One of the most significant decisions to be made by emerging artists is the platform. Besides, the streaming services have divergent objectives, and Spotify would work best with streaming objectives, while SoundCloud would work with finding new audiences.
Moreover, each platform has its own algorithm, with which the artists become more prominent. It is important to know how to work these platforms, as this will develop your fan base and your music career. By knowing what is better in your case, you will be capable of making a better choice for your future as an artist.
1. Audience Reach and Discovery Potential
Spotify can easily win over SoundCloud in terms of the number of people reaching its audience, with more than 500 million subscribers around the world, which is a wide range to reach. Spotify allows you to be introduced to many unknown listeners with their personalized playlists, such as Discover Weekly.
In contrast, SoundCloud can do this through an organic discovery approach of reposts made by users. The option of reposting increases your coverage and facilitates interaction within the community.
Both platforms are genre-specific; Spotify is a better platform to listen to mainstream music, unlike SoundCloud, which cultivates experimental music such as electronic and jazz.
2. Upload Process and Artist Control
The upload steps and controls offered by SoundCloud are particularly advantageous to new artists in comparison with Spotify.
Once an account has been created, you can easily post any song on SoundCloud in minutes and make it shine without any complex approval steps.
SoundCloud also gives more opportunities to customize; therefore, you can post your own pictures, make long descriptions, and describe your songs only in the ways you wish to.
You can release singles or demos without fuss to gauge your fans’ approach. Plus, managing your content is something you can do within minutes.
In contrast, Spotify’s upload process might take longer and has stricter controls.
3. Monetization and Revenue Metrics
When it comes to monetization, new artists are faced with varied options and opportunities on both platforms. Spotify pays per stream, but the earnings are rather low, and they don’t build up fast.
That is, larger audiences and deals with a label are imperative to earnest income. Conversely, SoundCloud does not start to monetize until it gains a certain amount of interaction. It is also open to several types of support, such as fan purchases, subscription plans that can be a good prospect for niche artists.
No matter the platform, a steady listener base and smart promotion are needed for a meaningful income, making planning crucial.
4. Promotion Tools and Growth Support
Both SoundCloud and Spotify offer you the tools that will assist you in marketing your work and developing. Spotify for Artists, along with its creation capabilities, allows arranging the stuff and planning new releases, ensuring that the release of your music reaches your fans.
Battle of the Playlists features pitching with SoundCloud reposts; each platform has its method and workflow. Using reliable promotion platform that can enhance and promote your growth strategy on either platform can help you amplify your reach on Spotify.
Data analysis indicates how your listeners respond to your campaigns and which content draws your audience in. Moreover, both platforms have enough tools to assist you in making local and even global progress.
5. Fan Engagement and Community Building
When it comes to fan engagement, SoundCloud is a genuine superstar it allows musicians to interact directly and get feedback on their tracks. These informative remarks enable you to make changes and make what you produce suit what would be liked to hear by your followers.
Spotify is slightly lagging because it puts more emphasis on streaming and provides a rather passive experience. Nevertheless, it provides you with loyal fans who could sponsor your music over time financially.
Even though both platforms let you build a following, SoundCloud’s emphasis on interaction and community creation provides you with a solid platform for growth and loyalty.
Conclusion
This depends on the type of artist that you want to be and what you want to do. Spotify undoubtedly outshines SoundCloud, in case what you want is to grow your audience in the long run, monetize your process, and use professional tools.
But, in case the most important thing to you is the ability to engage the audience and to get immediate feedback, SoundCloud is likely to be a better choice. It would help if you tracked data that matters and not superficial numbers.
