Five Businesses. Five Jingles. One Crazy Week in Studio

This has been the busiest week in the short history of my production company, SonicAttention.

 In just a few days I produced five completely different commercial jingles for five different businesses. I’d love to tell you who they are, but that’s part of the agreement. Some of these spots haven’t even aired yet. But I can tell you a little bit about what happened behind the curtain.

 And if you’re a business owner, advertiser, or radio seller, the lesson might surprise you.

 Because every single one of those conversations started the same way.

 “Do jingles still work?”

 After more than thirty years in radio—programming stations, writing commercials, producing creative for advertisers, and watching what actually makes listeners respond—I can tell you the answer without hesitation.

 Yes. 

Not only do they still work… they may be more powerful now than ever. 

The reason is simple. Most commercials today sound exactly the same. A voice reads copy over a music bed explaining why a business is great and hoping the listener remembers something about it later.

 But our brains don’t really remember talking. We remember music.

 That’s why people can still sing advertising jingles they heard decades ago. A melody sticks in a way a spoken commercial almost never does. When the hook is simple and the message is clear, it embeds itself in someone’s memory. 

That’s the magic of it. 

This week alone I worked with five businesses in completely different industries. One was a small-town coffee shop that wanted something upbeat and welcoming for the morning crowd. Another needed to sound strong and trustworthy in a very competitive market. One wanted something modern and energetic that sounded like it belonged in a major-market campaign even though they’re a local company. Another needed something positive and hopeful that connected emotionally with customers. And one simply needed a hook people could remember.

 Different industries. Different challenges. Different goals.

 But the formula that works is almost always the same: a memorable hook, a simple melody, and a message people can repeat.

 If someone hears it once and finds themselves humming it later without even realizing it, you’ve already won half the battle.

 One of the things that made this week especially interesting wasn’t just the number of jingles. It was the response they generated. Over the past month several of the jingles I’ve produced have already helped bring new client dollars into the stations I work with. In a few cases they attracted businesses that had never advertised on radio before. In others they came from established advertisers who saw what sonic branding could do and wanted to step up their creative.

 When a business hears their name turned into something people can actually sing, the whole conversation changes.

 Instead of just buying commercials, they start thinking about branding.

 That’s where sonic branding comes in. A good hook turns a business name into something memorable.

 Take a phrase like “Take It To The House.” On its own it’s just a line. But pair it with the right rhythm, melody, and message and suddenly it becomes the part of the commercial people repeat. I’ve seen the same thing happen with other concepts—simple phrases that turn into something memorable once the music and the hook come together. 

That’s the part of the job I love most: finding the phrase, the rhythm, and the melody that makes a business name stick.

 The tools have changed a lot over the years. New AI music tools have made the production side faster and more flexible than ever before. I can develop concepts, melodies, and full commercial jingles in hours instead of weeks.

 But the technology isn’t the magic. The magic is still the creative part. 

AI can help build the sound. But the hook — the part people remember — still has to come from a creative idea. 

That’s where decades in radio make a difference. Writing thousands of commercials, producing promotions, listening to audiences react, and understanding what makes people remember something. 

Because this isn’t something just anyone can do.

 Taking a rough idea, a slogan, or a phrase like “Take It To The House” or “The Evolution Solution” and turning it into something that sounds like a real advertising campaign—that’s a craft. It’s part instinct, part experience, and part creativity.

 And when it works, something interesting happens. Businesses start hearing customers mention the jingle. Sales teams start seeing advertisers come back for more creative. And stations start seeing revenue grow from clients who realize memorable advertising works better than forgettable advertising. 

That’s what makes weeks like this one so much fun. Because every time a new jingle hits the air, there’s a chance someone out there will hear it once… and start humming it the next time they drive by that business

. One of the things I enjoy most about this work is letting businesses hear what that might sound like before they ever commit to anything. I’ll often create a spec jingle first. No risk. No obligation. Sometimes the best way to understand the power of a jingle is simply to hear your own business name turned into something memorable

. If you’ve ever wondered what your business would sound like as a jingle, I’d be glad to show you.

 Joe “Crash” Kelley
SonicAttention.com
478-284-8148