Marketers have never had more ways to reach consumers, yet cutting through has never been more difficult. Against a backdrop of fragmented media consumption, shrinking attention spans and increasing competition for consumers' time, one medium continues to deliver exceptional commercial results: audio.
That was the central message of Listening with Fresh Ears, a thought-provoking presentation by Ralph van Dijk, founder of Eardrum, delivered to Irish marketers at a Radiocentre Ireland and Marketing Institute of Ireland event.
Drawing on the latest international research and decades of experience in audio advertising and sonic branding, van Dijk challenged marketers to rethink how they approach audio—not as a tactical addition to a campaign, but as a strategic asset that strengthens brand performance.
Ciaran Cunningham opened the presentation with the findings only just released from a landmark Effie × System1 global study, which analysed more than 1,200 campaigns across 17 years. The research found that campaigns incorporating audio significantly outperform those without audio, delivering 75% higher profit, 81% greater trust, 81% higher price insensitivity, and 19% stronger customer acquisition. The evidence reinforces audio's role as a catalyst that enhances the effectiveness of the wider media mix.
Ralph's central theme throughout the presentation was the enduring power of sound to create emotion, build memory and establish distinctive brand identities. While visual advertising often competes for fleeting attention, audio has a unique ability to create lasting mental associations, making brands easier to recognise and remember. The presentation drew on the work of leading marketing thinkers including Mark Ritson, Les Binet, Peter Field, Byron Sharp and Karen Nelson-Field, all of whom have highlighted the importance of broad reach, emotional creativity and consistency in building successful brands.
Ralph structured the session around what he described as the Four Cs of an effective audio strategy: Codes, Consistency, Consolidation and Creative.
The first, Codes, focused on sonic branding. Every brand has a sound—whether intentionally designed or not—and organisations that develop distinctive sonic assets can create stronger recognition, improve attribution and deliver a more consistent experience across every customer touchpoint. As audio becomes increasingly important across radio, podcasts, streaming, digital platforms and even AI-generated content, having a clear sonic identity is becoming a valuable competitive advantage.
The presentation also emphasised the importance of Consistency. Successful brands resist the temptation to continually reinvent their advertising, instead allowing distinctive creative platforms and sonic assets to build familiarity over time. Research shows that consistent creativity compounds effectiveness, increases profitability and reduces the media investment required to achieve long-term growth.
With podcast audiences continuing to grow, Consolidation explored how brands can maximise impact by combining broadcast radio with podcasts. Highly engaged listeners, authentic host-read advertising and emotionally engaging creative provide brands with powerful opportunities to connect with audiences. Advances in attribution technology also mean advertisers can now measure outcomes ranging from website visits and purchases to brand uplift and footfall, dispelling outdated perceptions that audio is difficult to measure.
Finally, Creative reinforced that great audio advertising succeeds by engaging the imagination. Rather than simply describing products, effective campaigns invite listeners to become participants in the story through emotion, memorable characters, compelling sound design and distinctive branding. Great audio, van Dijk argued, doesn't simply interrupt people—it earns their attention.
The session provided marketers with a compelling reminder that, in an increasingly visual and fragmented media landscape, audio remains one of the most powerful tools available for building brands. When combined with distinctive sonic branding, creative consistency and strong strategic planning, audio has the ability not only to deliver results in its own right, but to make every other part of a campaign work harder.
