Pre-Save Campaigns

Every release in LabelGrid comes with a built-in, hosted landing page that runs a Spotify pre-save — no plugin, no Gate, and no website of your own required. Fans get one link to save your release to their library on release day, and you can layer on artist and playlist follows and collect fan emails. This guide explains what a pre-save is, why it matters, and how to run one on your release’s landing page.

For the full guide to the hosted landing page itself — sharing it, customizing the look, and reading its analytics — see Release Landing Pages.

Setting up a pre-save at a glance

Step	What you do	What LabelGrid does
1. Prepare the release	Create and submit your release in LabelGrid with the correct release date	Runs quality review and prepares the release for delivery
2. Get approval	Wait for the release to be approved (submit 2 to 3 weeks ahead)	Approves the release so the pre-save goes live
3. Turn on the landing page	Enable landing pages at the label level (Web tab) or per release from the Landing Page panel	Hosts the release’s landing page at links.labelgrid.com
4. Configure the pre-save	Choose the pre-save actions (save on release day, artist/playlist follows) and optional email capture	Discloses the actions to fans and completes them automatically on release day
5. Share the link	Promote the landing-page link across social, email, and ads	Tracks views, pre-save conversions, and platform clicks
6. Release day	Announce the launch	Adds the release to each pre-saver’s library and carries out the follows you configured

What a pre-save is and why it matters

A pre-save lets fans commit to your release before it comes out. On Spotify, a fan authorizes the pre-save once, and the release is added to their library automatically the moment it goes live.

Pre-saves matter because they front-load engagement:

• Day-one streams. Pre-saves convert to library adds and streams on release day, so activity that would trickle in over a week lands at launch.
• Algorithmic momentum. Concentrated early activity can strengthen your standing in personalized surfaces such as Release Radar.
• Follower growth. You can add artist-follow and playlist-follow steps to the pre-save, so it grows your following at the same time.
• A single link to promote. The pre-save lives on a hosted landing page you can share everywhere.

Run a pre-save on your landing page

The pre-save runs on the release’s built-in landing page, hosted for you at links.labelgrid.com. There is nothing to install.

Step 1 — Submit and approve the release first

The pre-save only goes live once your release is submitted and approved in LabelGrid. Because approval and delivery take time, submit 2 to 3 weeks before your release date.

Step 2 — Turn on the landing page

Landing pages are controlled at two levels, so you can switch them on for your whole label or for a single release:

• Label-wide — open your label settings, go to the Web tab, and turn on Enable Landing pages. Every release under that label then inherits this default.
• Per release — open the release’s Landing Page panel (the Landing Page button on the release page, or Landing Page from the release-list row menu) and choose Customize for this release. You can turn a page on for one release even when the label default is off, or off for one release when the default is on.

Before release day, the landing page’s main button is your Spotify pre-save.

Step 3 — Configure the pre-save actions

You decide exactly what happens when a fan pre-saves. The available actions are:

• Save the release to the fan’s Spotify library on release day. This always happens — it is the core of a pre-save.
• Follow the artist(s) on the release.
• Follow a specific artist you choose.
• Add the release to a playlist the fan picks from their own Spotify playlists.
• Follow a playlist you specify.

Turn on any combination that fits the campaign. The landing page discloses the exact actions to the fan before they connect Spotify (this is required by Spotify), the fan authorizes through their own Spotify login, and LabelGrid completes the pre-save automatically on release day.

Step 4 — Capture fan emails (optional)

You can collect fan emails on the landing page to build a direct audience. The fan must first tick an explicit consent checkbox before the email field appears; emails are stored encrypted and only shared with your label. You can make email capture optional or required to pre-save, and download your subscribers as a CSV from the Web tab of your label settings.

Step 5 — Share, track, and promote

Share the landing-page link across your channels and keep promoting it until release day. The release’s Landing Analytics tab shows views (including uniques), pre-save conversions broken down by action, and platform clicks over time, with a rollup across all releases in your label settings. You can also add your own Meta (Facebook) Pixel and Google Analytics 4 Measurement ID to measure campaigns in your own tools.

Tip

Give yourself enough lead time. A pre-save campaign is only as strong as the promotion behind it, so 2 to 3 weeks lets you build an audience before launch. See Distribution Lead Times for planning guidance.

Apple Music pre-orders

Alongside Spotify pre-saves, Apple Music supports pre-orders, which let fans add or buy your release ahead of launch. Apple Music pre-orders can be set up to 366 days before the release date. You can run an Apple Music pre-order and a Spotify pre-save for the same release — add your pre-order links to the landing page so they appear before release day.

Also available: Gate and the WordPress plugin

The hosted landing page is the built-in way to run a pre-save, and it is the right choice for most releases. LabelGrid also offers two other ways to publish a pre-save, and any campaigns you already run on them keep working:

• LabelGrid Gate — a standalone Smart Link and pre-save product. If you only need pre-save campaigns and the WordPress integration without distribution, Gate is available as its own plan at $39 USD per year, billed annually.
• LabelGrid Tools WordPress plugin — publishes pre-save Smart Links on your own WordPress site and syncs your catalog, artist profiles, and download gates. It also supports advertising events for Facebook and Google Ads. See the WordPress plugin guide.

Both create a Smart Link landing page and handle the Spotify pre-save flow. Existing Gate and plugin pre-saves continue to run; new releases can use the built-in hosted landing page above with nothing to install.

FAQ

”Does LabelGrid support pre-save campaigns?”

Yes. Every release in LabelGrid comes with a built-in hosted landing page at links.labelgrid.com that runs a Spotify pre-save — no plugin, Gate, or website needed. Fans save the release to their library on release day, and you can add artist and playlist follows. Enable landing pages from your label settings (Web tab) or per release from the release’s Landing Page panel.

”When should I start a pre-save campaign?”

Start 2 to 3 weeks before your release date. Your release must be submitted and approved in LabelGrid before the pre-save goes live, so plan enough lead time for review and delivery.

”What do fans do when they pre-save a release?”

Fans authorize the pre-save once through their own Spotify login, and the release is added to their library automatically on release day. You can also configure the pre-save to follow the artist, follow a specific artist, add the release to a playlist the fan picks, or follow a playlist you specify.

”Does a pre-save help my release perform better?”

Yes. Pre-saves convert to streams and library adds on release day, concentrating early activity that can strengthen day-one performance and algorithmic momentum such as Release Radar.

”How are Apple Music pre-orders different from Spotify pre-saves?”

An Apple Music pre-order lets fans buy or add a release ahead of launch and can be set up to 366 days before the release date. A Spotify pre-save adds the release to a fan’s library automatically when it goes live. You can run both for the same release.

Related guides

• Release Landing Pages - The hosted landing page that runs your pre-save, including sharing, customization, and analytics
• Distribution Lead Times - How far ahead to submit and approve a release
• Promo Tools - Smart Links, gated downloads, and campaign tools
• LabelGrid Tools WordPress Plugin - Publish pre-saves on your own WordPress site

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Questions about pre-save campaigns? Contact our support team