Jodi Krangle

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Jodi@VoiceoversAndVocals.com

Audio Branding

Interview with Creative Director, Hannah Strenger

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Show Notes:

Hannah and I talk about what she considers audio branding to be, how it affects the clients at her ad agency, and what she does to help those clients come up with their brand’s consistent sound.  She also reveals how she created an animated short and chose voices and music for that project.

For more information on Hannah, visit:

Hannah’s Instragram: https://www.instagram.com/hannahstrenger/ (lots of pictures of her adorable rabbits here too!)

and Hannah’s Website (she’s also a creativity coach!): hannahstrenger.com

 

Is It Too Late?

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      Is It Too Late? - Audio Branding Podcast - Jodi Krangle - voiceoversandvocals.com

Our audio landscape is definitely changing.  It’s becoming more and more important for brands to have a recognizable sound, especially with the rise of Alexa, Google Home, and similar products.

Even our appliances are becoming “smart”.  If they recognize voice commands, how long will it be before they start selling us products directly – without needing a desktop computer, an iPad or a phone at all? And what’s the quickest way for these “smart” devices to let us know what brands they sell?  Audio, that’s how.

In lots of different places, these options may not be displayed as *only* audio, but those sounds are certainly played when we choose what we want.  And that reinforces the idea of an audio brand.  If we’re in public when this happens?  It also reinforces it to everyone around us.

Now, how about when we actually buy something?  We already use a lot of automation to purchase what we want.  What if the very act of purchasing, reinforced a company’s audio brand?  Turns out, Mastercard is thinking about this.  And they apparently (according to Forbes) spent $15 Million dollars on it!  The video below will explain more of what their thinking was and let you hear the results.  It doesn’t sound bad to me or anything.  But I think they’re betting on how recognizable it’ll be across platforms.  I’m not entirely convinced, but time will tell, I suppose. Should Mastercard have thought about this years ago?  Probably.  But if they couldn’t do this kind of audio branding years ago, at least they’re doing it now.

Of course, this might be too little too late.  Visa had a 2 year head start on them!

https://www.cnbc.com/video/2017/12/07/visa-spent-a-year-developing-a-signature-sound-report.html

And I love this CNBC video because the two commenting actually have opinions on which sounds appeal to them across many different brands.  They have a good point. Visa’s criteria, in case you don’t want to watch the video?  It has to be short, unobtrusive, energetic and optimistic.   It took them a year to develop that one little bit of sound – so this is no joking matter.  Maybe it surprises you that Mastercard spent so much money on this.  It doesn’t surprise me at all.  After all, Visa paid Morgan Freeman to do their commercials.  That couldn’t be cheap.

But that leads me to another point.  You may not be spending fifteen million dollars on your ads – or your audio brand.  But you still do want to remain consistent – and professional – across all your touch points.  This has already become really important.  And falling flat on this part of your marketing will cost you (and it’s a cost you may never actually be informed of).

Not everyone has to have a certain trill of notes or a particular melody associated with their brand.  But your brand should definitely have a consistent “feel”.  Something you follow through with in music, voice over and automation (if you have it).

The future of branding is sound and if I can help you with the voice over end of that, feel free to reach out.  Even if I’m not the right voice for your particular sonic image, I know a lot of talented folks that might be able to help and I’m happy to make introductions.

Now – go out and make some noise!

Time For A Transition

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      TimeForATransition-BlogAudio-JodiKrangle - Jodi Krangle - voiceoversandvocals.com

Those of you who have been following this blog and accompanying podcast, have seen the direction I’ve been going with this. I know a lot of us are Creatives.  A lot of us need help understanding how not to beat ourselves up in our own heads. And helping people with that (in a distinctly NOT professional capacity!) will never stop being a priority for me.

If you’re still interested in that topic, I’ve created a Facebook Group, just for you. If you’re looking for a place to share your Creativity and get encouragement from fellow Creatives, I invite you to join me there.

HOWEVER, my passion is also sound.

Specifically, voice overs and music.  I use my voice both for my day job and for the pleasure of singing. I’d like to delve deeper into how that works in the greater context of branding – both mine and my clients’.

So while the Silver Linings blogs and podcast episodes will remain out there, and I hope you find them useful, I’ll be transitioning to a new podcast in a month or so.

I’m calling it: Audio Branding: The hidden gem of marketing.  And it really is a “hidden gem”.

In a lot of cases, people forget just how much audio – voice overs, music and sounds in general – influence our behavior on a regular basis.  We’ve gotten used to so many places sounds play a part.

Think about it for a bit.

We expect a car to sound a certain way (and am I the only one who’s freaked out when I’m in a Prius or a Tesla at a stop light??), even if that sound is changing. That’s why our phones still “click” when we take a picture, even if they don’t need to.  Or why that vinyl scratching sound is used in ads all the time to audibly tell us an interruption is happening – even if it’s rare that people listen to records anymore.

The sounds used in advertising, make us automatically familiar with a brand (like McDonalds’ “I’m Lovin’ It” (ba da ba ba ba!), the sound of the Taco Bell bell, the Intel sound logo, or the trill of the NBC logo).  We even recognize that an animated cartoon is The Peanuts (or a parody of it) by the trombone sound that happens when the adults speak.

We could all stand to learn something about audio branding.

Even those of us who make a living in the sphere.  ESPECIALLY those of us who do that. Learn how to leverage your own audio branding – whatever that may be – and you win at marketing.  The shortest bit of sound can be associated with your brand.  It can automatically identify you and bring you to mind.  And really – when it comes to marketing – that kind of instant recognize-ability just can’t be beat!

That’s why a lot of podcasts have musical and voice over intros (And if you need a voice for that sort of thing, that is certainly a service I offer. Feel free to get in touch).  It’s why TV shows have recognizable theme songs.  It’s why there are some pieces of music in a film that are automatically associated with a character – like Darth Vader’s Imperial March.  (And wouldn’t it be cool if we all had theme music?)

I’m certainly not the first one to talk about this …

… but maybe my perspective as a voice actor and a singer will be helpful in digging a little deeper.  And I fully intend to enlist the help of some very knowledgeable friends and colleagues who can also provide some insights.

For now though, I found a blog post on Gary Vaynerchuck‘s website that describes what “audio branding” means, and how he feels it’s the wave of the future.  I couldn’t agree more (and check out his own audio branding.  Pretty cool stuff!)

Here’s a quote from the article:

Over the next decade or two, what your brand sounds like is actually going to be an unbelievably crucial variable of success in a world that will be driven primarily by two things: voice and brand.

The Rise of Audio Branding