‘We created our DNA’: why Mastercard is all-in on sonic branding
Could the way consumers hear the Mastercard brand become even more important than the sight of its world-famous red and yellow circles logo?
According to the payments giant’s chief marketing and communications officer Raja Rajamannar, the consumer shift to contactless payments in-store and shopping online is making sonic branding a vital part of its brand armoury.
The rise in e-commerce activity, sped by up the Covid-19 pandemic globally, has led to reduced visibility of the Mastercard logo at points of sale. The logo itself had just been given a refresh a year earlier.
Speaking to Mediatel News, Rajamannar explained: “Without the physical experience of seeing a brand symbol when using a Mastercard, it’s becoming increasingly more important to assure our cardholders of the safety and security Mastercard promises through other means and senses, such as sound.”
“In this digital-first landscape, Mastercard’s sonic brand gives us instant brand recognition. No matter how people choose to pay, the cues of each experience – sound and sight – can put consumers at ease knowing their transactions will go through without any worry.”
Rajamannar spoke to Mediatel News after Mastercard reclaimed its top spot in sonic branding agency amp’s index of the best audio brands, with Shell and Apple respectively taking second and third place.
According to the index, Mastercard ranked first due to the brand’s “unique holistic and DNA-based sonic identity.”
Amp’s ‘Best Audio Brands Ranking 2021’ was originally built on Interbrand’s ‘Best Global Brands Index’ and quantifies audio brand performance and efficiency against a range of criteria including trust, recognition, efficiency, and engagement.
When asked why Mastercard’s sonic identity stood out compared to other brands, Rajamannar said: “It is one of the broadest, most comprehensive approaches to sonic branding that there is today.”
“We created our DNA. It’s an architecture for our brand that gives us parameters to stay true to our sound, and flexibility to make sure it’s relevant across geographies and applications, whether it be our checkout sound, the backdrop of our creative or the soundtrack to our experiences.”
The (branded) sound of music
Mastercard has also used the sonic brand across a range of advertising and communications campaigns over the past year.
This includes a recent ad targeting viewers of the football competition Copa América 2021 (pictured, above) which uses a custom soundtrack with the “DNA” and payment sound integrated.
The sonic logo was also integrated into a song featuring Jennifer Hudson to celebrate businesses owned by Black women as part of the brand’s $500m pledge to help close the racial wealth and opportunity gap for Black communities and businesses across the US.
Mastercard’s sonic branding is developed with the help of specialist agency Amp. Its founder and global CEO Michele Arnese said: “The past 18 months have only accelerated the importance of sound and voice as vital elements of the brand identity and customer experience toolbox”
Arnese added: “With strong growth in app-based and contactless digital interactions and streamed audible content, marketers have shifted spending to boost digital storytelling that can be heard and recognised”.
Elsewhere, five new brands entered the top 10 (Audi, Mercedes, Netflix, Hyundai and Siemens) and the highest climbing sector overall was beverages, with automotive not far behind.
The highest climbing brand sector was financial services, where HSBC, American Express and JP Morgan all increased their rankings significantly.
The report explains that this was owing to an increase in customised audio, and for HSBC the full roll-out of its sonic identity, created in 2019.
Colgate, Goldman Sachs, and Danone saw the biggest drop in the rankings, owing predominantly to an increased reliance on stock music across digital channels.
Arnese is speaking at Mediatel Events’ The Future of Audio on 24 June to discuss the conditions that make a great sonic brand.
Full conference details are available on the The Future of Audio website, including the agenda and confirmed speakers so far.
You can register to watch the conference stream here, for free.