Intentional | Audio Identity Blog

By Noel Franus

Following up on our recent conversation about audio identity, audio branding and a call for clear language on all this, I’m going to provide a three-tiered look at how to audio branding works — what it means, who’s doing it and what they get for doing it.

The goals: to shine a clear light on the opportunities we face as brand-groups and agencies; and to enable an intelligent, ongoing conversation on this subject. Without further ado…

Audio branding of a promotional bent aims to connect existing dots — to brand the sound, usually with a sonic logo or brand-identifier of some sort, everywhere the company communicates.

For example, if you’re advertising via traditional or experiential means; if you’re connecting with customers in events or retail spaces; or even if your company has a 1-800 line, you’re already communicating with music, sound or voice. In the ideal state, each of those touchpoints is an opportunity leveraged, rather than an opportunity ignored. And the brand sound used in each touchpoint communication is a unique, consistent differentiator.

EXAMPLES

1. N-B-C chimes. Need we say more?

2. Intel’s memorable tones. They’ve been ubiquitous in PC advertising. Unfortunately, though, this hasn’t extended much beyond the tv or radio commercial.

3. Harley-Davidson’s calibrated hog-tone. It’s a nontraditional audio mnemonic that’s almost instantly recognizable; the product literally speaks for itself as it rolls down the road. No media required.

Actionable audio branding makes the most of psychoacoustics — linking sound to the brain — to affect our view of the world. When thoughtfully orchestrated, it positively affects the things, places and people we like; the products we buy; and the brands we believe in. If not carefully orchestrated, unfettered sound equates to (you guessed it) noise pollution.

Actionable audio branding can (and should) provide a long view into building customer loyalty and make the world a better place (egads); intelligent, behavioral-based audio branding is critical to improving the experience that we have with everyday products and environments — from computers to cell phones, from cameras to (yes) airports.

EXAMPLES

1. Muzak’s model is based on getting people to linger longer in retail establishments. When they linger, they spend more. And when they linger and feel especially sophisticated, the tab increases. Forget the elevators, this is serious business.

2. The London Underground (train system) “Mind the Gap” warning keeps people aware and alive as trains approach and people board. Not only has “Mind the Gap” become a household term, but the sound has also spawned an incredibly popular retail franchise.

3. Mobiles and ringtones. The audio palette of your phone’s operating system serves to inform; it sounds off as audio feedback for the buttons you push – you know it’s working because you hear the sounds. That’s actionable. Now throw in custom ringtones: this teenager-driven $600-million industry (with no signs of slowing) makes the mobile, like, ultra-actionable.

Few companies understand the nuances of what makes consumers tick. Those that do know how to tap into peoples’ deep connection to music, sound and voice in ways that other companies might not have anticipated are those that are at the forefront of innovational audio branding. They’re betting the farm on audio, letting it drive their brand strategy, shift their business strategy or both.

EXAMPLES

1. Apple and the iPod. Ten years ago, Apple was a computer company on the ropes. Today, they’re a lifestyle company, a household name, a category-maker and a market-leader. How’d they do it? They understood and leveraged our passion for music. And became the first iconic brand for the 21st century.

2. Starbucks and Hear Music. That’s not a CD for sale at the counter, to go along with your latte and mints — it’s cultural cache. Starbucks understands that our feelings about music can be calibrated to match brand perceptions. It’s a profitable ingredient in the larger mix that is the continuing evolution of how we think and feel about Starbucks. Through its music, Starbucks has found a relevant way to extend its brand into satellite radio and (you guessed it) iTunes music store. So much for coffee.

WRAPPING IT UP

This should give you a sense of what’s brewing in the land of audio branding, and how you can leverage this thinking, these examples, and your own ideas into a promotional, actionable or innovational programs.

Good luck and send me those plus-deltas…do let me know what you think. Add a comment below or ping me at noel at intentional audio dot com.

I’m conducting a feedback exercise over at one of my other blogs. Here’s the deal: listen to a corporate anthem produced by Sun Microsystems, circa 2003. And tell me what what you think about it by answering three simple questions.

Utterly unscientific. That’s okay, it’s a rigor-free Wednesday. Give it a whirl and I’ll share the results back over here, too.

Reminder: I’ll be speaking on audio identity and branding strategy at a coast (relatively) near you soon. First, New York, at the AIGA Gain Design and Business Conference (October 26-28). Second, Portland, Oregon at the brand-spankin’ new Pop Art space (date TBD). Ping me if you need more info: noel at intentionalaudio dot com.

