Sonic Branding, AI, and the Power of Sound: A Conversation with Joe Sauer - Part 1

“Does that sound like a robot or does that sound like AI? Does that sound synthetic? Does that sound human? When we think about it, we can’t tell. But when we rely more on those primal, very basic human responses, we can tell. And what’s fascinating to me is even after we told people which voice was which, they still couldn’t tell the difference between two voices. Um, but again, on a subconscious basis, they could. And so it’s just a fascinating piece of research that, uh, is definitely time-boxed, right? I think these voice generators will get better in quality.” – Joe Sauer

This episode’s guest is a man who proves you don’t need to be a rock star to master sonic branding. How does a self-described guy with no musical talent become an expert on all things audio? The answer, he says, is data, data, and more data. He’s devoted his career to understanding the impact of emotion on consumer decision-making, and, for the last decade or so, he’s focused specifically on optimizing the impact of sound and music in branding, advertising, and UX design. His award-winning neuro-based research approach has become the gold standard for audio measurement, partnering with top sound studios globally to ensure that brands don’t just sound good but actually resonate with their audiences. His name is Joe Sauer, and in this episode’s discussion, we’ll be entering the world of beats, brands, and brainwaves to understand some of the hard science behind audio branding.

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(0:00:00) - Impact of Music on Emotional Response

Our conversation starts with Joe’s early memories of sound, which include learning all about the power of music as a nervous teen on the dance floor. “That very visceral anxiety and fear of embarrassment and then relief that floods in,” he recalls, “when you find yourself with a partner on the dance floor. It was all triggered by music, not even a full song, just the first couple of bars of music.” We talk about neuromarketing techniques and the role they play in everything from movie trailers to music albums, and how they’ve changed since the early days of brain scans and electrodes. “The techniques that we’ve evolved are much less intimidating,” he explains. “They’re actually very, very sophisticated psychology experiments but they’re gamified. They’re hidden in a word or an image sorting game.”

(0:15:21) - The Impact of Sonic Logos

We talk more about how neuro-based research is offering new insights into audio branding, and what Joe’s studies on the impact of sound have uncovered. “One of the great parts about using techniques like this,” he says, “is that it puts the focus on the consumer’s attitudes and perceptions of the brand as opposed to their attitudes and perceptions of the music itself.” The discussion turns to how our conscious biases can get in the way of polling and survey results, and the role our subconscious impressions play in shaping our impressions. “You really start to understand what impact the audio is having,” he tells us, “not just on the quality of the narrative, the storytelling aspects of the ad itself, but really, more importantly for...