The power of sound

Audio works harder when creativity and media planning work together.

Sound is an incredibly powerful sense. It can evoke deep emotions, transport us to another time and place, and influence our behaviour. Sound also has a habit of getting there first; before a logo appears, before the offer is explained, before anyone has consciously decided to pay attention, a familiar piece of music, a distinctive voice or a well-chosen sound effect can already be doing the work. It can create recognition, set the mood, trigger a memory and bring a sense of familiarity. That’s why audio advertising is far more than background noise. When used effectively, it can reach people in the parts of their day where screens are absent, ignored or competing for attention. For brands, this is hugely valuable – but only when it is planned properly.

At MEERKATworks, audio has been an integral part of our creative and planning offering since the agency began in 2005. The team has written, produced, planned and bought audio campaigns across radio, digital audio and podcasts for over two decades. This in-depth experience matters because good audio is not just about having a nice script or a catchy piece of music. It is about understanding what sound can do, where it should be heard, who needs to hear it and how often it needs to land before it sticks. And that is where creative audio and smart media planning work together.

Sound doesn’t wait for attention

Sound has a direct line to memory – a visual advert might need someone to look up, stop scrolling or notice a poster at the right moment. Audio can reach people while they are doing something else – driving, cooking, running, working, browsing… you get the idea.  But that doesn’t make sound passive – it makes it present. Audio in advertising can create recognition quickly because it uses patterns the brain remembers well: rhythm, tone, repetition, voice, music and familiar sound cues. A distinctive audio asset can help a brand become recognisable before the name is even spoken. A good voiceover can make a message feel warmer, sharper, funnier, more reassuring or more urgent. A carefully chosen music bed can change how a brand feels in seconds.

This is why audio advertising can be so effective for brand building. It gives businesses a way to be remembered without relying purely on visuals. It can also support response-led activity, particularly when the message is clear, the call to action is simple and the media plan gives the campaign enough frequency to work. 

Audio branding is more than a jingle

When people think of audio branding, they often think of a jingle. And yes, jingles very much still have a place when they are done well. But audio branding can be much broader and more useful than that. It might be a short sonic logo that plays at the end of an advert. It might be a consistent piece of music across a campaign. It might be a voice style that becomes part of how the brand is recognised. It might be a sound effect, a spoken sign-off, digital audio assets, podcast creative, video sound design or a suite of campaign edits that all feel like they belong to the same brand.

Recognition is built through repetition

Brands often spend a lot of time making sure their visual identity is clear, but sound is sometimes treated as an afterthought, despite being one of the quickest ways to create recognition. Strong audio branding gives a brand something ownable. It gives campaigns a familiar thread. It helps different media placements feel connected, whether someone hears the brand on the radio, on a podcast, in a social video or while waiting on the phone. And when audio branding is built with media in mind, it becomes much more than a creative asset – it becomes a useful part of the wider campaign strategy.

Buying airtime is not the same as being heard

A brilliant audio advert in the wrong place will not do the job. This is where media planning and buying make the difference. Audio advertising is not simply a matter of writing a script, recording a voiceover and booking some airtime. The media strategy shapes whether the campaign reaches the right people often enough to be remembered. The first question should never be “which station should we book?” It should be “who are we trying to reach and what do we need them to think, feel or do?”

From there, the role of media planning is to decide which audio channels are right for the job. Radio advertising can deliver broad regional reach, trusted environments and strong frequency. Digital audio advertising can offer more targeted delivery across streaming platforms and online listening habits. Podcast advertising can place a brand within highly engaged listening moments, often around particular interests, subjects or audience types. Media buying then makes the plan work commercially. It is about choosing the right formats, negotiating effectively, allocating budget wisely, avoiding waste and making sure the campaign has enough weight to be heard properly.

How MEERKATworks has used the power of sound

We have always believed in the power of sound because we have seen what it can do in real campaigns. We also practise what we preach. Our own MEERKATworks audio branding has been used on our website and across our social channels since 2015, giving the brand a recognisable sound as well as a visual identity. The same thinking has shaped the way we approach client work across very different sectors.

