Tag: Spotify Success

Categories
Business Advice Editorials News

3 Ways To Drastically Improve Spotify For Artists

Spotify For Artists

Spotify’s importance in the music ecosystem is great, but there are several ways the streaming giant can improve their artist portal to benefit all musicians.

Analysts can and will debate the streaming royalty rates that Spotify offers musicians for as long as the service exists. We’ve written about it extensively ourselves, and we will continue to do so, but Spotify’s relationship with musicians is about more than money. The company possesses a massive amount of data, all of which is the direct result of artists sharing music on its platform. Still, only a tiny amount is made available to talent. Spotify For Artists is one of the best analytics services in the industry, and yet, there is far more that can (and should) be available to musicians.

The Spotify For Artists platform currently offers musicians the ability to submit music for playlist consideration, review play counts for their entire catalog, and learn the location of their listeners. Artists can also update their account by adding and removing photos, as well as updating their biography and concert listings. These tools are impressive, and they go a long way toward helping musicians understand and build their audience. Still, there are data points that Spotify could supply that needs to the company needs to consider for future updates.

Revenue Insights

The biggest thing lacking from Spotify For Artists today is information related to the money artists earn from the platform. Artists cannot see how much money their music has earned to date, nor can they access estimated revenue for the current day, week, or month. Aside from play counts, musicians don’t even know how much money they’ve earned from specific songs.

Spotify’s payment system is complicated. There is no flat-rate for streams. The amount a song earns per stream is a complex calculation that includes the total streams on the platform. That may contribute to the company’s decision to withhold earnings information, but it doesn’t change the fact that artists deserve to know how and why behind their payments.

Advanced Audience Insights

Musicians can currently view the cities where they are most popular, as well as the total number of fans in that area. They can also see similar insights about the audience for each song in their catalog. That’s useful, to an extent, but stops short of providing key information such as:

  • What songs are most popular in each location.
  • Average listening of those in a specific location.
  • Change in listeners in a specific area from month to month.
  • Ages and Gender information for each region.
  • What percentage of the audience from an area follows the artists versus passive listeners.
  • The lifespan of the average listener.

Bring Back The Ability To Message Followers

In the earliest versions of Spotify, artists could message their followers. The tool disappeared to help streamline the platform and prevent users from being overwhelmed by promotional messaging from their favorite artists. It’s easy to understand how that decision came to pass, but it’s time to resurrect messaging to empower artists further. Spotify is now the most popular music streaming platform in the world, and its continuing reign over the competition depends on artists promoting their service. To do that, Spotify needs to give artists something other services have not, and a direct line to their a musician’s most active fans is the perfect solution.

Think about it. Spotify knows every musician’s most active listeners. They know their name, location, favorite songs, time spent listening, and more. Only a small fraction of that data is currently available to artists, in part because Spotify doesn’t want engagement happening outside its platform. Enabling a messaging platform provides a means of communication between artists and fans that occurs exclusively on Spotify and raises engagement across the board. Everyone wins.

There are more ways Spotify can improve, but these three changes would make a substantial impact on how artists use the platform and engage with their audience. By creating these updates, Spotify would be playing a role in determining future tour routings, recording efforts, release plans, and merch sales. Spotify could, in essence, become a complete music ecosystem rather than one small part of a much larger industry machine.

Categories
Industry News News

Spotify Playlists Scams and How To Avoid Them [Video]

The most prevalent ads for musicians on social media promise guaranteed placement on hugely influential playlists for a small amount of money. But how do you know when an offer is too good to be true?

Anyone working in music will recognize this scene: You’re scrolling through social media on your phone when you see an advertisement for a company you don’t know claiming that they can get you onto influential Spotify playlists. These ads often feature an image of one or more playlists, such as the wildly popular Rap Caviar. These companies typically charge a fixed rate for this life-changing opportunity, and it’s often less than the price you pay for rent in any American city. It’s the kind of thing that sounds too good to be true, and that’s because — by and large — it’s a lie.

