Many artists struggle to get streams, and this challenge can make success feel impossible.
But I'm here to tell you it's not—if you want to know what needs fixing, read on!
Your music sucks and here’s why!
99% of the time when an artist or label is having trouble getting streams, it's because the music is subpar. The audience can tell when you're trying to emulate someone better than you but you just don't sound good, making you appear inauthentic. Maybe the quality just sucks, or you're attempting to enter the market with an outdated style. As a result, people tend to push away from the song and sometimes you entirely. Even though you put your best foot forward, it's time to go back to the drawing board—either remix the song on a new beat or try another round at bat. Either way, if you want to make it past first base, the song has to be good or at least interesting.
It’s not clicking! Your visuals can go jump off a bridge!
50% of the time when an artist or label is having trouble getting streams it’s because their visuals, used to promote the song on social media, don’t display the same targeted desire that the song contains. So, there is an immediate disconnect for the viewer that prevents the potential streamer from advancing through your streaming pipeline. Now, I know you took time to shoot those visuals but maybe you should try some single shot visuals before you step up the 3-5 shot full length videos. Failing here can cost you a lot of money. However, if you get this part right it can save you from having to go so hard on the next step.
Hey, you forgot to tell them where to go!
Did you know that in many cases the song and visual can sell itself as long as their targeted desires create a strong emotional reaction in the viewer/listener? This is otherwise known as the music selling itself. However, sometimes people may have a hard time getting to the streaming platform after you've mesmerized them so much. In many cases, they want to keep you all to themselves unless they are natural givers. We don't have time to wait for them, so you'll want to add a CTA (Call to Action) in the first comment of your post, in the caption of the post, and if the situation calls for it, put it in the post itself. Calls to action push people over the top after they've consumed the free sample. Leaving this extra 20% of effort on the table can cost you up to 80% in revenue loss.
I thought you were promoting the song?!
The biggest misunderstanding about Spotify is that it's not just a streaming platform—it's actually a music marketplace where music is consumed. The word "platform" confuses people, but when you understand it as a marketplace, the game changes. This means you have to promote your music on it if you want to be seen and continue the listener's journey, even if you'd prefer to just post it. You'll want to move your audio dopamine through the Spotify streets to let people know it's there via playlist promotion. It's important to understand that promotion is not the same as advertising. If you don't promote, listeners subconsciously won't feel validated in their choice to listen to your song because nobody else seems to be enjoying it—which means they'll be less inclined to share. However, if they see more people enjoying it, they'll be more likely to share it themselves.
People should just accept my art
Your art isn't the problem—you just don't want to face rejection. People will accept what they want, but if you give them uncooked meat, the chances of them consuming it are minimal. You need to test your music with people who aren't your friends. If you avoid doing that, you'll stay stuck in the bedroom cypher. However, if you make it out of the bedroom, you'll be motivated to create better music for your audience.
Do I have to do playlist promotion on Spotify?
Playlist promotion on Spotify isn't strictly necessary, but you do need some form of promotion somewhere to increase your streams. Promotion is a key part of the marketing process. If you skip it, you'll be left wondering why people aren't streaming—and it's simply because you're not meeting them where they are. That's what promotion is all about, meeting people where they are!
Are full length videos even necessary?
The whole reason for full-length videos is to establish brand identity and emotional connection in viewers' minds. Visuals accomplish this powerfully! Plus, they help increase the value of your catalog. While full-length videos aren't always necessary, you shouldn't exclude them—short visuals can cut off the emotional connection that listeners desire too early. When this happens repeatedly, it creates a learned behavior where fans believe the artist will never deliver complete works of art, only stringing them along.
Here’s what you can do!
Start by finding non-editorial playlists on Spotify that you can reach out to for music placement. Playlist Supply is a great tool for this. Go back and add clear calls-to-action to your recent posts. Finally, share your work in the Music Money Makers Community for valuable feedback!
Correcting all of this stuff
Leads to more streams, which creates more income, ultimately providing more fuel to push your career and efforts further.
If you never correct it at all
The work will remain hard and grueling, discouraging you and making you question whether it's even worth it.
At the end of the day…
If you were struggling with:
Getting streams
Promotion
and Calls to action
You now have more means to become the marketing savy artist you’ve always wanted to be.
Comments