Jodi Krangle

905 836 5444

Jodi@VoiceoversAndVocals.com

sonic branding

Jingles All The Way

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The holidays are just around the corner, and we all know what that means: Christmas songs on the radio and holiday jingles in just about every store. But there’s one kind of traditional jingle we aren’t as likely to hear these days: the commercial jingle. If you used to wish you were an Oscar Mayer wiener, if the best part of waking up was Folgers in your cup, if you were ever stuck on Band-Aid brands because Band-Aid’s stuck on you, then you probably grew up in the heyday of advertising jingles. So, whatever happened to those jingles? Do they still have a place in audio branding, or have the Toys R Us kids all grown up?

In many ways, jingles were the first step in the history of audio branding, and they’re much older than you might think. If you know the Muffin Man or can sing along to Hot Cross Buns, then you’re already familiar with the jingles of the colonial era. Those rhymes started with vendors in the Middle Ages who had to find ways to make their street cries stand out and get people’s attention. That meant short, simple phrases often set to music, and the fact that we can still recite some of those rhymes today shows just how well they worked.

With the invention of radio came the modern jingle. Now vendors had to grab and hold the attention of millions of people, and General Mills did just that in 1926 with a barbershop song called “Have you Tried Wheaties.” That one commercial turned Wheaties sales completely around in the Twin Cities market, and when the company aired the song nationwide the following year, Wheaties went from a failing brand to a household name.

Want to hear the jingle that started it all? Here’s a link to the original ad:

Other companies quickly caught on and started coming up with their own musical numbers, and the jingle era was born. From radio to television to the internet, jingles became pretty much synonymous with audio branding. Promoting a brand meant giving it a jingle, whether it’s the Chiquita banana song, the singing Meow Mix cats or Coca Cola teaching the world to sing. But things began to change around the turn of the millennium. Those catchy earworm jingles started to disappear. In 1998, 12% of television ads featured jingles; by 2011 it was just 2.5%. But if commercials weren’t using jingles, what were they using?

For the most part, they were now using licensed songs. This wasn’t a completely new development; those medieval street cries were often set to popular folk songs of the era, and the “Have You Tried Wheaties” jingle borrowed its tune from the 1919 song “Jazz Baby.” Michael Jackson ushered in a whole new era of melding pop music and advertising with his “Pepsi Generation” commercials set to the tune of “Billy Jean,” and ten years later Microsoft borrowed the Rolling Stones’ “Start Me Up” as its anthem for Windows 95.

What did change is that advertisers were no longer relying on famous musicians and recognizable songs. More and more often, the commercials featured smaller artists and songs that many viewers hadn’t heard before. With DVR and streaming content rendering the old 30-second TV spots obsolete, the focus shifted to simply engaging the viewers and convincing them to keep watching the ad. Without a captive TV audience, advertisers needed those viewers to like and share their commercials. One way to do that is by promoting new music that might get people talking and, more importantly, watching.

For a great discussion of the rise and fall of jingles, check out this Cheddar Explains video “The Unexpected Death of the Ad Jingle”:

But as new media continues to evolve, jingles are making a surprising comeback. Online ads, often just a few seconds long, have allowed companies to create musical brands that immediately stand out despite their length. Just think of McDonald’s and its wildly successful “I’m Lovin’ It” theme, or how State Farm’s “Like a Good Neighbor” jingle has returned as the bumper for each commercial. Unlike past jingles, these songs aren’t trying to tell the listener about the product so much as they’re trying to create an instant connection with the brand. As audio branding continues to expand, moving out of the traditional TV and radio spots and into our daily lives, that sort of connection is becoming more important than ever.

Would you consider reviewing the Audio Branding Podcast? If so, here’s the Apple Podcast link: https://podcasts.apple.com/podcast/audio-branding/id1489042453 And if you like what you hear (and read!) – please do share it with anyone you think might be interested. Thanks so much!

And if you’re interested in crafting an audio brand for your business, why not check out my FREE download – 5 Tips For Implementing An Intentional Audio Strategy at https://voiceoversandvocals.com/audio-branding-strategy/

Interview with Multimedia Storyteller, Brandee Sanders – Part 1

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Brandee Sanders is an award-winning digital leader, tech strategist, multimedia storyteller, and data translator. She develops and accelerates her clients’ vision by working at the intersection of data, commerce, content, and creative. She’s worked with a dynamic variety of companies, including Silicon Valley startups, Emmy Award Winning studios, and more. She’s been featured in The New York Times, Condé Nast, New York Fashion Week, Etsy, TV Network, and Inc. Magazine. Currently, she’s Director of Marketing Operations at Appetize Technologies, Inc. and is pursuing a Master’s Degree in Data Science and Analytics.

