In this episode, Emily and Robert Sofia, CEO of Snappy Kraken, talk about how to have a unique voice on social media and what that really means.
063 - Michele Arnese: Why Brands Need Sound - Voice Marketing and Beyond
How can brands use sound to connect with customers? As voice technology becomes embedded in consumers’ lives, the sound of your brand will be increasingly important.
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What should your brand sound like on Alexa? Because this is a transitional moment in voice technology, right now there is a real opportunity to be an early adopter, especially for a vertical like FMCG (fast moving consumer goods) as we expect an $80 billion voice commerce market by 2023.
Bottom line, this is about using sound to connect with customers and strengthen your consistent brand voice.
Guest: Designed in Italy and assembled in Germany, Michele Arnese is a self-driven strategic and creative thinker with a strong entrepreneurial approach. As Global CEO and Creative Director of amp, in the field of audio branding, he's considered one of the world's foremost experts, with clients including Mastercard, Mercedes, Porsche, BBVA, Geberit, BMW, UniCredit, MINI, Triumph, The Linde Group and a range of international awards for his work with amp.
Sound DNA by amp
Topics and Timestamps:
03:00 Michele’s story from management consulting and music to founding amp a decade ago
04:10 Why sonic branding matters. First: think of James Bond as a sonic identity: this is key to the elevator pitch to convince clients of the importance of sonic branding. Close your eyes and listen to Shirley Bassey or Adele. You can see James Bond in your mind.
05:30 Sonic DNA: a core track or melody that translates to all different brand touch points such as video, commercials, transaction sounds
06:00 Sonic logo has been around a long time (famous examples include Intel and T-Mobile). Sonic DNA is a new idea: it’s about ingredients, you can combine differently to create different sonic assets for different touch points (like James Bond has different sounds for Skyfall or other editions).
07:00 Sonic branding must be more flexible and complex than just a jingle
07:15 Mastercard client work: a melody approach to the sonic DNA then developing music for very different touch points including audio visual and digital channels plus global campaigns like 2019 where we did a sonic watermark.
07:50 MasterCard New York restaurant watermark for different soundscapes
08:00 Flexibility and recognition is the payoff for sonic branding, the ROI essentially
08:15 Budget for visual brand identity with logos (think of Gap or Tropicana logo rebrands) - why don’t we question this but in sonic branding it is harder to get budget
09:00 Music is an old connection to humans (in our brains) but a new discipline for brand strategy. Brands must break through clutter. Voice assistants like Alexa and voice tech introduce an awareness for the need to be recognized in a non-visual environment.
09:40 ROI of sonic branding - amp client UniCredit’s study: client had savings in terms of music production budget and licenses and AV production (able to begin with owned material)
“The Sound of BBVA: Bringing the age of opportunity to everyone. Using the BBVA sound DNA, we developed a holistic audio identity covering all digital and physical spaces. This sonic branding project stands above and beyond the rest, serving as a benchmark for future audio branding projects.” Case study: amp - BBVA’s sonic branding
11:10 We process sound and music in the limbic system, same place brain stores emotion - this where brands want to be processed, too
11:30:
There are a lot of studies that explain the brain statistics, but if you go back to yourself, to your experience: what counts is the association that you get with the brand and the sonic ecosystem. - Michele Arnese
12:00 Michele’s research process to create a sonic mood board through immersion (example: he walks through retail store and listens)
12:30:
We create a new dimension of a brand identity. - Michele Arnese
13:00 Some of amp’s clients are in banking and financial services, also many in auto industry and FMCG
13:30 His financial sector work began with UniCredit then BBVA - this sector had a need for greater human connection between brand and customers
THE SOUND OF PORSCHE. AN ENTIRELY NEW, INTERACTIVE BRAND EXPERIENCE.
“Tasked to create an audio branding concept for the Porsche sound lab, we created an interactive sound installation featuring soundscapes and video mapping techniques.” - amp
13:50: Some banking and financial brands realized that the human connection was missing and music could help. This is why we have seen an explosion of cases [for sonic branding] in the financial industry. - Michele
14:20 Financial services is changing greatly in last five years: fewer branches and physical location, but need to instill trust and physical security. Must compensate for changing landscape of brand experience with something that can establish the connection like music.
15:20 What is the function of the Mastercard Acceptance sound (the sound indicating that payment is successful)?
15:50 Acceptance sound for credit card company is to 1) establish trust and 2) reiterate brand recognition
16:30 How does a brand apply sonic branding to voice as with Alexa or Google Assistant? Understand the translation of the brand into sonic attributes.
17:00 How to create a voice profile for a brand (attributes such as introverted or extroverted must be heard in the brand voice)
18:10 Alexa Skills for a brand: sound and voice can join together
19:10 Understand the North Star of a brand - sonic branding helps examine this
20:00 There is a set of feelings, tonalities, impacts which must be the same for the entire brand. Define the borders. Consistency is key.
