Interview
How can sound be a pillar of a holistic brand strategy? How can you build your own strong sonic identity?
Finding the inner melody of brands is Cédric Engels’ talent. Co-founder of Sonhouse and long-time partner of SKINN, tells us all about the power of sound.
CEDRIC
Cédric Engels
Co-founder Sonhouse
Co-founder Sonhouse
In your book ‘The Power of Sound’, you explore the multiple aspects of sonic branding. Why is it more than just sound design or music composition?
Cédric: Just as it would seem absurd to reduce visual branding to a simple logo, the sonic identity of a brand cannot be limited to a jingle or a few notes. Creating a brand’s sonic identity is a complex process that requires considering different layers and offering a whole range of variations. Specific acoustic parameters are involved (such as frequencies or dynamics for example) that need to be aligned with the brand promise, with the target groups and with the brand architecture.
Unfortunately, most companies greatly underestimate the importance of sound in their communication. On hold music for a call centre, musical ambiance in a shop, radio advert, posts on social media or products sounds, they are all part of the brand perception and should be clearly defined through a global design process.
Cédric: Just as it would seem absurd to reduce visual branding to a simple logo, the sonic identity of a brand cannot be limited to a jingle or a few notes. Creating a brand’s sonic identity is a complex process that requires considering different layers and offering a whole range of variations. Specific acoustic parameters are involved (such as frequencies or dynamics for example) that need to be aligned with the brand promise, with the target groups and with the brand architecture.
Unfortunately, most companies greatly underestimate the importance of sound in their communication. On hold music for a call centre, musical ambiance in a shop, radio advert, posts on social media or products sounds, they are all part of the brand perception and should be clearly defined through a global design process.
The power of sound by Cédric Engels
About the impact of sound on our daily lives
About the impact of sound on our daily lives
What makes sound such an important part of our lives, and of our relationship with brands?
Cédric: Babies can hear before they can see; it’s safe to say that sound is our first interaction with the outside world. This is probably why it is a very strong emotional channel. Bringing us back to our most intimate memories, it can trigger the deepest reactions. Sound can also generate immediate brain response.
The two notes of Jaws’ main title, the deep chord at the start-up of an Apple computer, the percussive motive of the Netflix logo, the Nokia ringtone with sound for an SMS, the ‘woosh’ of a Star Wars’ lightsabre… We could go on listing up for hours the iconic sound bites that we all immediately associate with a brand. Just as visual logos do, they speak to the mind, because they can express the brand core values in the glimpse of a single perception moment.
Cédric: Babies can hear before they can see; it’s safe to say that sound is our first interaction with the outside world. This is probably why it is a very strong emotional channel. Bringing us back to our most intimate memories, it can trigger the deepest reactions. Sound can also generate immediate brain response.
The two notes of Jaws’ main title, the deep chord at the start-up of an Apple computer, the percussive motive of the Netflix logo, the Nokia ringtone with sound for an SMS, the ‘woosh’ of a Star Wars’ lightsabre… We could go on listing up for hours the iconic sound bites that we all immediately associate with a brand. Just as visual logos do, they speak to the mind, because they can express the brand core values in the glimpse of a single perception moment.
We all relate to those examples. But can all brands reach that level of sonic identity?
Cédric: I believe they can. But to translate brand into sound, some principles must be followed. Six of them. Sonic branding should fit the brand values. it should be recognizable in all its iterations, it should have a distinctive character that really makes it unique, it should be ownable – tailor-made and not dependent on an existing song nor library music rights, it should be used consistently on all channels, it should stay flexible – not getting in the way of creative campaign ideas.
This means that the design process will have to fully take those six elements into account from the earliest stages of production. At Sonhouse, after the initial research where we fully describe the brand, we hold an interactive workshop where we translate the brand into sound, music and voice, following a strict methodology approved by the international audio branding academy. The result is usually the creation of a long piece of music – the brand score – from which we can extract shorter elements. The combination of the sonic brand and of the brand score will be the blueprint of all future derivatives.
Cédric: I believe they can. But to translate brand into sound, some principles must be followed. Six of them. Sonic branding should fit the brand values. it should be recognizable in all its iterations, it should have a distinctive character that really makes it unique, it should be ownable – tailor-made and not dependent on an existing song nor library music rights, it should be used consistently on all channels, it should stay flexible – not getting in the way of creative campaign ideas.
This means that the design process will have to fully take those six elements into account from the earliest stages of production. At Sonhouse, after the initial research where we fully describe the brand, we hold an interactive workshop where we translate the brand into sound, music and voice, following a strict methodology approved by the international audio branding academy. The result is usually the creation of a long piece of music – the brand score – from which we can extract shorter elements. The combination of the sonic brand and of the brand score will be the blueprint of all future derivatives.
Do you use the same elements to shape a sonic identity as you would to compose a symphony or a song?
Cédric: It is quite comparable, in the sense that we adjust tempo, harmony, dynamics, rhythm, mode and pitch according to the type of emotion or effect we want to get. Playing a sound louder or moving the pitch to a lower tone will radically affect the perception of the listener. Those are the tools with which we build the sonic identity, according to the emotional patterns we define during our initial research.
Another important aspect is the ability to adjust to the type of medium on which the sound will be rendered. A radio advert will not have the same rendition as a video on a smartphone or even a Spotify sound clip. This is again advocating for a holistic sonic design, that will create a frame adjustable in time and in shape to the different channels, but always conforming to the brand values and promises, and empowering them through sound.
Cédric: It is quite comparable, in the sense that we adjust tempo, harmony, dynamics, rhythm, mode and pitch according to the type of emotion or effect we want to get. Playing a sound louder or moving the pitch to a lower tone will radically affect the perception of the listener. Those are the tools with which we build the sonic identity, according to the emotional patterns we define during our initial research.
Another important aspect is the ability to adjust to the type of medium on which the sound will be rendered. A radio advert will not have the same rendition as a video on a smartphone or even a Spotify sound clip. This is again advocating for a holistic sonic design, that will create a frame adjustable in time and in shape to the different channels, but always conforming to the brand values and promises, and empowering them through sound.