I was quite a strange kid. I remember as an 8 year old, spending hours in the pool writing a jingle for an ad. By the time my fingers were wrinkly and it was time to get out of the pool, I had reworded ‘Bye Bye Love’ by the Everly Brothers to become a tune for a bathroom cleaning product. Next time you see me, I’ll even sing it for you.
I told you, I was a pretty weird kid.
For some reason, I have always loved a good jingle. There’s just something about the warm nostalgia that a catchy jingle gives you and I think there is a stroke of genius in being able to write a 30 second grab which can stick with someone for years and years. If you don’t agree, how much do you love aeroplane jelly? Did your Dad pick the fruit that goes to Cottees? On a scale of 1 to 10, how lucky do you feel that you’re with AAMI? Did you ever get around to installing that Rheem? I could go on for hours…But I digress…At The Social Adviser’s office we were reminiscing the other day about our favourite jingles and I was trying to think of some cracking ones from the last few years.And then it dawned on me… jingles are totally dying!
When it’s time for an ad break, we flick the channel (remember there was a time when there was no such thing as a TV remote!). Perhaps we will even fast forward through the ad because we are watching TV through Foxtel IQ. And this is assuming you’re one of the diminishing number of people actually watching TV as opposed to streaming or downloading your favourite programs online without advertisements.
But why is advertising a dying art form? Well, I think it’s fair to say the world is more distracted than ever. Unless we consciously choose to give it, no longer does a company have our undivided attention. And even when they do, an ad is only the start of our decision making process. Especially when the decision is significant, we now go on a far more interactive journey to learn more about the product or service we are interested in. This usually starts and ends online.
So it makes sense that a jingle is probably not your strongest foot forward as a business. You can have that piece of business advice for free.
But let’s go back to the purpose of a jingle in the first place. The whole point of writing that catchy song is two-fold. Summarise the core of what you do, and make sure it’s memorable.
In the past, the key to you reaching your audience was advertising and good ol’ fashioned Word of Mouth. With advertising lacking the potency it once had, more so than ever, we are forced to rely on Word of Mouth. And in a world more connected than ever, there has never been a better time to generate Word of Mouth about what you’re doing in your business each and every day. The free flow of information online means that one good experience, shared accordingly, can fall into hundreds (even thousands) of people’s laps. The process of purchasing ANYTHING is now more consumer-directed than ever so when someone is looking for what you have to offer, what are they going to find?
Social Media (including video sharing sites such as YouTube) and the internet have let the world share their experiences and opinions more than ever. And no matter how much the world has changed, a good word of mouth experience will ALWAYS carry more currency than a catchy jingle.
So in a digital world, your “jingle” is now what the world hears and sees when they are tuning into your message.
So when they are ready to listen, what are they hearing?
Are they seeing a vibrant business, full of personality and awesome people ready to help them? Or are they listening to a business which seems just like all the other ones out there?
Are you showcasing your ecstatic clients and customers on video through your website, or is there no sense of what people think and feel about the product or service your business offers?
When you speak to your clients on the phone, are you creating goodwill and an awesome experience that people can (and will) talk about both verbally and digitally, or are you just like the others?
The ‘one-percenters’ in your business all add up and like the notes in a jingle, they can make you memorable for a very long time if you care enough to write the tune.
What has your business done this week, month, year or decade to be truly memorable?
If your clients are ‘happy little vegemites’, now more than ever they are going to tell the world. So what are you doing to put a rose in every one of their cheeks?