It's an ear worm ! It's part of your brand's DNA. A Sonic Logo, or sonic branding is about making sure that your organisation is ‘heard’, as well as seen. The power of sound transcends culture, language, and even the visual world. With sonic branding, companies connect with their customers on a different level.
It only takes around 0.146 seconds for human beings to react to sound. We automatically experience an emotional response whenever we hear certain tunes. Think about all of the sounds prompts we experience in a given week - the beeping at a checkout counter lets us know our transactions are going through smoothly. The click when you lock your car door lets you know that you’re safe.
Research backs up the powerful influence of sound. In the Best Audio Brands Report 2019, it was found that “brand engagement is far stronger when audio is treated as an equal and essential aspect of the brand.” Consumers have reported that, when a brand uses disparate stock music for each new piece of content they put out, paying little mind to their overall audio identity, the brand is perceived as being less consistent and reliable as a whole. Check out this article: https://www.forbes.com/
Consider your customer's "touch points" in interacting your brand and how your exclusive sound universe could influence them :
1) Purchases on your app, 2) Customer service on hold, 3) Product actions - Sonic acceptance sound, or a welcome or warning sound, 4) When someone visits your web site, 5) The end of a commercial or corporate video, 6) The start and end of any promotional videos on social media, 7) Trade fairs, 8) Podcasts, 9) Video blogs, 10) Training/how to videos, 11) Social posts (IG, LI, FB, TikTok, YouTube), 12) Company events / conventions, 13) For retail stores with a physical location - over the in-store speaker system, 13) TV / Cable / Radio, 14) Interactive touch displays, 15) App Push Notifications, 16) Live Chat, 17) Automated Phone Attendant, 18) Customer Service, 19) IVR, 20) PDFs, 21) Bar Codes, 22) Cash /POS Register, 23) Testimonial Videos, 24) Thank-you videos
Most brands fail to think about sound and voice as an integral part of their brand’s identity, which are powerful tools to create an emotional and personal connection with customers. Moreover, a short-term tactical approach will not drive long-term equity.
Yes! Brands need to create reusable sonic assets that drive recognition at all touchpoints without neglecting the customer experience. This is only possible through a sonic branding strategy based on a unique Sonic DNA and the creation of authentic music, sounds and voices.
Sonic logos have been around longer than the term ‘sonic logo’ itself. Some of the early sonic logos were so well-designed that they’ve even become ingrained in our collective consciousness, with the power to make anyone feel nostalgic without warning. You can probably replay these iconic sonic logos in your head as soon as you think of them: ESPN. McDonald's. Intel. Avon. Ridiculousness. Sonic Logos enhance recall, evoke emotion, and strengthen affinity with customers by appealing to different senses.
Contemporary Sonic Logos are meant to serve as the foundation for a modifiable soundscape that can be re-envisioned and reinterpreted in a variety of ways. Each sonic logo can be re-imagined using different instrumentation, in different musical keys, for different moods and different cultural regions.
Intel. The fact that Intel never rebranded, and held on to their signature bong for decades, clearly enhanced their brand recall in the public eye. At the same time, they avoided becoming dated by giving the sound a slight update every couple of years
Though the "tones", or "notes", or "sound design" might sound like basic mnemonics at first, they carry huge amounts of emotional weight for your company. The right sound in your sonic branding helps to set the foundation of every interaction customers have with your business.
No matter what service your business offers, it has become more important than ever to invest in developing an audio brand. No matter in what capacity the sonic logo appears, it will echo the holistic experience of the brand, reflecting the equivalent sound architecture that would envelop you as you peruse a physical store, or greet you on the phone.
In terms of timing, creating a sonic logo offers one of the most robust ways to crystallize a rebrand or repositioning of your company. A new sonic logo can accompany a major product launch, or the rollout of a customer loyalty program. In fact, along with the launch of your core sonic logo, you may also want to create a variation of your sound to align with a new product or feature within your company. Just as an example, if you were making cars, your latest model meant for driving off road might get its own acoustic, fast-paced rendition of your sonic logo, to emphasize nature and adventure.
At any given time, developing a unique sonic logo can also be an important step toward coalescing a brand’s physical presence with its digital properties. Audio branding at company events (both for the public, as well as internal stakeholders and employees), the kinds of playlists played in stores, and the tone of voice used on loudspeakers to address shoppers are all elements that contribute to your overarching brand sound.
We will guide you through this process!
1) First, determine your brand’s values and essential qualities. What do you stand for? What makes you, you? 2) Compile a series of adjectives that best describe your brand and reflect what you want your brand to sound like. 3) Create an inventory of every touchpoint a consumer can pass through while using your product or purchasing from you. All of these touchpoints are domains where your sonic identity can and should live. You don’t need to limit yourself to touchpoints that already exist! Instead, get creative, gaze into the future, and think up everywhere where your brand could possibly exist. 4) Connect with a talented composer(s) - that's us! 5) Ensure that your core sonic logo has the capacity to be re-envisioned, localized, and updated. While you want it to be contemporary and cutting-edge, you also want it to have the longevity to be used well into the future to articulate your brand voice. This isn’t a one-time campaign, and you want to put as much effort and meaning into creating your sonic logo as you would a visual logo. 6) Prioritize simplicity. At the end of the day, after all this careful and strategic deliberation, try not to overthink the project by crafting an elaborate, polyphonic orchestration. Restraint is key. Make sure the sonic logo that you settle on is clean and memorable.