Selling people on the idea of achieving their wildest dreams is nothing new, but in the age of social media and targeted marketing, snake oil salesman are more cunning than ever. Facebook and Instagram offer a robust set of tools for advertisers to market their products and services to the people most likely to click on their messaging. That makes it incredibly easy to find desperate people willing to take a chance on false promises of significant returns being real. After all, who wouldn’t jump at the opportunity appear on a playlist with millions of followers? That’s a feat very few artists ever accomplish!

The simple truth is that if such services were real, then everyone in music would use them. If that were the case, then every significant playlist would be flooded with talent that no one knows to promote songs nobody has heard. But anyone with Spotify can tell you that is not the case. None of the company-curated playlists can be hacked through third-party promotion services. Nobody can buy their way onto these playlists, especially not someone from a company you and your music friends have never heard of that is run by people you can’t find or chat with over the phone. That’s not how the music business works.

In the latest episode of Music Biz, host James Shotwell breaks down the truth about playlist placement services, where they come from, and how anyone can easily spot scams from a mile away. His words will save you untold amounts of money, which you can then use to pay for a proper PR or marketing team that cares about your work. Check it out:

Music Biz is brought to you by Haulix, the music industry’s leading promotional distribution company. Join today and gain immediate access to the same promo tools used by Bruce Springsteen, Slipknot, Jason Isbell, and thousands more. Visit http://haulix.com/signup to start your free trial.

Categories
Industry News News

Spotify Announces Beta Launch of Songwriter Pages

Spotify’s latest development is songwriter pages, a new way for fans, collaborators, and industry partners to dive deeper into the creators behind their favorite songs. 

Songwriters are the unsung heroes of music (pun mildly intended). For every successful pop song, there are often two or more songwriters whose names are rarely mentioned at radio or amongst fans. The same can be said about alternative, hip-hop, and rock music as well. There are way more songwriters than recognizable musicians, but again, most never get the attention they rightfully deserve.

Since introducing song credits in 2018, Spotify has experienced a 60% increase in how often labels and distributors credit songwriters on their new releases, which allows artists and fans to dig deeper and recognize songwriters’ work. With the launch of songwriter pages, which is now in beta release, the streaming giant is continuing to evolve how music is discovered, appreciated, and enjoyed by the world.

How to Access Songwriter Pages:

  • Right-click on a track (or, if you’re on mobile, tap the “…” next to the track) 
  • Hit “Song Credits”
  • Select a clickable songwriter’s name
  • Every songwriter page includes a “Written By” playlist spanning that writer’s work. On their page, click or tap “Listen on Spotify” to check them out.

In addition to Songwriter Pages, Spotify is also introducing songwriter-specific playlists. Users will soon be able to stream every track their favorite songwriter has helped create, which should boost discovery for lesser-known artists currently working with big-name talent.

“Spotify is always working to create new and better ways to promote music discovery — for artists, for songs and, increasingly, for songwriters,” said Jules Parker, Head of Publishing & Songwriter Relations, Spotify. “The launch of publicly visible songwriter credits on Spotify in 2018 was merely the first step. Together with the publishing industry, we’ve continued to evolve our data sharing and analytics efforts and are proud to unveil this next iteration. Clicking on the credits in this pilot will take users to dedicated songwriter pages – providing a home for a songwriter’s work – and present listeners with “Written By” playlists, a new series of playlists dedicated to songwriters. We’re excited to see how the world interacts with these new features, and look forward to enabling them for more and more songwriters.”

As part of the launch, Spotify is sharing songwriter pages for Meghan Trainor, Fraser T Smith, Missy Elliott, Teddy Geiger, Ben Billions, and Justin Tranter, among many others. In beta, these pages are enabled by publishers and Spotify in partnership with songwriters. Songwriters reading this can express their interest in having a page via this form. Spotify will reach out with more info soon.  

https://open.spotify.com/playlist/7oJOWpzlyOVX2nRevAbriV
Categories
Industry News News

Spotify crosses 124 Million Premium Subscriptions, Plans to buy The Ringer

Spotify, the world’s most popular streaming service, continues to grow at an unbelievable rate, and it has significant plans for expansion in 2020.

Spotify released its Q4 earnings report this week. The data tells us not only how the service performed at the end of 2019 but also provides a glimpse at the last year as a whole. The streaming giant is the market leader, and the latest numbers show the company is likely to remain ahead of the competition.

