New FREE Book!

BREAK IN

Ready To Hit The Billboard Charts? Here's 7 Tips To Charting Your Next Music Release

By Team Carlos McKinney

Grammy Award Winning Producer Music & Music Marketing Expert .
Sept. 1,  2020
It’s a dream to hit the Billboard Top 100.

Well, I guess it’s every artist’s dream, although it may be daunting at the same time.

Even music producers and record labels would agree to this. If you come to think of it, hitting the music charts could be the end-all-and-be-all of any music career. (Well, hitting the charts from time to time at least.)

But before hitting the charts, there’s so much more to it than meets the eye. Or so to speak, there’s more to it than just “being seen on the list.”

It requires hard work, strategy, and a whole lot of promotion that should come from the background before any artist can see their work land on the top-selling music charts.

Or at most hit the top one spot.

Although this may seem pretty much of a hard climb to many, hitting the charts for your album release is not impossible.

You can even do it the next time you release your album or EP. Just listen to the steps we’re about to tell you in a few.

All you need to do is put your head in the game and follow these tips to help you finally achieve more success as an artist and go on to reach the peak of your music career.

Your next question would probably be, but how?

Don’t worry because we’ve come out with tips to help you chart on your next album release.

Think you’re ready?

Let us tell you all about how you can potentially chart your next album.

1. Don’t rush

Patience is always a virtue.

Now this may sound like more of an advice than a technical tip, but here’s what you have to learn first and foremost before doing anything.

Do not rush things.

When you’re not in a rush, you can allow yourself to fully invest your time in planning out a schedule and organizing the exact steps you need to take before releasing the album.

In layman’s term, what we want you to do is trust the process. Not setting up an album plan well might cause you to lose at least 50% of your amazing opportunities in the future.

Some artists rush to put their EP or album out without even preparing much. But, this is just not the case.

Don’t get too excited to release your music. Of course, it is understandable how much you want to give out fresh music to your fans, BUT we cannot, and we will not release anything half baked.

Once you understand that there is nothing to rush about releasing your new album and finally come into the point where you've created a crystal clear masterplan for your project, you’re definitely off to a great start.

2. Register your music

Before diving into all the creative and strategic ideas for your album release. You must first remember to secure your music registration so that you don't come across any problems in the future.

Are you familiar with Nielsen SoundScan?

I hope you are. 

But, here’s the benefit of those who don’t.

The Nielsen SoundScan is a tracking system for music and video products. You must always keep in mind that you’ll never be eligible for any billboard chart unless you fill out a title registration form from Nielsen SoundScan.

To be able to register to the Nielsen SoundScan, you must have your ISRC and your UPC.

But what are these?

The ISRC or the International Standard Recording Code is an identification system that is being used totally around the whole world.

Yes, the whole world.

This is what helps catalog recordings. Usually, the next three characters of an ISRC are these alphanumeric codes representing the label/distributor and release number. 

UPC, on the other hand, or the Universal Product Code identifies the product (album or a single.)

Now that you know all the registrations you need to secure. Let’s proceed with the nitty-gritty parts of our masterplan to help you chart your next album release!

3. Set up your distribution platform

Always make sure you set up your distributions collections before releasing your album.

Why?

This helps a lot when it comes to adding another layer of income streams. Income is significant in hitting the billboard charts. We’ll talk about this further later.

Examples of these distribution collection platforms  are your sound exchange, royalties, Youtube setup, and international royalty collection.

When you set up your distribution platform, set up your metadata, song titles, pricing, and integrate your pre-order strategy. We’ll also be talking about this in a short while.

Also, when you prepare your album distribution platforms, be sure to be more specific with your genre tags. You get to capture your target audience easier when you do this.

4. Plan a pre-release promotion

One thing you ALWAYS need to remember is that you need to sell a lot of albums in the first week of you release.

Now you’re probably asking, "what does that have to do with my pre-release?"

Good question.

Your pre-release sales will be counted on your week one sales. That means you have to get yourself pumped up even before the actual date of release!

Pre-releases often can be within six months before the release date. But trust me, it all depends on your strategy.

Just to inspire you to be on your A-game even before the release.

Once you get a lot of sales for your album, it’s going to hit the chart. Right? And when it hits the chart, that means more sales for you!

Which now leads us to our pre-order campaign.

5. Create a pre-order campaign

Your pre-order campaign is what will define your pre-sales.

Another inseparable thing in the music industry.

Good pre-order campaigns will always be equivalent to good pre-sales for you.

Try to plan to outsell the album before the release date of digital music services of your choice—examples of these are iTunes and Amazon.

Through the pre-order campaign, let your fans buy before the release date, even if they have no access to the album yet.

It may somehow be a point of bragging rights for the fans, but you get me right? That’s more beneficial for you!

