How to Create Your Own Music Streaming App Like SoundCloud?

Global life acceleration has made people busy searching for their favorite music on different resources, triggering audio streaming apps like SoundCloud. Music streaming services have become a real craze of modern music lovers, and the demand is accelerating with each year passing by. SoundCloud is a music streaming and distribution platform which allows users to upload, stream, and share music and audio podcasts. It is considered as the best music streaming service, with almost 175 million active listeners across the globe.

Audio streaming platforms like SoundCloud witnessed increased engagement, subscriptions, and artistic activity during the 2020 lockdown period. This influences many businesses to create similar services. However, creating apps like SoundCloud takes proper planning and an in-depth understanding of what goes into the building process. So here is a complete guide if you want to create your own music streaming app.

How does SoundCloud work?

Users can start using the music streaming service by downloading the app by visiting Soundcloud.com. Users can search for music and follow the artists to follow new tracks and playlists. The music you follow will appear in the “Stream” tab along with the tracks you upload and repost. The likes and playlists are stored under the “Library” tab. SoundCloud offers tools for artists to share their work and grow their audience.

The music streaming platform stresses the significance of copyright that uploaded tracks must comply with the rules and regulations.

Features of music streaming apps

One of the best features of popular music streaming apps like SoundCloud is the social network-like business model. Users can find posts that strike their interest, click the follow button, and create audio streams just like they do on Instagram or Twitter. Another interesting feature is the ability to add comments on a particular portion of an audio track.

The tracking number of plays, downwards, and engagement are other basic but important features of a music streaming app. To attract your target audience, you must offer features that they need. Here is a list of essential features that you must consider when creating a SoundCloud-like app.

Music library

A vast library of popular audio and music streams of different genres is one of the most popular features in your SoundCloud-like app. Offer music categorization by playlists, ratings, popularity, etc., and also make sure it is easy for users to find their favorite audio tracks.

Personalized playlist

Allow users to create different playlists suitable for different moods when creating a SoundCloud-like app, offering personalization.

Recommendation

Suggest new audio releases, top playlists, etc., to users. Most audio streaming apps leverage audio analysis algorithms to offer smart recommendations based on what the users recently played.

Voice search

Voice search is another common way to search music. Add voice search features when creating a music streaming app like SoundCloud.

Social media integration

Enable users to share their favorite tracks and music with their friends on social media. This is a great way to market your app to potential users.

Here are some of the ways to integrate your SoundCloud-like app with social media.

● Add a social login to connect users with their social media accounts to your app.

● Integrate visible click by placing social media buttons below an audio track so that users can easily share the track or even playlist.

Push notifications

Use push notifications to notify your users about the new music releases, important news, about the events nearby, and more. Adopt the personalization strategy where you can send notifications with their first name to address them individually.

Offline access

Users would like to listen to music even in the absence of a strong network. Providing offline access is a great way to attract and retain users.

Other basic yet important features include

● Login and profile creation

● Advanced search

● Playlist creation

● Artist profile and dashboard

● Content uploading

● Subscriptions

● Live streaming

● Pre-save

Revenue model

SoundCloud works on a freemium revenue model, which means the core music streaming service is free. But, users must pay a monthly /yearly subscription fee to use premium features. The app cargoes a fee from both artists and users, and it also makes revenue by charging brands that want to advertise.

Here are some of the best ways to generate revenue with an audio streaming app like SoundCloud.

Subscriptions

Audio streaming apps based on subscriptions tend to reap a higher revenue compared to other models. Users pay monthly or yearly to access the music library.

In-app purchasing

Users can purchase additional content or premium features for an extra price.

In-app advertisements

Advertisements are one of the most effective revenue models where brands pay you to run their ads within your audio streaming app. The revenue you can make depends on the cost per click or based on the impressions made.

Creating the SoundCloud like the app- Development approach

As you know the features and functionalities now, creating a fully functional music streaming can be challenging. Not just time and effort, it can get really expensive as well. However, the cost, time, etc., can vary considerably depending on the features you want to integrate. Developing a SoundCloud-like app can cost you a couple of thousand dollars or even more. If you want a cost-efficient alternative, using a SoundCloud clone can be the best choice.

SoundCloud clone is a white label audio streaming software that helps you create your own audio streaming platform similar to SoundCloud. The software comes with a ready-made framework to set up your fully-customized music streaming business, including site and mobile apps. Now that you know the essentials required to launch a profitable music streaming business go ahead with transforming how your audience engages with music.

Conclusion

Music lovers of today prefer accessing and listening to their favorite tracks on the go. To cater to these modern needs, music streaming services have been mushrooming every year. This trend offers opportunities for entrepreneurs to create music-sharing apps and set a space in one of the fastest-growing industries.

Before jumping into creating your music streaming service, brainstorm about the unique features, you can integrate into your service to create an impact among your target audience.