The complete guide to selling your music online

At the stage of your music career where you’re putting solid efforts into regularly creating new work, you’ll also want to be able to sell your music for money.

Having a plan in place to help sell your music online will ensure not only that people hear it, but that fans are also able to support you by purchasing your songs.

This guide to selling your music online breaks things down into manageable pieces for any musician to get started. The key is to first create a strategy to engage your fans. Then, use a mix of services to sell music online while focusing on your website and your mailing list outreach to maximize revenues.

Where to sell your music online

1. Your own website
2. Digital music stores
3. Bandcamp
4. Streaming platforms

Selling your music online is so much more than uploading it and hoping that fans will find it and want to buy it.

To create your music selling strategy, first think about where your fans are. Where are they likely to consume or purchase music? Put your efforts into the areas that make the most sense for your own style of music. Be realistic about your genre, and the demographics of your fans. Then add music to the places where they’re likely to be.

1. Your own website

Set up a music website to serve as your professional point of contact online. You control the visitor's experience, can add and promote your music directly to fans, and with Bandzoogle there is no commission on music sales — that means more money from your sales goes straight to you, the artist.

If you create a dedicated music page on your own website, your fans will always be able to find it. You can drive listeners there from any newsletter or social media platform. Your website is accessible to fans of any age, demographics, or listening preference.

More importantly, you'll collect emails with sales through your website. This is crucial for the long-term success of your career — you'll use those emails to stay in touch with (and continue to sell music to) your most dedicated fans.

2. Digital music stores

Streaming platforms are a popular way to consume music, but don’t miss out on selling your music online through digital retailers. Releasing your music in as many places as possible means that it will reach a broader range of listeners.

Many music fans will choose to buy new music from a store they use regularly and trust, where they already have a credit card on file and they know the platform is compatible to sync with their music library.

To upload your music and get paid across the most platforms possible, you’ll want to use a distributor like DistroKid. They’ll submit your music to 150+ download and streaming sites worldwide. This includes familiar retailers like Spotify, Apple, Amazon, so that people will be able to locate and buy your music in their preferred way.

3. Bandcamp

Bandcamp is a free service where you can sell your music directly to fans and collect their email addresses in the process. Bandcamp does take a cut of sales (15%), but there’s also a strong emphasis on music discovery within their community.

Bandcamp actively recommends music to fans through their blog, app, and the Bandcamp Weekly podcast. Plus, many music fans are already familiar with the platform and gravitate there to find new music to purchase.

If you plan to sell music online using your own website and already use Bandcamp, you can use the Bandcamp integration to quickly embed and sell that music on your Bandzoogle website as well. This gives your fans multiple places to source your music, with the addition of Bandcamp's discoverability culture.

4. Streaming platforms

Many music fans will listen to music on services like Spotify and Apple Music. While the amount an artist might make from streaming is small, these platforms can be helpful when it comes to music discovery. That, in turn, helps create fans who will support you long-term by buying your music.

Getting your song on a Spotify playlist can help you to draw in new listeners, connect with them, and hopefully continue to build the relationship beyond that first discovery. The goal is to create true fans that will want to keep up with your music. Once you’ve captured their details, you can sell music to these fans in the future.

How to sell your music online

1. Create a strategy to sell your music
2. Engage your fans
3. Create a crowdfunding campaign
4. Set up pre-orders
5. Release singles
6. Release your album
7. Music sales follow-up

Once you know where you’ll sell your music online, you’ll want to be sure that your fans are able to find it. To start, estimate your efforts and then figure out your timing prior to releasing your music.

Sketching out a timeline is a good next step, then starting to prepare all of the communication, photos, and videos, as best you can. Things steps will start to move quickly, and organization will be key to maximizing your music release.

To start this process, focus on a few specific phases of selling your single or album. You’ll want to build anticipation for your new music early on, strengthen your relationship with your fans, and raise money in the process.

1. Create a strategy to sell your music

Before you get started with selling your music online, you’ll want to create a music marketing strategy. You should have a concrete idea of the music you plan to sell first. Then sketch out whether you’re going to release singles, and, if so, when. List the ways you can actively promote the music, keeping the places where you’ll sell it (or make it available or streaming) in mind.

