MICHELIN Sonic Branding

Listen to article

Michelin, though an innovative company, was seen as old-fashioned because it had been around since the 1800s

Michelin, though an innovative company, was seen as old-fashioned because it had been around since the 1800s. The brand wanted to strengthen communication initiatives by creating a unique sonic identity to reposition the brand and change consumer perception from old-fashioned to leading in innovation.

Values to Communicate: Leadership, Modernity, Mobility, Innovation, Driving pleasure

After exploring various tempos, melodies, rhythms, instrumentation and musical styles, we could identity specific musical elements that would convey the key brand values. The sonic identity has a solid, driving bass rhythm that underlines the concepts of performance and leadership., but the synthetic textures are the main component to its success. Each texture was chosen to convey the right balance of innovation and mobility – textures that were not too metallic nor acoustic.

Played on all platforms and all countries, this sonic identity is present in all Michelin advertising campaigns throughout the world. Introduction of the music has been shown through biometric testing to return audience attention to the screen and slow the decrease of interest.

Today, Sixieme Son is the music coordinator and supervisor internationally. A great addition to further strengthen the brand to have a coherent sonic universe.