By now you must be seeing a trend in my blogging activity – subject matter is always viral marketing tricks, tips and a general appreciation for the beautiful act of word of mouse. If you haven’t been following my viral thoughts and reading each blog (shame on you if you haven’t ha) some of the following may not make sense, as I will be making brief reference to points I have touched on prior. So before I delve into the magic of music in regards to viral videos I warn you there may be some terms you may have to search back into the archives of the Rionne section of the library for all to be clear.
Music is a beautiful thing. It can evoke emotion by reminding people of a particular time or place or even simply create a mood with no connection to a prior event that can bring about that same state of mind. We rely on music in the marketing world to do exactly that. As viral marketing is about stimulating the human emotions in order to urge someone to be moved, music is a key tool in creating a mood and making people feel something. I’m always on the look out for trends in viral and have recently taken to watching viral vids both new and old, with and without the feature music. What I have found is that the impact is very noticeably different. The music often tells the story, highlighting how the audience should be feeling and when.
An example of this which I have completely fell in love with and have been preaching about is the Skoda Fabia ad from a few years back, or how you may remember it – the cake car advert. The ad follows all the successful models for viral as it is unexpected and something different in nature. It has the element of curiosity stimulation and the big reveal relating to it as it is not clear from the beginning it is a car that is being made/baked. The theme is disconnected from the brand and product, making it an indirect sales pitch that ties loosely to the object of the advertisement. But most importantly the music is Julie Andrew’s famous Sound of Music classic track “My Favourite Things”. This plays to the inner child of all, evoking a memory from a time and a place that they heard the song and watched the film.
It makes the viewer instantly feel a sense of childlike excitement and intrigue This is the emotion which the content wants to evoke, what isn’t exciting about a car made of cake and other sorts of sugary delights? Watching makes you feel like a kid in a sweet shop, only this connects to a very adult product i.e. a vehicle. It’s absolute genius idea and perfectly executed with interesting shots and editing that keeps the viewers attention. However, when I watched the same video with the sound down and no Julie Andrews lulling delicious words like gumdrops and kittens in my ear; I was impressed but not intrigued Overall, music is key in conveying your message and provoking those desired emotions. Have a go… watch the clip with and without the music and let me know your thoughts. I challenge you further… watch any of your favourite clips in silent and I am sure you will not have that same feeling of sadness, happiness or even overwhelming childlike, cake craving excitement.