According to the report, Spotify now has more than 124 million premium monthly subscribers worldwide, up 29% year over year. The company gained more than 10 million subscribers in the last quarter, marking the fastest growth period in Spotify history. That success is attributed, at least in part, to an expansion of the platform’s famous “Three months for free” trial period that now includes family plans.

Ad-supported monthly Spotify users now total 153 million, up 32% on the year, and 9% on the quarter. The numbers confirm the Stockholm, Sweden-based company’s big lead over its two closest rivals – Apple Music had more than 60 million subscribers as of July 2019, and Amazon had over 55 million subscribers globally.

Revenue has risen to $2.05 billion (1.86 billion euros), up 24% from a year earlier. Analysts are predicting a slightly higher revenue for Q1 of 2020, but Spotify is trying to keep investor expectations relatively calm, estimating income relatively in line with Q4.

Spotify also announced this week that it plans to purchase Bill Simmons’ sports and pop-culture news organization The Ringer as part of its quest to claim podcast dominance. The company did not disclose what it would pay for The Ringer, which launched in 2016, but the deal is set to close in April 2020.

For more insight and analysis, let’s turn to Music Biz News host James Shotwell:

Categories
Artist Advice Editorials Industry News News

How Many Spotify Streams Do You Need To Live Above The Poverty Line?

Spotify streaming royalties often upset artists, but how many plays does a musician need to live above the poverty line? We did the math.

The streaming wars are raging on. Spotify has more than one hundred million monthly subscribers worldwide, which places the platform far ahead of its peers, but Apple Music and Amazon Music are gaining millions of new users with each passing month. Whether or not the global economy can sustain the numerous streaming platforms won’t be decided for some time, but whether or not artists can survive the streaming economy is a hot topic that needs to be addressed.

Any industry expert will tell you that musicians today have it easy. There are more avenues for exposure than ever, recording music is (or can be) cheap, and an increasing number of artists are finding success outside the traditional label system. It is theoretically possible for anyone with access to a laptop and the ability to convey a melody to become a digital sensation who has fans all over the world without the aid of big label money (though, to be fair, big label money still makes a sizable difference).

Streaming payouts are a relatively new revenue stream for musicians. No one is suggesting artists survive on streaming royalties alone. Still, with physical media sales bottoming out and competition for tour revenue increasing, the money made from streaming can have a significant impact on an artist’s ability to develop, not to mention sustain themselves.

Still, every other week someone goes viral online and builds an entire career of the profits made from streaming royalties. The majority of these overnight sensations are young and without families to support, but they still have the cost of living expenses that need to be met. That got us to thinking: How many streams does it take to survive on streaming revenue alone?

According to the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation (ASPE), the poverty line for single-person households is $11,770. If we ignore how that figure would be hard for anyone to live on in a major city (and most mid-size cities), then we can round up to $12,000 and use streaming revenue calculators to figure out how many Spotify streams someone would need to sustain themselves.

At an average payout of $0.006 per song stream, a musician living in the United States needs 3,000,000 plays annually to have a gross income of $12,000. 

Of course, if the artist has a label deal the record company would get paid before the artist. Depending on the amount owed to the label, the artist may need millions of addition plays to see the same amount of income themselves.

But what about people with families? The ASPE puts the poverty line for a family of four (2 adults, 2 children) at $24,250. Using the same average royalty rate, a musician would need 6,062,500 Spotify streams to earn that amount of gross income.

These numbers get much bigger when the musician is part of a larger group. If a band has four members and all four have families where they were the sole source of income, the group would need to generate 24,250,000 Spotify streams to gross enough so each member’s family would be at or above the poverty line.

Again, no one is saying an artist should survive on streaming royalties alone. Some will be able to make it work, especially if they have a large following and low overhead, but most will need to create as many revenue streams as possible to survive. The key to a long career in music today is through the development of a community around an artist and their work that promotes purchasing merch, physical media, and concert tickets. That has always been true, and likely won’t change anytime soon.

Categories
Business Advice Editorials Industry News News

3 Ways Spotify Should Improve ‘Wrapped’ For Artists

Spotify’s end of year review feature offers a lot of fun insights, but it falls short of giving artists actionable data. We have a solution (or three). 

