Tag Archives: Brands and Music

Is music the international language?

When working on international Sound Branding projects clients often ask me whether music is international and can be used all over the world. So far to me classical, pop and Hollywood film music can be titled as international music which will be understood nearly all over the world. Nevertheless to be on the safe side on a Sound Branding project which is to be implemented worldwide local market research is the only safe way to go. You can imagine that the budget for such a research project is sky high.

So I am happy for every little piece of information about the recognition of music in an international setting, as academic research is limited. Now we have some more insights regarding this issue. It has long been debated which aspects of music perception are universal and which are developed only after exposure to a specific musical culture.

In a crosscultural study with participants from a native African population (Mafa) and Western participants results show that basic emotions in Western music can be recognized universally (Academic article: “Universal recognition of three basic emotions in music” Current BiologyVolume 19, Issue 7, 573-576, 19 March 2009).

In a first step the international researcher team … Continue reading

Instore Music – the power of emotional branding

Imagine, your are a brand manager responsible for all your branches, brand- and flagship stores (I hope you actually are…). These offer your brand great opportunities to reflect and thus communicate your brands image and emotional positioning through a unique music program.

Studies show that a music concept which fits to the brand, store and target group increases the time that customers spend inside the store. Overall, this leads to more purchases with a higher value – more revenue for your company – and brings additional value to the brand by strengthening its individual image.

However; instore music which supports your brand identity ….. Continue reading

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

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

Another wake up call for Brand Marketers

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

The 10 Most Addictive Sounds in the US?

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