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How to Pitch New Music to Spotify Playlist Curators

by Miracle Oyedeji | Oct 13, 2021 | Highlight, Spotify

The benchmark for the number of songs featured by Spotify editorial curators is 20% of the total tracks pitched within a specific time frame. Your aim as an artist is to be of the lucky 20 percenters eligible for an organic push from Spotify.

In this guide, we’ll walk you through the steps you can take not only to pitch your song to editorial and independent playlists seamlessly but also to enhance your chances of landing your desired playlists.

Pitching is a process of ‘selling’ your music to Spotify curators, whether editorial or non-editorial, with the aid of submission forms, emails, direct messaging apps like Facebook and Instagram, or real-time conversations.

It is not impossible to get your song on a playlist by having a physical meeting with a curator, but it is rare. Also, tracking down the physical locations of Spotify curators can be pretty awkward, and you might get arrested. Lol! Apart from stalking a curator, any other method listed above is proper and effective.

The nature of your pitch or the pitching method used is highly dependent on the type of playlist you intend to be featured on. There are Spotify editorial playlists, algorithmic playlists, personalized playlists, listener playlists, and artist playlists. Check out this Loudlab article on the types of playlists on Spotify. Here, we will focus on how you can pitch your new music to Spotify editorial playlists and listener playlists

Difference between Spotify editorial Playlists and listener playlists

To expand your sources of Spotify streams, you need to pitch to both Spotify editorial playlists and listener playlists. The trick behind getting featured on stream-boosting playlists is understanding the nature of these playlists and the curators’ aim. This section will help you understand the nature of Spotify editorial playlists and Spotify listener playlists; and what the curators of these playlists expect to see in a playlist pitch.

What are Spotify editorial playlists?

Spotify editorial playlists are verified playlists curated by a team of in-house music experts

and genre taster makers – basically, people who know lots about music. The ability to democratize the playlisting sphere to an extent where everyone and anyone can create a playlist makes Spotify the people’s favorite ahead of Apple music. Also, the “rags to riches” stories of Spotify artists are great PR for the Swedish audio streaming platform. Great examples of editorial playlists on Spotify are RapCaviar, Pop Pp, Most Necessary, and New Music.

Spotify Editorial Playlists Requirements

By creating over 5000 editorial playlists, Spotify aims to keep listeners across all music genres on their streaming app for as long as possible. Hence, they push the “best songs” to more listeners. By creating over 5000 editorial playlists, Spotify aims to keep listeners across all music genres on their streaming app for as long as possible. Hence, they push the “best songs” to more listeners.

Submit your music to your distributor 7-28 days before release

Distributors like CDBaby and Distrokid can get your music on streaming platforms in three days. Still, you do not need to hasten this process as Spotify editors recommend submitting your song for playlisting at least 7 days before the release date. So there is no need to rush; schedule your release 28 days before release and give the editors enough time to find the best playlist for your track.

Pitch via Spotify submission form on your Spotify for Artists account

Spotify has provided the best and most convenient method of pitching for artists – the Spotify for Artist playlist submission form. You can pitch your upcoming music to Spotify using your Spotify for Artist dashboard. Under the ‘music’ section, you will see your yet-to-be-released music under ‘upcoming’ (if your distributor has submitted the track to Spotify). Click ‘playlist pitch’ to fill in the necessary information such as genre, types of instruments on the song, city, and description. Do not be tempted to leave the “describe your song for us” box empty. Also, ensure you give them enough information on the song’s mood, creation process, tour plans, previous radio tours, blog reviews, and your promotion plans. Use this opportunity to sell yourself to Spotify editors.

Make no compromise on music quality.

You do not need to have much experience as an artist to know that no streaming platform would playlist trash, not even the we-care-about-independent-artists Spotify. I hate to break it to you, but it won’t get playlisted if your song is not good enough. Period.

How to pitch to Spotify editorial playlists

The step-by-step procedure of pitching your unreleased music to Spotify editorial playlists is listed below. Note that Spotify does not allow artists to pitch already-released music, and only one song can be pitched at a time, meaning you cannot pitch another song until the currently pitched song is released.

