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When you think of the most memorable advertising from the \u201980s and \u201990s, what comes to mind? We\u2019d wager a bet that it\u2019s a jingle\u2014maybe dulcet tones from Stanley Steemer, promising to get your home cleaner, or a jaunty phone number sing-along for Empire Today flooring. Even Full House<\/em>, the pinnacle of all things \u201980s and \u201990s, made a point of referencing the humble jingle: Joey has a gig penning them for an advertising firm.<\/p>\n Those musical ad slogans from yesteryear represent \u201cpeak marketing,\u201d Ashwinn Krishnaswamy, the \u201cbranding guru\u201d of TikTok, said in a video, pointing to older examples like State Farm\u2019s \u201cLike a Good Neighbor\u201d tune written by Barry Manilow in the \u201970s, or songs from the mid-aughts advertising FreeCreditReport.com. But the term itself is falling out of fashion.<\/p>\n \u201cI think the word jingle means something specific; It\u2019s that \u201970s, \u201980s, \u201990s song that is cheesy, or at least a throwback,\u201d Zach Pollakoff, executive producer at audio production house Heavy Duty Projects, said, while Heavy Duty\u2019s music producer Tom Cathcart said the term \u201ccomes with baggage.\u201d<\/p>\n That doesn\u2019t mean the jingle itself is dead. Call it what you want, but branded songs have been experiencing a revival thanks to TikTok, where a brand\u2019s custom audio can become an irresistible earworm and help it stand out.<\/p>\n \u201cWe create singles, not jingles,\u201d Geoffrey Goldberg, co-founder and CCO of creative agency Movers+Shakers, which has made audio for Hasbro and made the original track for e.l.f.\u2019s #eyeslipsface TikTok challenge, told us.<\/p>\n Alex Dahan, founder and CEO of influencer agency Open Influence, said when digital agencies work on branded audio, they tend to use more modern terms, like \u201caudio branding,\u201d instead of \u201cjingle.\u201d But it comes in other flavors, too. His term of choice when talking to creators? \u201cBrand beat.\u201d<\/p>\n At Hasbro, which has used audio branding and jingles for decades, any audio it uses on TikTok is referred to simply as a sound because that\u2019s the term used on TikTok for audio tracks, explained Brian Baker, Hasbro\u2019s VP, gaming. But the same track used on another platform might be referred to as a \u201ccustom song,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n Amy Cotteleer, partner and chief experience officer at ad agency Duncan Channon, which also worked on the #eyeslipsface campaign by selecting influencers for the campaign, called the OG term \u201cantiquated,\u201d particularly among younger audiences.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s an inside-baseball word,\u201d she said. \u201cIt\u2019s not what consumers are using.\u201d<\/p>\n But even if the word jingle might be dead, branded audio bites are certainly not. Just open up TikTok and they\u2019re easy to find. At the height of the sea shanty craze on the app, Sun Bum shared what it called a \u201csun shanty,\u201d in a major key this time; Madewell, meanwhile, recruited the surf-punk band Nevva to sing a tune about jorts.<\/p>\n Marketing Brew informs marketing pros of the latest on brand strategy, social media, and ad tech via our weekday newsletter, virtual events, marketing conferences, and digital guides.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n \u201cWe want to create music that sounds like it\u2019s something you would hear on the radio,\u201d Goldberg, from Movers+Shakers, said. \u201cIt sounds like something that would be on your Spotify playlist, so there’s almost this unexpected nature when you realize, \u2018Oh! That it came from a brand that I happen to love too.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n That unexpected nature is on display in some of Hasbro\u2019s recent audio branding work, including the tune \u201cMR. MONOPOLY,\u201d a \u201ccustom, TikTok-first\u201d song created with artist Blvcktmptn for its #MePlayingMonopoly campaign, Baker said. This year, the brand worked with Movers+Shakers to create a song promoting the new Twister Air game loosely inspired by the original Twister jingle from the \u201990s.<\/p>\n One of the main differences between more recent tunes and classic jingles is that the branding is more covert. In some cases, that means the brand isn\u2019t even named in the lyrics. Heavy Duty wrote a custom song for Ikea using terms like \u201cflatpack\u201d and \u201cBilly bookcase,\u201d which was intended to prevent references to the brand from \u201cbeing a bludgeon,\u201d Cathcart said.<\/p>\n Lyrics also tend to be less focused on \u201cbuy, buy, buy,\u201d Dahan said. Beauty brands in particular are keen on songs that are \u201cvery instructional and very literal,\u201d Pollakoff said. Other brands are in it for the vibes. One Heavy Duty client simply requested, as he put it, a \u201cbanger.\u201d<\/p>\n Modern-day jingles also differ from their 20th-century counterparts in that they\u2019re meant to be more participatory, encouraging consumers to get involved\u2014something that\u2019s made easier through social media.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s not just about getting stuck in your head,\u201d Goldberg said. \u201cIt\u2019s about building a deeper connection with consumers.\u201d<\/p>\n Hasbro tracks views, engagement, and sentiment \u201cto assess whether the song is leaving people with positive vibes or not,\u201d Baker told us. (That \u201cMR. MONOPOLY\u201d song, for example, drove more than 100 million views across about 1,400 unique videos, he told us.) And while Hasbro sometimes brings sales data into the equation, driving brand relevance and sparking conversation is what often matters more.<\/p>\n \u201cThe ultimate testament to a song\u2019s success is captured when you candidly hear someone humming or singing your song aloud,\u201d Baker said. \u201cIf your song hits unprompted singing status, you\u2019ve made it.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\nA tune by any other name<\/strong><\/h2>\n
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