Tuesday, July 28, 2009

Sound Branding

Dr. Suavetone Special Edition PodCast
An effective brand identity is commonly perceived as a good brand name and logo, trendy package design – dimensions which mainly concern visual senses. However, this common perception of branding is incomplete.

Human beings have five senses, so why would brand strategists leave four of them aside? Over the past few years, senses other than sight have been explored by brand experts and marketers. Although the senses of taste and touch are more difficult for brands to reach, some brands like Singapore Airlines and Rolls Royce have already used scent to build brand identity, also known as olfactive branding.

A new area of focus is now sound branding, explored in this article from Brand Infection.

When you really think about it, this idea and focus is actually not all that new - I mean, if you're not familiar with the NBC Chimes, or the audio tag for Intel, you're either deaf of live someplace like Easter Island.

I've always loved audio tags and jingles and believe they can be just as vital to any branding campaign as any logo and/or tag line. If you've ever listened to my HMK Mystery Streams you're probably already familiar with some of my little audio tags: If: Irregular Frequency created in the summer of 2007 and Totally Bitchin', my first attempt from back in 1987 using samples from Frank and Moon Unit Zappa's Valley Girl (1982) and The Surf Punks Teenage Girls (1980).

That's Right,

HMK