As easy as it has become to make your music available to the masses, you must not take the leap without some advanced planning.
All music artists that want the release to go smoothly and their work to stand out and reach their desired level of success follow the pre-release checklist below.
5 Things You Should Do Before Releasing Your Next Single or Album
1. Create a 3-Month Marketing Plan
When it comes to releasing a new single or album, there’s nothing like being too proactive.
You must devise a well-thought-out marketing plan for at least three months, breaking every campaign into stages. Think about the strategies and tactics you’ll use to grab the audience’s attention.
Do you want to do a premier with a media outlet or a music blog? Will you promote your song/s on the radio or only rely on social media and print media?
Whether you choose to use one platform or a combination to introduce your new work to the world, your goal should be to make an impact and leave people wanting more.
That said, creating a timeline of the milestones you wish to achieve during the first three months is a good idea. It won’t only help track your goals and measure results but also provide insights into what you shouldn’t do the next time you want to release a single or album.
2. Define Your Narrative
What’s the unique narrative of your new single or album?
You must tie it well with your overall personality and approach as an artist to secure press features. Ponder over the story of your song/s and what message you want to convey to the audience.
You could send the final product to press outlets to convince them that you have an interesting story to share with the audience.
3. Update Your Website
Before releasing the single or album, make sure you’ve updated your bio and website with the details of your new work. You must also take some press photos to make your campaign more impactful.
And don’t forget to update your profile on online gig platforms if you wish to secure press to support your new track/s.
4. Register the Song/s
Registering your work with the local copyright office and your performing rights organization is one of the most important things you should do before releasing your next single or album.
It’ll help protect your song/s, track analytics, and collect royalties if someone uses or covers your work.
5. Prepare Visuals and Marketing Materials
Another thing you must do before dropping your next single or album to the world is to create the cover artwork and prepare all marketing materials to launch your campaign successfully. Make sure all design elements, language, and overall aesthetics are in line with your personality and reputation as an artist.
If you plan to shoot a music video later, think about its concept, release date, promo plan, and filming logistics ahead of time to ensure everything goes smoothly.
Final Words
As eager as you are to drop new music, you should follow this pre-release checklist and give yourself a few months of planning to ensure your single or album release is nothing short of perfect.
Having the patience to take the necessary steps before release will go a long way to help you gain maximum traction while generating revenue from your music.
Best of luck!
Eric Dalius is The Executive Chairman of MuzicSwipe, a music and content discovery platform designed to maximize artist discovery and optimize fan relationships. Along with his work at MuzicSwipe, he also interviews groundbreaking entrepreneurs on his weekly podcast, “FULLSPEED.” Eric also founded the “Eric Dalius Foundation” to support US students with four scholarships. Follow his journey on Twitter, Facebook,YouTube, LinkedIn, Instagram, and Entrepreneur.com.
