The Power of Sound + Music
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Steven Spielberg describes composer John Williams the most important creative collaborator of his career.  "Without John Williams, bikes don't really fly, nor do brooms in Quidditch matches, nor do men in red capes.  There is no Force, dinosaurs do not walk the Earth, we do not wonder, we do not weep, we do not believe."  The power of music and sound is beyond debate, yet remains an afterthought in branding.
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The great paradox in branding is that despite empirical evidence proving audio to be the most powerful of all distinct brand asset classes, it remains the most underutilized.  This seminar shares the reasons for this phenomenon and ways for brands to avoid this opportunity cost as well as facts and figures about music/branding/engagement that help illuminate new opportunities for the industry.

The Creative Act

This is not a sonic branding presentation, but rather a talk about the art of branding as a collective effort and best practices in achieving something timeless that has the power to speak to millions of souls.

This talk is a reminder that branding is essentially an art form, and that all participants in the branding process are collectively creating art as a way to communicate the deep hidden meaning of a brand stronger than one can do with words.

As this is what music producers do with artists, this seminar uses Rick Rubin's roadmap of the creative process and examples of Grammy winning producers employing this philosophy as an analog to the branding process. 

Music Intelligence

Music Intelligence enables creative to be guided completely by insight and strategy.  It is an analytical process to creative development pioneered by legendary producer Nile Rodgers and Marco Vitali as a way to gather all the facts, insights and seeds of inspiration required to guide the proper discovery of a brand's true sound.  This process is supported by data and AI, but led by human intelligence and what Rick Rubin calls "seeding" and what Quincy Jones calls "goosebump testing".  It enables the brand stakeholders to join the journey of discovery and co-author the sonic strategy based on data, consumer insights, workshops, and strategic alignment.

While this process is largely overlooked in the sonic branding industry, focus testing has outperformed 100% of the time on accuracy of evoking all branding objectives with consumers.  The stages of music intelligence were designed to align with traditional phases practiced by top branding agencies (image).  This seminar walks through the music intelligence process with IRL examples - not only to share how a brand's sound is discovered and created, but to show how easily this process can be used to support and enrich design development.

Build Universes, Not Cages
 
In branding, rigid niches or strict tactical rules can trap thinking, while universe–level thinking gives a brand room to grow and resonate across audience segments.  "Universe building" in branding means creating expansive, immersive brand ecosystems — where stories, culture, experiences, and products all connect in ways that draw people in and give them a place to belong.  This requires a coordinated language across all brand assets a clearly defined yet flexible foundation that guides the complete ecosystem.  “Cages” symbolize narrow, restrictive approaches — brands confined to rigid categories, messaging rules, or overly formulaic frameworks that limit growth and connection.  Building limited symbols that cannot grow or adjust are no longer feasible in today's dynamic marketing environment.

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This seminar examines real world brands that embrace this philosophy and ways to explore opportunities for new brand initiatives.  The Star Wars universe is a wonderful example of what this type of vision and architecture can produce - especially focusing on the vast sonic languages that fit organically within this universe, their longevity, flexibility, memory and effectiveness.

Work Like a Band / "Synchronized Branding"
 
"Working like a band" is a perfect analogy for best practices in branding - a way for disciplines to work together (i.e. design + music) to create cohesive multi-dimensional branding systems.  This seminar explores IRL case studies where this high bar has been met and features commentary by Ford's design team (Makerhouse) describing how this collaborative process dubbed "synchronized branding" effected and elevated their overall work. 

After winning gold for design, sound and strategy at Transform Awards NA, the magazine published an article describing this process "a new and better way of crafting brands". 

In his Rock & Roll Hall of Fame acceptance speech, Nile Rodgers explains his success as a music producer quite simply - "every record I do, I become a member of the band...be it Mick Jagger, Madonna, Bowie, INXS, Daft Punk, Pharrel Williams, Diana Ross, Sister Sledge..."

Turning Sonic Branding into Marketing Gold
 
Mr. Umut Ozaydinli, Coca-Cola's first Head of Music, is a partner of Sonic Lens when branding and marketing collide. Umut will lead a joint seminar with Sonic Lens to share experience leading the most successful case studies in history for brands like Coke, Avon and Nestea.
 
Umut is the man responsible for inserting Coca-Cola's sonic branding into K'naan's "Wavin' Flag". This song was #1 on iTunes in 17 countries and became the unofficial anthem of World Cup 2010 where stadiums of soccer fans and star footballers sang Coke's sonic brand melody in front of millions of viewers - unpaid media that boosted volume sales in Coke's largest markets by 6% and saved nearly $90 million in costs.