Ears are the gateway to a consumer’s heart: 5 brands that are hitting all the right notes in sonic branding
Some of the biggest brands in the industry like Amex and PayPal are using sound to connect with their audiences.
We explore the different directions brands have taken with their sonic identities and how they add more fuel to their sonic brand launches by working on adjacent marketing strategies that give the launch more shelf life.
My washing machine used to play a 30 second tune every time the washing was done. The first time it happened I was surprised, but after that I started associating the sound with a task well done.
Sound is an important part of our lives and an important part of branding. Think of sonic branding as a brand’s auditory handshake – it’s what ties the object (brand) to its attributes (convenient, trustworthy, etc.) in consumers’ minds.
“Sonic branding can be leveraged to build recall and association between brands and their campaigns and special products/services. Specifically in the financial services sector, sound branding can provide levels of assurance to the consumer surrounding the exchange of money or services,” said Austin Coates, Research & Insights Consultant at amp, a sonic branding agency. One of the best examples of doing sonic branding well comes from Mastercard., which developed a suite of UX/UI sounds based on its sonic identity that evoke the brand in users’ minds whenever they interact with their money, said Coates.
Mastercard not only went and developed music pieces that formed its brand identity but also tied it with strategy and adjacent projects that made the brand’s auditory experience fuller.
Here is a recap of our what Mastercard is doing in audio:
Mastercard developed a sonic logo as well as longer versions of this tune that could be played in different environments like its app and ads. The sonic logo is also played when people make in-game purchases and at checkout in brick and mortar stores.
The firm also released an album called “Priceless”, which challenged artists around the world to adapt the Mastercard sonic logo in different ways and use it in their songs.
To ensure its sonic footprint keeps evolving and the DNA remains fresh, the firm is leaning on technology and AI through its Mastercard Sonic Station, a tool that will allow its team to develop renditions of its sonic logo as needed.
The landscape of sound in financial services
Mastercard isn’t the only brand in the financial services industry that is dabbling in sonic branding. Here’s your guide to who is doing what in sonic branding today:
HSBC: Not a logo but an anthem
Going into its brand refresh in 2018, HSBC also wanted to build a sonic identity while updating its visual one. For this, HSBC went down the anthem route rather than the short sonic logo route like Mastercard. While developing its sonic brand, the bank worked with music composer and performer Jean-Michel Jarre to come up with an instrumental piece that engendered HSBC’s motto “Together we thrive”. Like Mastercard, HSBC also produced multiple versions of this melody to be used in different settings like the bank branch and sponsored events.
To support the rollout of its sonic brand and keep its global teams in sync, HSBC also created a “creative council” where its executive creative directors from all of the firm’s agencies and the in-house digital creative leads came together to maintain consistency.
Adjacent to this release, HSBC also released “HSBC Sounds of Home” as a response to its research which found that most overseas students missed the sounds of home the most when away. This is an excellent example of how brands can highlight their services banking overseas students and families and through marketing that speaks to experiences rather than products.
Wells Fargo: Couple sounds with splashy advertising
