The Importance Of Audio & The Connected Attention Needed
The Power Of Audio Is Still Underrated
Have you ever had a jingle stuck in your head?
Have you ever heard a song and thought that’s the x advert? (Thanks to being stuck on a Jet2 flight Jess Glynne is forever burnt into my brain - enjoy her song at the bottom of this post)
Audio is often overlooked as an important component of Branding, Marketing, grabbing and holding attention.
TikTok managed to nail this so much that it is now driving huge success for artists and their songs.
A quick story from my past, I worked at a company and we had an app, the best feature reported by users was the money fall noise when someone donated to their page, it was that dopamine kick, that reward we crave and gave the fundraiser the celebratory feedback they needed.
When it comes to audio you need to remember the attention needed for each format, the way I frame this:
Medium To % Attention Needed
Jingle - 10-15%
Radio - 25%
Music - 25-35%
Podcast - 65%
Phone Calls - 70-80%
Audio Note - 80-85%
Audiobook - 95%+
Jingles from TV ads or a sound from an app require 10-15% of your attention to stick into your mind (a few times and it’s embedded in your brain), ask any artist how important TikTok and music in Reels are for them at the moment.
Likewise, with podcasts, you need something from an intro, the outro, to a slogan you repeat to hold someone’s attention and build affinity with the audience. Once you have this and some repetition it builds a deeper affinity, alongside the para-social relationship that can be formed with the host(s)
My recommendation to many of my clients (coaching or consulting) is to select your mediums and create a jingle or a sound that you will be forever connected with you or your brand.
The same goes for brands I advise, I recommend owning a sound on social and an emoji that you are instantly associated with.
Go and own a sound, a jingle and an emoji.
