“[What] a lot of sonic branding agencies aren’t aware of is that sonic branding can also be used as a tool to address a concern that the client might have. So, for example, a new competitor has come in and now they feel dated. Okay, let’s write a sonic branding that’s based around being modern. Okay, they’ve had a big knock on trust, like I mentioned before, with a data breach. This is a great opportunity to write a sonic branding that builds customer trust. So, it can be used as another mode along with your visuals, along with your tone of voice. Your branding tone of voice is in, like, the words that are spoken, not the like the language, right? It’s a tool to convey your brand.” – Dr. Thomas Dickson

This episode is the second half of my conversation with musicologist and sonic branding strategist Dr. Thomas Dickson as he shares his thoughts on maintaining a long-term branding, the growing use of AI for everything from monitoring to mock-ups, and the versatility of an effective sonic logo.

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(0:00:01) - Impact of Sonic Branding Variations

My conversation with Dr. Dickson picks up as we talk about the challenge of maintaining a consistent audio brand through changing management and brand strategies. “They might not even have been strategically sonic branding,” he notes. “It could have just been some brand music that they turned into a mnemonic or brand music they’ve just been using for years, and then a brand manager will come in and just throw out everything.” He points out McDonald’s as a prime example of an audio brand that’s only gotten stronger over the past twenty-five years, and how consistency has been its key to success. “It’s a really good case study for sonic branding agencies to look at,” he says, “how you can take a mnemonic [and] use it in, there’s videos on YouTube where it’s, like, using like thirty different contexts, and it’s just changed instrumentation slightly, changed the speed, [and] added swing .”

(0:07:38) - Sonic Branding Evolution and Impact

Dr. Dickson tells us about his worth with agencies that are increasingly turning to AI for solutions, especially when it comes to catching online plagiarism. “They are using AI to identify melodies that are shared and then taking them to court once the melody’s been used sufficiently,” he cautions. “Day one, a song comes out, they don’t take them to court. They wait till the song is a massive hit and it’s got enough revenue, and then they take them to court.” We discuss AI’s growing presence in everything from audio mastering and editing to generating new music, and he points out some of the roles he sees it filling over time. “I’m imagining in the future there will be the option to take a track,” he explains, “and then just [have AI] re-tailor it to that context and stretch it out so that, for the conference that goes for two hours, there’s appropriate backing music based on your sonic branding.”

(0:16:24) - Future of Sonic Branding Tools

As our conversation wraps up, Dr. Dickson emphasizes the cost-benefit ratio of sonic branding compared to other forms of marketing, and its potential for building brand awareness. “I think the thing I would push is the value for money argument,” he says, “that it is very affordable for an asset they’re going to use for a very long time.” We talk about the increasingly fierce competition among brands and agencies looking to grow their online presence, and the dangers of being left behind in an increasingly digital world. “The big thing as well is all of this is in the context of digital media,” he tells us. “So we are seeing more clients get work from TikTok, Facebook in particular, and Instagram in particular, and YouTube. If you’re not using multimedia on a multimedia platform, you’re falling behind.”

Episode Summary

• Sonic branding in advertising and its evolution from traditional jingles to social media.
• The growing role of AI in audio branding, its limitations, and how it might evolve.
• How AI enhances branding and enables a more flexible, enduring marketing strategy.

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