The Sound of Branding: How music shapes consumer perception

In the ever-evolving landscape of marketing, where every element of a campaign is scrutinized for its impact, music often remains an underestimated force. Yet, music is a universal language, resonating deeply across cultures and demographics. It has the power to evoke emotions, shape moods, and, importantly, influence how consumers perceive brands. Recent research bridging marketing, musicology, and cognitive psychology sheds new light on how specific musical characteristics can play a pivotal role in branding.

Neuromarketing Principle: Cognitive Disfluency

Cognitive Disfluency describes the mental effort required to process something that deviates from our expectations. In music, this refers to perceived music disfluency—the difficulty our brains experience when processing irregular or unconventional music. Understanding this principle is essential for marketers, as music selection in campaigns often relies more on intuition than on a scientific understanding of its effects.

When music with irregular contours or unstable tonality is used in advertising, it demands more cognitive effort from listeners. This increased mental processing primarily activates the prefrontal cortex, associated with complex cognitive behavior, decision-making, and social moderation. The anterior cingulate cortex (ACC), responsible for detecting errors and monitoring conflict, also plays a role in processing disfluent stimuli. This heightened activity can make the music feel novel and innovative, as the brain perceives it as something unique and different. However, this novelty is a double-edged sword—it can enhance perceptions of a brand’s innovativeness, but it can also lead to discomfort and negative evaluations if not carefully balanced.

The Hidden Power of Music on Brand Perception

Music is more than a background element in advertising; it’s a powerful tool that can make or break a brand’s image. Consider this: over 90% of TV and radio ads rely heavily on music, often with little to no spoken words, to convey their messages. The characteristics of this music—such as pitch, tempo, rhythm, and even the contour and tonality—play critical roles in shaping how consumers perceive brands and products.

For example:

• High-pitched melodies are often associated with excitement and energy. They can stimulate the auditory cortex and amygdala, leading to heightened emotional responses that make a marketing message feel vibrant and engaging.
• Low-pitched melodies can engage the basal ganglia, lending a sense of gravitas and abstraction, sometimes making products seem larger or more significant.
• Fast-paced music tends to activate the motor cortex, evoking feelings of cheerfulness and vitality, while firm rhythms can influence taste perceptions by engaging the insula, making food products seem saltier or sourer.

These elements are just the beginning. The real impact occurs when we explore music contour (melody) and tonality (harmony).

Increasing Brand Innovativeness Through Disfluency

The effects of music contour and tonality on consumer perceptions were largely overlooked until recently. New research indicates these musical characteristics hold untapped potential for marketers. Music featuring irregular contours or unstable tonality—music that breaks away from predictable norms—can create a sense of cognitive disfluency. This disfluency, while challenging to process, can make the music feel novel or innovative.

The hippocampus, crucial for memory and spatial navigation, may be less engaged with disfluent music, as it typically favors familiar and easily processed stimuli. This reduced engagement could explain why irregular music feels unfamiliar and more challenging to process, reinforcing its novelty. However, this approach comes with risks. Music that is too disfluent can overwhelm the listener, creating discomfort that may translate into negative brand evaluations. The amygdala, which processes emotions, might react negatively to such disfluent music, associating it with unease or anxiety.

The brain prefers ease of processing, typically managed by the default mode network (DMN), which is more active during familiar, low-effort tasks. The key to leveraging music disfluency effectively is balance. By pairing disfluent music with clear and supportive brand information, marketers can mitigate potential negative effects while still capitalizing on the perceived innovativeness.

Shaping Brand or Product Perception in Advertising

The choice of music in advertising is not just about setting the mood—it’s about shaping how consumers perceive your brand. The impact of music can be profound, influencing everything from excitement to perceived reliability. Here’s how different musical choices can shape brand perception:

1. Music with Irregular Contour and Unstable Tonality:

• Perception: Innovative, cutting-edge, exciting.
• Impact: Creates a sense of novelty and unpredictability, beneficial for brands positioning themselves as innovators.
• Brain Activation: Increased activity in the prefrontal cortex and anterior cingulate cortex, indicating higher cognitive load and perception of innovation.
• Example: The Dyson Airwrap commercial uses music with changing contours and tonality to create excitement and innovation. Similarly, Mountain Dew’s Super Bowl 2000 ad featured Queen’s "Bohemian Rhapsody," known for its constantly changing melodic contour and tonality. These choices reinforce the brands’ innovative and dynamic images.

2. Music with Regular Contour and Stable Tonality:

• Perception: Familiar, reliable, approachable.
• Impact: Fosters a sense of stability and comfort, making the brand seem more trustworthy and dependable.
• Brain Activation: Engages the default mode network (DMN), promoting ease of processing and positive emotional responses.
• Example: Klarna’s ‘Smoooth’ ads use music that is easy to process, with regular contour and stable tonality, creating a comfortable and familiar feeling that aligns with the brand’s message of ease and reliability.

3. Balancing Disfluency and Familiarity:

• Perception: Innovative yet relatable.
• Impact: By combining disfluent music with clear brand messaging, marketers can present a brand as both innovative and trustworthy.
• Brain Activation: A mix of prefrontal cortex engagement for innovation perception and DMN activation for familiarity, ensuring a balanced brand image.
• Example: Volkswagen’s commercial for their new ID.7 electric car uses the song "Colors" by Black Pumas, which has a regular contour and stable tonality. This creates a happy, familiar vibe while the text overlays provide brand information that enhances the perception of innovation.

