Sound Design, literally.
The web, in general, is a pretty silent place and whenever a website begins to inadvertently blurt out sounds at us in autoplay, we are usually quick to hit the mute button.
Even with the deployment of new HTML5 sound tools, designers and developers are not too keen to use them, so why is it that when it comes to mobile apps, games and desktop software we have come to expect ‘sound’?
In this article, we are going to explore the use of sound and how it can help solidify a brand’s presence without the aid of visual recognition.
OK, so sound design or ‘foley’, as it’s known in the Film industry, has been around forever and over the years we have even come to identify entire films via their unique sound design. For example, the iconic lightsaber in Star Wars, the Tardis in Doctor Who or the gunfire shots in Raiders of the Lost Ark.
TV and Radio commercials have been using ‘jingles’ for decades, sometimes the worse they are, the less we are able to get them out of our head which is, no doubt, their primary purpose — to make us remember the brand they represent. However, over the last decade car brands such as Audi and BMW have been using a subtle combination of music and sound effects associated with their logo which you probably didn’t even notice but I’m pretty sure that if you hear them disassociated from their visual element, you’ll still recognise the brand.
Bringing Sound Design to New Media
About a year ago a design student working on her graduation thesis approached us with a long list of research questions in regard to sound design. Initially this surprised us but we then realised that sound design and it’s incredibly important role in the interactive industry has finally been recognised as a real and integral medium. Yes, sound design needs to be seriously considered and factored into any interactive user experience.
We’re not talking about the infantile blips or bings people were using in Flash projects or the choice of pings and dings we get to make when choosing how we want our email client to notify us of incoming emails — even if the latter did make a point about being related to individual Operating Systems from a branding perspective. We’re talking about how sound as an invisible extra sensory experience factors into the user experience as a whole.
Back in the day of Windows 95, Microsoft created a sound brand for themselves by asking Brian Eno to come up with a smooth start up vibe after Apple added a recognisable start up boom to Mac OS.
Microsoft’s brief to Brian Eno read; “We want a piece of music that is inspiring, universal, blah-blah, da-da-da, optimistic, futuristic, sentimental and emotional”
Personally, we think Nokia were the first to get it right, all the way back in the early 90's when they came up with a default ringtone for their phones that was synonymous with the Nokia brand and meant that every time you heard someone’s phone ring, you knew what phone brand they had without even seeing it. Perfect!
Over the last ten years, Apple have employed a similar trait by giving their phones a default ring tone which has also become synonymous with their brand and luckily for them, due to the popularity of the iPhone we even hear the ringtone in TV and films — great for inconspicuous product placement.
However, we’re not here to talk about phones either, we’re here to talk about sound design used in ubiquitous apps and desktop software as part of it’s look and feel.
Aural Cues
When working remotely, Skype is probably your go to application for communication with colleagues and clients and since Microsoft bought the company in 2011 there have been quite a few subtle yet impactful changes, especially to the software’s sound design.
Every sound the app makes has specific significance and if you are a constant user, you will have come to recognise each ping and blip’s meaning without having to look at the screen. There are sounds for incoming messages, outgoing messages, when someone has become available, a file is being shared and of course the incoming call ringtone to name but a few. These sounds, however, are not designed be intrusive but rather as barely noticeable subtleties, more of a texture to the UI that gives subconscious feedback to the user.
These are called aural cues, acoustic feedback — sounds our ears receive which send a message to our brain to give us confirmation. For example, a hammer, in no way designed to give aural feedback but when we have hit the nail square on the head, there is a specific sound which confirms the action.
No pun intended but what Microsoft have done with Skype’s sound design is literally hit the nail on the head.
Since Skype, Google and Facebook have begun to filter sound design into their apps so have many others. Whereas the web has primarily built itself around visual feedback like Hover / Press / Depress actions and Active / Inactive states, interactive media like apps and software are moving more and more towards aural cues which are either associated to visual cues or as recognisable stand alone aural entities.
Sound association
So many factors go into the thinking behind a brand’s sound design, that much so that there are now entire companies dedicated to studying and stylising sound to not only match a brand’s image but to give off a certain vibe to the user when they interact with that specific brand’s digital product.
Should it make you feel happy? Should it give you a sense of confirmation or error? Does it make you feel satisfied by your action? Are the decibels right for it’s purpose?
In the end it’s all about sound association and that doesn’t just require a good sound engineer or musician but sturdy psychological studies to ensure that the end result has the right effect.
Cycling back to the Audi and BMW sound logos, these are perfect examples of sound giving a complete subconscious message. Both Audi and BMW make automobiles and their brand marketing leads us to believe that their products are solid, quality products — being an owner of both cars I can’t argue with that but the incredible thing for me is the way their logo sound conveys exactly the same message. They both use a polished, solid, metallic sound which resonates high quality and excellent craftsmanship without showing anything. It’s an aural cue to the brain, a subconscious confirmation due to acoustic feedback, it’s simple sound association and it works.
So, in conclusion, we hope we’ve got you thinking about using sound design in your next digital project.
