Opinion: The sound of alcohol – An industry in need of a new sonic fermentation process
In the dynamic alcohol category, sound serves as a key player in shaping brand experiences. However, a recent report by amp sound branding uncovers a surprising lack of unique sonic identities among top alcohol brands. The findings highlight a missed opportunity for differentiation and recognition. As brands navigate this sonic landscape, they face a critical choice: to pioneer their distinctive sound or risk being drowned out by the competition. Rex Hirschhorn, research and insights consultant at amp, tells us more.
Picture an atmosphere where alcohol is being served…is it solitary and silent, or sociable and vibrant? From the moment a can or bottle is cracked to the first sip, alcohol and the impending imbibing ritual are inextricably intertwined with the medium of sound.
Although these prototypical sounds are ubiquitous indicators of the alcohol-consuming experience, they cannot replace the unique flexibility and adaptability of a sonic identity. A sonic identity can be defined as the translation of a brand’s ethos, values or personality into sound. How, then, do alcohol brands find ways to differentiate themselves within an industry filled with universal product sounds?
In our latest report, The Sound of Alcohol, the team analysed and ranked the top 50 alcohol brands by their use of music and sound (over the last 12 months) based on the top five brands from each sub-sector by market share.
What the team discovered both surprised and disappointed us greatly. Only one brand, Pilsner Urquell, has and uses a sonic identity. With that said, it came as no surprise that the alcohol sector excessively utilised licensed music in advertisements and marketing materials. Licensed music and alcohol are an inseparable combination; this even bleeds into the live event space, with nearly all music festivals and venues (and even some bands) boasting alcohol sponsors to enjoy alongside performances.
There are two main problems with this dependency on licensed music. First, it is extremely expensive; brands can shell out millions on a single track. Second, there is no ownership, as two brands can use the same song, meaning growth in brand equity and recognition is a non-starter. For example, in this year’s Super Bowl, Bud Light’s spot featured ‘Magic Carpet Ride’ by Steppenwolf. This track was used many years earlier by Miller in their ‘Beach’ commercial.
We wanted to see if the immense license investment among alcohol brands held any value. We asked 150 beer-drinking Americans to connect popular beer brands to the licensed music of corresponding popular campaigns. As seen in Figure 1, even at the best, only 25% could match the song to the brand. This leading brand, Bud Light, is also a little misleading because it used ESPN/ABC’s Monday night football theme song, meaning the connection may be between football and Bud Light rather than music.
This is all to say that the investment in licensed music does not pay back the cost of brand recognition, even if you use the same licensed track in almost every commercial, like Modelo.
We were so intrigued by the lack of connection that we ran a follow-up study (not included in our latest report) on the most-watched sporting event in the US, the Super Bowl. Less than 24 hours after the big game had ended, we asked Super Bowl viewers to match the song used in beer ads to the corresponding brand. As seen in Figure 2, most Super Bowl viewers could not make the connection the next day.
This is not to say that song choice holds no value, but rather the opposite; music holds so much value that using a track that represents your brand is imperative in an industry so innately tied to music.
We added one non-beer brand, T-Mobile, to the above Super Bowl study because they used their sonic logo (the audible version of a visual brand logo) in their big game spot. 84% of those same participants were able to match the sonic logo to T-Mobile, which is in stark contrast to the licensed track results previously discussed.
Despite this, licensed music is not the biggest problem that plagues the alcohol industry in the sonic sphere. 50% of the brands the amp team analysed used a majority of stock music in their advertisements, and 19% of all content shared in the alcohol industry had no music at all. These numbers are extremely high for an industry with such an incredible historical connection to the sonic world.
This excessive use of stock music (or no music) in marketing materials was found to be greatest among unexpected alcohol types: hard seltzer and champagne. Hard Seltzer is the newest and most heavily invested-in fad – it would not be unreasonable to expect this sub-sector to acknowledge the importance of sound. However, the amp team found the sub-sector appears to be going flat, with hard seltzer brands utilizing no music in 41% of their external advertisements. How can such a nascent industry find itself stuck in a silent era?
Champagne, on the other hand – being such a premium beverage – sounded discounted according to amp research. Champagne brands use, on average, 71% stock music, which directly opposes their seemingly luxurious offering. Taylor Swift is right; champagne problems really do exist.
With waning seltzer sales, these two sonically stunted alcohol types should serve as a cautionary tale for the next new industry investment, alcohol-free beverages. Many current alcohol brands have started providing no-alcohol options (0% alcohol beverages), while new brands have also popped up. This inclusive addition to the market provides an incredible opportunity for brands to begin thinking about a holistic sound strategy at the inception of their product.
While the rise of alcohol-free brands and products provides an opportunity to establish sonic identities in a sparse field, current alcohol brands are not out of play. The lack of branded sonic assets (such as a sonic logo or a holistic sonic identity) within the sector means that the next brand to establish audible assets will be at an incredible advantage and will have the opportunity to sonically pioneer their alcohol type.
Just as Netflix was the first to create a sonic logo in the streaming world, the early players tend to be ubiquitous in the industry and become cultural drivers. So, which alcohol brands will explore their true sonic flavour, and which will be overpowered by the competition? We will wait to see!