The audio landscape is constantly evolving, and in recent years technology has accelerated the process.
This new audio age is bringing with it more exciting ways a brand can connect with an audience using audio; not just through traditional radio channels, but also online streaming and on-demand content, podcasts, in-app sound, ambient installations and more.
FM/AM
DAB
Computers
Digital TVs
Smartphones
Tablets
Smart speakers
Connected vehicles
Podcasts
On demand
In app
Point of sale
That’s why we’ve put together Sound Sense – some top tips on how best to navigate this market from a media and a creative standpoint… It’s not exhaustive but some basic rules to follow that will help you get the most out of the audio medium for your clients or business.
We’re just skimming the surface here. Watch out for articles from us which take a more in-depth look at some of these topics.
It sounds obvious, but all successful campaigns start with a great brief.
So what can you do to make sure the briefing process runs smoothly and produces a best-in-class brief?
Clarity is all: The more clear you are on what you’re trying to achieve the better. It will enable the selection of the most appropriate audio platforms, the role they will play in the campaign, and the creative messaging you’ll need to achieve the campaign objectives.
Some things to consider in any brief:
The business and marketing objectives
The target audience (are there any customer insights to aid targeting?)
What do you want to communicate to your audience?
What do you want the audience to do or feel?
Are there any learnings from previous campaigns?
Do you have a measurement for success?
Traditional radio channels offer by far the largest audiences and a ‘broadcast’ route to market, given the volume of audience you can reach at any one time.
‘Narrowcast’ options, such as online streaming services, connected listening via a radio station’s app or podcast services, can offer a more targeted route to market for a specific audience. This is because we know more a lot about the audience – they are connected from an IP address.
On some of these connected listening platforms an advertiser’s own data can be overlaid to add another level of targeting.
To make the right audio media choice it’s imperative you understand what the available options are.
To make the right audio media choice it’s imperative you understand what the available options are.
Traditional radio channels offer by far the largest audiences and a ‘broadcast’ route to market, given the volume of audience you can reach at any one time.
‘Narrowcast’ options, such as online streaming services, connected listening via a radio station’s app or podcast services, can offer a more targeted route to market for a specific audience. This is because we know more a lot about the audience – they are connected from an IP address.
On some of these connected listening platforms an advertiser’s own data can be overlaid to add another level of targeting.
Key to any successful campaign, and vital to achieve those objectives set in the brief, is selecting the correct inventory for the audio platform and using it in the most effective way.
Radio offers numerous ways of communicating with a station’s audience. Airtime is good for generating high coverage & frequency. Promotions are appropriate If you want to interact with a station’s listeners in an entertaining and interactive way.
Station-hosted live events and festivals offer advertisers great experiential opportunities and new ways to engage with a station’s audience.
Other audio platforms such as podcasts allow you to engage with a listener in a much more intimate, subtle and targeted way, through airtime, sponsorship or advertiser-funded content.
What sounds right on Planet Rock (and strikes a chord with its audience) won’t sit well, for instance, on Classic FM.
Audio consumption now extends beyond traditional radio into on-demand catchup, streaming and podcasts, the majority being consumed via connected devices using earphones. This makes the listening experience far more intimate, and the creative should respect that to maximise response.
Campaign length and intensity should also define the creative. There is a point when listener fatigue transforms positive response to an ad into a positive turn-off. To avoid this, a number of different commercials will be required.
Whichever audio option you’re using, you need to understand how each is consumed to ensure your message cuts through.
It’s not one size fits all. What you say and how you say it shouldn’t necessarily be the same on all platforms.
Whichever audio option you’re using, you need to understand how each is consumed to ensure your message cuts through.
It’s not one size fits all. What you say and how you say it shouldn’t necessarily be the same on all platforms.
What sounds right on Planet Rock (and strikes a chord with its audience) won’t sit well, for instance, on Classic FM.
Audio consumption now extends beyond traditional radio into on-demand catchup, streaming and podcasts, the majority being consumed via connected devices using earphones. This makes the listening experience far more intimate, and the creative should respect that to maximise response.
Campaign length and intensity should also define the creative. There is a point when listener fatigue transforms positive response to an ad into a positive turn-off. To avoid this, a number of different commercials will be required.
A radio commercial should contain just one key message. That’s all, just one.
If you want to say more, you need more commercials.
The concept that ‘the more we cram into 30 seconds the better value we’re getting’ is a fallacy. Because the more you cram into 30 seconds the faster that information has to be read, and our brains just don’t work that fast.
Keeping radio commercials simple requires skill, and the discipline to resist the temptation to include too much detail. Which business owner hasn’t rehearsed their elevator pitch to explain their idea in one simple sentence? It can be done. And it can make a radio ad a really great radio ad.
Smart devices, voice activation and voice search are doing away with the need for screens and keyboards, so audio is taking over and how a brand sounds is becoming as important as how it looks.
This extends way beyond the sonic logo or mnemonic; way beyond finding the right voice and music. It requires the brand to think about the user experience from an audio perspective.
For some this may mean communicating via a podcast series, for others in-app or ambient audio would be appropriate – applying audio branding at point of sale.
Brands spend millions creating, refining and adapting their visual identities. In a world where so much of our interaction with them is visual, that’s only right.
But the world is changing.
Brands spend millions creating, refining and adapting their visual identities. In a world where so much of our interaction with them is visual, that’s only right.
But the world is changing.
Smart devices, voice activation and voice search are doing away with the need for screens and keyboards, so audio is taking over and how a brand sounds is becoming as important as how it looks.
This extends way beyond the sonic logo or mnemonic; way beyond finding the right voice and music. It requires the brand to think about the user experience from an audio perspective.
For some this may mean communicating via a podcast series, for others in-app or ambient audio would be appropriate – applying audio branding at point of sale.
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