It’s important to set up a timeline which will keep you on track and help you hit your goals with selling your music. You’ll want to be realistic about what you can accomplish. If you’re selling music online for the first time, set up a simple plan - you can always ramp up your strategy later depending on what worked this time.

2. Engage your fans

Once your timeline is in place, work on engaging your fans right from the start. The key is to start early enough that you can invest time into creating a journey with your fans.

For example: make sure that your fans know you have music coming soon, and plan some promotion to coincide with recording, production, and release phases of your new work.

Be sure to use some ideas that feature your new songs — like video snippets and teasers — to Facebook, TikTok and/or Instagram (depending where you and your fans are active). Reach out regularly to your followers using video content to document the process.

3. Create a crowdfunding campaign

Think of crowdfunding as the ultimate way to set up pre-orders. Create a crowdfunding campaign directly on your website, before you record your music, and you’ll keep 100% of the crowdfunding pledges.

Adding perks not only funds your album, but also gives you a good idea of the numbers of CDs, vinyl, or other products you’ll need to produce. Crowdfunding an album is also a great way to rally your community around your upcoming release. You can offer high-level perks like a house concert as a way to pre-book some show dates where you can also sell your album.

4. Set up pre-orders

Whether you’ve crowdfunded your project or not, it’s a good idea to get your album up for presale in the weeks leading up to the release. This will give you another pivotal announcement to share with fans, letting them know that they can secure their purchase (“album available for pre-order in these stores”) to be sure that they receive the music as soon as you drop it.

It’s also an opportunity to invite those who weren’t able to participate in the crowdfunding campaign to purchase your album.

Set up a simple pre-order on your website to maximize revenue for your music. If you’re looking to chart, those sales will automatically be reported to Luminate (Pro Bandzoogle users) on your release day.

In the pre-sales stage, you’re engaging your biggest fans, so drive pre-sale orders to platforms where you can maximize your revenues. This means your own website, and Bandcamp, where you can collect email addresses.

In the pre-release stage, you can explore other options such as releasing your music early to Spotify or setting up pre-saves. Research a few ways to release a single, and see what makes the most sense for you to best engage your fans.

5. Release singles

Releasing singles at a steady pace is an effective way to build momentum towards an album launch. It helps you stay top-of-mind for your fans, and gives you all sorts of creative material to promote. This is especially helpful if you’re new to selling music, and want to practice different promotion tactics to see what resonates with your audience.

To make the most out of releasing singles — either on their own or as a lead up to a full album — choose which singles you’ll release, and when. Then set up a pre-release strategy that you can follow as you build momentum with your new music. You can sell your singles from your website and on all of the same platforms where you’d list your album.

6. Release your album

Once your album is ready, release it to the fans who pre-ordered, then make it available for sale on your website and in digital online stores and streaming services.

This release should coincide with a series of email newsletters, social media posts, and other online music promotion. Add each of your new songs to your YouTube channel for discovery (music videos, or even simple lyric videos), and be sure that the video description includes a purchase link leading to your website.

Make the most of your release with a Landing page that focuses your fans’ attention on the new music. Use Smart Links to create an organized layout, offering options to buy or listen to your music on different platforms. Send fans there while your release is fresh.

Your website’s homepage should also contain up-to-date details about your new music. Music discovery from streaming, social media, or YouTube will encourage listeners to check out your official website, which in turn contains all of the purchase options for your music.

7. Music sales follow-up

By this point you may be getting tired of the constant focus that’s required to sell your music online, especially as an indie artist. But you’ll want to put in the effort to complete the cycle of selling your music, and the conclusion of that is the follow-up.

Keep your music top of mind for your fans by scheduling social media posts and email newsletters designed to drive traffic back to your website.

You can do this by celebrating milestones, like your album has been out for a month, or vinyl has been pressed and shipped, or you’ve fulfilled all of your pledges, for example. Then as you get further away from the album release, you can generate new buzz by bundling items and offering discount codes for your full catalog of music.

The follow-up stage is an often overlooked but very important part of the strategy to successfully sell your music online. If everything is planned out, you’ll be able to space out all of the promotion at a good pace. And if you’ve created ideas for your sales promotion in advance, you can offer genuine interactions that don’t come across as super salesy.

