Jingles - the Power of Music in Radio and TV Advertising

In the Old West, of the United States, many a cattle rustler met his maker on the end of a rope tied to a tree because he was caught with a cow that didn't belong to him. Now, to me, all cows look the same, right? So how did they know the cow the rustler had was not his own? They look the same. They moo the same and they give milk the same. So what made one cow stand out from another?

In the modern world we live, with businesses, service organizations, manufacturers and other entities who want to make their living selling you something, the same problem exists. No they are not cows, but you have many who offer the same thing. Think about it. How many pizza places do you have within easy driving distance from your home? What makes one stand out from another? So you hungry for a great and as you begin to think of where to go get it, what is the first pizza place to come into your minds? Chances are the first one you think of will be the one you dine at tonight. If you're the pizza shop owner how can you cause your pizza shop to be the first thought in a mind when they think pizza? The answer: Branding!

The problem that cows and businesses have in common is a defined identity and image that sets them apart from the herd. That's branding!

To brand a calf you heat a hot branding iron that is shaped into an image, or in modern day advertising language, a logo. Once the branding iron is hot you remove it from the fire and press it on the hide of the calf and burn the image into the calf thereby branding it as the property of the cattleman who owns the brand. Whoa! Now don't get too excited here Mr. Businessman! I'm not talking putting a hot iron to your backside! But I am suggesting that the concept of branding is applicable to your problem of being lost in the herd. Branding makes you stand out from the herd and identifies you as who you are not as just a part of the herd.

The number one branding tool in the marketplace is song. It is what is commonly called a jingle. I believe the term jingle does a great injustice to the use of music in advertising, although I use the term myself. Maybe you've never thought about it and really don't know what a jingle is. And maybe you have heard the word and have heard them on the radio or television and your understanding is limited or skewed due to jingles getting what I believe is a bad rap. Please read on while I give you a little background into what jingles really are and how they are so powerful in advertising.

The term I like to use for jingle is "musical marketing tool." I guess you could also call it a "musical branding iron!" In reality it is simply well crafted music composed specifically for an advertising campaign to promote memorability, provide consistency, and reach a targeted audience, branding the name of the business and an important attribute into the mind of the listener. That is how the advertiser will stand out in the herd, amidst all the mooing and jostling around.

So how do jingles - uh, I mean "musical marketing tools" work to brand a business? What are the mechanics of a jingle that cause this to work? The answer: The Three R's of Jingle 101 - Rhyme, Rhythm, and Repetition. The three R's, when composed with the right melody and genre of music will hit the seat of emotion and "burn" the brand of the advertiser in the brain of the hearer. Back to our pizza guy who wants someone to remember his name first when he gets a hankering for a chewy gooey cheesy pie. Now that we're talking about pizza, I bet you are starting to think about how good a pizza would be right now, right? I can just smell it and almost taste it... I want it! What did you think of first? I bet, for many of you it was "Your Hometown Pizza Hut." Why? Because the song that only sings for about five to 10 seconds has been branded into your subconscious and you can't help but think of it! Wallah - Success for the jingle writer and a ringing cash register for the pizza man - in this case, Pizza Hut. But guess what! There are local pizza places and some national pizza places that go head to head with pizza hut and get their fair piece of the pie. One of the secrets to being able to compete with Pizza Hut, as well as the other local pizza places is to employ The Three R's to keep your name in the mind of the pizza eaters! And there are a lot of us out there, right?

So how do the Three R's work, you ask. You may even doubt that what I say is true. Well keep reading a bit more and I will explain.

There are songs that I hear on the radio that were huge hits back in my younger days. When I hear them they take me back to a place, a time, and to faces that I have not seen in decades. For example: How many of you remember the song playing on the radio the first time you kissed your wife? You might even remember some other girls by the same musical trigger. For me, every single time I hear the song "Babe" by the rock group "Styx" I think of my wife. More specifically I remember driving down Main Street in Kendallville, Indiana and when the song came on the radio I realized I couldn't live without Karen Sue. I am instantly transported back to that time and feel that emotion. The song is forever in my mind and those memories inextricably associated with the music. I remember the lyrics like I wrote them! Now to put that all into perspective; I have trouble remembering what I ate for breakfast this morning! So how does it work?

Here's one everyone can relate to. The Three R's at work in teaching our children. As a matter of fact I bet you can remember every single word of this song and your kids do to, and probably everyone you know can join in and sing it with you. The Alphabet Song! "A B C D E F G..... now I've said my ABC'S, tell me what you think of me." I can't remember how young I was when I learned the alphabet with that song. I have 4 children and they were able to remember the alphabet with this song as young as 1 and ½ years of age! Think about it. A young child of 2 can't remember their last name most of the time but because of this song they can remember every character of the English Language Alphabet! Why? The Three R's at work, doing what they do best.

A good rhyme, with a melody "hook," sung with an affective rhythm, and repeated (repetition) brands the ABC's into the mind of the young child. It does the same with the songs you hear on the radio. That's why you remember the songs and want to turn the radio on to hear them and go out and buy the CD's - and that is why you Pizza Hut readily comes to mind when you think of pizza.

Here's a good test. Finish this line of a jingle: "Winston taste good like a ________!" Yep! You're right! It's like a "cigarette should." That has not aired in over 25 years on radio or TV because it is illegal to advertise cigarettes on the airwaves any longer. How about this one: "Pop, Pop, Fizz, Fizz - Oh What a Relief It Is!" What product is associated with that little 10 word song? Yep! Right again! It's Alka Seltzer. Those are just two examples. I bet you can think of many more.

So what do saved cows, hung rustlers and successful businesses have in common? They are all where they are due to a good branding strategy. The right brand, carefully developed and administered correctly makes all the difference.

So the next time you hear a jingle on radio or television, think about the science of what is going on in those few seconds of song. Better yet, don't worry about it. It will do its job whether you think of it or not. Happy listening!