A commercial jingle is a deceptively simple marketing form. It actually can have many diverse elements. A bed in a commercial jingle is a section of instrumental music that has no vocals. Canned music is stock music that is in the public domain. A donut refers to the section in some jingles during which an announcer speaks. The front is the opener. An industrial video is a promotional or sales video that is often set to a musical score. A live read is when a radio deejay reads part of the commercial's narration during the jingle. A logo is the company's motto or slogan. A needle drop is the integration of canned music. A sing-out is when a commercial jingle concludes with singing. A spec is a sample of a commercial jingle that is presented to a potential client or agency. A tag is the ending segment of a commercial jingle. The talent is the actor who does the voice-over.
The function of a commercial jingle is to reinforce a product or service in the mind of the listener. People retain messages that are set to music far more effectively than a message alone. While consumers may block out commercials, they do not as automatically block out music, so a catchy tune paired with a phrase has a chance of being committed to memory. This phenomenon is known as "the commercial jingle effect" and reflects how jingles have the power to break through mental barriers. Jingles, unlike other commercials, can stay in people's minds for years.
An effective jingle is considered a key segment of branding. An upbeat catchy jingle can create a positive image for a business, inspiring consumers to feel positively about a product or a service. In a media-saturated world, commercial jingles are a way to make a lasting impression and to stand out from the competition. They can be very effective in a radio format, because their music blends with the programming.
Commercial radio took off in the 1920s and, with it, commercial jingles were born. The early commercial jingles were typically scores paired with flowery language to describe the benefits of a product. One of the most notable early commercial jingles was the 1926 commercial for Wheaties cereal. A quartet sang a cappella, praising the power of the breakfast of champions. Even earlier, before commercial radio was on the air, Gus Edwards and Vincent Bryan sang "In My Merry Oldsmobile" in homage to the car. The 1930s saw commercial jingles used to usher in the beginning of a television show, such as the "Oh, my, it's Eskimo Pie" exclamation that introduced each episode of "The Adventures of the Jenkins Family."
"Billboard Magazine" reporter Josh Rabinowitz wrote about the power of this unique marketing form in "Commercial Jingles Strike a Chord with Consumers." In the article, he cites research by cognitive music professor David Huron who asserts, "...music tends to linger in the listener's mind." Even though human beings are very visually oriented, "photographs and visual images do not infect human consciousness to the same extent that melodies do." Hence the effectiveness of campaigns such as Alka Seltzer's "Plop Plop, Fizz, Fizz," Meow Mix's endless "Meow, meow, meow, meow," Rice-a-Roni's cheerful "The San Francisco Treat," and Honeycomb's "Big, big taste and a big, big bite" song.