Claim your Spotify for Artists with the aid of your distributor. CDBaby and Distrokid offer this service for free.

Log in seven and set up your Spotify for Artist profile in the most appealing format.

Click the ‘music’ section and find your upcoming releases under the ‘upcoming’ column.

Choose the upcoming release you would like to pitch.

Fill the Spotify playlist submission form. Then, submit.

What are listener playlists?

Listener playlists are playlists generated by Spotify users. Listener playlists can be made private or public. However, you can only pitch public listener playlists, aka independent playlists.

Listener playlists requirements

The requirements can vary depending on the editor, the nature of songs featured on the playlist, or the aim of the playlist. For example, some curators require money while others don’t. Curators also ask for favors in non-monetary forms such as playlist exchange and cross-promotion across social media accounts.

How to pitch to listener playlists

Ensure you listen to the playlist for a while and understand its purpose. When pitching, let them know you are a fan of their playlist and your song is similar to songs on the playlist. It is a plus if you have a cordial relationship with the editor on social media or real life.

However, resist the urge to extend fake friendly antics all in the name of wanting to build a

relationship. Be professional while pitching. Also, do not intrude on the curator’s privacy. You can reach them via mail, social media, or submission forms.

Some playlists curators don’t want to be reached; kindly leave them the heck alone. Finding listener playlists can be done manually on Spotify or with tools such as SubmitHub and Groover.

Spotify editorial playlists vs listener playlist

Before we list and explain the differences between Spotify editorial playlists and listener playlists, it is important to know that both types of playlists are essential for the success of a Spotify campaign. So ensure you include both in your Spotify promotion plan.

S/N	Spotify Editorial Playlists	Listener Playlists
1	Spotify does not accept a dime to playlist your song.	Some independent curators require artists to pay to get featured on their playlists although it is totally illegal according to Spotify.
2	Your only point of connection to verified Spotify tastemakers is the Spotify for Artists Playlist submission form.	You can reach independent curators via mail, social media, or non-Spotify site submission forms.
3	Editorial playlists can get you more streams than independent playlists partially because people trust Spotify more and also Spotify trusts the Spotify curation team more.	They can help you boost your streams, hence boosting your Spotify Popularity index.
4	The duration spent by tracks on Spotify editorial playlists can be very short given that Spotify updates these playlists weekly or bi-weekly.	The duration spent by tracks on independent playlists depends on the nature of these playlists and the editor’s choice. If you pay to get in a playlist, your song can be featured as long as agreed.
5	New musicians are welcome.	Independent playlists tend to favor the labels and established artists.
6	You can only pitch a song at a time (28 days) and you cannot pitch more than one song in an EP or LP.	You can pitch as many songs as you want to different playlist curators. Do not overwhelm a playlist curator with all your songs, as this move is frowned upon. Pitch one song at a time per independent curator.
7	Pitching to editorial playlists can get you featured on algorithmic playlists.	Pitching to an independent playlist cannot get you featured on algorithmic playlists.

Disadvantages of not pitching your track to Spotify

Before your song can make it to Spotify or other streaming platforms, it means your distributor has vetted the song content. However, before you can get an extra boost from Spotify Algorithmic playlists or editorial playlists, their editorial curators need to have a taste of your music. When you refuse to pitch your track to Spotify using the submission form, you also lose out on algorithmic playlists such as release radar and discover weekly.

One mistake artists make when putting out music is not pitching their upcoming releases to Spotify editorial playlists at least 7 days prior to the release date. Although not every song that is pitched to editorial Spotify playlist curators would be playlisted, there are certain benefits that are attached to sending your music for consideration. In a case where your track does not make it to any editorial playlist, your music will certainly be added to the release radar.

How do you know when Spotify accepts your pitch?

The playlists you are featured on will be publicly displayed on your ‘Spotify about’ section. You can also see your songs’ playlists by clicking on your home page’s ‘playlists’ column. However, you will only be able to see the playlists that helped your songs get streams.