How to make money selling your music online

1. Use your mailing list
2. Social media
3. Pay-what-you-want pricing on songs
4. Offer physical and digital bundles
5. Digital back catalog deal
6. Sale pricing and discount codes
7. Set up fan subscriptions

As an indie artist in particular, you’ll want to find out how to sell your songs effectively, or at least how to make a bit of money from a music release. A new album or single is a good way to test if your fans are ready to help support you financially, and how much.

1. Use your mailing list

The most important tool you have to make money with your music is your email list. A big reason for this is that you own that database of fans, no matter which mailing list tool you use.

Not everyone checks social media every day, and, even if they do, low organic reach may mean that they never even see your posts. In contrast your email list has been curated over time to include people who are genuinely interested in your music.

Make the most of this powerful list by sending a series of dedicated emails to your fan list with a link to buy your album, and share your excitement about your upcoming release. Encourage pre-orders and sales, and send out other meaningful updates about your project as it evolves.

2. Social media

Social media can be a powerful tool to help with both artist discovery and selling music online. The key is to determine where your fanbase is, and the best way to reach them — be that through video content, sponsored posts, or paid ads.

Rather than spread yourself too thin, decide where you’ll focus your attention with social media. This will depend on where you’re most comfortable, and where your fans are already active. Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok are great places to add creative content and capture interest.

From there, drive people back to your website to put a focus on selling music, either to your Home page or a Landing page with Smart Links. Offering a way for fans to support you directly (your website), along with an option to support you where they’re familiar (online music stores, or streaming platforms) means you'll get the most out of every website visit.

3. Pay-what-you-want pricing on songs

After you’ve sent out initial blasts to make sure your fans are aware and able to buy your music, follow up. As time goes on, keep adding incentives to get more people to buy your music.

You could try selling more music online by using the pay-what-you-want pricing model. Some people might buy your songs for next to nothing, but there are definitely some fans who are willing to pay more.

4. Offer physical and digital bundles

To create some variety, set up product bundles that include your music in different formats. If you decide to release a CD or vinyl version of your album, you can bundle it with a digital version in your online store. If you need to get some CDs or vinyl pressed, we recommend Disc Makers, who offer a full range of quality vinyl and CD products.

You can also bundle together other merch, as well as your previous albums, with a digital copy of your new album. Offering variety in your store besides just music will help you sell more music online, with options for die hard fans and casual listeners alike.

5. Digital back catalog deal

After you release your new album, consider offering a deal on your back catalog of albums. While you have your fans there on your Store page ready to buy, let them know they can get your entire discography in a package deal.

You don’t have to do this right away, but it can be an important way to sell music once you’ve put some effort into creating new fans. They may be happy to support you by picking up a package that includes music they don’t yet know.

6. Sale pricing and discount codes

Once your new music has been out for a while, circle back by offering a discounted price for a limited time. Or celebrate the release of your new music by offering a sale on your older albums and merch.

You could also send a note welcoming new subscribers to your email list with a limited-time discount code to use when they shop in your online music store.

7. Set up fan subscriptions

If you plan to regularly make new music, release multiple singles, or create new content, you could set up fan subscriptions on your website and sell music to your fans that way. This model of making money with your music can be a good fit if you’ve already built up some loyal fans.

While it’s a different sales model than just selling your music online, you could launch your subscriptions area just before releasing your new album. Then build momentum towards your release with regular updates and content in exchange for a monthly membership fee.

Final thoughts

Selling your music online is an ongoing process that takes time and plenty of effort. You don’t want to oversaturate your audience by begging them to buy your music day in and day out. Instead, keep working on interesting angles, and stagger your marketing efforts strategically.

Plot out your process, then make notes on what went well and what you could do differently with your next release.

To recap, here are a few things to keep in mind when selling your music online:

• Start early and engage your fans from the first stages of music creation.
• Focus on owned properties like your website and your mailing list to maximize revenues.
• Use a mix of all services and products so that every type of fan, from superfan to casual, can support you in a way that works for them.

If done right, all these steps will help you strengthen the relationship with your fans, drive sales, and make money that you can use to create more music in the future.