Spotify released a ‘Wrapped’ feature for artists this week that shares interesting information regarding their performance on the platform. Anyone with access to a Spotify For Artists account can see how much their music was consumed, which days they were most popular, where their fans live, and more through a series of animated slides that — at first glance — appear to offer crucial insights into consumer behavior.

But there’s a problem. While fun data that offers no true value is good for pleasing listeners, artists deserve more. Spotify lives and dies based on whether or not artists choose to promote through their service, so it would benefit the streaming giant to give musicians additional insight into the listening habits of their fans. What they offer now is a good start, but truthfully, the data provided only scratches the surface of what is (in theory) possible. 

Here are three changes that would greatly benefit all musicians and, in turn, help Spotify continue to reign as the preferred platform of people around the globe.

Give musicians more information about their biggest fans.

Spotify For Artists will tell musicians how many users listened to their music more than anyone else in a given year. However, the data stops short of telling us anything about those listeners. Who are they? Where do they come from? Without invading anyone’s privacy, Spotify could share geographic insights to help plan tour routes and targeted digital marketing campaigns. Knowing how many people listened to you more than anyone else is cool, but ultimately useless without any supplementary information.

If Spotify knows when interest peaked, can it tell us why?

Spotify For Artists will tell you the date and hour when your music was most popular. It can also tell you how many times your music was streamed during that hour. What we don’t know, however, is why that surge happened. Was the musician added to an influential playlist? Did all the streams happen for a specific song, such as a newly released single, or was it a bunch of tracks all at once? Was there any rhyme or reason for the surge of interest, or did it merely happen out of the blue? We don’t know any of this information because Spotify stops short of giving artists what they need to craft better marketing campaigns in the future.

Let’s talk about money

The first screen in the Spotify For Artists Wrapped feature shows a musician’s most popular songs for the last year, the total number of streams, and the day that song was played the most. Another screen tells artists the total playtime for all their songs throughout the year. This data is once again interesting, but it doesn’t tell us much in terms of usefulness. Knowing how much money a song generated over the course of a year is more beneficial to an artist than knowing their audience spent 1,000 hours listening to that song. The same goes for the catalog as a whole.

Many artists, especially those with label deals, are splitting their royalties between numerous parties. Receiving a grand total for revenue from Spotify can help shed light on whether or not musicians are receiving the money they earned. It can also help them understand the value or promoting their music through Spotify. 

Categories
Industry News News

Jay Z returns to Spotify in celebration of his 50th birthday

Jay Z did more than most to avoid becoming part of the Spotify machine, but on his 50th birthday, HOV has finally given in.

Ask anyone to list the best rappers of all-time, and most will place Jay Z somewhere in the top 5. From “Hard Knock Life” to “Tom Ford” and countless songs in between, few artists have been as prolific or successful as Jay Z in the history of popular music. His catalog is vast, but until very recently (December 4), fans could only access most of his material through Tidal, the premium streaming service Jay – who also owns the platform – helped bring to the masses in 2015 and Apple Music.

Fans will recall Jay Z’s catalog being on Spotify once before. In April 2017, Hov’s music disappeared from the streaming service “at the request of the artist,” according to an official statement. Reasons for the return are not clear at this time, but you don’t need to be a financial analyst to understand the potential for additional income. 

Jay Z’s reasons for starting Tidal were admirable. At the dawn of Spotify, Jay Z recognized that most of the investors behind the supposed ‘future of music consumption’ were people who had no direct involvement in music. The backers for the Spotify and Deezer and other streaming services were only interested in the money that could be made and not in the art they would use to make money. Tidal, which was initially backed by several significant artists, hoped to bring an artist-approved platform to the masses. 

Tidal is still in existence today, but its userbase trails Spotify and Apple Music by a wide margin. Jay Z’s decision to upload his catalog to Spotify in honor of his 50th birthday is more of a smart business move than an act of secession. Jay Z recognizes that “if you can’t beat ’em, join ’em’ is as relevant today as ever, and he understands the money to be made from adding his music to the world’s most popular platform for audio consumption. 

