If you want your songs and videos to be discoverable online, you’ll need to release them simultaneously. But how does that really help? Let’s break it down.
Websites like Apple Music, Spotify, Google Play Music, and Youtube are searchable. That means users can search through songs and videos by artist, genre, and many other keywords.
So when you release two different pieces of content, it’s like having them both buried in the same place. This increases the chances of someone stumbling across your music or video accidentally. But even then, the odds are still high that you won’t be discovered.
And let’s face it. Who wants to hear about the same song over and over again? If you’re an indie musician, you probably want to have a variety of different genres and styles on your channel.
So your goal isn’t to have a bunch of copies of the same song everywhere online. It’s to release a variety of different songs and videos.
Steps To Take
In order to get the most exposure and find success in the music and video industry, you need to do the following:
1. Start With A Plan For Success
It’s very easy to think of ideas, write the first song, and release the song. This is not the right way to go about it.
You need to have a plan before getting started. Create an outline that details what you want to achieve and how you plan to reach that goal. It will help you stay focused and not waste time.
2. Identify Your Audience
It’s important to have the right idea and plan, but you also need to identify your target audience. Are you targeting the average listener or the top influencers?
Find out what your target market is interested in and where they hang out. You may find it helpful to talk to your fans. You can even do a survey.
3. Build Your Brand
Even though you’re releasing the songs and videos, you still need to build your brand. Your brand should include your band name, website, social media handles, etc. It should be something that’s recognizable to the world.
4. Pick A Platform
Once you know your audience, and you’ve identified your goals, you’ll need to pick a platform to release your music and videos on.
The best platforms for music are Youtube, Apple Music, SoundCloud, Spotify, etc. You need to be a part of a platform that’s already familiar to your target audience.
If your main focus is to have your music on Spotify or Apple Music, then you may as well wait until your music is on those platforms. They will expose your music to more people than any other platform.
But if you’re a singer/songwriter, you want to have your music on Youtube. There’s less competition and there’s less pressure to pay to boost views.
5. Add Links
Make sure you add links to your other projects as well as your personal website. This will
Four Options for Music Video Release Strategy:
Music videos are great ways to generate buzz around a song, and they can be a lot of fun to create. But, sometimes you don’t know if a particular format will work for your needs. There are many different types of music videos and you may not know how to approach them all. That is why it is important to learn more about each type so that you can select the most suitable format for your situation.
OPTION 1: RELAESING THE VIDEO THE SAME DAY AS THE AUDIO RELEASE.
The obvious benefit is that you are releasing something that is brand new. It’s been hyped as you are sure to gather high traffic in a short period of time – which signals popularity to music algorithms.
There are some drawbacks though. It can be challenging to get a partner premiere something on a friday – which is when 99% of new music is released.
Also you may be splitting your audio and video streams. But volume is not everything with algorithms. Overall, quality is key, but performing well on the first day of release can help snowball the momentum.
If you don’t have a lot of partnerships or “press” lined up for release day and you’re going to priortize a music video, this is a good option. I definitely recommend booking YouTube ads on the launch day of your video. It’s best to have a full week of streams on YouTube impacting Spotify and Apple.
OPTION 2: RELEASING THE MONDAY OR TUESDAY AFTER RELEASE DATE.
When you’re trying to get your new album released, you want people to be able to listen to it right away. If you don’t have any other options, then you’ll need to make sure that you release the song on a Monday or Tuesday. This is because these days are typically the slowest days of the week.
If you’re planning to release the song on the first day of the week, then you should know that it’s possible to do so. However, you may also want to consider releasing it later in the week instead. For example, you could wait until Wednesday or Thursday to release your music video. You can even try doing this on a Friday.
You might be wondering why people choose to release their songs on Mondays and Tuesdays. The truth is that many artists who work with labels prefer to do that. After all, it gives them more time to promote the song before its official release.
But there are some things you need to keep in mind. First, if your fans really like the song, they won’t care when you release it. Second, most of the radio stations will only play one or two songs per hour. So if you release a song that isn’t popular, then you’ll never get the chance to play it again.
OPTION 3: RELEASING WEEKS AFTER RELEASE DATE.
Releasing your music video weeks after release date is not ideal, but sometimes it can’t be avoided. If you have to do this, try to line up other drivers on the same day. That could be a partnership with an influencer, a brand, a paid advertising, or a show or tour anouncement. You can use this late video premiere in your post music release strategy, almost like a second street date.
But I would do my best to find a launch partner, make as much noise as possible and make sure you get people to watch more than one of your videos on YouTube.
OPTION 4: RELEASING BEFORE THE AUDIO STREET DATE.
It would need to be a really good opportunity from a blog or partner that could get it a minimum of 10,000 streams. If it’s within 24 hours of your audio release it can be good. But just be careful not to give it to a blog partner who has 50,000 visitors a day- on their home page, but they bury it in the news feed, or not even on the home page.