Artist: SAIMING
Platform: Spotify
Campaign Duration: 12 Months (May 2024 – May 2025)
🎯 Goals at Campaign Start
- Scale Spotify monthly listeners from 12,000 to over 300,000
- Drive consistent engagement across releases (saves, streams, follows)
- Land placements in key editorial + niche playlists
- Build a sustainable international presence and fanbase
📊 Initial Metrics (May 2024)
- Monthly Listeners: 12,000
- Followers: ~3,500
- Top Track Streams: Under 25K across all songs
- Playlist Placements: Less than 3 minor user-curated playlists
- Save/Add Rate: ~2% of total streams
🔧 Strategic Campaign Overview
1. 🎵 Consistent, Smart Release Schedule
- Deployed a well-paced release cycle (new single every 6–8 weeks) to trigger Spotify’s Release Radar and keep fans engaged.
- Highlight projects like “what’s the alternative?” and singles “LMNO”, “WOOF MEOW”, and “know us.”
2. 📣 Targeted Playlist Outreach
- Built strong relationships with 100+ playlist curators in alt-rap, UK experimental, chill-hop, and electronic-infused genres.
- Secured placements in over 20+ playlists, including a few editorial placements by Spotify.
3. 📲 Paid Media + Spotify Marquee
- Invested in Marquee campaigns at every new release, helping drive post-release engagement by targeting existing listeners and new fans.
- Supplemented with Instagram, Reels, and YouTube Shorts ads showing studio sessions, performances, and behind-the-scenes content.
4. 🌍 Geo-Focused Growth
- Focused expansion in UK, Australia, Netherlands, and South Africa top Spotify listener regions based on early data.
- Ads and playlist targeting followed geo-performance metrics.
5. 🧠 Branding & Fan Engagement
- Crafted a consistent artistic identity genre-bending sound, deep lyrics, and strong visual themes.
- Encouraged fan interaction via exclusive content, lyric snippets, and save-to-unlock perks on social media.
📈 Results After 12 Months
| Metric | May 2024 | May 2025 | Growth |
|---|---|---|---|
| Monthly Listeners | 12,000 | 355,000+ | +2,858% |
| Total Streams (All-Time) | ~15,000 | 15M+ | +99,900% |
| Followers | ~3,500 | 19,800+ | +465% |
| Playlist Placements | <3 minor | 20+ placements (incl. editorial) | 6x+ growth |
| Save/Add Engagement Rate | ~2% | ~9.5% | +375% |
| Most-Streamed Track (“WOOF MEOW”) | ~5K | 5.6M+ | Core anchor track |
🔥 Key Wins
- “WOOF MEOW” became a viral track, boosting algorithmic placements across Discover Weekly and Radio.
- SAIMING’s live and visual content strategy on social channels significantly drove pre-save and follow rates.
- Reels and Marquee campaigns drove low-cost conversion rates and were scaled gradually with each release.
- Canvas engagement helped reinforce branding and increased track saves from passive listeners.
🧗♂️ Challenges Tackled
- Limited Initial Traction: Had to build momentum from a nearly cold start. Focused on playlists, visuals, and CTA-heavy canvases.
- Genre Fluidity: Navigated the challenge of categorizing SAIMING’s unique sound by identifying micro-niche audiences.
- Saturation: Worked around market competition by positioning SAIMING as a standout visual and live performer.
🧠 Final Insights
- Consistency = Credibility: Regular, well-branded releases signaled professionalism and drew Spotify’s algorithmic attention.
- Small Playlists, Big Impact: Micro-playlists with loyal listeners often drove higher retention than major editorial slots.
- Organic + Paid Combo: Leveraging both short-form content and Spotify Marquee created a balanced, scalable funnel.
- Fan-Centric Messaging: “Save to support the next release” messaging increased action-based loyalty from casual listeners.