20:30 How will conversation between brand and consumers change as voice assistants have greater impact on marketing and consumer touch points?
21:00 “We have said that brands are dying on Alexa. But now there is a journey for brands to get back to more connection in creating, for example, voice avatars.”
21:45 We are in a transition phase regarding branded voice experiences
22:00 Brands who’ve done their homework will succeed in voice - establishing sonic branding is first step
22:30 Opportunity exists to be first brand to define acoustic domain in many sectors: look at FMCG, blue ocean here (with $80 billion voice commerce market in 2023, fast moving consumer goods can take advantage and be first movers with sound branding)
25:00 Music Journalism Insider: News, job listings, and interviews from the world of music journalism. Edited by Todd L. Burns.
Learn more - articles:
Drawing on the findings of the Best Audio Brands Ranking, Michele Arnese discusses with Paul Armstrong in an interview for Forbes what it takes to create a killer sonic brand that delivers and delves into the implications for big and small companies. - These Are the World’s Best Sonic Brands by Paul Armstrong, Forbes
Connect with Michele:
Twitter: @brandingamp
Stay updated on voice marketing. Follow @beetlemoment on Instagram:
032 - Simple Works: Voice Marketing for Brands with Michelle Excell
Hear my SXSW interview about voice marketing with Michelle Excell of The Antipodean. Michelle is an innovation strategist in the emerging technology space. And an all-around badass AND kind person.
1-click play episode on Apple Podcasts
More podcast player links at the bottom.
Brands, Voice AI, and AR/VR from The Antipodean
Michelle Excell, AR/VR and Emerging Technology Expert
Show notes and timestamps:
01:41 Discussing voice and Michelle’s clients: what are you noticing with recent briefs?
02:25 Brands are interested invoice but unsure where to start
02:40 Some agencies are jumping in head first
04:15 Brands must start somewhere: they should start small with voice marketing and smart speakers
04:50 Consider voice or AI within chat bots or retail where people will spend more time
5.08 Find contextual places where customers really interact
05:14 Is it worth doing a single use or delightful skill or should skills be intended for repeat use?
P.S. Michelle and Emily met as guests on Bob Knorpp’s marketing and advertising podcast, The BeanCast. <— A VERY good show worth catching if you’re in marketing, advertising, or the agency world.
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Hear Emily’s top tips about voice marketing:
Click to hear Emily Binder discuss voice marketing strategy on Teri Fisher’s podcast. This is the #2 most popular episode of all time on Alexa in Canada!
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029 - Amazon Alexa In-Skill Purchasing Gets Upsell - Voice Marketing for Brands
Announcements - what's happening in February 2019 (first two minutes of show):
This week I’ll be on Bradley Metrock’s show, This Week in Voice, which should air February 1, 2019
If you’re in Atlanta, come to the Atlanta Interactive Marketing Association (AiMA) event on February 6, where I’m moderating a panel about voice technology with Kesha Williams from Chik Fil A (she was the main keynote at The Alexa Conference), plus speakers from Home Depot and 360i: How Voice Will Disrupt the Buyer Journey - Innovation Series presented by Nebo Agency
Next podcast appearance: Alexa in Canada, the Voice Experience with Dr. Teri Fisher. This will air the week of February 11.
Social Media Week Austin: #SMWATX Feb 19-22, I’m speaking about voice marketing. Date and time announced February 11.
Show notes:
CPG and FMCG especially need to pay attention to the updates in Alexa: ISP (in-skill purchasing) just got a facelift in the Developer Console, making it easier to upsell. This is just getting started.
Skills with very high conversion rates for upsell to premium version (34-50%!): Big Sky (weather) and Escape the Airplane (game)
Voice in the car - HUGE opportunity (car is faster growing and has 60% higher MAUs than smart speakers)
Today is like first gen iPhone: you can't multitask - only one app at a time
Where we are with skills now: you can only do one thing at a time
This will improve
Voice is for EVERY brand
Typing is unnatural, awkward, and slow. We are computing in computer-ese. Let's talk. We can speak and process so much faster than we can talk or read.
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028 - Curating Customer Experiences with Voice Assistants - Jon Chu
If you are a food brand (like an FMCG such as cereal or canned food, or like food delivery such as Uber Eats), what should you consider in creating a voice skill for Alexa, Google Home, etc.?
Why A.I. isn’t the best term, but curated intelligence is more apt.
Intent matters. Focus on solving one particular customer problem at a time.
Mentioned:
The Alexa Conference 2019 (read Emily's wrap-up and see photos and videos)
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Jon Chu: @jchu