What's your "Audio Agenda"?

What's your "Audio Agenda"?

I just returned from a family vacation to Walt Disney World and, oh my, what I've learned. (Few things strike fear into the hearts of Maize Quest employees like Hugh's return from a big resort with a deluge of ideas.)

Obviously Disney has a budget that exceeds yours and mine by a few zeros, but the concepts upon which the Magic Kingdom was built are fundamental. The trip will probably take a few emails to fully debrief with you, but one of the most magical (and pervasive) concepts was the purposeful control of audio.

Disney is the king of audio. I'll share with you first a list of some of the amazing feats of audio control I witnessed, then we'll return to the real world and I'll discuss how you can take the basic principals and create an "Audio Agenda" for your farm this season.

Hugh's list of Amazing Disney Audio:

1. Syncronized audio. As the parade comes down "Main Street, USA" the parade float music matches the music in the shops, which matches the music coming from street level.
2. Hidden Speakers. In Epcot, music comes from walls, stones, plants, benches, light poles, and vending carts. They never display the speakers, yet you are never without music.
3. Zoned music by "worlds". As you exit the tribal beats of Adventure World and cross the bridge to the majestic music of the Castle Plaza, there is a space no wider than 15 feet in which you can simultaneously hear the two different zones' music. It is  extraordinary.
4. Mobile music continues the experience. Exit the parks, hop on the  bus and the music continues. Each bus has music themed to the destination to which it's traveling, and has a message-triggering device to play the correct informational announcement as the bus nears it's destination. (Example: On the way to Port Orleans French Quarter, you hear New Orleans jazz and a Port Orleans-specific  messsage.)
5. High-fidelity. The sound quality you hear walking through the Disney parks is better than the sound in my living room.

How you can do quality audio engineering on your budget:

1. Have an audio plan. Radio advertising guru Roy Williams says, "Audio is the media you can't turn off." You can look away from the TV. You can miss a page of newspaper ads. However, especially when people are at your business, they can't turn off their ears. You have them trapped in your audio environment. Make sure you have a plan for what they will hear, because they are going to hear something.
2. Hidden, quality speakers. You can find speakers locally to suit these two qualifications. The difference in price is not much. (F.Y.I. Our audio boxes put out digital audio for quality transmission.)
3. Zoned music. As farmers, we may not think we have "worlds" to deliniate with different audio, but your farm may divide easier than you think. The farm market, the kiddie play area, the corn maze, the peddle kart track are all potential zones. Our Wireless PA Systems permit zoned broadcasts or location specific music.
4. Mobile music continues the experience. Mobile music at high quality on a farmer's budget is here. Our Hayride Audio boxes enable you to add mobile music and tour information to any wagon ride.

Disney is closer than you think: The tools to make some of Disney's amazing audio adventures come true exist today. The first thing to do is evaluate your site and plan your audio program for the year. If you need help, give us a call. Make some time this week to plan your Audio Agenda.