MUSIC PROMOTION · PRACTICAL GUIDE

Build an audience. Avoid artificial streams.

Pay for clearly defined promotional work, not promised listening numbers or playlist positions. A useful campaign introduces your music to people who can choose to listen. Before spending, understand the method, the deliverables and how results will be reported.

This guide focuses on Spotify’s documented artificial-streaming rules and practical campaign checks. Other platforms have their own requirements. No promoter or distributor can guarantee genuine streams, editorial playlist selection or earnings.

Recognise risky promises

Artificial streaming means listening that does not represent genuine listener intent, including manipulation using bots or scripts. Spotify prohibits paid services promising streams or guaranteed playlist placement. Paying for a campaign is not the same as buying streams: the method matters.

• A fixed number of streams or followers, or a guaranteed Spotify playlist position, in exchange for payment.
• Instructions to repeatedly stream your own music or coordinate artificial looping by fans.
• A provider who refuses to explain where the audience comes from or what work you are buying.
• Pressure to pay immediately, unverifiable success screenshots or claims of secret access to platform recommendations.
• Requests for your password, authentication code or unnecessary account permissions.

A claim that streams are “real” or “organic” is not evidence. Be especially cautious about paid playlist consideration, even where placement is not guaranteed. Legitimate publicity, creative work or advertising still needs a transparent method; none is a guarantee of results.

Ask these questions before hiring anyone

1. What will you actually do? Request a written description: creative assets, press outreach, advertising or another specific activity. Ask which channels and audiences are involved, and who performs the work.
2. What am I paying for? Separate the service fee, media budget and any third-party costs. Agree deliverables, approval points, dates and cancellation terms before payment.
3. How do you avoid manipulation? Ask directly about purchased streams, bots, incentivised listening and paid guaranteed placement. Do not proceed if the answer is vague.
4. Can I verify your work? Ask for relevant examples you can check and references from previous artists. Look beyond testimonials on the provider’s own website.
5. What will the report show? Request dates, channels, spend where applicable, links to published work and clearly labelled metrics. A screenshot of a stream total cannot establish where the listeners came from.
6. What access is necessary? Prefer delivering approved files and links. Where collaboration access is required, review the platform’s official permission options and grant only what is needed; never share passwords or one-time codes.

For example, paying an editor to deliver three approved clips is a defined creative job. Paying for “10,000 guaranteed Spotify streams” buys a prohibited promise. This is an illustrative distinction, not an endorsement of any provider.

Build a campaign you can understand

Start with the independent artist release plan. Confirm that release links and artist profiles are correct before sending listeners to them.

• Choose a realistic objective: introduce one song, explain its story or reconnect with existing fans.
• Prepare rights-cleared clips, artwork, captions and one correct destination link.
• Record a baseline and the campaign dates. Keep creative delivery, ad impressions, website visits, listeners and royalties as separate measures.
• Review results against the activity you commissioned. Do not treat every stream during a campaign as caused by it.
• Use eligible platform pitching tools where available. Submission is consideration, not a placement promise.

Encourage people to discover and enjoy the music naturally. Do not ask them to manipulate playback. Small, explainable results are more useful for your next decision than a large total with no credible source.

What to do if activity looks suspicious

Unexpected spikes, unfamiliar locations or unusual listening sources deserve attention. A spike alone does not prove fraud: press coverage, a genuine playlist or a video can also create a sudden audience. Check the context before drawing conclusions.

1. Preserve the evidence. Save track and artist links, ISRC if available, playlist URLs, affected dates, screenshots of unusual sources or territories, campaign records and any platform notice. Record what happened without guessing who caused it.
2. Pause questionable paid activity. Ask the provider for an explanation in writing and retain the brief, receipts and communications. Do not buy more streams to disguise the pattern.
3. Tell DistroBolt. Send the relevant evidence to mail@distrobolt.com, including whether you commissioned any promotion or found the activity without your involvement. Never send passwords or authentication codes.
4. Use the platform’s official reporting route. Spotify offers a suspicious-playlist reporter through Spotify for Artists. DistroBolt can help you identify the appropriate next step. We do not promise removal of a playlist, reversal of a decision or a resolution deadline.
5. Keep records and follow up. Retain any case reference and respond with accurate campaign information. Do not delete or re-upload releases to try to evade a warning; ask about the specific notice first.

Spotify can exclude confirmed artificial streams from royalties and public counts. Further action can include playlist or track removal, depending on the case. Its policy also includes charges to distributors for flagrant artificial streaming. This guide does not set a DistroBolt penalty schedule or promise a particular account outcome. If you receive a notice or charge, ask us for the case details and applicable terms.

Activity can happen without the artist’s knowledge. Reporting it is useful, but does not itself prove the cause or guarantee the review outcome. Dashboard activity is also not a payment statement: read the royalty reporting guide when reconciling earnings.

What DistroBolt can help with

Distribution and creative promotion are separate jobs. Our Release Promo Pack is an optional service for three vertical video clips and three promotional images made from your supplied material for one release. It is not a purchase of streams, paid playlist placement or a promise of reach. Confirm the brief, current price, delivery slot and written terms on the service page before deciding.

For artwork, see Cover Design. For distribution fees and the applicable revenue share, review current distribution costs. Buying creative assets does not change platform eligibility or guarantee royalties.

Common questions

Platform guidance checked 3 November 2026. Platform rules can change. This guide provides campaign checks, not a guarantee of platform acceptance, streams or income.