Playlists + Meta Ads: Spotify promo that works

In my recent announcement of SubmitHub Packages, I mentioned that there are two effective strategies for promoting your music:

• Trigger the Spotify algorithm using playlists and Meta Ads
• Get blog posts so that ChatGPT / Google knows who you are

In this article, I'll dive into one way you can trigger the Spotify algorithm.

Triggering the Spotify algorithm

To do well on Spotify, you've got to get listeners. This can be done in a few ways:

• Third-party playlisters
• Meta Ads on Instagram and Facebook
• Spotify's in-house tools (Marquee, Discovery Mode)

The first two you can do at any time. The Spotify one is only available to some artists.

One of the simplest ways to get started is by using SubmitHub's Package feature to contact playlists and launch Meta Ads.

Playlists

• Pros: Quickly boost your stream count; teach the Spotify algorithm to associate your song with similar acts
• Cons: Limited engagement - most people listen to playlists in the background

Meta Ads

• Pros: Directly target individual listeners who are more likely to save / engage with your content
• Cons: Slow and more expensive per-stream

The reason why you should do both

In short: a combo of playlists + ads helps you monetize your content and trigger the algorithm.

• Spotify says you gotta hit 1,000 streams to monetize your content
• Algorithmic playback is triggered when you increase your Spotify popularity score (20 for radio, 30 for release radar)

The playlists help you get streams quickly, while the ads send positive signals to Spotify's algorithm (you want to show them that people are saving your music for a second or third listen!).

Is it guaranteed to work?

No, nothing's ever guaranteed. But it works for a lot of people.

Your song still has to be good. AND it needs to resonate with listeners. Not every song will do that.

If you find that you've put $100 or $200 into this strategy without seeing a growth in your popularity score or a meaningful uptick in listeners, I don't recommend pouring in a lot more. You should be able to know within that initial spend whether it's worth putting in more, or moving on to the next song.

How to get started?

If you want to explore trying this strategy with one of your own songs, head to the SubmitHub Packages page.