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Where to find music for your marketing projects for FREE. Years ago, when singing jingles were still considered an advertising necessity, roving teams of music-pluggers criss-crossed the land, armed with industrial-sized boomboxes and a satchel full of tapes from America's jingle mills. One of the proven sales tricks they learned was to play the prospect jinglee three or four famous ditties and then ask if the listener could identify the clients represented. Most people could. The kicker came when the salesman revealed that none of the jingles had been in use for at least ten years - and yet we all still remember not only the tunes but also the sponsor they represented. (Test your own memory here with 340 classic advertising jingles: http://surf.to/commercials) In other words, when used well, music can be as important in creating a memorable brand image as a strong logo or catchy slogan. It can be in fact an aural logo or a sung slogan. For more on how smart it is to "brand" all five senses, go here:) Today, most folks think jingles are a little old-fashioned or childish, they're mostly relegated now to the Saturday morning kids' block of programming. Which is why a $mart Marketer on a Budget might want to consider using one - before long, they'll be new again. (Rule #6: Zig when others zag.) Contemporary evidence: When the Free Credit Report people introduced a full-jingle TV spot featuring some struggling young musicians forced to play for tips as singing pirates at a chain fish restaurant, did they know they were setting the hook in us? The bouncy jingle sung in the spot has been known to lodge in peoples' heads like Star Trek earwigs. Even horrormeister Stephen King admitted in Entertainment Weekly recently that the musical ditty HAUNTS him - he cannot get it out of his mind. (You try it: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zMXv0__CYSU) But whether you're interested in a jingle or not, there are other ways you can use sound to help you create a memorable - and emotional - "sense" to your brand. Any broadcast marketing you do can be improved considerably by smart use of music and other aural elements like sound effects. It's so important that when I'm producing TV spots, videos or other multimedia projects, I often start with the sound track in mind, rather than the visual. I even play the music over and over as I write copy and consider other elements of the full piece - to make sure the entire project reflects a cohesive and compelling tone. Plus, think how many broadcast commercials are heard from another room instead of actually viewed? I'm not suggesting that you turn your visual media into radio - you need to take advantage of the strong visual potential of broadcast - but that you don't just slap some music on at the end and call it a day. Creative music and sound effects scoring maximizes our involvement in the emotional aspects of movies. It can be as beneficial to your marketing messages as well. Today, you may want music not just for TV and radio ads but for podcasts, to set to play behind your Web page (but please don't,) on your YouTube video, in your caller on-hold message or to lend background ambiance to your place of business. Well, you could do it the classic way (the way it has been done since the days of what we now call "classical" music:) hire a composer and have her create something just for you and your needs. That's a great way to go - but often an expensive way. If you're trying to get something done on a limited amount of cash, a $5,000 or so outlay for a music bed is probably not in the program. But, listen: today there are great FREEsources for some surprisingly good music. A few previews: Under 40? Sample this: http://www.sound-effect.com/sounds1/MMM_Loops/Scapala.wav
Sample this if you're over 40: http://www.sound-effect.com/sounds1/MMM_Loops/Island_Fever.wav
Try this if you're French: http://www.sound-effect.com/sounds1/MMM_Loops/Saxy_French_2.wav I'll show you how to get free use of that music - and boucoup more - below. But first a Caveat for you Non-Emptors. Remember Napster? The Internet has put a mind-boggling wealth of music at our mousetips. The biggest of the big - The Stones, Pavarotti, those Macarena Guys - and the smallest garage band out there, all now can be found and downloaded from the Web. And that has completely changed the music business forever. Piracy, copyright violation, sampling and reuse of trademarked material have all contributed to a revolution in the way music is created and shared. And a lively source of business for corporate rights attorneys. The revolution continues and there is still much that may change. But one thing remains absolutely true: just because you can download some tune off the