Lame excuse for posting porn

Which brands do the best job when it comes to their relationship with their audience's ears?

Two of the biggest and boldest of them all spring to mind - Disney and Coke. Now, neither of these is remotely typical but both have lessons for the aspiring sonic brander. This is clearly not the place to go into depth but how about this for an anecdote, some nostalgia and a good excuse to show some soft porn:

1989. Robin Beck sings the theme tune to a new Coke ad. The song is subsequently released and is a top 10 hit everywhere the ad has played. Hear it here.

2010. I am in the gym, on a running machine. Inexplicably (and were I not such a geek I would never have worked out why) I feel the need to drink a Coke. The reason is because this track is now on hourly rotation in my gym.

Ignore the dodgy videos. The simple truth is that the 17 year old Daniel had 'First Time' by Robin Beck planted in his mind forever...and the subliminal effect is still working 20 or so years later.

Coupled with my fetish for ripping off my shirt every time I hear Eta James, I think Coke owns far too much real estate inside my brain.

Defining Sonic Branding

I've been here before. I started 'defining' sonic branding back in 1998, have contributed to dictionaries, wrote a book and yet...here I am still refining what it is.

This is my current definition. It reflects my 2010 mindset in that:

1. It is short - just like our attention spans

2. It is plain language - I've simply had enough of corporate, middle-management, 3 letter acronym, bullshit-laden marketing speak

3. It is easy to understand - so everyone (you included) can get a grip on this stuff without having to engage too much of your brain. Heaven knows, there is too much information out there - I don't want to pollute your heads.

So here it is:

Sonic branding is: A brand's relationship with its audiences through their ears

If you have a better definition (and you may well have) let me know via Twitter @DanielMJackson

The Father of Sonic Branding

This week's teaser:

Name the owner of this dog?

Now think for a little while about the understanding that this dog's owner brought to the world in general and its implications for sonic branding?

Answers on a Tweet please...@danielmjackson