Do you have a new song ready to launch and want it to get the attention it deserves? Smart move. Here's a guide on what to do pre-release, once your song goes live, and post-release. We’ll focus on an overall timeline, but the lion’s share will include what to do on release day and after you release a song.
Here’s what we’ll talk about:
One Month Before Release
Choose A Release Date
It’s daunting to figure out what to do before releasing a song, but the easiest way is to start with a release date and work backwards for your strategy.
Does it matter what day you release a song? Yes, and you should choose wisely – consider the day of the week and if any major events are happening that could distract from your launch. The best day to release music is often Friday because it gives you the whole weekend for the buzz to build and climb the Spotify charts. It's also when most people are looking for fresh tunes to enjoy.
Plan Your Promotional Strategy
Start planning. If you’re unsure how to promote a song release, here are some things to get you started:
- Think about how you can engage with your network (newsletters, advertising, your website, and social media are all good places to start).
- Consider what social media content, teasers, and any collaborations you want to pursue.
- Design some eye-catching banners for your Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, and any other active social platforms where banners are used.
- Behind-the-scenes clips from your new song help attract some buzz.
Update Your Spotify Profile
Hopefully, you’ll be familiar with Spotify For Artists’ interface, and know how to release a song on Spotify. If you’re still unsure, check out how to get started here, including step-by-step instructions on uploading music.
Check that everything on your SFA profile is up to date. This includes your bio, artist image, links to your socials, a highlighted song, and upcoming events or tours.
Distribute Your Music
Give Spotify some time to process your new track. It can take a song a few weeks to appear on your profile, so try to do it as much in advance as possible.
Each distributor will work on a different timeline, but as a rule of thumb, you should plan with a 3-4 week lead time to ensure your song gets everywhere at the right time.
Two Weeks Before Release
Schedule Social Media Posts
Start creating traction around your upcoming release by scheduling posts on all your active social media platforms. It helps build familiarity, meaning your fans are more likely to look forward to the release. Get your fans excited!
Prepare Your "Artist Pick" on Spotify
Choose a track that represents you well to feature as your "artist pick" on Spotify and make sure it aligns with your new song’s vibe. Your song should also be pinned to the top of your profile. You can boost visibility by creating a playlist featuring your best tracks, with your new song always at the top. If you're short on songs, get creative and curate a playlist of artists who inspired your latest track and pin it.
Update Your Bios and Links
Update your social media bios and Linktree (or similar tools) with the pre-save link. Make it easy for your followers to find and listen to your music.
During the Release
Organic Announcements
Share your song across all the platforms you use. Think social media, newsletters, and any other channels to spread the word.
When sharing your new song on social media, keep it personal. Share your excitement, tell your story, and let your fans know why this release is special. Don't forget eye-catching visuals; they can make a huge difference.
Trigger the Spotify Algorithm
Let’s face it, if you want to make it big, you have to be on Spotify.
To get the Spotify algorithm's attention, you need engagement. The more love your song gets, the more likely it is to land on those coveted Spotify playlists.
Spotify New Music Fridays
If you want your song featured on the New Music Friday playlist, your best bet is to increase its visibility. You can encourage this by asking fans to follow, save, share, and add your song to their playlists.
Discover Weekly
If your song gets traction early on, Spotify might give it an extra push to Discover Weekly. The algorithm looks at listener behaviours, such as which songs people are saving and how many times your tracks are added to user-generated playlists.
To increase your chances of being featured on Discover Weekly, continue to encourage your fans to interact with your music. The more activity you have on your Spotify artist profile, the more likely your music will catch the algorithm's eye.
Playlist Placements
For editorial playlists, tag your song with the right genre, moods, styles, language, city you identify with, and the story behind your song before submitting it to editors. You’ll want to submit your song as early as possible – as mentioned above, a couple of weeks is ideal. Spotify gets over 20,000 songs a day, so there’s often a backlog.
Securing key playlist placements is also a fantastic way to get your music in front of new ears, but you’ll want to choose the playlist that’s perfect for your vibe.
Spotify playlist pitching can be overwhelming for some, but there are music promotion companies that can help you.
Promotion
Keep the momentum going one to two weeks post-release.
- Ad Campaign from the Get-Go. Run an ad campaign right from the start to boost your song's visibility. Target your audience wisely and be strategic with your ad budget to maximize its impact.
- Reach out to music blogs, editors, or influencers. Liaising with content creators gets your music to engaged audiences.
- Get on Playlists. This can increase your streams and monthly followers, triggering the Spotify algorithm for a bigger reach.
Beyond the Release
Once your song has been out for a bit, it’s crucial to keep the excitement going and ensure your music continues to reach new ears. There are a few things you can focus on after releasing a song that encourage this.
Engage with Your Audience
Interact with your listeners. Respond to comments or DMs, and show appreciation for their support. You can even organize a special giveaway for your new release.
Gather Feedback and Analyze Performance
Take the time to understand how your release performed. At least a week after your release, check your stats on Spotify for Artists.
Some things to watch:
- Your Audience page shows how your streams and listeners have been doing. You can dig into how your release has impacted different audience groups and track how many followers have listened within the first 28 days on the Release Engagement page.
- Your Song page helps determine how your latest song is doing compared to your previous releases.
There are many ways to use data to adjust and enhance your strategy – don’t ignore this step, as it will help you improve for your next release!
Think of releasing a song as a marathon instead of a sprint. Each part is essential to creating a successful release, and it takes endurance – a balance between consistency and long-term effort – so take your time, stay organized, and trust the process.
If you want help promoting your music at any point in this process, chat with us. We can help you get on the right playlists, advertise on Facebook or Instagram, promote your music video on YouTube (if you have one), and get your music heard on TikTok. Your music deserves to be appreciated, and with the right approach, that can happen.
