Sound Branding Glossary

Posted on April 14, 2010 | Leave a comment

Since this blog is read by a lot of sound branding experts we thought that it is time that all of us together create an interactive sound branding glossary.  We will kick it off by posting one specific sound branding term at a time.  Then it’s time for all of us in the comments section to develop a clear definition of each term. We know that there are different definitions out there, but there has been no effort online to come up with a widely accepted sound branding terminology.

Maybe it will be easier than we think to find a mutual definition for each term. In any case it is a valuable add-on for all our readers from the corporate world. Please spread the word…

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Sound Branding Award 2010 goes to…

Posted on April 13, 2010 | Leave a comment

Just kidding. There is no Sound Branding Award yet. But we realized that it is always easy to bash brands for not doing their homework in regard to the recall and media efficiency potential that lies in a professional sound branding approach.  Therefor we wanted to look at a best practice example in the FMCG industry.  “Milka, …!” – can you finish the claim and the melody?  You sure can.

Here is one of the older Milka commercials:

If you go to Milka’s German homepage, you will be greeted by the Milka melody.  Then, go to the TV commercial section and check out the different videos for the different Milka product lines. You can always detect the Milka melody in all Milka line extensions. Continue reading →

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Selling the Sound of Silence – How much do you charge?

Posted on April 8, 2010 | Leave a comment

How can I differentiate myself from my competition?

Everybody is trying to communicate as much as possible. We want to be louder, sharper, and more innovative than our competitor. Everybody is getting husky (at least they would if communication was a live event) and nobody understands what the others say. The good news is that we found the loudest, sharpest, most differentiated and most innovative instrument in modern marketing communication of our time:

Silence Continue reading →

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Voice Branding: can you “translate” a voice?

Posted on March 17, 2010 | 5 comments

Did you ever watch the original versions of “Die Hard” or “Forest Gump” and afterwards the same movies in a foreign language?

Yes, well, then you certainly know that Bruce Willis and Tom Hanks have very different voices in your language compared to the original movie. Assuming that you have seen a few original movies by these actors you will feel awkward about their transition. Our voices carry a heavy load of implicit information. Thus hearing a familiar voice our brain is conditioned to draw from all our previous experiences with the character traditionally belonging to this voice. A known character with an “unfamiliar” voice will be irritating to us.

This has implications for all brands which try to establish a corporate voice. The crucial question is: how can you transfer your brand voice character from one language to another? Continue reading →

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Another wake up call for Brand Marketers

Posted on February 25, 2010 | Leave a comment

A TIME magazine article titled “Neural Advertising: The Sounds We Can’t Resist” reflects the value of sound in advertising and underlines the importance of „everday sounds“: a baby laughing, fizzing soda, or the sound of barbeque. All these sounds activate certain parts of our brain and can set us in a different mood. That is true but if every diaper brand uses the laugh of some baby, what will be the difference? Which brand can actually own this sound? An everyday sound is generic! Continue reading →

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The 10 Most Addictive Sounds in the US?

Posted on February 24, 2010 | 7 comments

Today I ran across an article by  Martin Lindstrom.

„The 10 Most Addictive Sounds in the World” shows again how important sound branding has become in today’s daily environment. Often sounds immediately influence what we do, but we don’t even think about it anymore. I guess nobody would doubt that.

Doubtful indeed is the way Lindstrom presents his “scientific” material in the fourth paragraph of this article. There should be more information about the mentioned study like year, selection criteria, and sample statistics. At least for those who would like to read more about this study there should be a reference link. Continue reading →

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Why do some Sound Branding elements work some don’t? Does neuroscience gives us the answer?

Posted on February 23, 2010 | 4 comments

A study of the Stanford School of Music which I believe has great relevance to the area of Sound Branding was already released in 2007 (Link to the news release), however; it has yet not been widely discussed in the field of Acoustic Identity/ Sound Branding.

Using brain images of people listening to short symphonies by an obscure 18th-century composer, a research team from Stanford has gained valuable insight into how the brain sorts out the chaotic world around it.

The research team showed that music engages the areas of the brain involved with paying attention, making predictions and updating the event in memory. The study showed that peak brain activity occurred during a period of silence between musical movements. That may be the answer to the question why some Sound Branding Elements work much better (recognition & recall) than others.

The researchers caught glimpses of the brain in action using functional magnetic resonance imaging, or fMRI, which gives a dynamic image showing which parts of the brain are working during a given activity. Continue reading →

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The race is on – How does Porsche sound?

Posted on February 18, 2010 | Leave a comment

One of the hot issues in today’s world of automobiles is the electronic car. But what if the vibrant sound of a Porsche is missing? No engine – no sound?! What’s the solution when Audi, BMW, Mercedes-Benz, or VW are entering the age of electric cars? In Germany this discussion is already reflected in the media. For sure the first step is a clear understanding of the desired acoustic identity of the particular car brand – which is true for all Sound Branding projects.

Please check the related articles (Sorry, they are in German!) on Zeit.de and Sueddeutsche.de!

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Artikel auf Deutsch:

Die Automobilwelt beschäftigt sich derzeit stark mit dem Thema Elektoautos. Die Frage ist, was passiert, wenn der vibrierende Sound eines Porsches einfach nicht mehr da ist? Kein Motor – kein Klang?!  Wie können Audi, BMW, Mercedes-Benz oder VW dieses Problem beim Eintritt in das Zeitalter der Elektroautos lösen?  In Deutschland spiegelt sich diese Diskussion bereits in allgemeinen Medien wider. Mit Sicherheit ist der erste Schritt ein klares Verständnis über die anzustrebende akustische Identität der Automarke – was grundsätzlich für alle Sound Branding Projekte gilt.

Bitte lesen Sie die interessanten Artikel auf auf Zeit.de und Sueddeutsche.de!

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