The Relationship Between Bands and the Commercials They Soundtrack
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Bands and Brands: The Relationship Between Bands and the Commercials They Soundtrack A thesis submitted to the College of Communication and Information of Kent State University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts by Ellen Kirtner August, 2013 Thesis written by Ellen Kirtner B.S., Kent State University, 2012 M.A., Kent State University, 2013 Approved by ________________________________________ Bob Batchelor, Ph.D., Advisor ________________________________________ Thor Wasbotten, M.S., Director, School of Journalism and Mass Communication ________________________________________ Stanley T. Wearden, Ph.D., Dean, College of Communication and Information TABLE OF CONTENTS TABLE OF CONTENTS............................................................................................................... iii LIST OF FIGURES ....................................................................................................................... iv ACKNOWLEDGMENTS ...............................................................................................................v CHAPTER I. INTRODUCTION................................................................................................................1 II. LITERATURE REVIEW....................................................................................................3 The Relationship Between Music and Television Advertising ...........................................3 Licensing Meeting the Goal of the Advertiser.....................................................................7 Licensing Meeting the Goals of the Artist.........................................................................11 Key Successes in Aligning Goals ......................................................................................18 Implications for the Fan.....................................................................................................20 Cautions .............................................................................................................................22 Elaboration Likelihood Model...........................................................................................23 III. RESEARCH QUESTIONS .............................................................................................25 IV. METHODOLOGY ..........................................................................................................26 Sample ...............................................................................................................................26 Case Study .........................................................................................................................27 Textual Analysis ................................................................................................................29 Expert Interviews...............................................................................................................31 V. CASE STUDY..................................................................................................................32 The Existing Brand ............................................................................................................32 Goals and Objectives .........................................................................................................37 The Song............................................................................................................................38 The Commercial .......................................................................................................................... 39 The Context........................................................................................................................49 The Campaign....................................................................................................................53 VI. Findings ...........................................................................................................................57 Balancing Without Matching.............................................................................................57 Beneficial Non-Priority......................................................................................................58 Limits for an Indie-Label Artist.........................................................................................60 VII. Discussion ......................................................................................................................63 REFERENCES ..............................................................................................................................66 ! iii! List of Figures Figure Page 1. Now, Now Press Photos…………………………………………………………….34 2. Now, Now Windows 8 Commercial :08……………….…………..………………..42 3. Now, Now Windows 8 Commercial :12…………….…………..…………………..43 4. Now, Now Windows 8 Commercial :14……………….………..…………………..44 5. Now, Now Windows 8 Commercial :15……………..…….………………………..45 6. Now, Now Windows 8 Commercial :18………………..……………….…………..46 7. Now, Now Windows 8 Commercial :20………………..….………………………..47 8. Now, Now Windows 8 Commercial :23……………….………………………..…..48 9. Best Coast Windows 8 Commercial :12……………...………………….……….…55 10. Lenka Windows 8 Commercial :14……………….…..….…………………………56 ! iv! Acknowledgments Many thanks to Dr. Batchelor, Professor Whaley, and Professor Shelton for their expertise and advice throughout the process of completing this project. I would also like to thank Amber Wade and Jared Cogar for always being there for music industry chats and Bridget Elchert and Kelsey Moulton for their constant encouragement at home. Thanks to my parents for always supporting me in all of my academic endeavors. ! ! v! ! 1! I. Introduction A 2012 South by Southwest panel of music supervisors and advertising executives called television commercials “the new radio.” These professionals were not the first to assert the title: The music industry has been praising licensing as a promotions channel since the early 2000s. With pre-recorded music taking the lead in building impactful brand experiences in television commercials, synchronization licenses for television commercials are being lauded as the cure to the high barriers to entry in today’s corporate radio environment. The music industry’s problem, according to Donaton (2005), is not in its product: People are still consuming music through downloads, legal or otherwise. The issue, for Donaton, is promotion. Artists cannot take the traditional path from commercial radio to explosive popularity. Corporate radio stations stick to the well-researched playlists they are prescribed. MTV, much more of a lifestyle network than music outlet, no longer acts as a channel for artists. Music videos are only played on its second-tier channels. Donaton (2005) explains that the music industry never had the appropriate marketing budgets for artists to begin with—they depended on radio to promote the songs for free. Without radio, they struggle to make the same impact. Licensing works for the music industry because it is a symbiotic relationship: Marketers want quality music to develop the brand identity reflected in commercials, and musicians want the licensing fees and promotion. Licensing has become commonplace even for well-established artists, including those who are not particularly “commercial” bands. In 2007, Wilco licensed six songs from “Sky Blue Sky,” and They Might Be Giants inked a $1 million deal to write songs for Dunkin Donuts. Of ! 2! Montreal has licensed its tunes to T-Mobile, Subway, Outback Steakhouse and Nasdaq (Goodman and Magnuson, 2008). Beyond established acts, licensing is an established method to taking unknown songs to new audiences (DuBois 2012). From Moby’s early-2000s success licensing his entire album and jumping from electronic niche to mainstream, to fun.’s big break in a 2012 Chevrolet Super Bowl ad (Zemler, 2012), certain cases suggest that commercials do serve as an increasingly important communication channel to new audiences. “The benefit to artists today is often explained as a salve against the hard times being experienced by artists, both in terms of commercial radio lock-outs and the perceived threat of the twin evils of dubious consequence, piracy and downloading” (Klein, 2009, pg. 89). With the positive views of licensing radiating from the trade press, artists are being told to follow this new channel to broader audiences and skyrocketing record sales. The current discussion, however, does not fully explore the necessary strategy before or after the synchronization. Case studies on successful licensing examples tend to stop with the sales reports following the synchronization: We have not fully explained the relationship between the brand of the band and the brand in the advertisement, nor particular strategies that may maximize the possible benefits from synchronization. As some scholars have begun to caution artists against the blind faith in music licensing as an industry panacea, the process deserves a closer look. In my project, I plan to take a post-modern approach to analyzing the licensing tactics that are becoming commonplace in up-and-coming acts’ plans for mainstream success. ! 3! II. Literature Review The Relationship Between Music and Television Advertising Music is a commodity (Klein, 2005), and as such, it has a complex relationship with brands and entities outside of its industry. Klein is one of the prominent voices in music synchronization from the perspective