Why is my track getting skipped on Spotify?

by Miracle Oyedeji | Oct 6, 2021 | Highlight, Spotify

You were wondering why listeners are skipping your music on Spotify? This guide will teach you how to reduce your Spotify skip rate and amass massive Spotify streams.

For Spotify listeners to skip your track, it means you have done a great job in getting your music out there. However, you would need more than just exposure to build a reliable fan base; you will need to push your music to the perfect audience.

There are two reasons Spotify listeners are skipping your songs viz.

You are marketing your music to the wrong audience.
Your music needs better creative input.

The term ‘wrong audience’ can mean followers of a Spotify playlist who don’t care about your genre. Still, somehow your music got playlisted on the playlist or listeners from a particular region (let’s say France) who discovered your song (originally written in Portuguese) with the aid of a ‘misinformed’ Spotify algorithm. Either way, it’s never a good thing to be discovered by Spotify users who cannot relate to your music.

On the other end of the spectrum, if your song is getting skipped because it is not good enough, you may need to up your game as first impressions last longer. A disappointed listener might not give your music another chance in the future.

What is Spotify Skip Rate?

Spotify ‘skips rate’ or ‘skips count’ is a metric that indicates the number of times a user skipped a song on a playlist. The user must have listened to the track for more than 30 seconds for a listener’s stream to count. When a listener gets off a track within the first 30 seconds, Spotify counts the action as a skip.

Daniel Breitholtz, Spotify’s Nordic head of shows and Editorial, confirms that editors at Spotify consider the skip rate while shopping for new music. However, he stated that this metric is one of many factors and should not blow it out of proportion. In line with Daniel’s revelation in the Music Ally interview, the most potent factor is the Spotify save rate.

How to check my Spotify skip rate

The Spotify skip rate is only visible to Spotify playlist editors. The tool used is said to be burdensome and not available to the general public. The Spotify for artist site provides real-time data such as the number of streams, top cities, top countries, listener’s age, and source of streams; however, the skip count section is missing.

How to reduce my Spotify skip rate

According to a renowned music blogger, yclept Paul Lamere, a 24.14 percent probability that a Spotify listener would skip a song in the first five seconds. His report suggests that the likelihood of skipping a track on Spotify in the initial 10 seconds, 30 seconds, and at the ending part of a track are 28.97%, 35.05%, and 48.6%, respectively. This study infers that you have just 5 seconds to impress your listeners. A good rule of thumb for impressing your early listener is to start your track with the chorus or the catchiest part of the track. That way, you can create a great first impression.

For experimental artists in their approach to making music, the Spotify study is not just scary but also discouraging. If you knew your song would get skipped by new listeners for not following the conventional way of arranging music, you might feel tempted to follow the crowd. It is important to state that Lamere’s finding is only true for singles as listeners tend to be more patient when listening to albums. When releasing singles independently, you may not want to go against the grain except if you have a huge fanbase or trust your gut.

Reduce your Spotify skip rate and increase your track’s replay value by following the three steps below.

Only use playlists in your niche

Adding a rap song to a rock and roll playlist will get the track skipped. People tune into different playlists based on their moods. For example, there are playlists created exclusively for working out, meditating, working, and partying. Playlist listeners punish misplaced tracks by skipping them. Do not pay to put your song on a Spotify playlist that aligns with your music genre or mood.

Help the algorithm define your potential audience

Nothing is perfect, and the Spotify algorithm is not an exception. In a bid to get your track out there, the algorithm can expose your track to uninterested ears that might skip it as soon as it starts playing. However, using collaborative filtering and natural language processing, the algorithm tries to understand each track and push it to the best audience.

The algorithm uses its natural language processing to shop for information about a track on search engines, articles, and blogs. That way, the Spotify algorithm can know more about the track. Also, the information you provide Spotify when pitching your song can help the algorithm decide what audience would love your music.

You can assist the Spotify algorithm by making press releases and updating your social media pages/personal website with information about the track before the release date.

Know what listeners want

The most successful artists in every genre know what their audiences want and deliver at the appropriate time. Rap fans want hard-hitting bars, while afrobeat fans love danceable beats. If you do not know what your fans and potential fans want, there is no way you can grow a dedicated fanbase. Streams from a loyal fanbase can mitigate the effect of skip counts from few uninterested Spotify users.

