Audio Branding as a key to success. Producers, brands and agencies talking about Audio Branding

 

The power of music lies in its frequency and how it affects human physiology. Scientists say that due to a simpler structure of auditory pathways as opposed to the visual ones, the information passes through the ear canals faster and stays with us for much longer. This gives a huge benefit to the aspect of sonic branding in marketing strategy. However, it’s often still being ignored or undervalued by many companies. 

In the era of covid restrictions when we lacked an opportunity to go out and spend quality leisure time, people started to restructure their lives and assign more value to the things they really like. People became more specific and precise in their wishes. We understand the value of a really good concert because half a year ago we had an opportunity to attend none. Now customers tend to ditch the opportunity to visit a random restaurant – they would rather visit the one they like or just stay at home.

Remote work has also had a big impact on customers’ level of tolerance to low-quality products. When you work from home, you’re the only one responsible for organizing your surroundings, having to set up your working space in a very personal way – the lighting, the furniture, the food, the smells and of course, the music. After being used to comfortable and inspiring conditions, it seems difficult and even foolish to agree on something that distracts you. No wonder the question of music choice has now become more pressing for creators and companies. After the pandemic, only the strongest or the luckiest stayed afloat. ‘Only lovers left alive’, as they say – indeed, the key to success lies in desperate love for your project and quivering attention to details. 

But who is responsible for our music surroundings? Of course, you can rely on yourself and use your headphones 24/7. However, this is not the only way for the auditory learners to survive – you can also choose brands and spaces that share your striving for beauty. 

 Some companies decide to make music an inseparable part of their brand identity. Masha Raeva, the art director of Volchok*, recounted the benefits behind it. First of all, brands build a connection with their audience through the means of music – when the customer hears his favorite track or, in general, the music he adores, upon entering the boutique, it contributes to building a stronger emotional connection and loyalty to the brand.

That’s how the choice of music affects the target audience of your brand. Volchok has had numerous collaborations with artists for campaigns and shows and Masha uncovered the keys to successful communication and shared their results. 

1. They won’t work with an artist who doesn’t share the ideology of the brand. Volchok is about much more than just clothes – it’s a way of living and thinking, thus every detail is important. So, the musician assigned as an ambassador will surely be associated with the brand and has to be of the same mindset. It can be a great marketing stroke if used wisely.
2. It is very important to have a strong connection with the music producer. Make sure you hear, understand and respect each other. The workflow will feel effortless if you know what you’re looking for and can explain it to your counterpart. 
3. You should rely on the artist: Let the producer make something on their own – put your faith in the style that you’ve already hooked up with.
4. Be in a state of endless exploration to find something unique. Volchok couldn’t find suitable music for the ‘Beyond the wall’ show for a really long time and only two weeks before the show they finally stumbled upon Sozorie’s release at PEER while scrolling Instagram, which appeared to be an ideal solution. 
5. Be sincere and open with your audience – it’s the only way to be heard and understood. You should follow the trends to avoid misunderstandings and support those who you really appreciate.
6. Collaboration is a great way to reach out to new audiences – this way, you can sometimes get an unexpected influx of customers.

But what if there is no separate audio branding department in a company? Surely, it takes time, money and effort to find a talented specialist… In that case, there are numerous sonic branding agencies who can take care of it. Nikita Molchanov shared the inside details of this business as he is the founder of Sfera – an audio branding agency that creates playlists and audio concepts for restaurants, malls, shops, hotels, bars, coworking spaces, etc. As you know, any good startup idea comes from personal wants and complaints: Nikita is a musician [known as Chronic Preview], audio digger and an auditory learner who can’t handle distracting mistakes in sound design – i.e. when music doesn’t suit the design code or the whole concept. So, Nikita decided to utilize his creativity in business and founded Sfera with his friends right after the first wave of the pandemic. They’re not pioneers on this route, but what makes them special is their scrupulous attitude towards every client along with exceptional taste. There are large agencies as well, which have much more music in stock – they, however, tend to offer sound design based on randomly assembled playlists based on popular radio hits. Also it seems like they don’t have anyone with good musical taste on staff who can select quality tracks. With such an approach, how can you expect significant results? According to Nikita, the key to a successful partnership lies in (a) Giving the client their right to be unique and special, (b) Knowing exactly what the customer needs and how they see the results, and (c) Understanding the specifics of their business.    

Another remarkable area of Sfera’s development is Sound Art, where they produce music for films (TRAP, Berlinale festival), exhibitions, performances, ballets (‘1234’), NFT platforms (Deedy), etc.

The aim of sonic branding agencies such as Sfera is to assist in companies’ business development and marketing endeavors, as they are experts in unfolding the so-called audible potential. These are professionals who know how to affect your customer’s mood and decision-making, increase the attractiveness of your product and build stronger emotional bonds with your audience. Don’t simplify the science of music and never neglect the professional experience of those working in the industry for years.

Musicians know and use secret tools to make the sound catchy. Tony y Not, a well-known German DJ and producer, wrote her masters thesis about psychedelic trance music and what makes it trance-y, what are the physics and science behind the patterns in this music that locks people in. With such an unwavering attitude and deep interest in the topic, great music is written. Here are some personal tips for emotional sound from Tony y Not: “The most emotional sounds in the music that I write come from working with pads and reverb. I used to not be a big pads fan but pads have this magical way of adding background dynamics that are not directly visible sometimes but set the mood. Also, they can compensate for lead melodies in an interesting and playful way”. She also shared her structural vision of music as a product: “I really like to work on emotional breaks and buildups that end in an ecstatic drop. I also find breaking out of scales very intriguing. So, when a song leads into a break with a scale change and gets really weird. I love breaks because you can fade out all your sounds to then build them up again. For me, that can get very emotional”. 

The music industry never stops its development and nowadays content creators have an opportunity to use tracks generated by AI in a variety of scenarios – especially in music-related content. What’s more, a lot of projects have popped up over the last few years that integrate AI into the work of musicians. Game developers, bloggers, digital artists and other influencers actively use it. NFT artist Olumzade finds Mubert render extremely convenient – it saves time and makes unique melodies that will never repeat. The ultimate convenience is that you set the mood, genre and length needed and get a unique royalty-free track. There’s  also an option to make a remix of an existing artist’s release. 

So, there is no way you can escape the effect of audio branding. As years go by, companies and various creators will need it more and more in order to sustain a positive brand image inside the mind of their customers and generate customer loyalty. There are a lot of options to choose from: hiring musicians, buying ready-made tracks or using some high-end tech such as Mubert Render – it’s a perfect opportunity to be very precise and selective in choosing the soundtrack of your life. Music is the human race’s everlasting companion – every civilization has used it in this or that way. What will our generation sound like? Start with yourself – let our AI help your tastes evolve, while making your life sound beautiful.

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Mubert is a platform powered by music producers that helps creators and brands generate unlimited royalty-free music with the help of AI. Mubert's mission is to empower and protect the creators. Our purpose is to democratize the Creator Economy.

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