Furthermore, I would wager Jay Z believes his biggest hits is different than the material marked as ‘popular’ by Spotify before uploading his full catalog. Check it out:

Jay Z’s most popular Spotify songs as of 10AM EST on December 4, 2019

But what does this mean for Tidal? In the short term, probably nothing. Tidal’s chances of becoming the preferred method of music consumption by the world at large were always slim, and I don’t foresee Jay’s decision to join Spotify as something that will ultimately hurt the company. Tidal still has exclusive access to high-fidelity streams of Jay’s material, as well as event streaming capabilities that competing platforms have yet to offer.

It’s likely Jay’s decision is tied to an exclusive engagement contract he had with Tidal. His spouse and pop queen, Beyonce, ended a three-year exclusive streaming deal with Tidal for her album Lemonade in April of this year.

Until Jay Z comments on the change, feel free to revisit his essential tracks via the Spotify playlist below:

Categories
Industry News News

Labels can now pay Spotify to promote artists on its platform

Spotify is testing a new ad platform that allows artist teams to promote music directly to fans without turning to third-party applications.

Spotify users are already familiar with ‘Music For You’ notifications. These alerts appear on screen to inform fans and followers of an artist when their favorite musicians have a new release. It is a helpful tool that encourages fans to support the music they love in a crowded marketplace where nobody can remember every release date. And now, for the first time, those notifications are for sale.

A ‘New Music For You’ notification

This week, Spotify began testing a new tool in the United States the allows record labels and artists to purchase ‘Music For You’ notifications for their latest releases. The pop-ups will land within both free and premium accounts using the same algorithm already in place for organic (free) notifications to alert an artist’s most dedicated followers.

Spotify Founder and CEO Daniel Ek hinted at the ads during the company’s Q2 earnings call earlier this year. Speaking to investors, Ek said, “We believe we can find a way to charge record companies to pay to promote their artists directly to their fans on our platform without p**sing off our users too much. If we succeed, labels might then switch some of their digital ad spend away from Google, Facebook, and Instagram, and over to us.” 

In simpler terms, Spotify knows labels and musicians pay social media platforms to run ads that inevitably link to an artist’s Spotify page. The streaming giant hopes the opportunity to push engagement through its platform instead of third-part apps will lead the industry to invest more money into Spotify (in hopes of earning more through the platform).

Music Business Worldwide reports that Premium Spotify users will be able to turn off sponsored ‘Music For You’ alerts, but free users will be stuck with them.

Spotify’s introduction of ‘Music For You’ alerts could not have been smoother. Users are already familiar with the notification system, and many rely on the service to help them remember when musicians release new material. Though the company has not shared any data with the public, one can assume the company knows the conversion rates for these messages and is factoring them into the pricing for paid promotion. It’s already a proven marketing tool despite no one paying for access before this moment. 

The situation also brings to mind the metaphor of a snake eating its tail. Music professionals often complain about the low royalty rates Spotify pays out, and now many will give Spotify money out of their pockets in hopes of getting additional revenue. It’s a vicious cycle that opens up a world of ‘pay to play’ possibilities that could hinder independent artists from gaining traction for their music.

Jordyn Reese, Product Manager, US Latin & Urban, ONErpm, said: “As an independent distributor, it’s essential for us to spend our marketing budgets wisely and find creative strategies to develop our artists’ audiences. It’s really exciting to see Spotify is creating tools that are designed from the ground up with music marketing in mind and giving indies more power to reach their fans with new music. This will absolutely be one of the top tools in our growth arsenal.”

Categories
Artist Advice Business Advice Editorials Industry News News

How To Make The Most Of Spotify’s Canvas Tool

There are going to be a lot more looping videos on Spotify in the near future, and that’s good news for everyone.

Spotify is taking further steps to empower artists on its platform. This week, the streaming giant is expanding its Canvas visualization beta program to more of the ‘most active Spotify for Artists’ users. The company claims that adding a ‘high-quality [clip] to a track can increase streams, saves, artist profile visits, and shares.’

Canvas allows artists to create and feature looping visuals in the “Now Playing” area, which Spotify says is the most-viewed location in the Spotify mobile app. The clips last 3-8 seconds and can be updated as often as the artist desires. Here’s a Canvas clip in action for reference:

According to Spotify, “adding a high-quality Canvas to a track has increased streams by up to 120% and saves by up to 114%, in addition to lifts in artist profile visits and shares.”

