Creativity and the Brand

What are the things that you like to associate yourself with? The clothes you buy, the watch you wear, the car you drive are all brands. Sure, they serve a purpose, they have certain functionality, but the reason you choose one thing over  another of the same type is its brand.

What is a consumer brand? A brand is formed when a product begins to stand for something common in the perceptions of multiple consumers. When multiple people associate a product with a common characteristic(s), the product rises from being a product to a brand.

The objective of any consumer product-maker, then, would be to create a qualitative perception that stands for something more than just the purpose or intention of the product. A watch is supposed to tell the time, and every watch does that, but what makes say, Tag Heuer a brand is that consumers perceive Tag Heuer watches as more than trinkets that tell time. When a consumer thinks about Tag Heuer, the first thing to cross his mind isn't "a watch that tells time perfectly". Rather, what cross his mind are more intangible, more abstract nuances : 'quality', 'rarity', 'Swiss-made', 'pride in owning a Tag'. Besides these, a significant component of these mental associations (and which influences his buying decision) is how his public image will be enhanced when he is seen sporting this brand. Our quest for social status includes the unapologetic acquisition of items with brands accepted as reflective of wealth and good taste. So the product (a Tag Heuer watch) now becomes associated with values - in terms of respect, stature, and as said before, a sign of the owner's wealth and good taste. And these attributes that lift the product to being a brand.

What is the role of creativity here? Consider the objective mentioned earlier - create a favorable perception that links the product to definite, aspirational attributes in the minds of potential customers. There are channels and techniques of communication to meet these objectives, but creativity is the enabler that allows this to be met memorably, with originality, and in a way that is innovative. The other big role of creativity is in how one manipulates and utilizes these techniques to create a desire in the audience to be associated with the brand.

Creativity and brand-building go hand-in-hand. As much as branding becomes quantitative, that human element that allows the product to transform into an emotional attachment cannot, and will not, be captured by technology. It must come from the human brain - the only machine capable of synthesizing ideas and solutions through a little thing called imagination.

The Brand Jingle Makes A Comeback

There has been a noticeable trend in Indian marketing over the last couple of years. Brands, both domestic and international, have seen an increased focus on the TVC jingle : that distinctive 3-4 second tune that appears at the end of every TV or radio commercial of the brand.

The jingle has long been one of the most important and enduring brand elements - a trademark that seeks to differentiate the brand and install a sense of identity in the mind of the audience. But there is a noticeable trend of them becoming a mainstay of TVCs. In a medium where every second is precious, committing 2-3 seconds of airtime to the jingle is significant. It is certain that brand architects and marketers see tremendous value in leaving audiences with this element.

Some iconic brands have featured a jingle at the end of their TVCs for years. Take Sony, for instance. The Sony jingle helped establish the the aura of the brand and was one of the most significant elements associated with the Sony brand.  The jingle (a quick montage of images followed by the phrase, 'It's A Sony') became the brand's symbol of quality. I call this a jingle rather than a phrase, because it appeared prominently in Sony TVCs in the concluding montage. Whenever you heard it, you recalled Sony's premium legacy, along with your sense of aspiration. 'Its A Sony' conveyed the brand's superiority, proudly and confidently stating that a Sony product carries clout. It made you want to be an owner, as much of the brand as of the clout and prestige attached to it!

Another iconic jingle that helped define the ubiquity of its brand is the Intel jingle. This famous five-note jingle has accompanied the long-running Intel Inside campaign for about two decades. Listen to it here. 
The Intel Inside jingle sought to establish the reliability and quality that came with the presence of an Intel chip in a computer. It has become one of the most recognizable sounds across televisions and radios. The fact that it has remained largely untouched for such a long time, and still is as ubiquitous as ever, signals the power of this trademark. It demonstrates how jingles can become critical to the identity of the brand if nurtured and built carefully. Such is the impact of the jingle that an Intel ad now seems incomplete without it.

Samsung is another company that has nurtured its brand with a consistent TVC jingle. Watch it here. In fact, the Samsung jingle has evolved from featuring in advertisements to being part of the product itself - it is the melody that accompanies the switching on / off of every Samsung television.

LG (Life's Good), Maruti (Way of Life), BMW (Sheer Driving Pleasure), Nestle and Coca-Cola are a few more visible brands that have introduced jingles with their TVC taglines.

Given the high recall value of this brand element, and the distinctiveness it adds to the brand, the TVC jingle can only get more popular. Expect to see more brands jump onto the bandwagon. Its going to be jingle all the way!