Music To My Ears!

Tuesday and Wednesday nights, my house is filled with intolerable wailing, piercing squeals and the occasional inappropriate gyration. I’m speaking, of course, of American Idol.

We watch with anticipation, fresh, innocent youngsters transformed into cocky, self absorbed superstars, one of them destined for fame, fortune and the Betty Ford clinic. Now that’s family entertainment.

I hate American Idol and it’s cavalcade of singers who leave me humming 1970’s Captain and Tennille songs for a week, unable to get the melodies out of my head. This week, the wannabees belted out Elvis Presley classics. I’ve spent the last three days working to Blue Suede Shoes playing over and over in my brain.

Such is the power of music and audio. And therein lies a useful tip for advertisers.

For advertisers using broadcast mediums, there are few things more powerful than a memorable jingle.

For years in Vancouver, I created advertising for companies like United Furniture Warehouse, Lens & Shutter, Speedy Auto Glass and Budget Brake & Muffler, all of whom were heavy broadcast advertisers. Jingles were an invaluable tool used to deliver their brand to the market.

Not all the jingles are hood. Then again, not all Elvis’s songs were good either, but he never complained.

A memorable jingle, used repeatedly over time, creates an indelible marker in our brain that never disappears. A few bars forces complete recall of the advertiser, in a powerful, influential way. Even if we don’t like the jingle, its ability to reside in the brain’s filing cabinet and be instantly recalled is incredible.

Buyology Inc. and Elias Arts, a sound identity company in New York, wired up 50 volunteers and measured their galvanic, pupil, and brainwave responses to sounds using the latest neuroscience-based research methods. Amazing was how many commercial brands over the past 20 years have made their way into the world’s 10 most powerful and addictive sounds, beating some of the most familiar and comforting sounds of nature.

Sound is such a powerful stimulus, in Las Vegas, when casinos experimented with removing sounds from their slot machines, the end result was a decline in revenues of 24%. Coincidentally, they tried the same thing with Wayne Newton, turning off his microphone during his concerts... ticket sales soared.

A good jingle can run several thousand dollars or more. But prorated, over the life of the jingle, which can be several years or even several decades, the cost is minimal. Companies like Budget Brake & Muffler, for example, have been using their jingle since the 1980’s.

Jingles can be as simple as a little “stinger”, like the electronic Intel signature sound, which, by the way, ranked number two on Buyology Inc.’s most addictive, memorable sounds of all time. Or they can be fully blown songs with verses and choruses, something, apparently, Eminem is still trying to figure out how to do.

For advertisers looking to create a jingle, there are several good jingle companies locally, ranging from one-person composers, to larger, fully equipped studios. Of course, you can look to larger markets like Vancouver or Toronto, but expect to spend a lot more money.

If you’re a broadcast advertiser, don’t under estimate the power of sound and the value of a great jingle.

Get a great tune into the consumer’s head, and it’s there forever! ... “Well it’s one for the money.. two for the show.. three to...”, sorry, what was I saying?