Brands tune into music streaming networks

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“Music streaming services see millions of music lovers signing up daily. From Apple Music to Spotify, the online music sphere has become a platform for brands wanting to connect with individuals that they would otherwise have not been targeting,” says Jacki McEwen, co-owner and MD at Eclipse Public Relations.

For the past couple of years, businesses have been working on innovative projects in the hopes of building their brand and strengthening their relationship with consumers. This involves the creation of playlists that suit a brand’s style and image.

Four benefits of music streaming

A music streaming strategy for brands goes hand in hand with social media tactics. There are four main benefits of music streaming that senior VP of Pandora’s Strategic Solutions, Heidi Browning, identified in an article written for The Drum.

1. Engagement: Music streaming services enable consumers to create a personalised experience. In doing so, they have created an audience that is constantly engaging with these platforms through creating content unique to their interests. Vevo reports that millennials are spending on average 25 hours a week streaming music. If brands want to reach Generation Z, they need to be in tune with the streaming market.

2. Attention: We live in what is known as the ‘earbud generation’. What does this mean for marketers? While most adverts are focused on what we can see, what people hear commands more attention, as the brain can only focus on one auditory process at a time.

3. Context: Streaming music has made it easier for brands to reach their audiences without interrupting them. Listening to music has become a daily activity in the lives of many people and brands can only benefit from using these platforms to reach their target markets. Consumers use music for a variety of different reasons, often based on their moods. If brands can tap into a genre or theme of music, they can reach the right the people simply by aligning with the right platform or playlist.

4. Resonance: Nielsen Catalina Solutions reported that audio is the most effective channel in delivering a return on investment (ROI). These platforms give brands the opportunity to interact with their customers in an environment that Browning calls “emotionally and contextually relevant,” which sends a message that resonates with their consumers.

Creating databases

Music streaming platforms are inter-aligning themselves with the same practices that they offer businesses. Streaming platforms are turning to lucrative partnerships with artists to increase their subscriptions. They are using their own spaces within these platforms to draw in a very eager consumer. With almost 30 million subscribers signing up to streaming platforms, music streaming has changed the way we listen to and experience music.

Music streaming has allowed for the creation of a database that brands can pull from. With each playlist being made to the fancy of the consumer, it has become easy for brands to find their target market on these streaming platforms. Imagine an entire database of people that fit your brand that you can access purely by aligning with the right platform. By creating a playlist, you can get your brand’s name into the ears of a generation that is constantly listening to music.

“The digital era of music is constantly growing and expanding. It is impossible to think of what could be next, but in 10 years’ time, we could be listening to music in unexpected new ways. In order for brands to stay relevant, they need to embrace what these platforms have to offer. They are the now of media and the now of marketing,” concludes McEwen.