200 Meta conversions… but only 90 streams. Where did the rest go?
I spent $100 on a Facebook conversion campaign.
Ads Manager told me I got 200 conversions at $0.50 each.
So I log into Spotify for Artists… and there’s maybe 90 new streams.
No bump in followers. No noticeable save rate.
Like… where did the other 110 “conversions” go?
That’s when it hit me: clicks and conversions mean nothing if they don’t translate into actual listeners.
$0.05 conversions look amazing… until you realize they don’t translate
If you’ve been running ads for a while, you already know the grind:
- Setting up the pixel on a Hypeddit or ToneDen link.
- Ads Manager reports conversions… but your streams don’t match.
- $0.05 conversions that look amazing on paper, but don’t turn into real fans.
- Cutting out Tier 2 countries because they eat the budget but give no saves.
- Save rate stuck at 6%… so Discover Weekly never kicks in.
- A/B testing audiences, creatives, placements… just to end up in the same place.
It feels like we’re stuck in a loop.
👉 Every campaign is just another round of guessing.
I was spending more time in Ads Manager than actually making music
I had spreadsheets comparing CPC, CTR, conversions, save rates… and still no clear idea if anything was working.
That constant second-guessing kills your motivation:
- Is my targeting wrong?
- Is my song not good enough?
- Or is Meta just lying to me?
And honestly, it started to feel like I was just burning money for “data” that didn’t even matter.
Then I found a tool that finally showed me the truth behind my ads.
I didn’t need another “playlist promo” or “growth hack.”
What I needed was to know if my ads were actually working.
That’s when I came across SoundLink.
Instead of me guessing if 200 conversions = 200 listeners, it straight up showed:
- Who streamed
- Who saved
- Who followed
- Who came back
It wasn’t another smartlink where half the clicks vanish. It was direct attribution between my ads and Spotify.
For the first time, I could actually see where my money was going.
Clicks ≠Streams. SoundLink finally connects the dots.
Here’s why this hit differently than every other tool I tried:
Pixel setup breaking → no problem, tracking is built into Spotify.
Landing page drop-offs → gone, direct to Spotify attribution.
$0.05 conversions with no plays → replaced with real cost per listener and follower.
Tier 2 country traffic eating budget → transparency on where streams actually come from.
Instead of juggling spreadsheets and guessing, I finally had clean data that told me which campaigns brought real fans.
From spreadsheets full of guesses… to results I could actually trust.
After my first SoundLink campaign, the difference was obvious:
I could track cost per real listener instead of cost per click.
My save rate jumped because the right people were hearing the song.
Followers actually increased, not bots, not randoms, but real fans.
Within weeks, my track hit Release Radar, something I could never force before.
Instead of throwing money into the black box, I finally had proof my ads were building something real.
I stopped feeling like a fake marketer and started feeling like an artist again.
Before, I was buried in Ads Manager.
Tweaking audiences, checking CPC, calculating save rate… and second-guessing everything.
Now? I finally trust my data.
I know which campaigns actually bring fans.
I don’t have to spend hours cross-checking spreadsheets just to figure out if something worked.
The crazy part? Once I stopped guessing, Spotify’s algorithm started working for me.
Release Radar. Real saves. Repeat listeners.
For the first time, I felt like I wasn’t just “hustling ads.”
I was actually building a fanbase.
Ready to stop guessing and finally see what’s working?
If you’re done wasting money on:
- Cheap clicks that never stream
- Pixels that misfire
- Smartlinks where half the traffic disappears
Then it’s time to try something different.
👉 With SoundLink, you’ll see exactly who streamed, saved, and followed from your ads.
No more blind spots. No more guessing. Just real attribution.
All your questions answered:
Soundlink is the music marketing platform built for artists and labels who want real results — not just clicks.
Whether you’re just starting out or already pulling millions of streams, Soundlink gives you the tools to launch campaigns that actually show what matters:
- ✔️ How many fans streamed your music
- ✔️ Who followed you
- ✔️ What songs/playlists are converting
- ✔️ And how to scale what’s working
With full Spotify attribution built in, Soundlink connects your ads directly to listener behavior — so you finally know where your marketing budget is going.
Set it and forget it—no subscriptions, no hidden fees.
