There’s a myriad of ways to track user engagement but these methods primarily depend on content. YouTube measures it from views while Instagram bases it on likes and comments. Meanwhile, musicians gauge it through play counts.
It’s a common tradition for musicians to use a blogging platform to promote their work. However, there’s a more effective approach to garner more attention. By campaigning through SoundCloud, you can work on the improvement of your metrics.
In this feature, we’ll discuss these SoundCloud marketing and promotional tactics boost your online presence thereby increasing your play count.
Why SoundCloud Instead of Other Media Networks?
While SoundCloud has an end game of promoting your content, it works differently in comparison to Facebook and Instagram. Unlike these media networks, SoundCloud contains a news feed that chronologically contains all of the uploaded contents as well as the reposted ones of the accounts you are following without a content filtering system.
This puts you at an advantage if you’ve got thousands of followers since they can easily find your newest post. This is way better compared to the 10-20% like-to-view ratio normally seen on a regular, unenhanced Facebook post.
Typically, a follower’s “value” on audio-centric platforms like SoundCloud, YouTube, and Spotify is better than Twitter and Instagram. This is also the reason why the latter networks have been adding a video feature on their platform. Since people are focused on perusing the content, there is a higher chance they would like it compared to posts that solely pop up in their news feed. Chances are, they would just swipe over your updates and forget them the next day.
Celebrities are now realizing the need to get more engagement with their fans by using SoundCloud.
7 Soundcloud Marketing and Promotional Tactics
1# SoundCloud Promotional Channels
An artist must know how to promote his craft. Fortunately, SoundCloud has various promotional channels for hosting an artist’s music. These channels spread the music to their audience, regardless of its size.
These accounts are usually considered SoundCloud labels. While old-school varieties like Monstercat function the same way, they don’t deal music to stores like iTunes, Spotify, and more.
Similar to YouTube’s promotional channels, SoundCloud has produced highly successful networks that emerged from unnoticed labels to big shots. Once a record label becomes more fruitful, it can already set up distribution, sign records, and monetize copyrights.
What’s even better is when the records score well, the channels will receive interaction and drive traffic to their accounts. There are like-to-download gates you can apply to speed up the process. We will talk about this feature later.
Because artists would naturally want to get all the exposure they need, reposting the content becomes second nature. When an artist’s presence grows, it’s easier for the audience to access his content.
2# Like To Download Gates
Like to download gates simplify the exchanging of contents for various social actions. For instance, an artist can give a follower the right to download an MP3 file of his track, provided that the latter does certain conditions. You can utilize this feature to increase followers, reposts, likes, and more.
When uploading a specific track to either YouTube or SoundCloud, an option for customizing the buy button is available. In this case, let’s use the term ‘Free Download’.
After editing the button, you can add a link directing it to the gate for that specific release, or simply add it to the description of the video. This way, your listeners would get an idea that you are offering them a free track by fulfilling some social interactions.
With this feature, you can even collaborate with other artists, which promotes mutual benefit. If you’re a bigger star, you can work with an upcoming artist to promote his channel.
In exchange, the artist widens your popularity further. This strategy is effective if you already know the areas you haven’t touched yet.
3# Expanding Networks
Bigger channels extend their reach by forming sister channels that can repost updates and releases. If you’re partnering with these larger channels, there’s a good chance you’ll expand your network. Take note that if you’re acting as a sister channel, you can do repost trading as well, but we’ll talk about that in a bit.
Usually, the inclusion of a download gate helps these channels grow. In turn, they can upload any record including the original ones into those particular gates. It results in an endless symbiotic network that gains benefits when its assets become more exposed.
In addition, larger networks frequently use casual publicists to help endorse their material. This improves promotion and possibly saves money for PR expenses given that a publicist is working with them.
4# Pitching Your Way To Get Featured
Being part of an established promotional label in SoundCloud can be a challenge. Some labels receive more than a hundred submissions in a month, yet only upload a track or two during that timeframe. Meanwhile, promo channels experience the same excessive amount of material from blog creators.
There are unwritten basic rules related to SoundCloud pitching. Basically, these “do’s and don’ts” of pitching revolve around respect and proper ethics. After all, pitching to SoundCloud promotional labels follows the same rules as to how freelance writers should send pitches to blog owners. Generally, you want to get close to channel owners instead of depending on general submission emails.
One way to get featured is by Facebook’s “Find friends” search tool. Just input the name of the channel using “Find friends” under the “Employer” section. Given this, you can find the owner’s name and possibly reach out to him.
While Facebook pitches are somehow an awkward medium to start relationships, it’s still a viable option. Most channel operators are young, and might still use Facebook.
Don’t hesitate to send them a message introducing yourself while praising their recent upload. Be more genuine with your approach by getting in touch with his work.
Once you’ve pulled his heartstrings, you may segue a subtle pitch. Don’t be brash as he will immediately realize this and it may turn his head the other way.
5# Trading of Repost
Trading of repost is the main highlight of promotions in SoundCloud. In this section, we’re going to show you how to leverage its power to your advantage.
A repost trade is a mutual link between two SoundCloud account owners. Usually, your channels are paired according to size to have an equal playing field. Also, it saves you the pressure when reposting uploads from the accounts as both of you have more or less the same goals.
Of course, reposts are not all equal. Your play to follower ratio will always be different from other networks and channels. There is a close connection between the frequency of reposts and the number of real listeners. This explains why established artists who usually repost less than promo channels still have a higher ratio than a frequently posting channel with a secondary audience.
There is a tier that divides different channels, categorizing them according to size. An account with say two thousand followers may not want to trade with an account with 500 followers, whereas a 50,000-account will probably consider purchasing with someone with 45,000 followers or closer.
Take note that some channels may claim to have more followers than their actual count. They do this by combining all the follower counts from other channels. However, sister channels grow their followers through gate inclusion causing an audience overlay.
6# Things To Consider When Pitching for a Repost Trade
You must know the background of the artist you’re pitching to like if they are doing reposts. Not all artists do reposts on their SoundCloud pages. If they do, only for friends but under same record company. Most of the time, company labels limit reposts among their artists.
To narrow down an audience, you can do some pitching with music they are not inclined to liking. However, check whether the channel or artist is producing a more specific sound or is more tolerant of various options.
Most channels and labels stick to disciplined schedules. To determine which one floats your boat, find out what specific times in a day they repost as well as its frequency.
7# Forms of SoundCloud Promotion
You can apply these tactics that channels often do, then formulate your own technique:
- Pay directly large SoundCloud channels to repost your track. The pricing is different per channel. You could put reposts of individual channels into groups at $20 per bundle or pay a bigger channel for promotion across their network.
- Practically, hiring a publicist or promotional company to do the campaigning for you can be an option. Also, pricing varies on how far the publicist’s connections will reach.
- Pricing should depend on the volume of exposure instead of the actual number of plays received.
Author Bio: Davis Barbarap
