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Promo to DJs · 5 min read

Electronic music release plan

Plan back from the release date: pitch labels months ahead if you are looking for one, send promo to DJs and radio four to six weeks before release, and use release week to send the streaming links to your own list. Below is the plan week by week and a checklist to copy.

The plan, week by week

  1. 18–12 weeks before: finish and pitchMaster the track and, if you are looking for a label, pitch it now: labels plan releases months ahead. In NeedlePool a label pitch is its own campaign: one track to listen to, an MP3 stream or your private SoundCloud link, never the master.
  2. 26 weeks before: set the date and the assetsPick the release date and get the artwork, the extended mix and a radio edit ready.
  3. 34–6 weeks before: promo to DJs and radioSend the promo while DJs can still play the track first; radio hosts plan shows ahead, so they need it early. In NeedlePool this is an Audio Promo campaign to the Promo pool by genre, and the report shows by name who pressed play and downloaded.
  4. 41–2 weeks later: follow up onceWrite once more to the people who never opened it. From the Pro plan up, tick one box in the campaign and NeedlePool sends it for you.
  5. 5Release week: tell your own listSend your fans and contacts the page with every streaming link. In NeedlePool that is Link Promo, which counts how many people go to each platform.
  6. 62–4 weeks after: keep the proofRatings, comments and named plays from the promo are what you show a label or a booker next time. In NeedlePool they collect against the track, and any written review becomes a share card.

A checklist to copy

Paste it into your notes and fill in the dates.

Release checklist

Title

Release plan: [Artist] – [Track], out [date]

Checklist · one click selects all of it

[ ] Track mastered; extended mix and radio edit ready
[ ] Label pitch sent, if you want a label: [date]
[ ] Release date and artwork set: [date]
[ ] Promo to DJs and radio sent, 4–6 weeks before release: [date]
[ ] One follow-up sent: [date]
[ ] Release-week email with streaming links to your own list: [date]
[ ] Feedback and named plays saved for the next pitch

Where DJ promo fits

A promo works before release, while a DJ can play a track nobody else has yet. After release the same email is an announcement. That is why the promo goes out weeks ahead and the streaming links go to your own list in release week.

Send promo to DJs of your genre

The Promo pool by genre: how many DJs and radio shows play it and where they are.

Questions

When should I send promo to DJs before release?

Four to six weeks ahead is a good default: early enough for DJs to play it first and for radio hosts to plan it into a show, close enough that they still remember it on release day.

How far ahead should I pitch a label?

Months rather than weeks. Labels plan their schedule ahead, so pitch a finished, unreleased track and keep the release date open until a label answers or you decide to release it yourself.

Do I need a pre-save campaign?

It can help on Spotify, but it is outside what NeedlePool does. For DJ support, the promo before release matters more.

What does NeedlePool cost?

Starting is free, with no card and no time limit: you send to your own contacts and get 10 label pitches a month to labels of your track’s genre. Paid plans open our Promo pool in any genre and start at $14.99 a month (Starter).

Keep reading

Plan it from NeedlePool

Start free with your own contacts and see by name who listened. The Promo pool opens with Starter, $14.99 a month.

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