Thanks to online distribution services like Tunecore, everyone can have their music on streaming platforms like Spotify, Apple Music, Deezer, TikTok, etc. as soon as they have music to share! Here are 10 Things to Know about Online Music Distribution👇
1. Online Music Distribution is accessible to everyone! ✌️
Gone are the days of sending a demo of your music to a record company, then hoping that one day, if the stars align, you’ll get a response. The rise of the internet and online music platforms have made music distribution simple!! Today, thanks to online services like TuneCore, all you have to do is create your account and send your music to digital stores and streaming platforms. TuneCore takes charge of distributing it as widely as possible! And at the end of the month, TuneCore sends you your royalty accounting and a paycheck. There’s no selection process – everyone can be on Spotify as soon as they have music to share!
| Read also: How to get more Streams on Spotify?
2. Distribution is not a huge investment. 📈
Now that you know that being on streaming platforms is not just for Ariana Grande and Drake, you’re naturally asking yourself: how much does it cost? Again, the service is meant to be accessible to all!
You can distribute your music with unlimited subscriptions or pay per release (see details below). So there’s no need to break the bank. In fact it will earn you an income!
| Read also: How to choose a budget for your release?
TuneCore unlimited subscription plans
Tunecore’s pricing for pay-per-release
3. Distribution is big source of income in music and you keep 100% of it! 💰
Each streaming play, download or use of your music in a video brings you money. After distributing your music, TuneCore collects your earnings and makes them available in your TuneCore account. There’s no commission on this money, you get to keep 100% of it to reinvest in other parts of your project, such as promotion (poke 👉Groover), your instruments, or the tour bus of your dreams! While this seems logical, historically artists only touched a small percentage of these royalties, with the majority going back to the label or record company. This is a revolution that gives independent artists more power, but – as Peter Parker’s uncle in Spider Man would say – also more responsibility.
4. It’s fast! But take your time.
When you’ve got new music fresh from the studio, you’ve got only one thing on your mind: sharing it with the world! Great news! It’s possible to distribute your music via TuneCore in just a few days. However, we strongly advise you to allow 3 to 4 weeks between uploading your music and the date of its release. Why? Firstly, it gives you time to prepare your release plan with your promotional service (Looking at you again 👀 Groover). Secondly, because it gives the music platform editors the opportunity to listen to your track. And finally, it leaves some room if you need to make any modifications to your release information: credits, cover art, etc.
| Read also: How to get on Spotify playlists?
5. You don’t need to be an expert to get started 🧐
Most independent artists are self-taught, meaning that they learned through practice. It’s the same for music distribution. It isn’t rocket science and anyone can get started. The TuneCore website was created to guide you step by step, all the while giving you the necessary resources to go further. You also have access to a support team (based in France and the US) who can respond to all your specific questions and requests.
6. You can aim for the whole world 🌍
The advantage of digital distribution is that you don’t have to invest in production costs (CD, vinyl) or in logistics (transport, storage). With TuneCore your music is distributed to over 150 platforms all over the world. It’s not expensive and it can bring you a lot more income and visibility. In France people are most familiar with platforms like Deezer, Spotify and Apple, but each country has its own favorite platforms for listening to music (Gaana in India, Tencent in China, VK in Russia etc). So the best thing to do is to make your music available to the greatest number of listeners across the globe!
| Read also: 7 Tips for musicians to boost their visibility
7. You can share your music on social media (Tik Tok, Instagram etc)
These days, the line between music listening platforms and social media is getting thinner and thinner. That’s why it’s very important to make your music accessible in the music libraries of Instagram or Tik Tok. This allows your fans to share your music with their followers, giving it the chance to go viral. The good news is that TuneCore also distributes your music on these networks. The other good news is that the use of your music on these networks generates additional income on top of the income generated from music listening platforms!
8. Your cover art should not contain text.🎨
Apart from the title of the album or single and the name of the artists, music platforms will reject any text that appears on your cover art. This is good information to share with your graphic designer or to keep in mind for yourself when you create your cover art.
9. You can broadcast your music with a cross-platform link 🎡
When you share your music, you need to put yourself in the place of the potential listener who might discover it. This listener might not use the same streaming platform as you, so to optimize your chances that they will hear it, you must make life easy for them by making it accessible with a single link / single click. To do this there are great free tools like SmartUrl that allow you to create a cross-platform link that will redirect the listener to your music on the streaming platform of their choice.
| Read also: Smart Links – How to share your music all in one place?
10. Don’t stop at distribution!🙅♂
Once your music is available on streaming platforms, your work is not done! There are other steps you can take to give your project life, the first of which is promoting it. This is where Groover comes in to help you get discovered and to broadcast your music to the right people!
I hope that you now know a bit more about online music distribution and above all that you’re excited to get started. We’re lucky to live in a time when music creation is accessible for all. It’s now up to you to seize your moment, learn and have fun while doing it!
Distribute your music now and get 20% off TuneCore Semi-Pro and Pro subscriptions by clicking on this link.
Your music is about to be released? Try Groover now and promote your tracks to the best media, playlists, radios and labels