Playlist Push vs. Playlist IQ Review: Which Spotify Promo Actually Delivers Results?

In the competitive world of music promotion, playlist placement has become essential for independent artists looking to grow their audience. Two major players in this space are Playlist Push and Playlist IQ (by recordlabel.ai). While both platforms connect artists with playlist curators, their approaches differ significantly—especially when it comes to how they handle the most frustrating aspect of playlist promotion: rejection rates and wasted promotion budgets. 

This article provides a detailed comparison to help you decide which platform better serves your music promotion needs.

Playlist Push uses a campaign-based approach where artists pay upfront to send their music to multiple curators (minimum 20) based on genre matching. You pay regardless of curator interest.

Playlist IQ: Unlike other platforms, Playlist IQ first allows curators to indicate whether they're interested in your music without charging you. This revolutionary approach means you don’t waste 70-90% of your music marketing money on rejections—you pay for feedback from curators who have already expressed interest in your music!

Playlist IQ offers two distinct campaign options that give you complete control over timing and budget: 

RUSH Campaigns: When you need results fast, this option incentivizes curators to respond quickly with the fastest response time in the industry: 

12-hour response: 4 credits
24-hour response: 3 credits
48-hour response: 2 credits
72-hour response: 1 credit 

After 72 hours: Standard rates apply 

Standard Campaigns: Maximize your budget if you can wait up to 7 days: 

- Initial responses are completely free
- Review curator interest at your convenience
- Strategically allocate budget only to your preferred interested curators

With both campaign types, you maintain full control over which interested curators receive your detailed feedback budget.

Playlist Push manually verifies curators and monitors playlists for authenticity. They require playlists to have a minimum of 1,000 playlist followers. 

Playlist IQ requires all playlists to have at least 100 followers and employs a thorough vetting process to ensure no bots or suspicious activity. 

Additionally, Playlist IQ implements a transparent Trust Score system that holds curators accountable for their actions, particularly when they indicate interest in a song during the initial phase but don't follow through with placement after the detailed feedback stage.

Playlist Push uses their ‘Playlist DNA’ algorithm to select playlists for you. This can be a quicker initial selection process than other platforms because you are not manually selecting the playlists; however, you lose some control over which lists your song is being pitched to.

Playlist IQ offers the most advanced filters for playlist selection in the industry. You can filter playlists by Total Followers, Follower Growth Rate (followers gaining/losing per day over the last 7 days), Estimated Streams, Trust Score, Genre, Mood, Language, & Detailed Feedback Price.

This allows you to laser focus your playlist search to find the exact lists you want.

Playlist Push campaigns start at $285 for a minimum of 20 curators, regardless of how many actually like your music. They have publicly stated their acceptance rate is around 32%. This means most artists will be paying for mostly rejection notes. 

Most campaigns run for 2 weeks as opposed to the 4 week standard placement schedule that most artists receive with Playlist IQ. 

Playlist IQ offers a credit system (you can get a credit pack for as low as $77) where you pay for credits & assign those to curators through two campaign types: 

Standard Campaigns: Free initial responses from curators, then you choose which interested curators to pay for detailed feedback

RUSH Campaigns: You pay for expedited initial response + can still allocate your budget during the detailed feedback stage 

Playlist curators get to set 3 prices for detailed feedback per list (Low, Medium, & High). 

They have to write more feedback depending on how much the artist desires. Typically, when an artist desires more feedback, the curator has already expressed that they believe the song is a good fit for any position on their list. Thus, the curator has no problem giving the artist a favorable list position rather than placing it at the bottom of their playlist. 

Playlist IQ gives both artists & curators more control over their budget & pricing.

Playlist Push provides genre matching through their "Playlist DNA" system but offers limited transparency into actual streaming performance of the playlist you are submitting to. 

Playlist IQ provides AI-assisted streaming predictions for every playlist before you submit, allowing you to make data-driven decisions. We even distinguish between historical streaming data (verified performance) and estimated data, giving you unprecedented insight into potential ROI before spending a dime.

Playlist Push pays curators $1.50-$15 per song based on listenership. 

Playlist IQ allows curators to set their own rates, recognizing that many invest thousands in growing and promoting their playlists. 

This creates a more sustainable ecosystem where curators are properly compensated for their work and investment, leading to higher-quality playlists participating in the platform.

Playlist Push claims a 32% acceptance rate. Thus, a 68% denial rate. This means MOST of the money spent by artists is unfortunately going to ‘rejection feedback’. 

Playlist IQ doesn't publish specific acceptance rates because our model fundamentally changes the equation. Since you are paying for curators who have already expressed interest, your effective "paid acceptance rate" is significantly higher—often approaching 100% for the feedback you actually purchase.

The most significant difference between these platforms is their approach to the "rejection economy" that plagues the music promotion industry. 

With traditional platforms like Playlist Push, artists pay upfront for all submissions, including the 68% that will be rejected (based on their own stated acceptance rate).

This means nearly 70% of your promotion budget is spent on things that won’t ever lead to streams for your music. 

Playlist IQ eliminates this wasteful spending by charging for curators who have already expressed interest in your music. 

This revolutionary approach means: 

- You don’t waste all your budget on rejection feedback
- Your promotion budget is properly allocated toward curators who actually want to feature your music
- You can make data-driven decisions with AI-assisted streaming predictions
- You maintain complete control over which curators receive your budget

Playlist Push offers a campaign dashboard to track results but has limited public accountability mechanisms for curators. 

Playlist IQ implements several accountability features: 

- Trust Score system that rates curators on reliability and responsiveness. Artists can use this filter during the playlist pitching process
- Ability to report issues with playlists that don't deliver as expected. Let’s say a curator is saying they’re interested in your song during the initial feedback phase, then changes their mind after you’ve already paid for detailed feedback. You can report this behavior & it will lower their Trust Score. 

The Trust Score is all about… well, Trust. 

Does the curator actually do what they say, or are they simply trying to score easy money off of artists? 

- Automatic refunds if detailed feedback isn't delivered within 3 days 

- Playlisting schedules provided alongside feedback (since the curator already expressed interest in the song during the initial response stage)

Choose Playlist Push if:
- You prefer a hands-off approach and don't mind paying most of your marketing budget for rejections
- You don’t mind spending at least $285 to get potentially 70-90% rejections
- You're comfortable with less transparency about potential streaming results 

Choose Playlist IQ if:
- You want to know which playlists are interested in your music before spending money
- You prefer more control over your promotion budget
- You value transparency and data-driven decision making
- You want to eliminate wasted spending on rejection feedback
- You're looking for a more artist-friendly approach to playlist promotion 

In an industry where artists routinely waste 70-90% of their promotion budgets on playlist feedback rejections, Playlist IQ's innovative approach represents a significant advancement in how artists and curators connect. 

By deterring the "pay-for-rejection" model that has dominated the industry, Playlist IQ creates a more transparent, efficient, and artist-friendly platform for music promotion. 

Ready to stop paying for 70-90% playlist rejections? Try Playlist IQ today by clicking the button below.

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