of course, we can’t complain: we love Target! Because as it turns out, there is a reason why we go in for one thing and come out seven hours later. It’s all part of a plan. And we’ve been eating it up for years!

Next time you’re at Target, stop and listen for a second.

Close your eyes and just listen. Let the sounds of the other happy customers fade away into oblivion. Instead focus on what you are NOT hearing. Most of us have no idea that Target doesn’t use the music system to sell us things! And it seems to be making people BUY MORE. Crazy concept right? Turns out you don’t have to force people into good deals — we seek them out ourselves.

Oh consumerism. How you never let us down!

Also, there are studies showing that the correlation between silence and buying more things isn’t just coincidental. In the journal Applied Ergonomics, authors J.G. Fox and E.D. Embry found that music actually increased productivity. If that’s the case, having music in a store could make customers eager to get what they need and get on with it. We don’t know for sure if avoiding that causality has been Target’s play, but it may be working for them, regardless.

But Target is working on something new now…

Despite the sounds of silence potentially increasing our spending habits, Target may be adding music to its stores soon. According to the Minneapolis/St. Paul Business Journal, the retail giant has already rolled out music to more than 60 stores.

We’re pretty sure their sales are safe. After all, would you really let tunes distract you from a great deal?