The company adds, “It’s a way to get noticed and build a vision — and an excellent way to share more of who you are with your listeners, hopefully turning them into fans.”

But what makes a Canvas good, and how can artists on tight budgets compete with stylized visuals major labels can provide? Here are some tips to get you started:

Vertical video is king

Canvas uploads will be viewed by people holding their devices as they use the Spotify app. With this in mind, make sure the clips you upload are formatted for a vertical video presentation. 

Do not use your song title or artist name

That information is already present on the screen. There is something to be said for emphasizing your branding, of course, but Canvas is not the place to make that a priority. Canvas uploads should reflect the aesthetic of your music. Think of it as an extension of the music itself. It’s an expression of who you are as an artist, and you shouldn’t waste the limited space available to you with restating information that is already clearly available on the screen.

Avoid footage with talking, singing, or rapping.

Canvas clips are 3-8 seconds in length. If your clip features mouths moving they will rarely, if ever, sync up with the music. That could distract people, which in turn will make them lose interest in the song. 

Keep rapid cuts and flashing graphics to a minimum.

There are a number of people with sensitivities to strobe lights, as well as people who feel overwhelmed by quick edits. You want your Canvas to be as appealing as possible to as many people as possible, so try to avoid anything that might make people sick or otherwise uncomfortable.

Try telling a (very short) story.

3-8 seconds is not very long, but there are many ways to make something that grabs and holds listeners’ attention in that amount of time. After all, .gifs are equally as short and they’re widely considered currency in internet culture. Take up the challenge of creating content that seamlessly loops, or perhaps string together all the Canvas clips for your album to tell a single story. Think outside the box. Be weird. 

People love a theme.

If storytelling is not your strength, try using canvas to tie your music together with a theme. Pull from your artwork or branding to create visuals that leave a lasting impression on viewers. For example, if you have flowers on your cover art, try using flowers throughout the Canvas loops created for the individual tracks.

Focus on the middle.

What people see at the edge of your Canvas clip will depend on the device they are using to view the loop. With this in mind, keep the most important content of your video centered in the frame. That way, everyone who views the clip is guaranteed to see what you created in full.

Update often.

Canvas loops should not be considered a one and done scenario. Some artists have found success by changing their loops every week, while others rotate visuals on a bi-weekly or monthly basis. Keep listeners on their toes by giving them new content to discover on a regular basis.

Don’t be an idiot.

People of all ages, genders, and ethnicities use Spotify to discover music. Creating Canvas clips containing violence, sex, or anything insensitive will get your content pulled and limit the potential reach of your music. In certain cases, Spotify may even delete your account. 

Categories
Industry News News

Spotify surpasses 230 million monthly users, 108 million subscribers

In a new call with investors, Spotify revealed continued, if slow, growth.

It’s good to be king. Spotify was the first to make a big splash with music streaming, and their early entry into the marketplace helped propel the Swedish company to the top of the food chain. These days, the term Spotify has become synonymous with streaming. “You can find them on Spotify” means, “you can stream their music online.” That’s an excellent place to be, and the latest stats for the music company show the good times are far from over.

Spotify held its Q2 earnings call with investors earlier this week. During the update, the company announced it had passed 232 million monthly active users, up 29% since this time last year. Spotify also boasts 108 million paid subscribers, up 31% year over year. An infographic detailing all the latest developments at the company was also released. Check it out:

The biggest announcements of Spotify’s Q2 earnings report.

Apple Music is Spotify’s closest competitor. At the beginning of July, Apple Music announced it had just surpassed the 60 million subscriber mark, which leaves Spotify with a substantial lead. However, the new data from Spotify reveals a slowing adoption rate for subscribers. The cause for that slowdown is not clear, but market saturation and increased competition are two likely factors contributing to the change.

Spotify has a lot of developments on the horizon that the company hopes will raise the growth rate, including additional podcast content and a device for automobiles that will eliminate the need for terrestrial radio in vehicles. You can learn more about the device, which has been dubbed the ‘car thing,’ in the Music Biz News clip below.

Exit mobile version