Sonic Branding
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was during his time working at Capital Radio that author Daniel Jackson became convinced of the potential scope and implications of sonic branding. In this highly engaging book he traces the historical development of sonic branding from its roots in religion through to more modern day manifestations in cinema and advertising. His central claim is that sonic branding is potentially the most powerfully emotive and expressive weapon in the brand armoury, and that the vast majority of brands are failing to realise the benefits that a coherent and sustained approach to their sonic branding could deliver. According to Jackson, sonic branding has its unconscious roots in the ancient songs of our prehistoric ancestors, but it has only existed as a recognised business discipline for a mere couple of decades. This relatively recent recognition of the power of sonic branding has resulted in what Jackson perceives to be the general lack of a strategic approach by advertising agencies in the selection of music for brands. As an example of poor sonic branding, he cites the use of The Verve’s song ‘Bittersweet Symphony’ by Vauxhall Motors in the advertisements for their Vauxhall Astra car. Jackson contends that the classical nature of the music was dramatic and at odds with the modest, family-
oriented personality of the Vauxhall Astra, and that the music simply did not ‘hit the marque’. The sonic branding employed by Intel, on the other hand, is deemed by Jackson to be exemplary. Intel has a symbol in sound that Jackson claims is just as powerful, if not more so, than their symbol in graphics, and it stands out in comparison to the inconsistent and ineffective sonic branding conducted by organisations that do not possess sonic logos. Other examples put forward of good practice in sonic branding include: the Radio Advertising Bureau (RAB), which one would expect to possess a level of competence in this area; the global mobile brand Orange; ice-cream brand Cornetto; and British Airways. Jackson describes the essence of sonic branding as two-fold: the creation of brand expressions in sound, and the consistent, strategic use of these properties across touch-points. These brand expressions in sound may be high art or low art, small scale or epic — in Jackson’s view it does not matter whether the brand expression proposed is a symphony or a jingle, as both may be appropriate. The sonic brand touchpoints he alludes to cover a diversity of channels for communicating the brand through sound. Radio, TV, cinema and retail are perhaps the most obvious ones, but these are complemented by
䉷 HENRY STEWART PUBLICATIONS 1479-1803 BRAND MANAGEMENT VOL. 12, NO. 1, 67–71 SEPTEMBER 2004
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other potential sonic touch-points such as the telephone (music used on hold), websites, conferences, offices and events. One of the main thrusts of this book is that there needs to be a strategic view taken of an organisation’s sonic branding, without which there is too much scope for the whims of personal subjectivity to dominate over long-term
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