You just wrote the song of the century. You’re going to blow up–you’re sure of it.

Several weeks go by, but only a couple dozen people have listened to it. What’s going on?

Sometimes, even the best songs need help reaching a wider audience. You need to learn how to promote your music.

You don’t need a record label or a manager to learn how to get more plays on SoundCloud. You can do it all by yourself.

Don’t believe me? Keep reading to pick up these valuable tips to get your music heard.

How to Promote Your Music to an Audience

In a lot of ways, making music is like running a business. You need to create a product that your target audience wants.

You need a SoundCloud marketing plan.

State your goals and your target market, then develop a product that meets these goals.

To do this, you need to understand who your fans are. What are their personalities? Do they listen to music to relax or to party?

Research 

If you want to do some field research, you should attend some concerts by musicians similar to you. Strike up a conversation with some fans and learn why they like this musician.

If you already have a fanbase, you can survey your current listeners. What other musicians do they listen to? What do they like about your music, or what don’t they like?

Alternatively, you can browse the forums or read the comments on YouTube to see what people are saying about similar artists.

Marketing Persona

Once you’ve done your research, you should create a marketing persona. This is a profile of the average fan.

Try to make your description as specific as possible. 

Beyond SoundCloud, where else are they looking for music? Is it YouTube, Spotify, Bandcamp, or somewhere else?

People used to discover new music through DJs, but today people are turning to tastemakers.

They are bloggers, online DJs, or playlist creators with large online followings. Take note of which tastemakers your audience trusts the most.

Try to find the best niche for your music and give your audience what they want.

Analyze and Strategize

Now that you know who your music is for, you need to analyze your user and traffic information. You want to make sure your music is resonating with your target audience.

SoundCloud Pro Unlimited can show you key demographic information about your current audience. The downside is that you have to pay a fee for this service.

YouTube analytics is a free option that shows you what else your viewers are listening to. It can also show you the bounce rate, meaning at what point they stop listening to your track.

The downside to YouTube is that it only shows you stats for people who listen to your music on YouTube. If you don’t really use that platform, this may not be a great option.

There are other free analytic services, like Google, Facebook, or Twitter, that you can use to influence your SoundCloud promotion strategy.

Use Social Media

You don’t need to use every platform, but you should use a couple that you like and that your fans use.

Users like engaging with their favorite musicians online, and you can do that while promoting your music. SoundCloud makes it easy to link your music to social media.

You can also offer incentives to your followers, like offering a sneak peek of upcoming songs. SoundCloud allows you to privately share tracks with others.

This keeps fans around and always waiting for the next song to drop.

Reach Out to Tastemakers

If you’re wondering how to get more plays on SoundCloud, you should contact tastemakers who promote music similar to yours.

It’s common for musicians to ask tastemakers for free SoundCloud promotion. If they like your music, they’d be happy to include it in their next mix.

Be Active on SoundCloud

Follow other people and repost music that you like. Leave comments and join groups. Be active.

Building a community will help you get more plays on SoundCloud, and you might make some friends along the way. Who knows, you may collaborate and share beats with each other in the future.

Additionally, don’t forget to keep posting music. You can engage your audience by posting works in progress and asking for feedback.

You can also embrace the medium and comment on your own waveform to tell a story. You can talk about the writing process, or even ask for feedback on certain parts.

SoundCloud Pro Unlimited is great because you can update versions of a song without losing likes, comments, and plays. That way, you won’t be penalized for improving your music.

And don’t forget to post a link to where people can buy your tracks!

Spend Some Time on Your Album Art

Your album art will be attached to your music wherever it’s posted, so you want to make sure it’s appealing. Spend some time to make an attractive, high-quality image.

It should be a JPEG or PNG that’s at least 800×800 pixels.

If design isn’t your thing, don’t be afraid to reach out and hire a designer. It’s a smart investment because the more attractive your cover art is, the more SoundCloud promotion it will get.

Tag Your Tracks

Once you’ve done your research and have put yourself in a good position, don’t forget the final step: tagging your tracks.

You want to make your stuff easy to find for those browsing SoundCloud.

Tag things like mood, genres, and prominent instruments in your music. However, don’t overstuff your tags.

You should stick to only one or two genres. Just like when nailing down your target audience, you want to be as specific as possible. 

Watch Your Numbers Rise

There’s an art to learning how to promote your music, so don’t worry if you don’t blow up overnight. By implementing these strategies, you’ll get more plays on your SoundCloud before you know it.

Do you have any tips and tricks to share? Let us know in the comments below.

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