In the first part of our riveting conversation (seriously, buckle up, folks!), we discuss what exactly Brandee means when she calls herself a multimedia storyteller and how she got into her line of work, as well as:

  • Her background in the arts, including film, musical theater, and ballet and why she decided to move behind the camera
  • Creating her own eCommerce business
  • How she became successful, as she put it, “in spite of my ignorance”
  • The three careers most people have
  • How she began working in both storytelling as well as statistical quantitative data analysis in technology, operations, and marketing 
  • Being featured in a LinkedIn case study
  • What factors must be considered when piloting new ideas
  • How you can’t have innovation without failure
  • The importance of companies/brands putting themselves in the consumers’ position to consider how they may be perceiving things
  • How brand building and sales activation come together in advertising
  • How purchase intent can grow as much as 146% between pre- and post-exposure of sonic logos and music
  • How early adoption of an idea pays off in the long run
  • How critical sonic branding is as part of a marketing strategy
  • How data can protect the valuable work people do

To learn more about Brandee, you can find her on social media: 

This episode was very skillfully made to sound beautiful by the talented Humberto Franco (http://www.humbertofranco.com/).

Would you consider reviewing the Audio Branding Podcast?  If so, here’s the Apple Podcast link: https://podcasts.apple.com/podcast/audio-branding/id1489042453  And if you like what you hear (and read!) – please do share it with anyone you think might be interested. Thanks so much!

And if you’re interested in crafting an audio brand for your business, why not check out my FREE Audio Branding Worksheet?

How Can Audio Branding Help Your Podcast or Company? (Why Should You Care?)

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How Can Audio Branding Help Your Podcast or Company?

According to Harvard Business Review [4], Audio Branding is “the strategic use of sound … in positively differentiating a product or service, enhancing recall, creating preference, building trust, and even increasing sales.” So ultimately, think of it as a brand or podcast’s emotional short hand – the quickest way to your listener’s heart.  How do you want them to feel when they hear you?  And how does it help your podcast or company to reach your audience FASTER and on a deeper level? If you think about this, it’s pretty important – and here’s why:

Professionalism

This part is pretty self-explanatory.  Having professional audio shows that you’re a professional. It makes it clear that you invest in your endeavor and take it seriously.  When it comes to podcasts, I do understand that there are productions that prefer not to be “produced”.  They can be a true expression of your own authentic self.  And as such, sometimes, it’s just fine for you to talk in front of a microphone and leave it at that.  But if your podcast is a reflection of your brand? Or your company?  It needs some professional panache.

Consistency

It’s hard to ignore the musical trill that Intel uses at the end of every tech commercial you’ve experienced in the last many years (even on the radio where there are no visuals!). The consistent use of that sound along with the promise of quality in the visuals, has made the two ideas forever intertwined in our minds.  You don’t need to see that promise anymore.  All you need to do is hear it. Mazda uses the playful whisper of a child saying “zoom zoom” to convey both a sense of power and a sense of wonder.  Not a bad image for a car! And I know you’ve heard and can easily recall the three notes played when NBC comes on the television. What kind of emotion does that create in you? (It probably depends on the shows they air and how much you love them.)  Anticipation? Nostalgia?  Something else?

This kind of powerful memory response triggered by a sound can also work with something as simple as only one tone—like the Taco Bell sonic logo (or what used to be called an “earcon” https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Earcon). My blog about Advertising At Cannes talks about this in more detail. What happens when an advertising campaign replaces the distinctive sound of Big Ben in London with the Taco Bell bell? You definitely get a media explosion, that’s what!

Download the Audio Branding Worksheet and get started on YOUR Audio Branding Strategy Today!

Sound can very closely be associated with a company and their brand, but only if it’s consistent. And persistent. If the audio of a brand changes too often, it can become jarring or confusing to those you’re trying to reach. Changing a company’s sound capriciously can actually damage a brand.

Also, keep in mind that you might get tired of your audio branding. Believe it or not, your boredom isn’t a good reason to change it. Keep it until your accountant says it’s no longer working.

Are sales dropping? Are clients no longer contacting you? Maybe then it’s time to re-examine your brand’s image—both its visuals and the way it sounds. And keep in mind that if those two things don’t match one another, your clients and customers will turn away without being aware of exactly why. It’s unconscious.  Make sure your audio is consistent with the “tone of voice” of your brand image. Sight and sound should work together. When it does?  It’s magic.

Effectiveness

Audio is such an effective advertising and marketing tool for many reasons. Here are just a few.

• Sound touches us immediately. It goes right to our hearts. People buy based on emotions and then justify it with logic, so touching your listeners’ emotions makes it much more likely they’ll remember you. Be intentional with how you want them to feel when they see and hear your brand.

