Industry news & advice blog

So you’ve just put out your new release and got it up on the major music streaming platforms. Congrats! But the hard work doesn't stop there. As good as your track may be, you’re going to need to continue promoting your music in order to reach the top.

To get your music into the ears of as many new fans as possible, here are some expert music marketing tips from global music distributor Ditto Music to help you reach new levels of stardom...


Pre-release recap

Before your release date, you’ll have likely been pushing news of your upcoming track or album across your social media profiles and began building hype amongst your fanbase.

If you’re on top of everything and have already carried out these tasks, then great job. But just in case something’s slipped your mind, here’s a checklist for you to quickly run over:

• Have your music press release ready to go
  We recommend sending this out around 2 weeks before your release date.
  
  
• Nail your artist bio and align this across all of your online profiles
  Make sure to include a Pre-Save link.
  
  
• Start pitching to radio stations and for Spotify placements
  Playlists like Release Radar require at least 7 days' notice before your release date.
  
  
• Have your eye-catching artwork ready
  Begin dropping teasers on your social media.
  
  
• Plan any new merch drops ready for your next live shows
  Be as creative as possible and lean into what your fans want!
  
  
• Map out your social media content calendar
  Even a rough outline will help you organise tasks.
  
  

Of course, there are loads of other things you can also be doing prior to your release date, but we won’t dwell on that too much. Your track is already out there, so let’s get stuck into how you can keep promoting it!


Execute your online marketing strategy

Now that things are live, you’ll need to up your marketing activities and step your creativity up a notch.

Luckily, artists have more tools at their disposal than ever before to help them promote music independently. Let’s take a closer look at some of the best things you can do to market your music once it’s released.


Social media promotion tips

We all know how important social media is within music marketing, but very few artists manage to nail their strategies the first time around.

One of the best (and cheapest) ways to promote your music is via social media, and where better to start than TikTok. Known for its viral trends, TikTok is the perfect place for you to promote your music once it’s live on streaming services.

Begin by posting short edits of your tracks on TikTok. If you have a catchy verse or line in your song, try pushing this to see if there’s any possibility of it becoming a trend.

A recent and successful example of this strategy turning viral is Dublin-based group Versatile. Their latest track ‘Blue Razz’ gathered so much traction on TikTok that they managed to land a spot on the Irish Charts. Not bad going for a free social media app.

It’s also worth noting that 51% of TikTok users prefer the platform to Google for searching too, so make sure you’re utilising relevant hashtags to make it easy for your fans to find you.

If you’ve collaborated with other artists on your track or album, make sure to tag them in your TikTok vids and ask them to also share across their socials. The same goes for if you’ve covered or sampled anyone else’s songs. Try reaching out to them to see if they’d be up for promoting your music on their profiles.

Once you’ve posted to TikTok, look to mirror your content across other social media accounts, sharing on Instagram Reels, Threads, YouTube Shorts and any other platforms you market your music on.

TikTok sorted. Now onto some top tips for promoting your music on Instagram.

An easy win, but again make sure to update your bios to include your track links and direct your fans to this from your posts. E.g. “Thanks for the love on the new track. Link in bio!”

You can also choose to go ‘live’ on Instagram and interact with your fans. Why not consider live-streaming a bedroom version of your new song? Or run a vinyl giveaway offer in return for people sharing your song on their own profiles? All of this will help build excitement around your release.

Instagram stories offer another easy and instant way to promote yourself - you don’t even have to do any of the hard work. Simply reshare to your own story through a couple of clicks. Plus, you’ll get to engage with your fans and boost your relationships with them. A win-win.

Whatever channels you’re using, you’ll need to mix up your content. Combine short and long-form videos as well as heartfelt written content across X (Twitter), Threads and even Facebook if that’s what your audience prefers.

Social media might require the majority of your marketing focus, but you shouldn’t count out the value of traditional email marketing too.

Creating personalised email campaigns and sending out your music to music blogs and journalists is another great way of enhancing your overall music marketing strategy and shouldn’t be overlooked. Make sure to include some of this in your next campaign.




Analyse your streaming stats

If you’re selling your music on Spotify and Apple Music, then you’ll be able to access even more cool marketing features to help you promote your tunes.

Spotify offers artists unique tools like Codes and Canvas to help your marketing campaigns stand out even more. Definitely worth checking these out.

You’ll just need to verify your accounts to gain exclusive access to Spotify for Artists and Apple Music for Artists and be able to deep dive into your audiences - helping you better plan out where you should be touring and targeting.


Promote at live shows

Moving away from the online stuff, it’s essential you continue promoting your music in person and at your shows. Include your new track within your setlists and make a point of letting fans know “This one’s a new release, stream it now!”

Encourage your fans to share clips back to your social media pages and plug your handles. You never know, this might even start a trend on TikTok or X.

You can even choose to film a music video or release a live version of your track to boost its promotion. Once you’ve done this, edit and split things into shorter pieces of content and post them on Shorts, Reels, your Instagram feed, and other social media platforms to keep the conversation going.

Exciting visual content is key for promoting your music once it’s out there.

Unlike TikTok videos, musical success doesn’t quite happen overnight. It takes time to grow your music brand and is an ongoing process that requires patience and a lot of work. That said, if you manage to effectively carry out the different marketing strategies we’ve covered here, you’ll be putting yourself in the best position possible to maximise your music’s success!



Ditto Music is one of the world’s leading music distribution, record label and artist services companies. With offices across the globe, Ditto has helped over a million independent artists & labels make the most out of their music careers - and keep 100% of their earnings while doing so.

Alongside distributing your music to all major music stores around the world, Ditto also offers artists the chance to land sync placements and publishing deals as well as additional promotional services to spread the word about your music even further.

Sign up to Ditto Music and get 30% off a subscription with the code UNSIGNEDGUIDE30.