A Look At Audio Branding ROI

mvblogadmin — Mon, 19 Mar 2012 22:34:06 +0000

It is extremely difficult to quantify the effect that an Audio Brand, itself, has on a revenue and profits, especially when it is part of a larger, multi-faceted branding campaign. Still, it is worth examining how an Audio Brand can be effectively employed as part of a larger advertising push. A 2005 case study by Intangible Business examined Intel’s successful branding campaign, which utilized the famous four-note Audio Brand composed by Musikvergnuegen’s Walter Werzowa. In its first year, sales worldwide increased by 63%. In 1991, before the “Intel Inside” was unleashed, only 24% of European consumers were familiar with the chipmaker. Within four years, 94% were aware of the brand, and by 1998, Intel controlled 90% of the world’s PC microprocessor industry.

The recognition among consumers would not be temporary, however, as Martin Lindstrom found in his 2008 book “Buyology: Truth and Lies About Why We Buy.” Lindstrom performed a test to gauge how addictive a wide range of branded and non-branded sounds are. Among his subjects, the Intel Audio Brand proved to be the second most addictive sound of all, next to a baby giggle.

An essential part of creating a successful branding campaign is understanding just how powerful audio can be. Music is incredibly important to increasing brand awareness and has also been found to influence consumers’ purchasing decisions. Furthermore, it enables companies to charge premiums on their products and services. In contrast to visual stimuli, audio can be processed without active participation and thus, directly affect consumer decision-making on a subconscious level. A study by branding maven Adrian North found that music can raise or lower a consumer’s perceived value of an identical basket of goods. He noted that when wine stores played traditionally French music on one day and German music on another, the wines from that particular country sold four to six times more.

So while there is no clear-cut method to determining the value of an Audio Brand’s return on investment, it is possible to infer a certain level of growth based on peripheral metrics.

Brands as Patterns

mvblogadmin — Thu, 08 Mar 2012 21:57:38 +0000

The following is an overview of the talk that Musikvergnuegen’s Creative Director, Walter Werzowa, will be giving at this year’s SXSW as part of the panel “Brands as Patterns.” This panel will be taking place on Friday, March 8th at 12pm CST. Visit SXSW.com for more information. UPDATE: You can read about the entire panel in greater detail here.

An essential part of musical composition is the motif, which is a tonal and rhythmic pattern that is recurrent throughout the entirety of any song or piece. One of the most famous pieces in musical history is Beethoven’s 5th Symphony, which is based around a four-note motif (demonstrated above). And this was related to the thinking behind our work on Intel’s four-note mnemonic.

Although this memorable motif appears throughout most of the movement (it appears forty-four times in the first fifty-six bars), the esteemed English musicologist Sir Donald Tovey points out that the power of the music is not contained in this fragment, but rather in the long “sentences” that Beethoven built from it.

The most remarkable part of this movement is that we recognize the motif recurring even though, after the first iteration of the motif, it never appears again in the same exact way (i.e. using the same pitches and rhythm). If Beethoven had used his motif forty-four times in the exact way it appears at the top, this symphony would likely not be considered to be the masterpiece that it is today. It is the variation on this basic pattern that enables the listener to recognize the motif and not grow tired of it.

Neuroscientific studies have shown that Dopamine is released not at the emotional peak of a composition but approximately 12 seconds beforehand. This proves that anticipation is a driving force in keeping a listener’s attention. As a motif grows, taking on qualities different from its initial iteration, composers can build anticipation in their listeners for the climactic moment when, for instance, a 100-piece orchestra plays the motif Fortissimo. This is a measured interaction with the listener, and by playing with variation on a familiar pattern, we can ensure that a brand’s message is engaging and relevant.

Update: Mat Tombers from Odyssey Now was present a the “Brands as Patterns” panel and found it to be “one of the most intellectually exciting events I have been at in a long, long time as it challenged nearly every precept we have about branding.” Head over to Odyssey Now to read his assessment of the talk, along with a link to the original document that inspired the panel.

Musikv on BBC Radio 4

tyasu — Thu, 10 Jun 2010 19:48:33 +0000

Musikvergnuegen’s head honcho Walter Werzowa was recently a featured guest on the BBC Radio 4 audio branding special, “Tag Me Amadeus.” British comedian Sue Perkins hosts, so you can expect it to be both humorous and engaging. Here’s the description from BBC:

Sue Perkins encounters her own musical doppelganger, as she explores the mysterious art of ‘sonic branding’: the micro-jingles that distil the essence of an entire character, emotion or product…in mere musical seconds. Sue has her own bespoke musical tag created personally for her, at one of the UK’s leading sonic branding agencies, Cutting Edge Commercial – as well as speaking to experts on film music, children’s TV, and the composer of the most famous sonic logo in history: the famous “Intel bongs”…

That last part, of course, refers to Walter. Tune in to catch the premiere on June 15th at 1:30pm BST with a repeat playing on the 19th and 3:30pm BST. Of course, if you don’t feel like waking up early or doing the math, you can “freeview” the program on the BBC iPlayer for 7 days after the original broadcast.

