Music Matters: Top tips on choosing artists as brand advocates

Music Matters kicked off in Singapore at the Ritz Carlton on Thursday, with delegates hearing top tips on how to select an artist or band as a brand advocate during a Campaign Asia-Pacific sponsored session on Friday.

Gavin Parry, general manager, digital and business development Australia and executive vice president, digital and business development Asia for Sony Music Entertainment, said brands must seek authenticity and subtlety, as artists do not want to be seen as “selling out”.

“It’s about how you match the artist with the right action," he said. "What are they going to do online? How are they going to work with the brand. It’s about subtlety."

Manesh Madhavan, president and CEO, South Asia for Bacardi India, agreed that authenticity is a key factor, adding that it is important that brands do not interfere with artist content.

“In the good old days you would try to get the brand in the song," he said. "It’s very subtle [now], and I think that’s what consumers appreciate now. It’s true to the art-form, rather than the commerce-form.”

Souleymane Hamed, marketing director for Coca-Cola Indochina, said Coca-Cola has leveraged music for many years, adding that its key focus is on partnership, not sponsorship.

Madhavan also urged brands to be patient when utilising bands and artists as it often takes between three to five years to see real value.

“You need to be consistent and keep investing," he said. "And slowly consumers get it and that’s when they start to say, ‘Ok, this band is cool’ and therefore go and buy it. And that’s ultimately the thing we wish to have.”

Meanwhile, Perry said an artist’s involvement in the social media space is becoming increasingly important for brands when choosing an advocate.

Brands are also looking for more generic association with bands, rather than a specific artist endorsement of association, he said, adding that successful promotions across the region have been music-style endorsements, such as online talent contests.

"When a brand actually associates itself directly with an artist, they are making a very big statement and sometimes I think for them, that feels like a risk,” Perry said.