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Victoria Whitlow: “Sound Is More Important Than Ever Right Now”

10/08/2022
Music & Sound
London, UK
232
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Tapping into twenty years of production experience, the deputy head of TV at Accenture Song advocates the evocative power of music

From triggering recall to enhancing storytelling, music and sound play an important role in media and marketing, becoming an essential asset to brands. Both in the advertising and the branding worlds, music is the common denominator if you want to convey emotions.
 
To explore the future and power of music in advertising, MassiveMusic London is spearheading LBB series, ‘Sonic Iconic’, inviting boundary-pushing British creatives to explore the theme.
 
In this edition, deputy head of TV at Accenture Song, Victoria Whitlow, talks about how music facilitates the emotional journey of a story and why more education on the importance of high quality audio playback equipment is needed. 
 
 

LBB> Outside of work, what music do you listen to, where do you listen to it and why?

 
Victoria> I listen to a bit of everything; Pop, RnB, Dance, Rock, Reggaeton – I’m pretty open when it comes to music. I tend to listen to Spotify, but I’m not as organised as I used to be with my playlists, and tend to listen to discover weekly and find new artists or songs that way. I also listen to radio stations too; Radio 1, Radio 2, Radio 1xtra… Sound is more important than ever right now, with so many new touchpoints available for a brand to live in. 
 
 

LBB> Do you think brands are being creative enough with sound?

 
Victoria> It’s important to look at ways to make sure people listen to music/sound with good speakers or headphones. Perhaps there’s work to be done in that space with brands educating young people and encouraging them to try to listen to songs with good quality devices. One of the biggest downfalls of music these days is the fact it is mostly listened to on computers and phones.
 
 

LBB> Can you tell us about a recent project in which music was instrumental to the campaign’s success?

 
Victoria> I recently produced the new Confused.com campaign, and we created bespoke music for each TVC, which elevated the comedic timing and emotional journey of each story.


LBB> What is your approach to setting a music brief for a campaign?

 
Victoria> I usually speak with the director and the creative teams to agree on a brief for the music. Sometimes it’s really obvious what style and approach is needed - there might be a specific song written into the script - other times we need to play with a couple of different genres and approaches to find the right music. 
 
 

LBB> Music is scientifically proven to evoke emotion. Do you often think about or measure the effectiveness of music? If so, how?

 
Victoria> It is something I always consider. Having worked in music previously, I have seen firsthand how the power of music can transform your emotional experience. I don’t feel it is always considered as much as it should be by clients though.


LBB> Social platforms like TikTok are inspiring musical trends all over the world. In advertising, the need to quickly engage consumers has never been more important. What are your tips for using music to quickly grab people’s attention?  


Victoria> It’s the power of the melody for me, something that can communicate emotion and drama quickly and effectively. Attention spans aren’t what they used to be, so you need to grab people from the first couple of seconds.
 

LBB> What would you like to happen with music for advertising in the next couple of years?


Victoria> I would like for music to be given more consideration, from a budget and timing point of view. I think it seems to be always the last thing thought about and the first part of the budget to get squeezed. It would be great to see more brand integration with artists and music as well. But I understand that a lot of artists are wary about endorsing brands, so it needs to be done in a thoughtful, genuine and respectful way.

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