You choose your daily budget. That’s all.
Campaign fee? A 20% platform fee is taken from your total campaign budget
Example:
$10/day Ă— 10 days = You pay $100
$80 in ads, $20 in service fees.
We recommend running campaigns for at least 14 days.
Why? Platforms like Meta (Facebook/Instagram) need time to optimize — typically around 72 hours — and ideally gather at least 50 conversions to accurately identify and reach your ideal audience. Shorter campaigns often end before the platform’s learning phase is complete, leading to weaker performance and higher costs per result.
For best outcomes, plan your campaigns with:
- âś… A minimum 14-day duration
- âś… Patience for optimization during the first few days
We recommend launching at least 3 song or playlist campaigns. Not every song or playlist will connect equally with new fans — it’s about finding the right combination of song/playlist and a Soundlink ad campaign that delivers results.
Many great old songs never reached the right audience to begin with. Soundlink helps fix that by placing your music in front of real potential new fans and showing you which song or playlist is converting best.
This insight lets you double down on what’s working, without wasting budget guessing.
We track new followers that can be attributed to a running campaign.
For track campaigns we count new followers for the first artist of the track.
For playlist campaigns we count new followers for the playlist.
This is due to Soundlink’s Auto-Follow functionality. When fans engage with a campaign (e.g. an advertisement of a playlist or promoted song), they are automatically prompted to follow the first listed primary artist and/or playlist associated with the campaign.
This action occurs immediately after authentication with Spotify, even before the fan streams the track, leading to a higher follower count than Super Streams or actual plays.
This feature is designed to help artists and curators grow long-term audience retention by converting casual listeners into loyal followers.
Soundlink is optimized to drive real full streams — not just clicks or short listens. This means Soundlink bridges the connection between META ads and Spotify to help you reach your ideal new fan: someone who listens to 100% of your song.
It’s not just about getting 5-second plays or clicks to Spotify; we focus on finding listeners who engage fully, signaling to META that we want more people like them.
While we might be able to deliver 100 clicks from META to Spotify, many of those people may only listen briefly. Our priority is not just volume but quality — ensuring that streams come from people who truly engage, leading to more meaningful playlist placements and genuine artist followers.
To maximize performance for our clients and drive sustainable long-term Spotify growth, we split the daily advertising budget across three key tiers (40%, 35%, 25%):
- High Tier (40%): United States, United Kingdom, Canada, Netherlands, Germany, Belgium
Core premium markets with higher acquisition costs but strong long-term value. These regions drive global visibility, listener credibility, and significant algorithmic impact within Spotify’s most competitive environments. - Mid Tier (35%): Mexico, Argentina, Spain
Low-cost, high-volume markets with strong music culture and engagement. Spanish-language creatives and captions deliver efficient conversions and excellent cost-per-listener (CPL), making this tier a key growth engine for expanding reach sustainably. - Low Tier (25%): Brazil, Philippines, South Africa, and broader Asia
Extremely efficient for scaling listener volume and driving algorithmic momentum at very low cost. These regions help feed Spotify’s recommendation engine and accelerate exposure across premium global markets.
By driving new fans to Spotify across premium, mid-level, and high-volume regions, campaigns create an algorithmic snowball effect. Engagement from cost-efficient tiers like Latin America and Asia often fuels visibility and listener growth in top-tier markets such as the US and UK, resulting in sustainable, compounding global performance.
We recommend promoting a playlist of your songs or catalogue rather than focusing on a single song. Here’s why:
- âś… Build Playlist Followers
When you promote and create your own playlist, you’re growing an audience around an asset you control — one you can continuously update with new releases. - ✅ Increase Fan Engagement
A playlist gives listeners more opportunities to connect with your music. With multiple songs in one place, fans are more likely to find a track they love. - âś… Optimize Visual Appeal
Make sure your playlist has visually appealing artwork — ideally with the genre name included in the image or text overlay, so it’s instantly clear what the playlist offers. - ✅ Name it Clearly
Name your playlist using specific genre terms that define your music. This helps potential followers quickly understand what they’re signing up for. - ✅ Pack It With Songs
The more tracks you include, the better. Some fans will play the playlist in the background for hours, increasing your total streams and exposure.