If you're an artist looking to distribute music, AvidPlay (by AVID, the makers of Pro Tools), is one of the easiest ways to get your original songs onto every major music platform on the planet. With easy to use tools, distribution splits, QR codes, 100% of earnings, and a multitude of other features, AvidPlay makes it easy for you to have your own record label. This step-by-step guide with video takes you through the process of releasing material with AvidPlay.
HOW TO SELL YOUR MUSIC ONLINE!
Since the beginnings of the music industry, it has been the desire of artists, publishers, and record labels, to get their material into the hands of consumers and fans. From the early distribution of music, all the way through records, cassettes, and CD's, the process of physical distribution to record stores had been controlled by a select few companies. One of the main reasons that artists in the past wanted to be signed to a record label was due to this power of distribution. With the evolution in technology (computers) we saw a fundamental shift in how people obtain their music. We now have the entirety of the music world available at our fingertips through app's such Apple Music, Google Play, Spotify, Youtube, Pandora, Tidal, the list goes on and on. Using AvidPlay, YOU can now be your own distributor, your own label, and get to keep 100% of your profits. Let's take a look at how you can use this platform to get your music distributed to the global audience.
AvidPlay is part of Avid Link, which installs automatically as part of Pro Tools.
You'll see the Avid Link app once you install Pro Tools (the icon looks like a circle with a triangle in it). Avid Link is tied to your avid.com account, and will ask you to sign-in. Once you open the app, you'll see a series of tabs along the left-hand side. Click on the "Marketplace" tab, which takes you to the online store., where you'll see a link for AvidPlay.
Select Your Plan
Click on the AvidPlay link to see the available plan options. Compared to other distribution services, AvidPlay give you a wide array of options based on single tracks and albums. The best option (in our opinion) is $24.99 for Unlimited Singles & Albums per-year (Other services charge upwards as much as $50 per upload!). You can select plans to release per-year, or as a lifetime distribution. With any of these plans, your music will automatically be added to any new music platforms the get introduced.
Create A New Release
Once you've selected your plan, get ready to release your material. Watch this video to see how easy it is to prepare a new release, as well as upload album artwork.
AvidPlay let you upload your music in a variety of formats such as WAV, FLAC, AIF, AIFF, and MP3. All files must be16-bit, 44.1Khz, Stereo Interleaved.
Set Song Preview
Once you've uploaded our song, you can set the Song Preview. This allows you control over what part of the song will be available to customers browsing through music stores. This quick video will show you how easy it is to set song preview points.
Share QR Codes For Release
Once you've upload you material, and set song preview points, you will get access to shareable QR codes for release. A QR Code (Quick Response Code) is an identifier symbol used to embed information into a pattern that can trigger any number of functions from your smartphone or tablet. You can use these codes to help promote your release, website, artist profile, or any number of things. Customers scan these codes instead of having to use a web-address or tiny-url.
Example of QR Code
Set Earning and Splits
With AvidPlay you have complete control of your earnings, and any splits you are a part of. You can set a participants role such as: Producer, Label, Composer, Publisher, as well as the monetary percentage split they will receive. Earning are distributed directly to individual PayPal accounts for each participant. Watch the video below:
AvidPlay Key Features:
Centralized Dashboard showing you Total Streams, Top Streaming Services, Top Country, and Overall Earning
Direct payment through PayPal
Editing "after-the-fact" capability to change or update any information after a song has been released
Ability to be your own Record Label to distribute for other people, as well as yourself.
No Hidden Costs! The subscription payment covers everything. You can add participants at a later date and will not be charged, unlike other services.
You can switch from your current distributor simply by getting your EAN/UPC associated with your albums, and ISRC associated with tracks.
If you want more information on AvidPlay, check out the FAQ from Avid
Mihai Boloni
Avid Certified Pro Tools Instructor
www.protoolstraining.com