BANG CRASH KABOOM - Do I have your attention?

BANG CRASH KABOOM - Do I have your attention?

Loud noises at the start of their commercials; are they effective at getting listeners attention?

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Many a creative writer and audio producer have had the request to put a loud noise at the start of their radio commercial in order to get the listeners attention.

The clients reasoning comes from the same place where your mother is yelling your name at the supermarket and you run towards her, or a noise in your house makes you investigate its source, or at the very least whatever the noise whatever the location you stop what you’re doing and pay attention to what comes next. Usually what comes next is a high voltage voice spruiking an offer at high speed.

The question then becomes, does it work and should I do it for my business too?

To answer the first part: it does work for a short amount of time for a short-term offer, if you have a business that is not planning to be around for long. You can’t expect to build customers, fans and a long-term business brand if you are loud, noisy, aggressive and yelling at your clients; training them to only respond when you are discounting something.

You can guess the answer to the second part.

But there are ways to grab and keep the attention of the listener. Here are a few ideas to make an impact.

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Reduce your word count

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Reduce your word count to the absolute minimum, so your core message is heard clearly and you stand out from other ads around you because of a slower pace and silence.

Use a voice that is against type from others used on the station/media platform. The voice must still have a connection or relevance to the product but the description of ‘up vibey male or female’ shouldn’t be your only choice.

A musical intro i.e. a drum roll, a trumpet fanfare or a scale of chords can be your loud noise intro and at the same time be your proxy jingle. It’s a more acceptable alternative to a horn, breaking glass or siren (some of which are illegal by broadcasting standards for driver safety and can sound like emergency vehicles).

Create a series of commercials with different introduction sounds – ducks, banjos, yodeling.  And call them out as a blatant attempt to grab the listeners attention. In theatre this is called ‘breaking the fourth wall’. In radio this is recognizing the audience and speaking directly to them.

SAMPLE SCRIPT

SFX:

YODELING

Female VOICEOVER:

Hmm yes sorry about that…

It appears someone is VERY happy about thereat deal they got on a new car.

But you don’t need to go to Heidi in the Swiss Alps to hear all about it… just talk to the team at ABC Motor Group for an unbeatable price on new wheels.

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DISCLAIMER VOICEOVER:

*Terms and Conditions apply, Modelling comes standard with every model.

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Own a day-part (a specific time slot) and flood those hours with your message.

Radio works best with consistency of message and a message delivered powerfully just in breakfast or just in drive can dominate other messages without resorting to yelling.

To close, it’s also important to remember many people who are looking for a particular product or service have already begun their own research online or by chatting with friends.

Your advertising should be the trusted source that confirms their smart choice not the noisy neighbor making a last-ditch effort to drag them into the store or website.  

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Share your thoughts with us, email hello@productionfarm.studio

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