Can Spotify Become the Next Live Nation?

by Miracle Oyedeji | Sep 29, 2021 | Highlight, Spotify

Spotify is well-positioned to become an event promotion giant. The freemium audio streaming platform is leaning towards complementing its low royalty payout model that has been heavily criticized by established artists, including Taylor Swift and Thom Yorke. Both artists refused the Spotify platform’s model by the temporal withdrawal of their music.

To up its pay model without increasing its current monthly subscription fee is an arduous task. Another approach is to become an utterly premium streaming service, but such a move will deprive the Swedish streaming service of its over 190 million free subscribers.

One brilliant move that will most likely increase its revenue is to enter into event ticketing for virtual and live shows. As claimed in a recent report by The Information, Spotify is planning to venture into selling tickets to events through their heavily-visited platform. It is not the first time Spotify would dabble into concert tickets promotion. For example, Spotify announced a series of virtual concerts featuring Rag’n’Bone Man, Leon Bridges, Bleachers’ Jack Antonoff, and Girl in Red in response to the complete absence of live events caused by the 2020 Covid pandemic.

The Spotify virtual concert was a product of the partnership between Spotify and Driift, an immersive live streaming platform. This move could be Spotify’s way of testing the waters in preparation for a more significant move: to take over the event ticketing business as they did with podcasting.

Spotify is now a major contender in the podcasting space despite its late arrival into the industry. Apple saw the potentials of podcasting way back in 2005, while Spotify gave its users access to podcasting in 2018. In 2021, Spotify emerged as the winner in terms of podcast monthly listeners. Spotify has 28.2 million monthly listeners, and Apple has 28 million monthly listeners. Spotify has achieved this almost impossible feat despite arriving late, and the same could happen with event ticketing.

Unlike streaming, events offer a higher payout. From 2015 to 2019, the average music concert ticket price increased from $78 to $96.17 per person. The current Rolling Loud three-day concerts cost $541 (regular ticket) and $1,344 (VIP ticket). Suppose Spotify can help artists headline events in the regions where they are popular (according to their monthly listeners’ stat). In that case, the relationship between Spotify and artists could get better.

In line with the report mentioned earlier, Spotify is not interested in displacing or, at the very least, locking heads with established events companies like Live Nation Entertainment.

Instead, they intend to work with these events companies using their consumer data as leverage. We have heard this song before; Spotify, in a bid to prevent labels from pulling their artists’ songs from its site, publicly acknowledged that they do not intend to replace the labels.

However, in 2018, Billboard reported that Spotify has allowed artists to upload their songs directly on the platform in exchange for Artists’ advances. Although labels perform more functions than licensing music, the intent to bypass the labels makes Spotify a direct threat to them. We can witness the same plot with the events business.

The Information report caused Live Nation Entertainment stocks to dip by 0.9%. It is not clear whether Spotify will try to displace the current events juggernauts in the future, but it’s not impossible.

How to go viral in Spotify Trigger Cities

by Miracle Oyedeji | Sep 15, 2021 | Highlight, Spotify

The music industry is structured to make pop stars bigger at the expense of upcoming artists. When an artist like Drake announces a forthcoming release on his Instagram handle (which has over 85 million followers), he gets hundreds of thousands of reposts from labels, influential athletes, colleagues, wannabees, fans, and blogs across the globe.

On the other hand, no new artist is showered such mouth-watering encomiums, even the ones who are signed to international labels. The music game is simply cutthroat.

For an upcoming artist to go viral on Spotify, he/she has to stand out among the pick-me crowd and journey into unconquered territories. They must employ affordable and reusable advertising tools to reach a more receptive audience.

At a time when many artists invested their resources on Facebook ads, Lil Nas X took a different path by combining elements of trap music with country music, and most importantly, he ventured into the then-unknown world, TikTok. The rest is history. That one single, Old Town Road, helped him attain viral popularity and a diamond certification in the States almost nine months later. Old Town Road spent nothing less than 19 weeks on the US Billboard Hot 100 chart, a daunting feat for a new artist.

