Sounds of Web Advertising

Abstract

Sound seems to be a neglected issue in the study of web ads. Web advertising is predominantly regarded as visual phenomena–commercial messages, as for instance banner ads that we watch, read, and eventually click on–but only rarely as something that we listen to. The present chapter presents an overview of the auditory dimensions in web advertising: Which kinds of sounds do we hear in web ads? What are the conditions and functions of sound in web ads? Moreover, the chapter proposes a theoretical framework in order to analyse the communicative functions of sound in web advertising. The main argument is that an understanding of the auditory dimensions in web advertising must include a reflection on the hypertextual settings of the web ad as well as a perspective on how users engage with web content.

Non-musical sound branding – a conceptualization and research overview

“…The contributions include examinations of, for instance, domestic appliances and exterior vehicle sounds (Fiore and Kelly, 2007;Jessen and Graakjaer, 2009;Miller and Marks, 1992), chocolate-cracking and paper-rustling sounds (Esch and Roth, 2005;Esch et al, 2006), bottleopening sounds (Fiore and Kelly, 2007;Rodero et al, 2015) and frictional sounds of handling cleaning and personal-care materials (Bolshakova, 2015;Knöferle et al, 2016). The issue of mediated versus unmediated sounds is discussed further in the last section of the paper.…”