Mindshare teams up with Shazam Entertainment for ‘Audio+’

Mindshare Worldwide has announced a tie up with Shazam Entertainment  to launch Audio+, a program to help brands audit, map and capitalise on sound-based elements of their global advertising campaigns.

The companies will work with Mindshare clients to drive consumer interactions via mobile devices using the Shazam App. The App uses proprietary audio content recognition (ACR) technology to identify a brand’s audio assets from TV, radio and in-store adverts, and connects the consumer to a tailored mobile experience for the campaign.

A statement announcing the tie up explained: “Text (search and social), video (YouTube and other platforms) and image (social such as Facebook) assets are all audited and distributed as part of a brand’s paid, owned and earned media strategy, but audio assets have until now gone un-categorised and un-leveraged.”

The statement added that the deal would provide Mindshare clients with: insights into the RoI on any sound-based assets for the first time (in part using the Shazam Engagement Rate launched and available in the US in June 2013); a bespoke audio audit and strategy that will apply Shazam’s audio recognition service across TV, radio, branded video and in-store media; attractive pricing for Shazam’s development and license costs; access to consumer engagement data, reporting and insights; first access to Shazam betas for new capabilities and enhancements; co-produced workshops; and an impact study into the value of audio branding on brand metrics, RoI and other benefits.

Nick Emery, CEO, Mindshare Worldwide, said, “Brands have spent the last twelve months optimising their owned assets for search – text, images, video, etc. – they now need to look at the broader brand territory around sound given the rise of technologies like Shazam. TV and online video is an audio visual experience, it’s time that brands were given the power to leverage the audio, not just the picture.”

Rich Riley, CEO, Shazam, added, “This program will help brands worldwide to understand more about when and where people want to engage for more information about their products and services, whether it’s on television, in the cinema, on the radio, in retail locations, online or anywhere else.  With Mindshare mapping and the Shazam Engagement Rate, the partnership offers brands an unprecedented way of looking at their ad spend to see which ads at are the most effective and see the most engagement.  Additionally, working with Mindshare will help extend these insights so that companies can see the full range of where and how they are reaching their core audience.”