For the sake of this article, the uncharted waters are called triggered cities and the next ‘Lil Nas X’ is you! Now let’s go into some more details. In a recent report, Chartmetric published a list of cities with listeners who would jump on new sound regardless of genre. The trigger cities are also very receptive to upcoming artists. The juicy part of the report is that these trigger cities are cheaper to target with ads compared to other hubs. Once reception and competition have been catered for, the remaining tion-factor required for an artist to go viral on Spotify is listener’s retention. The only way to retain your listeners is to release a song with high replay value. We assume that is not an issue in your case.

The Spotify streaming landscape is currently experiencing a demographic change as the Swedish platform bags more global music subscribers. Spotify users are consciously and unconsciously creating algorithmic playlists and viral trends in regions where a good number of artists are not targeting. Traction from these regions can increase your Spotify Popularity Index and get you into playlists with millions of active followers.

The rule of thumb in music marketing used to be to target areas with the most premium subscribers. The reason is that streams from cities filled with premium subscribers get a higher payout from Spotify to artists compared to streams from cities populated by free users (Spotify users who use the ad-supported tier). However, this method leaves a lot of money on the table and restricts the reach of the artist. Budding artists would get a better chance of going viral if they advertised more to trigger cities.

Quantity over Quality

The trend table is a ‘Bizarro’ world that operates independently and conversely to our world as we know it. Hence, conventional clichés –such as not all that glitters is gold, opposites attract, what goes around comes around, and quality over quantity— do not apply in this weird realm.

Here, gold that does not glitter does not get clicks, opps barely attract, what goes around would most likely get lost in endless social media feeds, and of course, quantity will always displace quality from the charts. Isn’t it a strange world?

When it comes to the Spotify algorithm, the number of plays is one of the factors it considers before recommending a track.

Having 2000 plays from 400 premium subscribers does not have more algorithmic effect than 200,000 plays from 50,000 free listeners. The algorithm, as a non-human tastemaker, only focuses on finding the right music for the right audience and it requires a significant amount of stream data to recommend your track. The more plays you get in the first week of your release, the easier it is to get playlisted on Spotify.

Latin America takes the lead

The Chartmetric study was based on data from two of the world’s most visited platforms for audio and video streaming – Spotify and YouTube. For the sake of this guide, the Spotify data will be our point of focus. Spotify, unlike YouTube, gets most of its monthly listeners (criteria for determining Spotify app/web activity per user) from Latin America, the USA, and Western Europe. The USA and Western Europe Cities do not fall under the trigger cities. Why? The cost of advertisement is high in those regions plus they might not be really receptive to upcoming talents since all eyes are on the established artists due to the Hollywood effect.

To get a better view of what trigger cities look like, we need to analyze YouTube views by city. The only similarity between the Spotify and YouTube lists is that Mexico, a Latin American trigger city, retained its number one spot. The YouTube list is dominated by Latin American and Asian cities. The top ten cities on the YouTube list perfectly describe the idea of trigger cities. The top ten trigger cities include Mexico City, Bangkok, Bogota, Lucknow, Santiago, Patna, Lima, Pune, Sao Paulo, and Indore.

USA and UK cities struggled to make the YouTube list, as New York debuted at number 23. Latin American cities such as Mexico, Santiago, and Sao Paulo made the top ten lists on both Spotify and YouTube.

The Darwin Effect: The need to evolve to survive in the global music industry

According to Charles Darwin’s original thoughts on natural selection, only ‘the fittest’ get to survive the storms that nature presents from time to time. The organisms that do not adapt get wiped out during food scarcity or a natural disaster. The global music industry operates by this law. Not every rapper who makes it to XXL Freshman Class will stay relevant in the next decade.

While the Chartmetric report hailed the ability of listeners from Trigger Cities to anoint the next global superstars, it questioned the depth of transcontinental cultural reception. Every musical genre evolves from a particular culture, for instance, rap has its roots in black American culture and activism. However, artists who are able to transcend genre or combine elements from different cultures would amass millions of streams in a short amount of time.

