Inside the Best Spotify Growth Strategy I Found in 2022

Last Thursday, I dropped this video with a detailed breakdown of all the things I tested to market my music on Spotify with Facebook ads in 2022. 

But like most YouTube videos, I only had time to scratch the surface, which invariably leaves out a lot of details. 

So today, I’m going to go a bit deeper for you. 

Specifically, I’m going to give you the exact ad playbook that was most effective for me in 2022, along with how I plan to implement those results in 2023. 

Budget

I tested a lot of different daily budget options for my ads in 2022.

As you can see in the chart below, I had several days where I spend upwards of $50-$100, but for the most part, I stuck to around $10 per day for the first half of the year and $15 (on average) for the second half of the year. 

Now, obviously, the more money you spend, the better your results are going to be, but if I had to select a single takeaway from my budget testing in 2022, I’d say it’s this: consistency wins. 

These giant spikes up to $50 and $100 were actually less effective at generating results on Spotify than a more long-term approach at $10-$20 per day.

In short, I found better, more consistent results in 2022 with a daily budget than I did trying to “shoot the moon” on release day.

My plan for 2023: spend a set daily budget throughout the year without frequent adjustments, most likely in the $15-$20 range. 

Targeting

As you may know from watching my YouTube videos, I’ve tested a ton of targeting options over the years, and this year was no different. 

Throughout 2022 I adjusted locations, age breakdowns, detailed targeting options, and even ad placements to determine which combination would deliver the best results. 

The conclusion I’ve come to is that tier 1 countries are the way to go.

I have found far greater success when sticking to countries like the United States, the United Kingdom, and other countries with large English-speaking populations than I ever did in other global countries with lower CPMs. 

I also discovered that 13-34 is the most effective age demographic for my music, not 18-44.

This is no surprise. Most music discovery happens when we are in our teens and early 20s. We choose what and who we like to listen to, and that tends to stick with us for good, for the most part. 

And even though detailed targeting options aren’t available for that age breakdown, my ad account is so seasoned at this point that Facebook knows who to look for even without that additional guidance from me. 

Here’s a detailed look at my current targeting: 

Targeting ages 13-34 has not only increased my results on Spotify, but it has also resulted in more results on Instagram as well in the form of likes, comments, and followers. 

And lastly, I’m using all the Instagram placements now, not just stories. 

Reels placements, in particular, are killing it for me these days with the Feed placement in second and Stories in third (I keep the Explore placement in there for good measure despite the fact that it doesn’t really do much). 

My plan for 2023: continue targeting users aged 13-34 in my selection of 13 tier 1 countries (possibly narrowing solely to the top six English-speaking countries globally—US, UK, CA, IE, AU, & NZ), across all four primary Instagram placements. 

Ad creative

My ads haven’t changed much this year. 

Barring a few slight adjustments to the Spotify logo overlay and the CTA, the basic format has stayed the same. 

If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it, amirite?

Here’s a snapshot of the ad format I’m currently using:

I’m still using the cover art as the primary image, and I’m still using that same cover art in the background, blurred out with a slight Ken Burns effect that moves left to right. 

For the feed and explore placements specifically, it’s all completely static:

I formatted these two placements to sort of mimic the home screen display that Spotify adds to the cover art when listening on your phone. I wanted it to feel familiar.

If you want to dig deeper, you can see all of my current ads in action here. 

My plan for 2023: stick with what works here. I’m sure I’ll make some minor formatting tweaks to this creative template throughout the year (I can’t help but test, after all), but the basic setup will remain the same. Again, it works.

So there you have it. Every bit of my 2022 ad testing broken down into a three-and-a-half--minute synopsis. 

I hope this helps to inspire and inform your music marketing decisions in a positive way for 2023. I know it has certainly had a positive impact on mine.