Brands + Music: Our Greatest Hits In 2016

2016 already feels like three years ago, doesn’t it? But we’d be remiss if we didn’t take one final look back on how the year brought so many great brands and artists together…

In 2016, the MAX Platform powered 40 distinct brand-artist partnerships that were integrated across radio, streaming, social media, video, and live experiences. And we didn’t do this just by just taking an educated guess at which artists “made sense” for a brand.

Instead, we empowered brands, agencies, and artists to leverage real, tangible data around consumer tastes in music and consumption habits, which in turn led to real, tangible results for everyone involved. 

Some of our favorite highlights of the year include:

• Partnering a variety of artists with the Música Ford program (and Ford Music)
• Collaborating with Dr Pepper, NEEDTOBREATHE, and Helen Ochoa
• Expanding the pre-existing sponsorship of a COPA America match with a post-game concert
• …and a whole lot more

But what exactly does all of this mean, right? Well, for starters, many of the brands that supported music artists saw increases in brand affinity and documented sales lifts. And the artists who collaborated with brands saw successes across the board, too.

Artist Successes

• At the completion of a campaign with Ford, Baltimore / Washington DC-based hip-hop artist, Substantial, was asked to open for Lupe Fiasco, an honor he attributes to having his song “The Sub Way,” promoted across terrestrial radio, streaming, and social media.
• Over the summer, NEEDTOBREATHE debuted on Billboard with the #1 album in the country, which they released 30 days into their partnership with Dr Pepper
• In late August, three of Billboard’s top five Latin albums, were created by artists who had partnered with brands through MAX to market their music. One of these artists, La Maquinaria Norteña, earned a 2017 Grammy nomination for their album.
• …and (yes), a whole lot more

By the Numbers

VIDEO

In 2016, MAX created 114 custom YouTube videos (brand videos, music videos, activation videos, etc.). In totality, these garnered approximately 2.8 million targeted views, and nearly 5 million total minutes watched.

In other words, music fans spent, on average, 1:45 of their time watching videos of their favorite artists, all because brands supported their favorite artists’ music.

SOCIAL MEDIA

From the 118.5 million targeted social impressions on MAX’s 2016 brand-artist partnerships, there were more than 15.5 million social engagements (likes/comments/shares on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, etc.), which translates to a 13% engagement rate.

RADIO & STREAMING

MAX also delivered more than 100 million audio impressions across top streaming services and FM radio stations. Our unique approach to audio (that brings the music to the forefront, rather than the background), delivered 36% higher streaming engagement than typical spots.

LIVE EXPERIENCES

With the dozens of live shows put on throughout the year as part of our programs, there were tens of thousands of fans who got to experience first-hand the magic of authentic brand-artist partnerships via meet-and-greets, VIP experiences, and more.

We had the pleasure of working with so many different artists, brands, agencies, and publisher partners last year. It was a fantastic year, and we’re looking forward to what 2017 has in store. We're already excited for our panel at SXSW.

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