What sound really does for your brand: what the research says

For more than thirty years, I have believed that sound is a brand's most underrated asset. But belief isn't enough. That's why we put the research on sonic logos and sonic branding side by side. The outcome confirms what we hear in the studio every day: sound makes a brand recognizable and gives it character. When it's well made.

Sound is meaning

The strongest evidence is about recognition and brand associations. Across ten studies, researchers Melzner and Raghubir showed that the timbre of a sonic logo determines whether a brand comes across as rugged or sophisticated. Even when melody and tempo stay exactly the same. So sound isn't packaging. Sound is meaning.

Other research found that recognizable music increased brand choice by 6% in experiments. People who liked the music chose the brand more often. Quality and a sound that fits your brand matter.

The choice of instrument counts too. Research by Techawachirakul and colleagues shows that an instrument's timbre evokes personality associations. When that sound fits the brand's personality, people think more positively about the brand and their purchase intent goes up. Those associations do vary by audience. What sounds sophisticated in one market can land very differently in another.

Recognizing a melody isn't recognizing a brand

One of the most interesting insights comes from a study of 90 sonic logos and 1,860 participants. A more complex melody was recognized better, while a simple one was easier to sing back. The advice to “keep it as simple as possible” is too blunt. And a melody everyone recognizes only becomes a brand asset when people link it to the right brand. Also read does a sonic logo really work?

Something else plays a part too: emotion and placement. In two experiments, a happy sonic logo worked better at the end of an ad, while a sad one performed relatively better at the start. So there is no fixed rule for where your sonic logo goes. It depends on the story you're telling.

Sound alongside visuals

A benchmark of 1,162 brand assets from 128 brands found that logos and other shape-based assets are, on average, the strongest. So sound doesn't replace your logo. It adds a recognition signal of its own and works best when visuals and sound reinforce each other. That's why, in sonic branding, we look at the whole brand and not just at a few notes.

That ties in with the research on timbre. Visuals that don't match the sound can limit its effect. A refined brand sound under messy visuals loses its power. Sound and picture belong together, just like in a good commercial.

No empty promises

There are plenty of numbers going around about sonic branding. Some hold up, others get inflated. A sonic logo doesn't automatically make an ad eight times more effective. Claims like that help no one. We don't promise revenue percentages from other people's case studies. We do deliver sound that builds recognition and character. How to measure that effect is explained in how do you measure the effect of sonic branding?

Take the well-known Ipsos figure. In an analysis of more than two thousand video ads, specific sonic brand cues were strongly associated with ads that stand out and are linked to the right brand. That's valuable. But it's a correlation, not proof that a sonic logo makes an ad eight times better. Knowing that difference leads to better decisions.

Everything at a glance

On our new page What does sonic branding do for your brand? you'll find the fourteen key studies, the well-known numbers and what they really say. You can also read how we put these insights to work for your brand.

New research on sound and brands keeps coming. Recent experiments from the University of Arkansas link positive emotions from sonic branding to greater brand trust, especially among people who are less attached to brands. That's still preliminary, but it fits what I've been saying for years: you hear trust before you understand it.

Want to know what sound can do for your brand? Read what sonic branding delivers, see our approach to sonic branding or come by the studio.