A good example is Jason Derulo. His recent feature on Tesher’s song titled Jalebi Baby Remix got over 16 million streams on YouTube within a week. Jason’s ability to blend his dance-pop style with Asian fusion made the song an instant hit. A feature from an artist who is already established in the targeted region will also increase the reception of the listeners in the chosen trigger cities.

Final Thoughts

Even though some of the US/Western Europe cities with high activity on the Spotify music app are not classified as trigger cities, artists can still bank on Latin American cities alongside their home cities for streams during their first week of release, as this period will determine the success of the track on Spotify. Remember, it is stream quantity, not quality will get you into the essential Spotify algorithmic playlists.

The Best Countries to Target Your Spotify Music

by James Wamathai | Jul 28, 2021 | Highlight, Spotify

Here at Loudlab, we understand that as an artist, manager, or even a music label, it is easy to solely focus on major cities such as Los Angeles, London, and New York to promote your music.

But what if we told you that the best countries for social media marketing for your music are not what you may think?

The music business today is quite different from what it was ten or twenty years ago. Platforms such as YouTube, Spotify, and iTunes revolutionized how music is enjoyed and, most importantly, monetized. Consequently, markets have shifted significantly. If one desires to generate sizable revenue off their music, they must understand the power of targeting specific nations or cities. This article will offer insights into how to do that.

The Three Main Categories

Let’s start from the top. As an artist, manager, or label, there are three main groups of countries that you should target for your digital marketing. For this article, we will focus on Facebook ad targets for Spotify.

Developed nations
Latin-speaking countries
Vietnam and India

1. Developed Nations

These mainly consist of the United States, the United Kingdom, and Northern Europe. What makes them stand out is the value of their payouts per stream, primarily because they are at the very center of the music world. Iceland, for instance, has the highest payout at $0.006 per stream and $6182.9 per one million streams. In comparison, Spotify pays only $702.53 per one million streams in Tunisia.

Developed nations have more leverage in the industry. They also have a bigger audience and a consumer base willing to spend more time and money on music. The more money they spend, the more the money that gets to the artist.

2. Latin-Speaking Countries

What these countries don’t offer in terms of pay – they all sit in the middle of the pack – they make up for in volume. In general, audiences in countries like Mexico, Brazil, Portugal, Spain, Colombia, and Italy engage, share and comment a lot more than their counterparts in developed nations. This applies whether an artist is new, emerging, or already a staple in the music industry.

It is the engagement that creates traction for an artist. It allows their music to be recommended to more listeners, thereby racking up the numbers and getting more people interested in their songs. The more ears they have, the more money they make, and this is the biggest strength that these Latin-speaking countries have over more developed nations.

3. Vietnam and India

These two countries pay the middle range, just like their Latin-speaking counterparts. However, their most considerable value is just how affordable it is to target listeners therein, compared to the volume of engagement you get in return. This is the case, not just with Spotify but also with YouTube.

India, for instance, dominates the top 10 YouTube Max Daily Views chart, indicating that there is an audience ready to consume whatever content is available on the internet. As an artist, manager, or label, targeting such a market is guaranteed to yield more significant and better rewards than targeting other developed countries like the United States.

Key Take-Aways

Gone are the days when the big music labels and distributors dictated the music market. Thanks to the internet, the power has been shifted to creators and consumers. As it currently stands, the consumer can even be in the most remote part of a country yet still offer value to the content creator.

It is wise to target main markets such as the United States and Europe to market your music digitally. However, as a creator, manager, or label, it is about time you started considering other lesser-known nations in Asia and Latin-speaking countries. The market is already there. Moreover, the cost of targeting them, even with Facebook ads, is relatively low and affordable, and your investment is guaranteed to pay off many times over. So quit focusing too much on the big markets and make that shift today. If prominent artists such as Lauv have benefitted from it, so can you.

Spotify Popularity Index: A Little Secret to Help You Leverage the Algorithm

by Miracle Oyedeji | Jun 8, 2021 | Highlight, Spotify, Tips

In a digital age where independent artists are trying to break through the barriers installed by putative gatekeepers of the music industry, the golden key to becoming a successful artist is data. Without data, successful campaigns cannot be recreated and the unsuccessful ones cannot be learned from.

