Sonic Branding, AI, and the Power of Sound: A Conversation with Joe Sauer – Part 1
“Does that sound like a robot or does that sound like AI? Does that sound synthetic? Does that sound human? When we think about it, we can’t tell. But when we rely more on those primal, very basic human responses, we can tell. And what’s fascinating to me is even after we told people which voice was which, they still couldn’t tell the difference between two voices. Um, but again, on a subconscious basis, they could. And so it’s just a fascinating piece of research that, uh, is definitely time-boxed, right? I think these voice generators will get better in quality.” – Joe Sauer
This episode’s guest in “Sonic Branding, AI, and the Power of Sound” is a man who proves you don’t need to be a rock star to master sonic branding. How does a self-described guy with no musical talent become an expert on all things audio? The answer, he says, is data, data, and more data. He’s devoted his career to understanding the impact of emotion on consumer decision-making, and, for the last decade or so, he’s focused specifically on optimizing the impact of sound and music in branding, advertising, and UX design. His award-winning neuro-based research approach has become the gold standard for audio measurement, partnering with top sound studios globally to ensure that brands don’t just sound good but actually resonate with their audiences. His name is Joe Sauer, and in this episode’s discussion, we’ll be entering the world of beats, brands, and brainwaves to understand some of the hard science behind audio branding.
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(0:00:00) – Impact of Music on Emotional Response
Our conversation starts with Joe’s early memories of sound, which include learning all about the power of music as a nervous teen on the dance floor. “That very visceral anxiety and fear of embarrassment and then relief that floods in,” he recalls, “when you find yourself with a partner on the dance floor. It was all triggered by music, not even a full song, just the first couple of bars of music.” We talk about neuromarketing techniques and the role they play in everything from movie trailers to music albums, and how they’ve changed since the early days of brain scans and electrodes. “The techniques that we’ve evolved are much less intimidating,” he explains. “They’re actually very, very sophisticated psychology experiments but they’re gamified. They’re hidden in a word or an image sorting game.”
(0:15:21) – The Impact of Sonic Logos
We talk more about how neuro-based research is offering new insights into audio branding, and what Joe’s studies on the impact of sound have uncovered. “One of the great parts about using techniques like this,” he says, “is that it puts the focus on the consumer’s attitudes and perceptions of the brand as opposed to their attitudes and perceptions of the music itself.” The discussion turns to how our conscious biases can get in the way of polling and survey results, and the role our subconscious impressions play in shaping our impressions. “You really start to understand what impact the audio is having,” he tells us, “not just on the quality of the narrative, the storytelling aspects of the ad itself, but really, more importantly for the people who are paying for the ad, on the likelihood that that brand is actually going to be purchased the next time the respondent or consumer is in market.”
(0:23:37) – AI Voice Generation and Human Connection
The first half of our conversation wraps up with a look at AI and synthetic voices, and what his studies revealed about the impact they have on listeners. “When we started to isolate and quantify the subconscious response,” he explains, “the accuracy shot way up and most respondents were able to accurately identify whether a voice they heard was synthetic or human. On a subconscious basis, there was just something that we’re not even aware is happening.” He tells us more about how participants could recognize artificial voices, even when they thought they couldn’t, through their subconscious impressions and behavior. “What’s fascinating to me is that,” he says, “even after we told people which voice was which, they still couldn’t tell the difference between two voices. But, again, on a subconscious basis, they could, and so it’s just a fascinating piece of research.”
Episode Summary
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The evolution and role of neuromarketing, from Adele and Taylor Swift to Hollywood.
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How Joe’s research reveals the unconscious influence of sound on our decision-making.
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What the latest studies say about our ability to recognize AI-generated voices.
Tune in for next week’s episode as we discuss the growth market of sonic branding, Joe’s work with developing audio brands for such clients as AT&T and NPR, and what the pandemic revealed about sound’s impact on our mood and buying habits, both for better and for worse.
Connect with the Guest
Website: https://emotisphere.com/
Connect with Joe Sauer on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/joe-sauer/
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This interview episode was very skillfully made to sound beautiful by the talented Humberto Franco.
** Transcript available upon request
