Why you should consider sonic branding

Adelaide Elliott //Associate Editor//October 31, 2019

Have you ever thought about why your computer makes a noise when it boots up? Why default text message notifications sound the way do on your phone? The companies who made them have, and chances are they paid a lot of money to have them developed.

The little sounds and songs your phones and computers make are all a part of a type of marketing called sonic branding, or the creation of sounds and jingles that can be associated with a company or product.

Sonic branding has been around for as long as recorded sound and commercials, spawning from the long-winded commercial songs of the 1950s and 1960s. It works on people’s tendency to pick up on and automatically remember and associate sounds and songs with experiences, places and things. Think about things like McDonald’s “I’m Lovin’ It” theme and State Farm’s “Like a Good Neighbor” jingle. You never set out to learn it, but chances are, you know it, and when you hear it or think of one of those brands the association is made.

Sonic branding is important to brands because it’s another channel through which they can make customers remember who they are. And while many companies spend thousands of dollars creating dozens of tones, jingles and songs to build their sonic identity across a product or set of advertisements, getting a start in sonic branding doesn’t have to require tons of money and a large marketing firm.

For smaller retailers or companies that are new to sonic branding, you may benefit from just incorporating a small, house made jingle or song style into your television, radio and digital advertising at first. It’s an easy, new way to remind customers of your brand. And who knows, you might even become a local sensation.

In my hometown, a local car and motorsports dealership chain called Kevin  Powell’s has been doing its own homegrown version of sonic branding for as long as I can remember. Their commercials are always read by the owner who calls himself “Krazy Kevin Powell.” In them, he always yells and sings about his incredible deals and financing, and always wraps up the commercials with the same sing-song yelling. The commercials are more than a little ridiculous and at times even a little annoying, but they are effective. Everyone in the area can repeat the beginning and end of the commercials back on command, and there have been dozens of articles written about the commercials online by marketing folks and nostalgic locals.

While your sonic brand doesn’t have to be quite so “krazy,” you do want it to be just as memorable as Powell’s mantra and delivery. Get started by finding the sounds, people and key phrases associated with you brand and just put it out there. Before long, customers may be repeating your jingles back to you.