What Makes an Effective Advertising Jingle?

Everyday the average person comes across thousands of advertisements. It's hard to go anywhere in today's consumer-oriented society and not see some form of branding pretty much everywhere you turn. Some of this advertising is more obvious, such as television commercials or billboards. Others are more subtle or subliminal, endorsing a certain brand or message without explicitly doing so. We are bombarded by advertisements throughout the day, in the home and out on the town, whether we know it or not. We've become so conditioned, so numb to this influx of advertising that we actually tune much of it out.

So, in an ad-saturated world, how does your message speak up against the white noise of the marketplace? How does your brand penetrate the mental barriers of consumers? Simple: with the power of music; with a jingle.

Music invokes memory. Music invokes emotion and nostalgia. Naturally, advertising with music is an effective marketing technique. A well-composed jingle will stick with people, playing on repeat in their heads, perhaps even being hummed aloud. A few listens to an effective jingle will recall memory and emotion—hopefully positive—even years down the line. But it’s not enough simply to have a jingle. A poorly composed jingle may turn off consumers or be no more impacting than the thousands of other advertisements the average person tunes out.

What makes an effective advertising jingle?

Short and simple

An effective advertising jingle is not technically written, understandable only by the highly educated. Nor should a jingle be an ambiguous work of poetry. The more clear and concise, the better. Ideally, the “lyrics” to your jingle will be only a few words, and no more than a sentence. If your jingle can be recited and understood by a child, you’re on the right track.

Catchy

Both the music and the words of your advertising jingle should be catchy. Catchy equals memorable. The more pleasant-sounding your catchy jingle, the more positively associated your brand. On the other hand, there are a number of jingles out there that are more obnoxious than pleasant. However, if the consumer is left with a memory of the brand, one could argue the obnoxious jingle is effective as well.

Positive emotional appeal

Relating to the previous point, ideally your advertising jingle will invoke positive feelings regarding your brand. These feelings are dependent upon the nature of your brand, of course, but also upon the music and words of the jingle. So choose your instrumentation and words wisely.

A message that sums up your brand

Even though your advertising jingle will only utilize a few words that a child could recite, it should give you a general idea as to what your brand is about. Again, choose your words wisely. An exception to this suggestion may be with the use of a slogan line.

Slogan line

Many advertising jingles incorporate a slogan line. McDonalds’ I’m lovin’ it, Nike’s Just do it, and Subway’s Eat fresh are some examples of simple yet effective slogan lines. Often slogan lines are accompanied by music, essentially becoming the brand’s jingle. While the words of the above examples don’t directly relate to fast food or footwear, they invoke feelings and memories of those brands.

So, now you are aware, or reaffirmed, of the benefits of advertising with music. Still, you may not be comfortable composing your own jingle. Perhaps you don’t have the technology or musical prowess. Never fear, for ImageWorks, as of 2014, has merged with L&R Productions, a renowned video and audio production company that has produced some of the most effective advertising jingles of the past 30 years for businesses nationwide.