If you’ve had conversations with me about good or “intentional” audio branding, or found your way to our home page (and dared read through it all), then you know I’m a big fan of using an audio identity in an intentional manner, everywhere the brand lives.

So what’s that mean, really? Well, here’s a visual example. It’s a simple way for understanding some of the touchpoints that most companies use — this is how we already communicate with our customers, prospects and the rest of the world. We’re either doing a good job at it or we’re not.

So, the one-minute exercise today, class, is to pick a company you know well, look at the touchpoints map, and listen up. Consider all the ways in which you’ve experienced sound (or an intentional lack of it) with this brand. And ask:

1. Are any of those touchpoints are sonically strong? Negative? Neutral? Delightful? Offputting?
2. Do any of these sonic touchpoints connect in a way that’s consistent, compelling and differentiating? Do they serve the brand’s best interests? Or detract from them? Are these opportunities gained, or opportunities lost?

Happy listening. Oh, and feel free to substitute touchpoints…this list is far from definitive.

Coming soon: a look at the promotional, behavioral, and strategic aspects of an intentional audio identity. Meantime, don’t be shy. We’re new here, so feel free to spread the word and/or share your thoughts.

I’m working on a piece that outlines the structure of a big-brand corporate audio identity that I’ve been directing for the past couple years. But fear not, it’s not a term paper — think comic books instead. Pictures, good. Meanwhile, happy clicking:

Smell of the Day: just as with sound, smell permeates our lives. Scent, after all, is the sense most strongly connected with memory, and each day Samantha digs up a find, puts it on a platform and makes you take notice in ways that are new, unusual, and almost always intriguing. A must-read for sensorial or experience-design buffs.

Music in the Head - Living at the Brain-Mind Border: a fascinating, personal story of the music stuck in one man’s head.

The Science of Sound in the Sea: “how people and animals use sound underwater.” Be sure to check out the audio gallery in “Common Underwater Sounds.”

Something that received a lot of buzz earlier this month in traditional media — but seemingly nowhere online — is the new, Katie-Couric-enabled CBS Evening News anthem/intro/outro music (the stuff they play as the show begins, and as they cut to commercials, etc.).

For those of you with a Wall Street Journal account, here’s the story — yes, with accompanying sounds.

Sure, it’s an interesting story. (Contact me offline if you’d like to “read my copy.”) But in the last few weeks it’s been gnawing at me about this. I think I have a handle on it, so here we go:

It’s nifty to read about how much thought went into the overall process: Hollywood composer James Horner was challenged with creating something that packs an entire, proud legacy of quality reporting into a ten-second piece of music: “The music couldn’t sound too similar to the “Roman fanfares” of NBC and ABC, Mr. Horner says, adding, “Katie told me she wanted something that reminded her of wheat fields blowing rather than Manhattan skyline.”

Got that? History. Quality. Past. Future. Legacy. And fields of wheat. Clearly, Horner and company had a challenge before them. Almost impossible, unless you can sell upstream. And I’m not sure that’s the case here.

I’m not interested in pointless criticism of anyone’s work — all too often clients can whittle down the most beautiful creative work into a simple slice of Wonder bread — but this anthem just doesn’t cut it. Not because I personally don’t like it, but because it doesn’t seem grounded. It doesn’t stand for anything.

It sounds almost identical, in fact, to the John-Williams-composed NBC Nightly News theme (also playable at the WSJ site). And that’s not just me blowing heat: as an exercise during an audio-branding presentation to groups of 50-plus people, I’ve played both themes, unidentified, and only half the crowd ever guesses the difference between the NBC and CBS news themes. (Imagine the results if I threw in the sounds for ABC, CNN or Fox News.)

Here’s why that matters. Just as with any other brand communications, a sonic identity should definitvely identify your organization — and clearly differentiate you from your competitors. But it appears as though CBS has rebuilt their audio identity to establish themselves as simply being in the club: hey, we’re here. Still around, dammit. We Are A Network That Has News.

Sure, sometimes “not dead yet” can actually be an effective brand strategy. Show your pulse. Pop in now and then. But that’s not what the CBS goal was, not at least as stated in the article. And that’s Lost Opportunity Number One: they’re not telling us how unique they are; they’re telling us exactly how much alike they are to those Other Big Network Shows.

