Are you listening? — Getting started with Audio UX

My phone battery was 2%, it almost felt like my soul was leaving the body. I rushed to find the charger and connected it to my iPhone.

But it felt like something was missing,

I went back, unplugged the phone and reconnected, and heard the classic sound of an Apple phone successfully connecting to charging mode.

Phew, mission accomplished!

I never thought this simple sound of acknowledgement from my phone was so important. The fact that I felt something was off the first time got me thinking that there are so many subtle sounds around us that we consciously ignore, but are in our memory and influence our actions every day.

Now that “sound” or “audio” has the full attention I started noticing it everywhere around me.

“Sound tells us about things we cannot see, and it does so while our eyes are occupied elsewhere” — Design of everyday things

But what if Life was on MUTE

• No honking on the streets,
• No irritating Alarms every morning,
• Less noise pollution.

That sounds like a noble thought, right?

What if I tell you that life without audio can be dangerous?

I have been using a Royal Enfield motorbike, “Made like a Bullet” . Your hands could feel the slight vibrations, and the thumping sound of the silencer feels like music to my ears (noise to others). Every time I accelerate, I can hear the roaring sound of the silencer, and it also informs other vehicles of my whereabouts.

One day looking at the fuel prices, I decided to try an electric scooter. The biggest problem with electricity is that it has no audio. It is incredibly silent. I almost felt deaf. Even other vehicles found it difficult to spot me until I was too close to them.

This could be extremely dangerous and has been a major reason for road accidents involving electric vehicles all over the world.

Read this report: New Risk Situations Related to Low Noise from Electric Vehicles: Perception of Workers as Pedestrians and Other Vehicle Drivers

Electric vehicle manufacturing companies have now started installing speakers in the vehicle to mimic the sound of a motor vehicle. Article: EVs Are Dangerously Quiet. Here’s What They Could Sound Like

So what is AUDIO UX?

I asked Google, and to my surprise, I didn’t get any satisfying answer for my search query. This was shocking, but what if it was my DESTINY to define Audio UX ? :D

Buckle up, let’s do it!

“Audio UX refers to audio or sound interactions the user has while experiencing a product or service. It involves designing audio interactions to help users get feedback, warnings, alerts, build context and even brand recall” — Tejas Sarvankar

Audio UX, although existed for years, has not been in the spotlight. With Touchscreens and smartphone penetration, everyone was busy designing visuals and beautiful screens for the users.

But recently due to Artificial Intelligence(AI) and Natural language processing (NLP), Humans have started speaking to machines instead of touching them, like voice assistants.

“Hey, Siri! How’s my blog coming so far ?” I asked,

“Umm, you can do better!” Siri replied

This revolution has led to a lot of traction for Audio UX, as Humans have started interacting with machines in audio formats.

Understand the role of Audio in our daily lives

Ever thought about the Buzzing, the beeping, the humming, and the ticking having different roles to play in our lives?

• It Provides Feedback: The sound of successfully completing a transaction on Google Pay.

It gives audio feedback to the user that the transaction is complete.

• Gives Warning or Alerts us: Hear that unpleasant buzzing sound when you forget or fail to complete a transaction

It warns the user from proceeding further or alerts the user with important information

• It helps to Establish a Brand Personality

Do you recognise this sound?

Of course, right!

That’s the influence of Audio in Branding.

What if we switch the roles, will it still work?

Let’s give a warning sound for the successful completion of a transaction on Google pay.

Weird right?

This tells us a very important fact about sound: It has a personality.

Now Let’s take a walk on the street!

Every sound you hear, natural or man-made, has a tone that signifies specific things.

• Honking of the cars — Alerts us
• Whistle of the tea kettle when the water boils — Informs us
• Tinny sound when a door doesn’t shut right — Gives feedback

“Mind your tone”

We have already established that the tone of the audio could make or break things.

So how do we design audio?

There are 2 ways to design audio:

• Skeuomorphic sounds : Our ears are used to listening to sound around us and we can design audio by taking inspiration from our surroundings. For example: The typing sound of the age old typewriter is now used in apple as keypad tones.

• Sonic Metaphors : Abstract audio which evokes emotions. These are man-made sounds designed to trigger emotions such as success, surprise, completion, failure, etc. Sonic metaphors can be unique, and unheard and can also be used to build brand personality.

Check this article on 4 elements of sound and an interesting video on designing sound for human experiences.

Now Let’s UN-MUTE & Start Listening

Sound has an interesting role to play in our lives, let’s pay attention to these sounds, listen to them and understand their importance. Document these sounds and share them with me and will explore this interesting topic together.

Till then check this amazing Material Sound guide

“Sound Gives Life” — How?

Let’s talk about it in my next blog :) #staytuned