{"id":6002,"date":"2015-03-06T18:25:21","date_gmt":"2015-03-06T18:25:21","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.ucf.edu\/pegasus\/?p=6002&post_type=story"},"modified":"2024-08-27T12:50:59","modified_gmt":"2024-08-27T12:50:59","slug":"sonic-branding","status":"publish","type":"story","link":"https:\/\/www.ucf.edu\/pegasus\/sonic-branding\/","title":{"rendered":"Sonic Branding"},"content":{"rendered":"

Spring 2015<\/em><\/p>\n

[lead]When you hear the phrase \u201csizzling fajitas,\u201d what restaurant comes to mind? [\/lead]<\/p>\n

The answer is Chili\u2019s, and that\u2019s not by accident. Others may have invented the popular Tex-Mex dish, but the casual dining restaurant chain became famous for it \u2014 simply because of its sound.<\/p>\n

\u201cLarry Levin had the idea to do a version of sizzling fajitas,\u201d says Tyler Gray, ’97<\/strong>, author of The Sonic Boom: How Sound Transforms the Way We Think, Feel, and Buy<\/em>, which he co-wrote with sound consultant Joel Beckerman. Fajitas became a hit, and Chili\u2019s \u2014 Levin\u2019s Dallas restaurant \u2014 went national. \u201cIn their first-ever commercial, [Levin] put the sound of the sizzling fajitas in. Now they sell millions of pounds of fajita meat a year. Fajitas are all about sound.\u201d<\/p>\n

A company\u2019s sound can be as important to its brand identity as its logo or latest ad campaign, according to Gray, who runs the creative newsroom at PR giant Edelman, and Beckerman, whose Man Made Music company teaches businesses such as AT&T about sonic branding. Savvy companies understand the significance of sound, which is why Harley-Davidson spent the 1990s trying to copyright the distinct rumble of its motorcycles, and why others create what Gray describes as \u201csweeping brand anthems\u201d that are incorporated into everything from power-on tones to commercial jingles. And whether we realize it or not, sound can influence what we consume and how we feel about a product.<\/p>\n

[sidebar background=”#eeeeee” position=”right”]<\/p>\n

\n

Your Sounds May Be Giving the Wrong Impression<\/h2>\n

The subtle sounds we create in our everyday lives can have unintended consequences.<\/p>\n

Fashion Police<\/strong> The clothes you wear, especially shoes, often send messages through sound. You may think that wearing hard-soled shoes emulates the determined thunk of an executive walking, but they could also be a distraction to your colleagues.<\/span><\/p>\n

Voice Lessons<\/strong>\u00a0Vocal fry, the low throaty vibration made famous by the Kardashians, can have a negative effect on speakers, especially women. And uptalking, an upward inflection that makes statements sound like questions, can make you sound unsure of yourself.<\/span><\/p>\n

Smartphone Etiquette<\/strong>\u00a0Using personalized ringtones or quirky sound prompts can be personally entertaining, but consider how those around you might take them out of context to form unwarranted negative opinions.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

[\/sidebar]<\/p>\n

Sonic Boom<\/em> is full of examples of sound-related successes and failures. In 2007, Ford Motor Company was about to release a new Mustang in tribute to the one Steve McQueen drove in the 1968 movie \u201cBullitt<\/a>.\u201d Ford executives realized that the muscle car lacked the throaty exhaust note of McQueen\u2019s car, and subsequently, engineers went back to the drawing board.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe talked to a guy at Ford … whose title is Mustang noise and vibration engineer,\u201d Gray says. \u201cHis whole job is to tune the sound of the exhaust for Ford Mustangs.\u201d Similar automotive engineers make sure a Mercedes\u00a0door sounds like luxury when it closes.<\/p>\n

Some companies, including Apple, go as far as employing neuroscientists to design the distinct start-up sounds their computers and smartphones make. We may not notice, but these sounds influence our purchases, says Gray.<\/p>\n

Sounds can also influence our behavior, explains Gray. Supermarkets \u201cplay music to move you through the experience faster,\u201d he says. \u201cRestaurants play upbeat music because they want you to hurry up and finish so they can seat the table again.\u201d<\/p>\n

But in case all of this makes you feel paranoid, Gray says that being aware is the first step in resisting the subtle tactic. \u201cThe good thing is that you don\u2019t have to actually fight the power,\u201d he explains. \u201cIf sound makes you feel positive [about commercials, products, shopping or dining environments], you should think about what part of that message \u2014 their story \u2014 you liked.\u201d And maybe, he says, you should wonder, \u201cIs it the whole story?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u00a0Photo by Geoff Levy, ’13<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"featured_media":6236,"template":"","categories":[],"tags":[248,287,1319],"class_list":["post-6002","story","type-story","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","tag-alumni","tag-college-of-sciences","tag-nicholson-school-of-communication-and-media","issues-520","issues-spring-2015"],"yoast_head":"\nAlumnus Tyler Gray author of The Sonic Boom<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Edelman Creative Newsroom director's new book with Joel Beckerman explains how Apple, Chili\u2019s, Ford, Mercedes and AT&T use sound to influence human behavior\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.ucf.edu\/pegasus\/sonic-branding\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Sonic 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