Which brings us to Lost Opportunity Number Two: the sound, from what I can tell, only lives in a tiny little place called the Broadcast Version of the CBS Evening News. Why?

Even if your sound is just like The Other Guy, surely there’s a way to extend the brand and leverage it in an innovative fashion — pluck a short melody out of that existing Horner piece, truncate (pick the catchiest part) or perhaps tweak it a little, and use it everywhere the brand lives: yes, go ahead, play it during the news.

But what about extending it to the CBS website? What about the network promos? What about taking that theme and building that earworm factor into everything I ever see or hear that has to do with CBS? Journalist blogs, cell phone distributed content, ringtones, and so on.

There’s so many ways to grow this investment. I’m surprised I haven’t seen any of them implemented yet. And I’m disappointed that there’s this much buzz about a branding vehicle that doesn’t seem like either a strategic or a tactical fit. Yet.
Let’s hope that changes. They have the material, and they can use it as a palette or a foundation, rather than a one-off. It’s up to them. I hope for the best.

When I introduce the concept of “audio branding” to people unfamiliar with it, one of the easiest ways to talk about it is in terms we’re already familiar with — you know the Intel chimes, the Yahoo! logo, and you want to teach the world to sing. At its simplest, purest form, it’s a way of creating sounds that suit the brand for strong identity in an otherwise overbanded marketplace.

Alternatively, it’s just as easy to demonstrate the role of sound in our lives when you talk about sounds that clearly don’t fit a brand: imagine, for instance, a Rocky soundtrack written by Barry Manilow. or Tony the Tiger that featured the voice of Clara Barton (Where’s the Beef!)? Or a Harley Davidson that zipped down the street with the sound of an electric scooter. The cache that we associate with these brands would be about as flat as Floyd Landis’ cycling future.

Fortunately, someone’s taken the time to do some real-world subverting for us. No, I’m not talking about your call-center — which I guarantee is losing you customers right now — but something a bit easier to laugh at: music for Gap commercials that didn’t make the cut. Happy lunch-hour clicking.

(As for that call-center your company uses: go ahead, I challenge you to give it a ring and sit through it like a real prospect or existing customer would. Does the system — decision-tree, voices, music — work for you or against you? Are you gaining brandshare, customer loyalty and revenue? Or losing it? If the answer is the latter, don’t worry, most of your competitors probably haven’t caught onto their problems, either. But they will soon…)

Great news: we’ll be heading over to New York in October to present to the AIGA Gain / Business + Design conference in late October.

I’m at the point where, after a number of Sun-only presentations on audio branding and the recent IDSA national conference, there’s more than enough material to work with. But it always evolves. F’instance, here’s something that may just seep into a future conversation — stay tuned:

One of the core concepts of “good” or intentional audio branding I’ve been thinking about lately is that those who “get it” benefit from a smart, brand-centric approach to music, sound and voice.

Two companies come to mind as specifically having come a long way in this matter: Apple and Starbucks. Oh great, you’re thinking, more brandspeak about Apple and Starbucks. But bear with me, this one’s new.

The very few companies that have built a strong audio brand — BMW, Coca Cola, Harley-Davidson, etc. — have done so by using sound to either: a) create a connection with customers via promotional/marketing/advertising (”Always Coca-Cola;” Intel chimes; N-B-C); or b) reinforce the brand by integrating brand values into the user experience (BMW’s 200+ acoustical engineers working on the controls and overall interior timbre of the driving experience; Harley’s acutely calibrated tone; Cheetos’ crunch etc…).

But very few have shot past all that with sound. Apple and Starbucks are two such companies — not only have they used sound for both those purposes, they’ve built it right into the heart of their business strategy.

In case you’re not getting it, I should mention a coupla products that have altered the course of modern culture: iPod and iTunes. Of course Apple’s always had the vision of being at the hub of a “digital lifestyle,” but had they really imagined their modern success 15 or so years ago, when they were a nifty little computer company? (Or better yet, 10 years ago, when they were a not-so-nifty little computer company?)

Meanwhile, Starbucks uses their Hear Music sub-brand quite well; these Starbucks coproduced CDs available at the register don’t merely extend the brand or provide extra cash for the man behind the curtain; they reinforce the brand — it’s not coffee, kids. It’s a lifestyle.

In both cases, it’s encouraging to see companies moving from simple commodity providers to major pruveyors of creative cache. And it’s due in no small part to them leveraging our emotional connection to sound.

Let’s talk more in NY. See you at Gain?