Your release timeline: four weeks out
Four weeks is the minimum runway for a real release. Here is what happens each week.
Week four: assets
Finalize the mix, master, cover art, and distributor upload. Pitch to Spotify editorial playlists now, the deadline is weeks before release.
Write all your captions and schedule posts. Decision fatigue kills launch weeks.
Week three: tease
Drop the snippet, reveal the cover, open pre saves. Behind the scenes content daily. This is the hype build.
Email your list with the pre save link. Email converts better than any social post.
Week two and one: convert
Countdown content, collaborator cross promo, press outreach. Week one is all call to action: pre save, pre save, pre save.
Next step: put your next release date on a calendar and work these four weeks backward from it.
When four weeks is not enough
Vinyl, major press, or radio campaigns need eight to twelve weeks. Scale your timeline to your ambitions.
The timeline expands, the principles do not. Assets first, tease second, convert third, always.
Your Monday action plan
Choose your next release date and create a four week calendar working backward from it.
This week, complete all week four tasks: final mix, master, art, and distributor upload.
Sources and further reading
Sources were checked for this article. Tool features, prices and availability can change. Product claims are attributed to their publishers.