Internet (or CD or whatever,) it doesn't mean you can use it in any commercial application without paying a possibly hefty fee - or fine. The laws on music rights are complicated and in flux. My best advice is just to stay away from that subject altogether and only deal with "open source" music. Pay for Play Today, just as stock photography suppliers will "rent" you the rights to an image for a modest fee, various music production houses - the 21st Century version of the jingle mills - offer good royalty-free music. In fact, the premier Internet stock photo supplier, iStock, now offers music downloads as well as visuals. I'll cover these low-cost options in another article. Here, let's talk about freesources - places where you can go to get music absolutely FREE. Plug in your speakers or earphones and let's go sample some tunes. Public Domain Sources At a certain point, all creative materials become free of copyright restrictions and go "generic." Currently, that's after 75 - 100 years. Every year, thousands more musical compositions transition to the "public domain." For more on Public Domain definition, see: http://www.pdinfo.com/record.php One of the knotty problems of dealing with music rights is that the music itself is just one aspect. The performance of the music is also covered under a separate copyright - perhaps the lyrics are as well. Certainly the specific recording of a musical piece is. In short, though you can freely use the song "O, Susanna!" you cannot necessarily use any recorded version that was copyrighted in the last 70 years or so. But, just for completeness, here is a database of songs that are in the Public Domain - you may use any of them as long as you record your own version. Hello, karaoke bar! http://www.pdinfo.com/list.php Here's a fascinating archive where you can while away a pleasant rainy Friday. http://www.archive.org/details/audio Sort of a Smithsonian of Sound, this site has everything from Thomas Edison's earliest recording tests to contemporary material. Most is not copyright free but it's sure fun to explore. In a separate section, the archive houses a growing collection of "open source" musical tracks from around the world. http://www.archive.org/details/opensource_audio These are available for your reuse and remixing under the Creative Commons License. http://creativecommons.org/ And here is a free archive of mp3s of old records that are supposedly now in the public domain. Its concentration on Delta blues, folk, early jazz and other types of "roots" music suggests an admirable dedication to cultural preservation. Be careful, though. All of these might not actually be free from rights issues. I certainly can't imagine that the estate of cowboy-crooner-capitalist Gene Autry has allowed his songs to lapse into public domain so soon. http://mp34u.muzic.com/posting/6604 OpenSource Music Like "open source" software, a very useful amount of open-licensed music is available to work with. In some cases, you may only use the music for non-profit projects - churches, clubs, groups, education. Plenty of material, though, is freely available for whatever use you want to make of it. TV commercials, podcasts, giveaway CDs, in-store broadcast, whatever. PartnersInRhyme sells stock music, but it also gives away free sound effects, loops and midi files here: http://mp34u.muzic.com/posting/6604 Looking for some good loops to use in your next mix or podcast? Here's a huge loop stockpile you can loot: http://www.metacafe.com/watch/1080107/free_royalty_free_music_www_beats4podcast_com/ Free Soundtrack Music's name is not totally accurate. They sell music on a subscription basis but do offer several tracks free of cost and of constricting copyright: http://www.freesoundtrackmusic.com/ I don't know Kevin McLeod, but I'm a big fan! He has created some very fine music cuts that run the gamut from "silent movie" style to the funkiest R&B grunge. I especially like his lush and slightly humorous movie-style scores that echo Danny Elfman's material (at about $50,000 less per cut.) Dig in here: http://incompetech.com/m/c/royalty-free/ And if you can't find what you want at any of these places, here's a Mother Lode List of freesources aimed at educators but useful to marketers as well. http://www.edu-cyberpg.com/Music/FreeMusic.html
So, how does all that sound? BB
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SUB ROSA: Extensive research shows that retailers and restauranteurs can improve sales by playing slower, more contemplative music in their place of business. People naturally fall into the beat of background music and tend to shop and eat more – and stay longer. (At noon rush, restaurants play fast music to keep the tables turning faster.) Add this page to your favorite Social Bookmarking websites           |