It takes some time to build up the listeners on Spotify during its early development period, but if approached correctly, you may reach way more listeners all over the world. Spotify is huge, and once you learn just how it works, you’re going to make wiser decisions about your music and your profile, all the way to promotion. Below, find a guide on some methods artists have used in their growth. Each step is explained in very simple terms so that you can take action right away.
Understand How Spotify Recommends Music
Spotify has an algorithm that watches the interactions people have with your tracks, such as when listeners save your music, follow you, add tracks to playlists, or listen longer than 30 seconds-all these signify to the platform that your music is worth recommending.
Here are the signals that Spotify pays attention to:
- How often your music is played
- How many listeners save your songs?
- How many playlists your tracks appear on
- How long people listen before skipping.
- How you are active as an artist
Stronger signals mean Spotify will be more likely to place your songs in algorithmic playlists such as Release Radar, Discover Weekly, and Radio. These playlists bring you listeners from all over the world without extra costs.
Set Up a Strong Spotify Profile
Your profile is the first thing any new listener sees and should be clean, clear, and polished. Fill out each section as a means to help people take your music seriously.
Key things to update:
- High-quality profile photo
- A short bio of your style.
- Links to your social pages
- Artist pick (a song or playlist you’d like to focus on)
- Professional cover images for releases
It is much easier to follow an artist when the audience perceives a profile as real and uncomplicated.
Release Music Consistently
Growth on Spotify happens best when you’re consistent. You don’t have to do big projects every time; even singles help.
Try releasing songs every few weeks, if not monthly. That gives Spotify more opportunities to recommend you, and it would also keep your listeners engaged, too. Organic audience growth happens as long as you stay visible.
Pitch Your Music to Spotify Editorial Playlists
Spotify for Artists lets you pitch your as-yet-unreleased music to Spotify. This gives you a chance to get in front of their official playlists, which are curated by Spotify’s editorial staff.
To pitch well:
- Please send your track at least a week in advance of the release.
- Descriptive, yet direct description should be provided here.
- Pick the appropriate genre and mood:
- Please include information about the instruments, language, and culture this track originates from.
You may not get picked up right away, but just being considered helps the algorithm understand your music. And with each pitch, you are ensuring that your followers will have that song in their Release Radar playlist.
Use Playlist Promotion the Smart Way
Among the fastest ways to grow your listeners are playlists. You can target three types of playlists.
1. Algorithmic playlists
These are based on the behavior of the listeners themselves: if your engagement is strong, Release Radar, Discover Weekly, and Radio can bring in thousands of new global listeners.
2. Editorial playlists
These are Spotify’s curated playlists. Huge exposure, very competitive. Always pitch your music, though.
3. User-generated playlists
This includes independent curators, influencers, and regular users who make popular playlists. Find these types of curators on social media, playlist sites, or through online searches. When reaching out, be respectful; introduce yourself and share your song link. Never pay for fake streams.
Promote Your Music on Social Media
It’s difficult to have any real fanbase going when they can’t find you anywhere else but Spotify. Socials give you the ability to show your personality, as well as to keep your audience informed.
Best ideas:
- Share snippets of your songs on Instagram Reels, TikTok, and YouTube Shorts.
- Post behind-the-scenes videos of your recording process.
- Share your lyrics or do acoustic versions.
- Use the trending sounds that best fit your style.
- Do respond to comments to keep your followers interacting.
Short-form video is so powerful right now, and it’s going to be the thing that drives thousands of people to your Spotify page.
Work With Other Artists
Collaborate with Other Artists Such collaboration will help you reach completely new audiences: dropping a release with another artist means that your track is posted on the profiles of both of you, and their listeners become yours.
You don’t need a famous collaborator, but even working with artists who have a similar amount of listeners may bring strong growth from both sides.
You can also do:
- Remix swaps
- Feature verses
- Joint live sessions
- Promote shared playlists
Collaboration feels organic to audiences and opens up your music to a more global demographic.
Encourage Fans to Follow and Save Your Music
Simple steps your listeners take mean more than anything else for your growth. You can ask your fans to follow you, save your songs, and add them in playlists. These small signals are what help Spotify understand that your music is of value.
You can remind your audience through your posts, captions, and newsletter messages-just keep it natural and friendly.
Use Spotify Canvas and Storyline
These are all visual tools that will help your music stand out: Canvas is the looped video playing behind your track in the Spotify app; Storyline is the small text box popping up while listeners explore your song.
It will make your profile feel even more complete, as the existence of these tools will impel users to share your music on their social networks.
Run Ads When You Can
If you have a bit of a budget, you can run ads on Instagram, TikTok, Facebook, or YouTube, all driving new listeners to your Spotify page. Start small, test different audiences. You really don’t need to spend much. Even low-cost ads will increase your early listener numbers.
Just ensure that whatever audience you target does actually listen to your genre. That is where real engagement matters, not just large numbers.
Don’t Buy Fake Streams
Buying fake streams only hurts your account. Spotify may remove your songs from their catalog or, worse, ban your artist profile altogether. Instead, focus on real listeners who love your music. Maybe the growth will be slow at the beginning, but in the long term, that works to build long-term success and a stronger global reach.
Track Your Stats and Adjust Your Plan
Spotify for Artists has information on where your listeners come from, which songs they listen to, and what playlists help you grow. Use it to plan next steps.
For example:
- if one country gives you a lot of listeners, then market towards them.
- If most people skip your podcast after 20 seconds, reconsider your intro.
- If some of your playlists have good traffic, find more like them.
Once you understand where this growth is really coming from, it becomes much easier to grow.