If you plan to advertise your business on television, radio or a live-person format, having memorable music is a key component. Several decades ago, jingles were a crucial element in successful marketing. Lately, unique tunes are often traded for catchy pop music running beneath an ad. Though royalties for these songs may be expensive, advertisers often pay big dollars with the theory that listeners already have attachments to music they know and love, and will stop to pay attention to it.
However, creating your own jingle can be much more affordable – and offer a much bigger ROI. It not only catches a person’s attention more than music they already know, but can also make your name and key information, like your website address or phone number, that much more memorable.
According to a Forbes article from June 2010, Linda Kaplan Thaler of New York’s Kaplan Thaler Group said: “A jingle is not successful if you listen to it once and like it. You have to listen to it and want to sing it. Essentially you become the advertiser for the brand.”
Other key elements for creating a custom jingle are:
• Short and sweet. Jingles notoriously only last a few seconds and contain about one line of lyric. This makes them easy to learn and share without detracting too much from the information and creative contained in the rest of your ad.
• Key messaging. It may seem obvious to say that your brand name must be included in the tune, but think about adding your phone number, website or a key message about your company as well.
• Clear wording. A great sound is the most important part for getting your jingle stuck in someone’s head, but also remember to be sure your wording is articulate and provides exactly the info that you need to convey that will hold up over time (for example, you don’t want to sing about next week’s promotions).
• Likeability. Because TV and radio are such broad advertising formats, you probably want people from across generations, cultures and locations to understand and enjoy your jingle. Whether it contains humor or sentimentality, finding a likable hook is half the battle.
• Timelessness. The success of the popular jingles we listed last week comes in part from hearkening back to a specific time and place – but on the other hand, these phrases and tunes still hold up in modern culture and could easily be found in ads for the same brand today.
Ask Mad 4 Marketing how we can help you develop an original, memorable jungle for your radio or television commercial and overall advertising campaign.