While visual identities continue to dominate the communications industry, audio remains a relatively underused channel of differentiation. This is precisely the topic that this year’s Dani komunikacija will highlight through the arrival of Steve Keller, a sonic branding expert who will speak in Rovinj from May 7 to 10 about the market potential of sound and its role in brand perception.
Keller comes from New York, where he works as Sonic Strategy Director at Studio Resonate, an audio-first consultancy within SiriusXM Media. His work includes developing sonic identities and strategies for platforms such as Pandora, SiriusXM, SoundCloud and SiriusXM Podcast Network, focusing on how audiences experience brands through voice, music and other audio elements.
At the festival he will deliver the talk “Sound Thinking – The Power of Audio. Amplified.”, in which he will use examples and psychological insights to discuss the role of sound in building brand recognition and emotional connection with audiences. The focus is on the idea that audio can be designed as deliberately as visual identity, rather than serving only as a supporting campaign element.
With an academic background in psychology and experience in music and advertising, Keller approaches audio as a strategic tool rather than an aesthetic add-on. His work addresses how sound influences perceptions of value, trust and emotional response among audiences, as well as topics the industry less frequently explores, from AI-generated voices to bias in aesthetic evaluations of sound.
Keller will join a lineup of international speakers on the main stage including Jürgen Schmidhuber, Julie Supan, Mark Pollard, Chris Do and Neil Patel, confirming the festival’s ambition to bring to Rovinj the topics and people shaping the contemporary communications industry.
This year’s edition of Dani komunikacija once again combines global perspectives with practical knowledge, with an emphasis on trends increasingly influencing marketing and creative industries. More information about the programme is available on the festival’s official website.