Take-Home Points for Marketers

Music is a powerful, often underutilized tool in marketing. Understanding and harnessing its nuances can significantly enhance the effectiveness of your campaigns. Here are key insights to keep in mind:

1. Leverage Music Disfluency for Innovation:

• If your brand wants to appear innovative, consider using music with irregular contour or unstable tonality. This type of music can create a sense of unpredictability and edginess that aligns with an innovative brand image.

2. Enhance Familiarity with Stable Music:

• For brands aiming to build trust and reliability, music with regular contour or stable tonality is your go-to. This type of music fosters stability and familiarity, leading to positive brand evaluations.

3. Balance is Key:

• While music that creates cognitive disfluency can enhance perceptions of innovation, balance it with familiar elements or clear brand messaging to avoid overwhelming the consumer. Overly disfluent music can generate negative emotions, so use it strategically.

4. Music Genre Matters Less Than You Think:

• Interestingly, the music genre itself doesn’t significantly impact perceptions of innovativeness. It’s the contour and tonality that make the difference. You can experiment with different genres while focusing on the structural elements of the music.

Applying Neuroscientific Insights to Your Marketing Strategy

Understanding how different elements of music activate specific brain regions provides a powerful tool for crafting more effective marketing strategies. By tailoring your music choices to the desired brand perception, you can influence consumer behavior in subtle yet profound ways.

1. Strategic Use of Music Disfluency

• When to Use It: Brands aiming to be seen as pioneers or disruptors can benefit from incorporating music with irregular contours or unstable tonality into their campaigns. This strategy is particularly effective for product launches, innovative technologies, or any offering that breaks away from the norm.
• How It Works: Irregular music stimulates the prefrontal cortex and anterior cingulate cortex, increasing cognitive load and signaling to the brain that something novel and worth attention is being presented. To prevent cognitive overload and potential negative reactions, balance this disfluency with clear, positive messaging that guides the consumer’s interpretation.

2. Enhancing Brand Familiarity and Trust

• When to Use It: For established brands or those seeking to reinforce reliability and trustworthiness, regular contours and stable tonality should be the go-to musical choices. This approach is ideal for industries where safety, dependability, or long-term relationships are key, such as banking, healthcare, or family-oriented products.
• How It Works: Music that is easier to process engages the brain’s default mode network (DMN), reducing cognitive effort and fostering feelings of comfort and familiarity. This can lead to more favorable brand evaluations and a stronger emotional connection with the consumer.

3. Balancing Novelty and Familiarity

• When to Use It: In situations where you want to introduce a new, innovative product while maintaining the brand’s core values of trust and reliability, a blend of disfluent and familiar music can be highly effective. This is particularly useful for brands with a history of innovation, such as tech companies or automotive brands launching new models.
• How It Works: The brain appreciates novelty but also cr

aves familiarity. By using a mix of irregular and regular musical elements, you can stimulate the brain’s innovation pathways (prefrontal cortex and ACC) while simultaneously engaging the DMN to maintain comfort. This dual activation can position the brand as both forward-thinking and trustworthy.

4. The Role of Emotional Resonance in Music

• When to Use It: Emotions are a powerful driver of consumer behavior, and music is one of the most effective tools for evoking emotional responses. Whether you’re aiming to inspire, comfort, or energize your audience, the emotional resonance of music should align with the desired emotional state of your target market.
• How It Works: The amygdala, responsible for processing emotions, responds strongly to music that matches the intended emotional tone of the message. For instance, using uplifting, major key music can elevate positive emotions, making consumers more receptive to your brand message. Conversely, minor key music might be used in a campaign that aims to address more serious or reflective themes, ensuring that the emotional tone of the music matches the content.

Implementing Music Strategies Across Different Media

The insights from neuroscience and music psychology are not limited to traditional advertising channels like TV and radio. In today’s digital age, these strategies can be applied across various media platforms to create a cohesive and impactful brand presence.

1. Digital and Social Media

• Applications: Use music in videos, reels, and social media ads to create a consistent brand image. Whether you’re posting on Instagram, TikTok, or YouTube, the right music can enhance the emotional impact of your content and increase engagement.
• Strategy: Choose music that aligns with your brand’s voice and the message of the content. For innovative or product launch campaigns, experiment with disfluent music to capture attention. For brand-building and trust campaigns, stick with more familiar, stable music.

2. In-Store and Ambient Music

• Applications: In retail environments, the background music you choose can influence purchasing behavior, dwell time, and overall customer satisfaction. This is particularly important in spaces like boutiques, cafes, or service-oriented businesses.
• Strategy: Use music with regular contours and stable tonality in environments where comfort and familiarity are key, such as family restaurants or high-end retail stores. In contrast, trendy or avant-garde stores might benefit from music with more disfluent elements to enhance the perception of cutting-edge style and innovation.

3. Podcasts and Audio Branding

• Applications: For brands that produce podcasts or utilize audio branding (such as jingles or sound logos), the principles of music psychology can enhance brand recall and listener engagement.
• Strategy: Align the music with the brand’s identity. For example, a tech podcast might use a mix of regular and irregular tonalities to reflect both expertise and innovation. A wellness brand, on the other hand, might opt for soothing, stable music to reinforce a calming and trustworthy image.

Final Thoughts: The Sound of Success

Incorporating the principles of neuroscience and musicology into your marketing strategy offers a nuanced and powerful way to influence consumer perceptions. By understanding how different musical elements activate specific brain regions, you can craft campaigns that resonate on a deeper cognitive and emotional level, ensuring your brand not only captures attention but also leaves a lasting impression.

As you plan your next marketing campaign, consider how music can be more than just a backdrop—it can be a driving force that shapes your brand’s identity and connects with consumers in a profound way. Whether you aim to innovate, build trust, or evoke emotion, the right musical strategy can amplify your message and ensure your brand stands out in the marketplace.