In life, when you buy a car for $10,000, it’s usually because that’s what it’s worth.
Written by Michael Boumendil, President & Chief Creative Officer
And this holds true for much more than just cars.
So what should we tell a brand that recently boasted about having its sonic identity
created for $25,000, when the market typically charges at least three or four times as
much? I’ve spent enough time in this industry and hold a sufficiently unique position to
share a statistic no one else can claim: in 100% of the cases I’ve witnessed, brands that
purchased a low-cost sonic identity ultimately saw that decision backfire.
First, we need to ask the right question. The goal isn’t simply for a brand to “have a sonic
identity.” Anyone can add three notes to a logo and call it sonic branding. The real
question is: which sonic identity will work from day one, and still be effective five or ten
years from now? Which one will create differentiation and clarity in a market saturated
with messages? Which one will build engagement, recognition, and emotional
attachment year after year, across every touchpoint, adaptation, and market?
That kind of long-term performance doesn’t happen by accident. It comes from specific
expertise: deeply understanding a brand’s positioning, mastering cultural and musical
codes—and knowing how to work with them—and creating a distinctive sonic signature
that captures attention, strengthens the brand’s impact, and shapes how people
perceive it, whether it lasts three seconds or thirty.
A sonic identity does more than make a brand recognizable. Adapting it for a TV
commercial, a mobile notification, a retail environment, or a radio jingle without losing
what makes it distinctive, isn’t a matter of copying and pasting; it’s a matter of brand
management.
A strong sonic identity is always built on experience: dozens of completed projects,
lessons learned from mistakes made elsewhere, testing, iterations, and approvals from
marketing, legal, and creative teams. None of this can be done cheaply or rushed on a
budget that, elsewhere in the industry, wouldn’t even cover the preliminary research
phase.
When an agency agrees to deliver this kind of work for a ridiculously low price, it isn’t
doing the brand a favor. It’s making a promise it can’t keep: to deliver the best possible
sonic identity without a budget that can properly compensate the required expertise or
fund anything beyond, at best, a superficial layer of sound.
That identity will quickly lose its impact, be forgotten, replaced, or worse, actively work
against the brand without anyone understanding why the expected results never
materialize.
And yes, the brand manager should be asking themselves: why do you think your agency
agreed to work with such a small budget in the first place? Why is it in that position?”But
creating music isn’t worth anything anymore.”
Anyone who sees the issue this way has completely missed the point.
First, this isn’t about making music. I invite you to read an article I wrote this summer on
exactly that subject.
Second, cut-price budgets often overlook stages that are essential to a project’s long-
term success. These include thorough competitive analysis and performance testing,
especially psychoacoustic testing.
If creating an outstanding visual identity were as simple as making a beautiful design,
we’d all know it by now.
Ultimately, the real question a brand should be asking isn’t “How much does a sonic
identity cost?”
It comes down to this: how much do I believe in my brand? How much am I willing to
invest in something that will benefit it long term an asset it will own for years, reaching
millions of people thousands of times across every touchpoint?
The real question is: How much value will this sonic identity bring to my brand?
When you truly care about a brand and believe in its potential, you don’t adorn it with
cheap accessories. You give it what it needs to shine for years to come.
And, just like a car, its price reflects its value.
If you paid next to nothing for your sonic identity, chances are that’s exactly what it’s
worth.
And that your brand deserves no better.