For MyBreast, MEERKATworks won the UK launch pitch and led with radio advertising. The team wrote and produced all the adverts, as well as composing audio branding that was used across the radio campaign and hold music. It is a good example of audio working beyond one media placement, as the sound of the campaign became part of the wider brand experience.

For Star Wars Celebration Europe, sound was central to the media thinking from the start. With a limited budget, MEERKATworks led the pitch with the power of sound, recognising that more people would instantly know the sound of Star Wars than recognise a visual execution in isolation. Radio, supported by print and out-of-home, gave the campaign a more cost-effective way to create recognition and excitement than relying on visual-only media.

For Stansted Airport, MEERKATworks composed a jingle used across radio advertising campaigns that the team planned and bought. For Julia’s House, the agency composed audio branding for radio adverts, which was later also used in internal promotional video and social content. Again, the value came from creating audio that could travel across different settings rather than disappear after one campaign.

Universal Orlando Resort offered a different kind of audio opportunity. MEERKATworks had access to Universal Studio production sounds and used them to create dynamic digital audio adverts. That kind of creative asset is hard to beat – when a brand already has recognisable sound worlds, audio advertising can bring them to life in a way that feels immediate and immersive.

These examples all point to the same lesson: good audio starts with a strong creative idea, but it works so much harder when it is connected to a carefully thought-through media plan.

Radio, digital audio and podcasts play different roles

Not all audio channels do the same job. Radio advertising remains a strong choice when a brand needs reach, frequency and familiarity. It can be especially useful for regional campaigns, public awareness activity, events, launches and brands that need to become known quickly within a defined market. Radio also benefits from routine; people listen while commuting, working, driving or spending time at home, so the message becomes part of everyday life.

Digital audio advertising gives brands more targeting flexibility; it can reach listeners through streaming platforms, online radio and digital listening environments, often with more precise audience segmentation than traditional broadcast. It can be particularly useful when a campaign needs to reach defined demographics, interests or behaviours. Podcast advertising plays a different role again; podcasts often have loyal, attentive audiences and a stronger sense of trust between host and listener. That can make podcast advertising useful for brands that need context, credibility or a more considered listening environment.

The best answer is not always radio, digital audio or podcasts on their own – sometimes it is a blend. Sometimes audio works best alongside out-of-home, print, video or digital. Sometimes the smartest media plan uses audio to do the emotional heavy lifting, while other channels provide visual reinforcement or response. This is why it pays to work with an agency that understands both audio advertising and wider media planning and buying.

How to make audio advertising more effective

Before writing a script, define the audience and the media objective. Is the campaign trying to build awareness, drive enquiries, promote an event, support a launch, increase recall or strengthen brand identity? A radio advert written for broad regional reach may need to work differently from a podcast advert aimed at a niche audience or a digital audio campaign designed around targeting and frequency. Distinctive audio branding also matters. A campaign does not need to be loud, gimmicky or over-produced to be memorable, but it does need to have something recognisable. That might be a voice, a phrase, a rhythm, a music style or a consistent sound world.

Frequency is another important factor, as audio often works through repeated exposure. A listener may not act the first (or fourth) time they hear an advert, but repeated, well-planned exposure can build familiarity and trust. Under-buying a campaign can mean the creative never has enough chance to settle in people’s minds.

Finally, use sound consistently across brand touchpoints where it makes sense. If a brand has invested in audio branding, it should not live in one advert and then vanish. It can support social content, video, events, phone systems, presentations, internal communications and other campaign assets. In this way, sound becomes part of the entire brand.

Plan audio that gets heard and remembered

The power of sound is not just that people hear it – it is that they can remember it, feel it and recognise it again. For brands, this makes audio advertising a serious media opportunity. Radio can build reach and familiarity. Digital audio can sharpen targeting. Podcast advertising can create deeper listening moments. Audio branding can connect campaigns together and make a brand more distinctive over time. But none of it should happen in isolation.

MEERKATworks brings the creative and commercial sides of audio together: planning, writing, producing and buying audio advertising that is built around the audience, the message and the media opportunity. If you want your brand to be heard in the right places and in a way audiences truly remember, get in touch with the MEERKATworks team.