Out With The Jingle and In With The Audio Branding
Have you ever had a song or TV theme stuck in your head? If so, you may be an auditory learner. According to The Ohio State University’s Center on Education and Training for Employment, auditory learners make up 30% of the population. That’s a good-sized group, so when developing your company’s marketing plan, it’s very important to keep auditory learners in mind.
Advertising is usually thought of in a visual sense - television commercials, online and print ads, billboards, POP signage, direct mail, etc. These are all great ways to reach visual learners. But auditory learners more freely associate sound with experiences, and they retain information better when it’s presented in an audible format.
Audio branding uses sound to define and/or support a company’s identity. Think about Intel, NBC, and T-mobile. They each have a distinct auditory identity. Even some television shows use an auditory component to identify themselves. (Think the dramatic opening “ker-chung” of “Law & Order.”)
Sometimes called audio logos, audio tags, or sound trademarks, a note or series of notes can serve as a corporate identifier, taking on all the elements of the brand and helping to maintain top-of-mind awareness.
In the past companies often used jingles in their advertising, but today’s audio brand is much more than a cute little song.
By developing a unique audio identity you can make giant leaps in differentiating your company in the minds of consumers. Used in a TV spot an audio logo can make an impression even when a viewer isn’t focused on the screen. And, in this global economy, an audio logo breaks through language and cultural barriers to represent its company consistently around the world.
The process of choosing “your sound” can be likened to making a mix-tape for your high school sweetheart. Back then you chose songs with a mood or energy that represented your relationship, and tunes with lyrics that said what you couldn’t. When developing an audio trademark or logo you choose a sound or sounds that feel like your brand; sounds that say, in a few seconds, what could not be communicated with words in as short a time.
The sound you use should serve as an extension of your customer experience. For example, an astral products company probably shouldn’t incorporate the country twang of a pedal steel guitar into its audio logo. But a hip, contemporary dot com just entering the marketplace might opt for a cool jazz snare beat that quickly jumps up in tempo to create the sense that they’re on the move. An older, more traditional company could use a combination of soothing orchestral chords to communicate warmth, stability or sophistication.
The great thing about sound is that there are infinite combinations of notes, tempos and instrumentation that can be micro-manipulated to build the audio identity that’s just right for your business. And once it’s in place, it can be on the job as long as it delivers an accurate representation of who you are and what you do.
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