Audio Branding
Jodi Krangle is a Toronto-based voice-over actor who works with major brands all over the world, including Dell, BBVA, and Nespresso. Listen to learn about why audio branding is key, how to weave it into your podcast and how to create a better listening experience for your audience.
What Audio Branding Is All About
- The International Sound Awards defines audio branding as “sound that represents the identity and values of a brand in a distinctive manner.” The audio logo branded functional sounds, brand music or the brand voice are characteristic elements of audio branding.
- A jingle or a certain person’s voice, for instance, contributes to the creation of an audio brand. Think of the sound associated with the Intel logo in their commercials, for example.
- For Jodi, it’s gold when audio branding perfectly aligns with a company’s visual branding.
- Audio branding can help a company stand out and stick with someone for years, even decades – Jodi, for example, remember jingles from commercials from 25 years ago.
How to Weave Audio Branding Into Your Podcast
- Looking for podcast music for your intro and outro on license-free music directories is a good start when it comes to audio branding for your podcast.
- The “sweet spot” is the intersection between who your audience is made of and your personality.
- You can either do your podcast intro and outro yourself or hire a voice over artist to do that for you.
- One of the good things about having someone else introducing you is that they can mention your accomplishments and say nice things about you without you having to “toot your own horn”.
- The work of a voice over isn’t to put on a voice, rather to care about what you’re saying, tell it like it is and do so with different degrees of excitement.
Your Brand Creates Different Moods
- The same applies to the look of your website, your company logo, the colors you use, and everything else. They all contribute to creating a certain mood.
“When thinking about music for your podcast try to think about the mood you’d want to create for the audience – are you trying to inspire them, to connect with them, to do something else?”
Video Fatigue and Audio
- While the pandemic has contributed to people developing video fatigue, that hasn’t really happened in the audio space.
- Audio can be consumed while we’re doing pretty much anything else – be it walking, commuting, folding your laundry, walking, or more.
- According to Jodi, audio has been taken for granted over the last few years but it’s becoming more prominent.
How to Create an Audio Brand
- It’s important to consider what’s needed: music? Company sounds? An audio logo? Something else you’d like to add to your website?
- Creating an audio brand is an upfront investment but it’s the equivalent of letting everyone in the company know what the logo should look like, which colors they should use, etc.
- Anything you put out there has a set way that it’s supposed to look, and the same applies to audio.
- Let’s say you have a piece of music written for you. Once it’s ready, you can modify it to fit just about any scenario – small advertisement, longer videos on your website, YouTube intro, podcast intro and outro, intro and outro for a Clubhouse room or a Twitter Space, and more.
- This is a comprehensive whole to give people an idea of who you are, in audio format. And this hits us faster than visual.
- To understand the impact of audio, try to watch a horror movie without the music…it’s going to be a completely different (and definitely less scary) experience.
Creating a Podcasting Intro and Outro That Stand Out
- Try to keep the intro around 30 seconds – or less – and to tell people what they’re going to hear.
- Your intro should tell listeners what the podcast is all about and what they’re likely to experience by listening further.
- Your podcast outro should feature one Call to Action.
How to Create a Better Listening Experience for Your Audience
- Don’t sound monotone, let people feel your passion. Jodi suggests using your hands while you talk – this is a trick many voice over artists use.
- Remember to breathe. If you feel tense, just let out a breath. That will help.
- Jodi listens back to her episodes, also because she needs to select a portion of the episode that’s going to be featured at the very beginning of that episode. This is to give people a lead-in of what they’re going to hear.
- Interviewing and practicing active listening are a couple of things Jodi is focusing on to improve her podcast and the listening experience it creates.
About Jodi
Jodi Krangle is a Toronto based voice actor who works with major brands all over the world including Dell, BBVA, HGTV, Nespresso & Kraft. She’s been heard in thousands of your favorite commercials and on your favorite brand websites too. Her voice has been described as warm, friendly and comforting with a hint of gravitas, and coupled with her years of professional work in sound, will take your project to the next level.
On her podcast “Audio Branding”, she and her guests offer advice on making an impact with sound and how sound influences us – both in our buying decisions and our daily lives. Being a sought after voice over talent, Jodi understands The Power of Sound. Follow her on Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter & Clubhouse and check out her website at https://voiceoversandvocals.com.
Resources mentioned:
- VoiceoversAndVocals.com
- Audio Branding podcast
- Free PDF: Coming Up With a Comprehensive Audio Branding Strategy
- The Power of Sound on Clubhouse (they have discussions every Wednesday at 2pm EST)
- Fiverr
- Melody Loops
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