When and How to Schedule your next release…

So you’ve just finished a track, an EP or maybe even a whole album. You’re excited and eager to get it into the hands, or more likely the ears of many. But then reality sets in and you think, when is this right time to do this, and even more daunting , HOW do I do this?

Many artists have all of the creativity and talent in the world behind them in the production and songwriting world, but distribution, marketing, and business strategy may not be their strong suit. That’s when you turn to the internet and try to piece together a plan on your own, but not to worry here’s a few tips that may help you out.

Unfortunately, when it comes to the “when” question, especially in regards to Spotify, there isn’t really a concrete calendar date that works for everything. Luckily, CD Baby came up with a tool to help artists customize a release plan. They developed a software to help generate hypothetical release plans for artists based on an estimated release date you want to shoot for. Whether you use CD Baby for distribution or not, this software is free to use.

What To Do Before Your Release

Prepare To Tell The Story of Your Release

Getting ready to tell the story includes things like gathering and creating assets. This can include things like promo material: artist bios, press photos etc. You should also prepare a pitch or press release dependent on your personal strategy. Many also schedule a release part or celebration, cheers to you!

Prepare to Distribute Your Music

Getting your music release ready takes a few more steps than just downloading that completed file. Ensure your music is mixed and mastered professionally, check out our article on :“Mixing and Mastering: Why Both Are Important!” Some prefer to mix and master their own tracks, others outsource this work to a professional. Diffusion Masters helps you unlock your best sound through their services, if you’re looking for professional quality work check them out. Prep also includes finalizing artwork, entering metadata, and delivering music to DSPs.

Prepare to Promote Your Music

Promotion is key when releasing music. This is how to expand your reach, build a loyal fanbase, and get your music heard by everyone. If you don’t think you need a music marketing agency, you should take a look at another article, 4 Reasons You Need a Music Marketing Agency. Be sure you also have your artist profiles claimed, set up a Spotify pre-save, pitch your song to Spotify Editorial Playlists, and create a smart link. At PlaylistStreams, we can help you with a lot of this. No matter what size artist you are, or what genre, through our established network of curators we work to get your music on Spotify playlists and build organic streams. We cal also help you pitch your song to Spotify Editorial Playlists. Learn more on our website about how it works.

Although that’s not everything you need to consider before a release, we are happy to share these highlights to help you set your music up for success.

Check out CD Baby’s free release plan generator here.

Music Marketing Strategies From Famous Artists

The music business is one of the most difficult industries to break into – less than 1% of all recording artists will ever find a mainstream audience; the other 99% will fight to claim a portion of the remaining market share. If you want to succeed, you need to find a way to stand out from the competition and build a loyal fan base that will support your work.

Music promotion companies like Playlist Streams can help you reach your target audience, earn more royalties, and get discovered by labels, but if you want to build a successful career, you need to consider all of the ways that you can promote yourself as an indie artist.

But don’t take our word for it! Here are three music marketing strategies from famous recording artists:

Frank Zappa | Know The Music Industry

“The whole music business in the United States is based on numbers, based on unit sales and not on quality. It’s not based on beauty, it’s based on hype…it’s based on giving presents of large packages of dollars to play records on the air.”

If you want to succeed in the music industry, you have to understand that your songs are a product, not a project. In other words, the only way that you will be able to build a successful career is if you know how to sell your singles, EPs, and albums to your target audience. Recording artists that focus exclusively on their music will not stay in business for very long.

Erykah Badu | Know How To Get Fans

“The music business is motivated by money. Music is motivated by energy and feelings.”

At the same time, you need to consider the needs of your audience. People listen to music for a variety of reasons – to connect with others, to gain self-awareness, to get exposed to new ideas, to regain hope. That’s what makes the music business so special: it relies on energy and emotion to build lasting careers. So don’t give up on the artistic side of music production; you’ll need it to develop music marketing strategies that will appeal to your listeners and future fans.

Beyoncé | Know How To Grow As An Artist

“If everything was perfect, you would never learn and you would never grow.”

It doesn’t matter whether you’re a new artist or a veteran of the music industry: you are going to make mistakes. The people who succeed know how to learn from those experiences and grow as professionals in a competitive environment. Famous artists like Beyoncé, Justin Bieber, and Demi Lovato have made choices that almost ended their careers – and used those lessons to refine their music marketing strategies and turn failure into a series of successes.

Make More Money On Spotify

It doesn’t matter whether you’re a new artist or a label executive:

 Playlist Streams can help you get more Spotify streams with organic marketing.

Apply now to take advantage of our music marketing strategies!

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Singles Vs. Albums: The Best Release Strategy For New Artists

One of the biggest challenges that new artists face is choosing the right music release strategy. Is it better to start off with a series of singles? An EP? Or to promote all of your music at once with a full-blown album?

Unfortunately, there is no one-size-fits-all music release strategy for indie artists; when choosing between singles vs. albums, every musician will have to decide which tactics will work best for their own brands. But in an era where Americans stream more than 1 trillion songs each year, there is a lot of market data to support the conclusion that singles are the best choice for emerging artists in 2020.

Singles vs. Albums: The Best Release Strategy For New Artists

For decades, full-length albums have been the hallmark of professional recording artists. Independent musicians and up-and-coming bands would release an album and profit off of record sales, live events, and promotional merchandise for years; then, once the excitement had died down, they would work on their next project.

But the rules have changed in 2020: streaming makes up approximately 80% of the music industry’s overall revenue, according to the Recording Industry Association of America. That makes Spotify, the world’s largest music streaming platform, a gold mine for artists who know how to use it.

If you are a new artist, you need to get your music on Spotify playlists in order to get more streams, increase your royalty payments, and get discovered by music labels. Unfortunately, Spotify’s playlist submission tool will only let you submit one track from each release – a huge roadblock for indie artists who want to promote an entire album.

If you are working with a great music marketing agency like Playlist Streams, your marketing partners will help you choose the best tracks for their audience. But in the meantime, you still need to decide how much music to write, produce, and record at one time.

If you have to make a choice between singles vs. albums, create a marketing plan that launches your career with a series of singles. That way, you can capitalize on Spotify’s playlist marketing system and release a full-length album with all of your tracks later on.

When To Choose Singles vs. Albums

	Singles	Albums
Is this the first time that you will release music on Spotify?	X
Are you a new artist who wants to create an effective music release strategy?	X
Have you already released songs/albums on Spotify?	X	X
Are you ready to grow your audience by getting more music on Spotify playlists?	X	X

Get Your Music On Spotify Playlists

It doesn’t matter whether you’re a new artist or a label executive:

 Playlist Streams can help you get more Spotify streams with organic marketing.

Apply now to start making money from Spotify playlists!

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