Musikv at the LA Film Festival

tyasu — Fri, 07 May 2010 00:25:36 +0000

Thus far, this year’s LA Film Festival has been getting press mostly because it features the premiere of the third Twilight movie. However, we are particularly excited to be represented as part of the world premier of the documentary “Lost Angels.” Musikvergnuegen’s own Walter Werzowa scored the film, which peers into the lives of several of Skid Row’s homeless. Thomas Napper, who worked on The Soloist and Atonement as the second-unit director, helms the documentary.

The festival lasts from June 17–27th, and takes place at a number of venues Downtown. While the schedule doesn’t appear to be posted yet, you can see the entire lineup of movies at lafilmfest.com.

An Even Deadlier Catch

tyasu — Tue, 27 Apr 2010 21:46:21 +0000

Leading up to the 6th season, the guys behind Deadliest Catch licensed Eddie Vedder’s “Rise” to grace their promos. However, they asked Musikvergnuegen to compose an alternative, original piece to score the long-form version of the commercial. In approaching this project, we didn’t want to simply rip off the original track, and we also didn’t have the benefit of Eddie Vedder’s singing ability. Instead, we tried to emulate the tenderness of “Rise” with more Bluegrass-style instrumentation. Enlisting the help of real guitars and fiddles, we were able to show a different take on what is visually a stellar advertisement.

Deadliest Catch airs on Tuesdays at 9pm E/P only on Discovery Channel.

Discovery Life

tyasu — Fri, 05 Mar 2010 19:55:45 +0000

After our work on Deadliest Catch produced positive reactions from viewers around the country, Discovery tapped Musikvergnuegen’s John Luker to score their promo for Life, the sequel to Planet Earth. This time around, their preference was for a more vocal-oriented approach, so we reached out to a frequent collaborator, Lisbeth Scott, who has sung on such blockbusters as Avatar, Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen, Munich, and Pirates of the Carribean: At the World’s End. Combined with the natural sound design, the music attempts to capture the wonder and drama of the show’s subjects in their habitat.

Be sure to catch the premiere of Life on March 21st at 8pm EST, only on Discovery Channel.

The Most Addictive Sounds in the World

tyasu — Fri, 05 Mar 2010 02:05:18 +0000

A study recently posted on fastcompany.com attempts to find “The Most Addictive Sounds in the World” using “the latest neuroscience-based research methods.” Researches observed how the brainwaves of their 50 volunteers reacted to a variety of audio stimuli present in everyday life and determined the following sounds as the most addictive:

Non-branded and branded sounds:
1. Baby giggle
2. Intel
3. Vibrating phone
4. ATM / cash register
5. National Geographic
6. MTV
7. T-Mobile Ringtone
8. McDonald’s
9. ‘Star Spangled Banner’
10. State Farm

We at Musikvergnuegen are honored to have our Intel “Bong” listed as the 2nd most addictive sound in the world, not to mention the 1st among branded sounds. The study’s conclusion that sheer repetition has a lasting effect is a particularly interesting hypothesis, and it reinforces how effective audio branding can be. That said, it is important to understand the limitations of this study.

One main problem is the minuscule sample size. Perhaps, because of a lack of resources, the test administrators were only able to recruit 50 volunteers, which, by any statistician’s count, is insufficient for producing reliable results. Additionally, the author never offers a definition “addictive,” which is decidedly vague, and simply goes on to use the equally ambiguous word “powerful” as a substitute.

This study is certainly a great start, and we look forward to further research that expounds and expatiates on these findings.

Benylin Mucus Cough

tyasu — Thu, 17 Dec 2009 23:58:03 +0000

Although Benylin isn’t as well-known in America as Johnson & Johnson’s other pain relievers (Tylenol, for example), it seems to be something of a household name in the UK. As such, Musikv was recently tapped to score Benylin’s latest campaign, which personifies the protagonist’s mucus as a combative, Luchador wrestler. To add to the absurdity of the visuals, we brought in a 7-member Mariachi band and recorded the entire piece live and in-house.

Look for Benylin Mucus in your local drugstore.

Dan Brown’s “Hunting the Lost Symbol”

tyasu — Mon, 19 Oct 2009 18:46:31 +0000

Discovery is following the success of Dan Brown’s “The Lost Symbol” with a 2-hour special, which examines the historical clues and locations introduced in the novel. The latest collaboration between Musikvergnuegen and Discovery features a suspenseful main title theme and bumpers aimed at establishing a cinematic experience similar to that of The Da Vinci Code movie and its sequel. Musikvergnuegen’s licensing division, Beyond Music, also participated, contributing the in-show music.

“Hunting the Lost Symbol” airs at 8pm on Sunday, October 25th only on Discovery Channel.

Musikv Dances With the Stars

tyasu — Wed, 23 Sep 2009 21:39:34 +0000

The 9th season of ABC’s “Dancing With the Stars” kicked off this past Monday, continuing with the formula that has brought much success. The promos for this round feature music and sound design by Musikvergnuegen, whom sought to bring the tension and drama of the big screen to an otherwise light-hearted program. Nailing the percussion was particularly essential to this end and we are pleased with how it turned out. To check when “Dancing With the Stars” is airing, check ABC.com.