From voice assistants to podcasts and the Internet of things, the world of audio is expanding faster than any other advertising media. As a result, brands now face the need to address complete sonic branding with the same care and fidelity customarily reserved for visual design.

For a while it seemed that not only did video murder the radio star, it also put a knife in the idea of sound as a stand-alone medium. In the realm of everything old is new again, audio is back in the spotlight.

People are once again listening. According to eMarketer, 77 million people in the U.S. listened to podcasts in 2019, and that number is expected to grow to 85 million, nearly 40% of the digital audio listening population, by 2023. And that represents just 40% of the digital audio listening population.

In the one dimensional days when communication fed only from brand-to-consumer, marketers put a lot of weight on brand sound in connection to television commercials and radio spots. As the market changed, sound took a back seat to visual design. The perception was that brands were seen more than they were heard, so much more rigor and care was put into perfecting the brand's look and feel was consistent, leaving sound in limited roles like jingles and spokespeople.

Today, sound is back in the forefront. How a brand sounds doesn't merely deserve the level of attention and detail given to visual branding. It demands it.

Planning for a full sonic branding strategy

Contemporary sonic branding is the art of developing and executing consistent audio design across all channels. It addresses the intersection between the passive way a brand is heard (audio) and the active participation of how a brand converses (voice), creating one common aural experience. The House of Sonic Brand Design is a model we use to help brands establish and execute a full-fledged sonic branding strategy.

While mnemonics and jingles play an important role today, consumer habits compel marketers to think more broadly:

• Should a brand produce owned aural content like podcasts?
• What is the role of sound through the entire consumer engagement journey?
• Is there an an opportunity for transaction or point-of-sale sound?

Brand conversations are the true test of whether or not a sonic branding strategy is effective and robust enough for the the current world.

The content of these interactions is still paramount, but so is the sound. During their sonic strategy planning process, brands should consider the following:

• When a customer is interacting with my brand via voice command, what kind of (literal) voice does it have? Is it masculine, feminine, high-pitched?
• What type of inflection, tone, verbiage, and level of playfulness or seriousness is appropriate?

The presence of sound in our lives shows no sign of slowing down. That simple fact lays out a very complex challenge for brands. Presence is dependent upon aural experience.

The quality of sonic branding strategy will determine the effectiveness of overall brand strategy. It's that important.