Falling for fake playlists will not only not contribute to your musical development, but can also jeopardize your potential success and affect your artistic output. They can also disrupt the algorithms and jeopardize your reputation on Spotify, which can lead to exclusion from official playlists and potentially removal from existing playlists.
Unauthorized streams and fictitious listeners mean a lack of genuine fan engagement, which directly impacts your live performances, merchandise sales and social media presence. This lost revenue and time could be better invested in music development and production.
Here are the key indicators to help you recognize and avoid fraudulent playlists:
Streams and followers
- Evaluate the ratio of streams to saves and followers. Genuine playlists usually have a higher number of streams in relation to their followers and saves.
Followers
- Examine the followers of the playlist curator's account. Suspicious followers without a profile picture or without a consistent profile are a cause for concern, especially if the curator has no followers at all.
Name of the playlist
- Pay attention to the playlist name and description and make sure it matches the intended genre or mood.
Social media accounts
- Check if there are official social media accounts or websites associated with the curator. The lack of a verifiable online presence is a red flag.
Genres and moods
- Beware of playlists that contain an inappropriate mix of genres and moods as they are unlikely to attract a relevant audience.
Playlist cover
- Evaluate the cover and make sure it fits the theme or genre of the playlist. A consistent cover design across multiple playlists is also a positive sign.
Number of followers
- Pay attention to the number of followers in all of the curator's playlists. It is suspicious if the number of followers is disproportionately high across several playlists.
Paid placements
- Be wary of curators who offer paid placements as this is against Spotify's guidelines and can lead to artificial streams.
Network of agencies and curators
- Be wary if a curator claims to have a large network of agencies or curators managing playlists, as this is unlikely to lead to genuine promotion.
"Discovered On function"
- Do not rely solely on the "Discovered On" feature on the artist's profile to verify the authenticity of the playlist, as fake playlists may appear there until they are discovered by Spotify.
To summarize, distinguishing between real and fake Spotify playlists is essential to your musical journey. While organic playlists can significantly boost your success, falling victim to scammers will only hinder your progress. Avoid the lure of specialized companies promising streams and focus on authentic promotion strategies to sustainably boost your career.
Have you recently experienced your music being removed from Spotify or other streaming platforms? Read the blog to understand what's behind it: https: //blog.feiyr.com/de/die-tuecken-des-kuenstlichen-streamings/