Mumbai: On the second day of Goafest 2026 there was a keynote presented by Spotify Advertising titled ‘Make Some Noise: Why Your Next Big Idea Should Be SOUND-ON’. Haran Ramachandaran, Head of Creative Lab JAPAC, Spotify, highlighted the growing power of audio-led storytelling and the role of immersive sound experiences in creating stronger emotional connections with audiences in a digital-first environment.
Haran Ramachandaran, Head of Creative Lab JAPAC, Spotify noted that eEven silence has emotional weight, and that he explains is the true power of sound. He warned that in an era of divided attention where every platform competes for the same eyes and thumbs, brands are losing the battle for attention as campaigns disappear into endless scrolling and fragmentation.
“Audio offers a different opportunity because it doesn’t interrupt moments—it becomes part of them, whether during commutes, workouts, cooking, or daily life, especially in visually overloaded markets like India. Unlike visual storytelling, audio is ‘projective’ rather than ‘directive’—it lets listeners co-create meaning in their imagination, making the experience personally owned and more emotionally powerful. Sound also acts as identity, building instant emotional association and memory, while platforms like Spotify create a focused, sound-on environment with over 120 million listeners in India. In a world overspending on visual attention, the real opportunity lies in building stories through sound, emotion, and imagination rather than screens.”
Adding to the conversations around media integration and consumer engagement, Amazon delivered a keynote session titled ‘From Fragmentation to Integration: The Power of Full-Funnel Advertising’. Gulshan Verma, director, Amazon Ads, shared insights into how brands can navigate fragmented consumer journeys by building integrated full-funnel advertising strategies that combine awareness, engagement, and conversion across platforms.
Highlighting how rapidly evolving consumer habits are reshaping the advertising landscape, Verma said, “Consumer behaviour has fundamentally changed, making traditional linear funnels irrelevant as today’s users no longer move in a fixed awareness-to-purchase journey. With quick commerce and instant digital access, decision cycles have compressed, while consumers multitask across streaming, shopping, gaming, and browsing, breaking siloed media thinking. Every format – audio, video, influencers, can now drive full-funnel outcomes, making integrated advertising essential.
The focus is shifting from reach to understanding behaviour at scale, using purchase signals and ecosystem data to build richer audience intelligence. In this context, Amazon Ads connects fragmented touchpoints like Prime Video, Fire TV, Alexa, and shopping to enable full-funnel, outcome-driven marketing focused on repeat behaviour, lifetime value, and incremental impact.”