But take note, every pre-order always needs to have a catch. This can be an instant gratification track where the customers get to have access to exclusive records not available on the album, or this could even be album discounts and promos.

This is an excellent boost for your week one sales.

Also, pre-orders and pre-save on Spotify are also very important. These can either be Physical or Digital pre-orders. Your Physical pre-orders come from your online store, Amazon.com, CD releases, and venue pre-orders.  While your Digital Orders come from Google Play, Amazon, iTunes, and your online store.

Do you know what pre-saving listeners can do for you?

Pre-saving on Spotify and pre-adding on Apple Music is a way to have your album shown in a user’s music collection on the day you release your song.

6. Create a strong marketing strategy

In any kind of product that needs A LOT of sales, marketing is always a crucial thing.

If sales were the car, then marketing is your fuel.

Just like many products, this is also the same when it comes to launching an album release. To take it further to greater heights, you must boost it with the right marketing strategies.

We’re about to talk about the most crucial thing to help land your album on the charts. 

Are you still with me?

If you are, then let’s keep moving.

You need a lot of promotion to boost either Digital or Physical sales.

One common thing that can help you is Email Marketing. Do you know that the email list of your fans is a marketing asset to you as an artist?

By grabbing of the email addresses of fans.  You’re able to update them from time to time about your new merch, album releases, upcoming tours, and anything else you want to promote.

This is only one aspect of Digital Marketing that we can use. Another marketing strategy that we can use is to advertise on Social Media.

Social Media today is such a massive part of the chunk as a marketing platform that can help anyone  get their product out there to a lot more audiences to promote their brand and gain more sales.

As for us, it’s our music album. Let’s stick to that.

But of course, when talking about Social Media Strategy. I’m not merely talking about putting ads with headlines such as Grab now, only 50% off today or my least favorite, “Music out on all platforms now”.

Please, don’t do that!

What I am trying to say is, try to use the platform as it should be. To converse, communicate, and connect with your audience.

Rather than selling, try to make it conversational and build a relationship with them. While Integrating your advertising strategies in the best way possible.

Try to create a buzz with your fan base and give them something exciting and say something intriguing that would make them click your post. You can even let them share your pre-order links, music videos, streaming links, or even your links to Apple Music.

Before the official release of your single, make sure to use all your time in the world and invest in strong marketing with the use of the press, influencers, radio, and even video promotion.

7. Release singles to help build awareness of your album

Do you know that pre-release singles are extra opportunities for you to be featured on Apple Music or even Spotify?

Aside from that, it also helps build anticipation for your fans before you release an album to your audience.

Just make sure you use the same ISRC for your pre-release single as the album version. This prevents the splitting of algorithm popularity between the single and the album.

I hope this helps! Just follow these tips, and we’ll see you on the charts.
Like This? Share Us on Social Media
About Carlos McKinney
I'm on a Mission To Help Artists REALLY Thrive In The Music Business and in The Process Create The Top & Fairest New Music Company In The World.

By Team Carlos McKinney

Grammy Award Winning Producer Music & Music Marketing Expert .

NEW BOOK!

After Over 20 Years Of Success In The Music Business, Carlos McKinney Is Finally Unveiling His New Book!

In Break In, you’ll find the strategies and methods Carlos used personally to go from being a bankrupt musician with $500,000 debt to becoming a Grammy Award Winning Producer on a mission to help Artists create success in the music business in a way where they can control their own destiny..

If you are struggling in your music career. You’ll learn how to develop skills, kept secret and suppressed by Major Record Labels, that will help you grow your fanbase, monetize your music and get more recognition regardless of whether or not you get radio play, land on a popular playlist or go on tour.

Wherever you are in you music career, Break In will show you how to find your own way to achieving success and significance in the music business.

LEARN INSIDERS SECRETS TO GET MORE FANS, MONEY & RECOGNITION.

FREE blueprint reveals strategies used behind-the-scenes by Grammy Award Winning Producer to help Artists create massive success in the music business.

In Break In, you’ll find the strategies and methods Carlos used personally to go from being a bankrupt musician with $500,000 debt to becoming a Grammy Award Winning Producer on a mission to help Artists create success in the music business in a way where they can control their own destiny.

If you are struggling in your music career. You’ll learn how to develop skills that have been kept secret and suppressed by Major Record Labels.  The Free Book will help you grow your fanbase, monetize your music and get more recognition regardless of whether or not you get radio play, land on a popular playlist or go on tour.

Wherever you are in you music career, Break In will show you how to find your own way to achieving success and significance in the music business.

Share Us on Social Media
CarlosMcKinney.com| Copyright ©2020 | All Rights Reserved
Privacy Policy  -  Terms & Conditions  -  Disclaimer
Powered By ClickFunnels.com