Robin Frederick (author, Shortcuts to Hit Songwriting)

What was that song on the Delta Faucet commercial, the cute one that goes “So many things your hands can do”? It sounds like a children’s song, something maybe you might write for kids.  Well, it is a children’s song. It’s from a Sesame Street record featuring The Count, the vampire Muppet who simply adores numbers. Could you write a song like that? You probably could and possibly you already have.

Advertisers use songs to link their product to an emotion. For the most part, they don’t use jingles anymore, those little ditties that sell a product by naming it (Oscar Meyer bologna) or telling you what it does (”Plop, plop, fizz, fizz. Oh, what a relief it is.”) Instead, we hear songs that have the emotional feel the advertiser wants to associate with the product. For example, Suburu used  Sheryl Crow’s “Every Day is a Winding Road” for last year’s big ad. But you don’t have to be a hit songwriter to get a placement. For their current “Lost Sunglasses” commercial, Suburu used an unknown artist and song: Basia Bulat’s “Before I Knew.” Now, everyone is asking: Who’s that singer? What’s that song? And downloading it at iTunes.

=> Keep the lyric focused on a single emotional theme.

To improve your chance of getting a commercial placement, choose an emotional theme that will appeal to advertisers. Look at the products that are being sold on TV and in magazines. Ask yourself: How can I get consumers to feel an emotion in connection with the product? Will it make them feel confident or happy? Will it bring their family closer together or attract love?

Construct your lyric around this emotional theme and stick with it. Don’t wander off.

The Delta Faucet commercial creates a whimsical, upbeat feel bysimply giving us a fresh, imaginative list of things that hands can do–once they’re washed! It’s not the cleaning up that’s important but the appeal of having carefree, childlike fun!

=> Keep your melody simple and catchy

The trick to being simple and catchy is to NOT be simple, catchy, and predictable. Here’s a melody writing exercise that will give you an idea of what I mean: Create a chorus melody that’s simple and easy to remember. Record it into a handheld cassette or digital recorder so you have a record of your first idea. Then, begin playing around with it. Use a metronome or rhythm loop to establish the beat and begin exploring different ways you can change the rhythm of the melody. Try starting the melody later or earlier, adding a pause or taking one out, emphasizing weak beats like the upbeats (the “and” in between Beats 1, 2, 3, 4), stretching out notes or shortening them. If you have my book, use Shortcuts #88 through #93 to give you some more ideas. Read the ‘Study the Hits” entry below for more insights.

=> Production

There are many hot songs in commercials that are very simply produced–just listen to the solo piano/vocal on Amazon’s Kindle ad! Or remember the Volkswagen Cabrio ad that used Nick Drake’s guitar/vocal “Pink Moon.” You can research the field of advertising songs at web sites like AdTunes( http://www.adtunes.com) or SplendAd (http://www.splendad.com). At SplendAd, you can often view the commercial which means you can study it without having to watch hours of television, hoping it will be on!

Once your song is written, you’ll need a broadcast quality recording to pitch, but if you keep the arrangement simple, you could rent a studio and record it in an hour or two. Use a vocalist that fits the style of the song. Is it a fragile female singer or a warm and friendly male? Or a distinctive voice with loads of character?

Music Libraries are interested in this type of song, knowing that it appeals to ad agency Music Directors. You can submit your demo to many music libraries through TAXI (http://www.taxi.com). Some Music Libraries, like Rumblefish and Global Graffiti (http://www.globalgraffiti.com) will accept submissions online.

So many things songwriters can do!

‘Shortcuts to Hit Songwriting” is available at Amazon.com.