• The world is full of visual distraction, especially now. (I don’t know about you, but I’m constantly overloaded with branding images and advertising every time I go online! It’s tiring!) Sound cuts through the noise. It reaches us on a deeply personal level. If you want to be noticed, you need to be heard.

• Music is a universal language. The instruments and tonal structure may change, but essentially, you can communicate emotion to a global audience without needing to know the language they speak. That means that if you invest in an effective audio brand, you can reach your intended audience on an emotional level, FAST—anywhere they might be listening. It doesn’t matter what your native language is if people can relate to the sound.

I totally understand that sometimes it’s hard to know where to start with this stuff.  But figuring out an audio brand to match your visual brand, isn’t as difficult as you think it is.  I’ve created a worksheet that will give you a hand with this and you can download it at https://voiceoversandvocals.com/resources/ , if you’re interested.

And I hope you stay safe and healthy! Take care of yourself, ok?

Interview with Audio Alchemist, Steve Keller – Part 2

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Here’s the second part of my fascinating interview with Steve Keller. In it, we dove into how brands can harness the power of archetypes as well as what Steve calls the three pillars of return on sonic investment.

We also discussed:

  • Music’s impact on our perception of meaning
  • How music soundscapes and noise affect the healthcare industry
  • How consumers’ experience of products often differentiates brands more than the products themselves might
  • Psychophysics—how our perception of reality is a combination of sensory inputs
  • Using sound to affect other senses
  • Carl Jung’s utilization of archetypes in psychology
  • Both the science and art of sound—that they’re not at two opposite ends of a spectrum, but rather they’re two sides of the same coin
  • The importance of brands being intentional and making educated choices around sound
  • The problem of brands failing to make decisions based on the importance of sound, even though they understand the important role sound plays
  • How critical it is to devote time and energy to audio branding in addition to visual branding  
  • Steve’s desire to inspire younger people to move even further with the current knowledge and research around audio branding

For more information about Steve Keller, check out http://www.studioresonate.com. You can also follow him on Twitter at @AudioAlchemist_ (that underscore is important) or find him on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/in/stevekeller1/.

This episode was very skillfully made to sound beautiful by the talented Humberto Franco (http://www.humbertofranco.com/).

Would you consider reviewing the Audio Branding Podcast?  If so, here’s the Apple Podcast link: https://podcasts.apple.com/podcast/audio-branding/id1489042453  And if you like what you hear (and read!) – please do share it with anyone you think might be interested. Thanks so much!

And if you’re interested in crafting an audio brand for your business, why not check out my FREE Audio Branding Worksheet?

Interview with Audio Alchemist, Steve Keller – Part 1

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For Steve Keller, audio branding seamlessly blends together the three overarching passions in his life: music, psychology, and marketing. Steve had a passion for music from a young age but never considered it as a career. He became fascinated with and obtained his college degree in psychology. During what some may consider a “gap year” before he had planned to pursue a master’s degree and Ph.D., Steve decided to go in a different direction and ultimately found himself producing music in Nashville, Tenessee. While there, he discovered his passion for marketing and advertising. In 2005, all three passions came together as he began to delve into the world of audio branding. Steve now works for Studio Resonate, Pandora’s in-house consultancy for advertisers.

In the first part of our conversation, we discussed Steve’s three passions and some of the research he has done, as well as:

  • Starting the audio consultancy iV (http://www.ivaudiobranding.com)
  • How Steve and iV began developing the sonic identity for Pandora
  • Measuring KPIs and return on sonic investments
  • The importance of developing the sonic piece of brand recognition at the beginning of the branding process, not at the end
  • Understanding the entire ecosystem of a brand
  • How audio influences buyer behavior
  • Steve’s work with Studio Resonate
  • Cross-modal hacking to influence consumers’ perception of flavor not only with taste but also with sound (this part blew my mind!)
  • How sound affects our body’s release of dopamine and oxytocin
  • How biases influence our decision-making processes

You can find more information about Steve Keller at www.studioresonate.com, or you can follow him on Twitter at @AudioAlchemist_ (that underscore is important). You can also find him on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/in/stevekeller1/.

This episode was very skillfully made to sound beautiful by the talented Humberto Franco (http://www.humbertofranco.com/).

Would you consider reviewing the Audio Branding Podcast?  If so, here’s the Apple Podcast link: https://podcasts.apple.com/podcast/audio-branding/id1489042453  And if you like what you hear (and read!) – please do share it with anyone you think might be interested. Thanks so much!

And if you’re interested in crafting an audio brand for your business, why not check out my FREE Audio Branding Worksheet?