Planning your launch calendar is one of the most enjoyable parts of music promotion. Your album is nearly completed!
However, it’s hard to place together a release calendar without missing anything—and that could have serious consequences for your promotion efforts.
Nonetheless, you will not have to worry when you keep the main points in mind.
Here are 6 vital dates you could not afford to miss for your launch.
1. Distribution window
Digital distribution is as simple as it’s ever been. However, that does not mean that you will not encounter stumbling blocks along the way.
The best way to protect your launch strategy is to offer yourself plenty of time in advance of your deadlines.
That goes double in case your launch contains samples that should be cleared or cover songs.
It isn’t that you could not include these things, they just tend to add some time to the process.
The first vital date you need to add to your calendar is good long window for passing the bar on distribution. Particularly when you have covers and samples!
2. Lead time for physical duplication
Will you be making physical copies of your music in any form? If so, you will be including some moving parts to your launch.
However, that’s okay! Physical music media still sells surprisingly well, particularly when you are selling it yourself at live shows and events.
In the analog era, you would need to have your physicals in hand before launch—there was no other method to hear the music!
However, right now, your digital properties could be ready much quicker. Do your greatest to sync things up, even if it isn’t completely important.
Having a stack of vinyls to sell at a launch show is extremely satisfying!
When you are duplicating independently, most vendors could offer you fairly reliable dates for when your run will ship.
However, ensure to permit for some wiggle room in case you encounter any delays. They could occur unexpectedly.
3. Premieres, singles, video launch dates
Premieres are a super efficient strategy for promoting your launch.
A premiere means giving a media outlet exclusive access to streaming your track before it officially debuts with the rest of the release.
Blog curators love premieres since they could redirect the traffic you would usually generate on multiple channels exclusively to their platform.
Think of it like an extra incentive for them to offer coverage of your launch. Premieres are a symbiotic relationship that may permit you to get posted on media with a broader reach.
Video launches are another take on this idea.
Music outlets are even more likely to cover a pre-release single if it has a video. Richer content usually holds the listener’s attention better, making it more useful to blogs and aggregators.
Secure a premiere or video launch for your main “single” at the very least. And attempt to discover them for the rest of the forward-facing tracks from your launch.
Get the dates of your premieres onto your calendar as quick as you could, and keep them in mind. These might be some of the largest events in your launch cycle.
4. Album launch party
Did you think music promotion was only online these days? Wrong.
Offline music promotion will always be an essential channel.
That means that real-world events like concerts and tours are still an enormous part of music promotion.
Even when you aren’t making physical copies of your launch, marking the occasion with an IRL experience is essential.
Book your album launch far enough in advance to ensure you get your first choice of venues and supporting acts for the bill.
5. Social roll-out
Social media is a vital part of any launch. You should be strategic about how you post on socials coming up to launch.
Keep in mind that even though people may be excited about your launch, countdowns and teaser posts do not really offer something your followers can work together with meaningfully.
As an alternative, attempt to calendar out an interesting stream of content material upfront utilizing the promotional supplies you created for the discharge.
Reading an interview, streaming a premiere, or watching a video is much more satisfying on your followers than scrolling past empty hype posts.
Use your launch calendar to ensure your social cadence keeps up steam as you move toward the date.
6. The day it goes live
An important date on your launch calendar is the day it comes out!
That is your drop-dead deadline, however, it does not have to be scary.
A little bit of deadline pressure could give you great incentive to complete your launch materials.
Set your launch date conservatively, however, with enough urgency to motivate you to follow through.
Don’t fear about coordinating your launch events perfectly with the date, just aim for a sense of cohesion around the time your music becomes available to followers.
Release calendar year
Placing together your launch calendar is a vital part of making the largest splash you could with your launch.
With all of the work you have put into making your music, you should give your launch schedule the same attention.
So get ready to put it out there—however, be sure to include these six essential dates on your launch calendar.