Spotify for Artists only gives basic information regarding listeners’ demographics and track performance. The information displayed on the artist dashboard only includes the number of streams, listeners, followers, top playlists, and top songs.

This approach, however, fails to take into account other key factors for measuring your songs’ performance. From track attributes – such as danceability, liveness, positiveness, key, loudness, energy – to data regarding how listeners interact with your music. Yet, these hidden indicators are used by the algorithm to rank, recommend, display, and playlist songs on the biggest music streaming platform.

But keep in mind: when it comes to the Spotify algorithm, no song is rated in isolation.

What is Spotify’s Popularity Index?

The Spotify Popularity Index is a 0-to-100 score that ranks how popular an artist is relative to other artists on Spotify. As your numbers grow, you’ll get placed in more editorial playlists and increase your reach on algorithmic playlists and recommendations. Some say that the magic number is 50!

The Index can be used to monitor and influence the progress of new releases. Each track has its own SPI calculated influencing the artist’s overall index. Yet, while the Popularity Index is majorly determined by recent stream count, other factors like save rate, the number of playlists, skip rate, and share rate can indirectly bump up or push down a song’s popularity index.

How to Influence the Popularity Index in your Favor

To successfully influence your Spotify popularity index, you need to understand that every stream, save, share, like, and playlist recommendation counts. All ways lead to Rome.

Do not forget that the algorithm is the major player here and the index is just one of the factors it considers when recommending booming songs to Spotify’s ever-demanding listeners.

Running a pre-save campaign weeks before the release days would give your track all the juice it needs to appeal to your first listeners. The algorithm will have no other choice than to keep recommending your songs to your perceived audience and lookalike audience. If your campaign success is consistent during the first week, there is a great likelihood that you will be placed on several algorithmic playlists.

Your pre-save campaign can give you all the traction you need to “convince” the algorithm to give you a playlist boost. According to Chartmasters:

“A song is not successful because it is a part of a large playlist. It only gets into large playlists when it’s successful”.

You do not have to leave the fate of your track in the formulaic hands of the Spotify algorithm since you can also appeal to tastemakers by pitching your music to editorial playlists.

Although Editorial playlists give your tracks more exposure compared to algorithmic playlists, songs fall off the editorial playlists easily and quickly unlike algorithmic playlists. You can remain on algorithmic playlists for months.

How to check Spotify Popularity Index

There are several tools you can use to check your Spotify Popularity Index, namely; Musicstax, Chartmetric, Songstats, and Spotify for Developers. The first three tools are the simplest while Spotify for Developers can be confusing to users with no coding skills.

Musicstax is a simple music analysis tool that allows you to check the popularity score by searching for the artist’s name or song. The free tool can also be used to analyze features of a song such as loudness and danceability. The only disadvantage of using Musicstax is its inability to provide real-time metrics, meaning the database is not always up-to-date.

Chartmetrics provides market-level data to artists who want to up their game and understand their growing fanbase. You can get a panoramic view of how many people are discovering your songs on playlists, popularity rating, and growth over a long span of time, conversion ratio, and playlist reach to followers ratio via Chartmetric.

Songstats is an amazing tool that provides artists with the data needed to effectively manage their campaigns. It lets you observe the impact of your campaign strategy and growing popularity index on your track performance.

Conclusion

Improve your understanding of your fanbase using advanced tools to crawl data from your Spotify page. Tools like Chartmetric, Songstats, and Musicstax make it super easy.
Monitor your popularity growth in the first week of release and make informed decisions using real-time metrics.
Use the popularity score as a currency to bypass the gateways of algorithmic playlists.

Improve your understanding of your fanbase using advanced tools to crawl data from your Spotify page. Tools like Chartmetric, Songstats, and Musicstax make it super easy.

Monitor your popularity growth in the first week of release and make informed decisions using real-time metrics.

Use the popularity score as a currency to bypass the gateways of algorithmic playlists.

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