I discovered the name (and functions) of curator just over a year ago. Since then, this new cap - a must-have today - has made me understand a lot about how it all works. I am going to share with you my thoughts, which are only mine, and which are just intended to start a conversation on this rather particular and opaque topic.
Thriller Reading - Ambient / Soundtrack playlist on Spotify : 2941 likes - 140 tracks - 7 h
Since I am a curator (or playlister), I see how many tracks are submitted to the wrong playlist's theme / main genre.
And that associates a bad image with the name of the artist.
So, the next time a music is submitted, the playlister may remember this bad experience and will always associate it with the name of the artist. Very bad operation!
1. First advice :
Really listen to the playlist to understand what genre which can fit the playlist.
As an artist, I saw a marked increase in approvals when i took the time to listen to the first few tracks on the playlist. Before that, I relied only on the description offered by the playlister. But while listening to the playlist, I realized several times that the style of the desired music did not correspond to what I proposed: with lyrics, beats, without beats, only instrumental ...
Now, for example, listen to this playlist :
And after that, if you have a music which can match, you can submit your music, for free, here :
2. Second advice :
Don't submit to several playlists owned by the same curator.
Personally, I very rarely accept music in several playlists ; I only select one playlist, the most appropriate. And on Daily Playlist, there is nothing more annoying than automatically clicking the "decline" button 10 times in a row.
3. Third advice :
When your music has been added to a playlist : stream the playlist !
Here again, I have seen the benefit on my own statistics when I do that. I don't stream the whole playlist, but a part of it : 4-5 tracks before my music and after it. I think it's good for the algorithm to stream the new playlists where you have been added.
4. Analyse the statistic reports
A lot of blogs will speak about this better than me, but yes, the analysis on our Spotify for Artists is the best way to understand how, where and by whom our music is listened, liked... Precious !
Watch the stats with various timescales is usefull and a real mine of information.
5. Create videos to publish on the social medias
The videos are more watched by people than pictures, so, many more influent. That's what we are all looking for : more visibility to gain followers and - maybe - listeners.
Today, it's not difficult to make a little trailer. You can download and use royalty free videos on pexels or pixabay (or many other websites).
6. Invest in Instagram or Facebook ads
This is the best way to reach new listeners. Use Spotify for Artists to select the most appropriate audience for your advertising campaigns : age, country, interests...
7. Use the brand new features on Daily Playlists
Now you can select on daily playlists the playlists by mood and by genre.
And you can now review a music in your dashboard "Track Explorer" (only on desktop, in beta version). Then, you will earn 1 more submission credit (we usually have 25 credits per week, each monday).
8. Pamper your favorite curators
Maintain real and good relationships with the curators who broadcast your music : by regularly streaming the playlist, avoiding submitting music too often or even sending your entire repertoire, the playlist cannot become your "This is..." playlist usually created by Spotify ^^.
Do you like this article ? Tell me what are your thoughts / tips about submitting music in comments !