Consumerscope: Soundbars Create a Buzz

Dealers looking for opportunity these days can find it where they probably least expect it: home audio. If you're not sure what I mean, then listen to this: Soundbars have the potential to finally crank up the opportunity in home audio, providing the channel a chance make some serious music at the cash register.

These products bring fresh solutions to an old audio problem. The best part about this is that dealers can finally avoid the hard sell for audio and become heroes to their customers. Sound too good to be true? A closer look at the consumer and market dynamics to home audio holds the answer.

On average, consumers spend 12.5 hours each week listening to some form of audio at home, the most common being music (81 percent), TV shows (77 percent), and news or information sources (74 percent). Not surprisingly then, a television remains the most common source of audio consumption. Despite these statistics, dealers know how challenging it can be to convince a customer to invest in audio as part of a home theater and entertainment system.