A batch submission (sometimes called a campaign) sends one track to multiple curators in a single transaction. It's the closest thing TrackGiant has to a "release push" button, and when used right, it's the highest-leverage action in the whole platform for indie artists.
This guide covers how batches actually work, when to use them (and when not to), how to pick curators that give you useful signal, and the post-campaign moves that turn a batch into a release strategy.
What a batch submission actually does
When you submit a track as a batch, TrackGiant creates one individual submission per selected curator, all paid for in a single Stripe checkout. From the curators' perspective, they each get a normal submission in their inbox — they don't see the other curators you sent to. From your perspective, you get one campaign dashboard where you can track all of them at once.
Key mechanics to know:
- One payment, many submissions. You pay the sum of each curator's individual price in one transaction at checkout.
- Each curator reviews independently. The 7-day review window applies to each curator separately.
- Refunds are per-curator. If 3 curators review and 2 let the window expire, you get refunded for the 2 that expired. The 3 completed reviews stay settled.
- Promo codes apply to the subtotal. If you have a promo code, it discounts the campaign total, not each curator.
When to use a batch (and when not to)
Good reasons to batch
- Release day. Your single drops Friday. You want 6–8 curator reviews hitting your inbox across the following 2 weeks. Batch it Wednesday.
- Validating a song before release. You're 80% sure your next single is the right pick but want fast signal from multiple angles. 4–5 diverse curators in one batch beats a week of one-at-a-time submissions.
- Pre-release campaigns. You want to build relationships with curators in a specific genre before a major push later in the year. A batch is how you introduce yourself to a roster.
Reasons to not batch
- It's your first time submitting a track. Start with one curator, learn the flow, get the feedback, and then scale up. Your first submission should be deliberate, not a shotgun.
- You're unsure about the track. A batch amplifies both signal and spend. If you're not confident in the song, you'll spend more and get reviews that all say the same "needs another pass" note.
- You don't have time to read the reviews. If you can't sit down and actually absorb 6 reviews over 2 weeks, you're burning money on feedback you won't use.
How to pick your batch curators
The mistake most artists make is picking curators by price — grabbing the 6 cheapest curators in their genre and calling it a campaign. That gets you six surface-level reviews and one confused artist. Do this instead.
The 3-2-1 rule
For a standard 6-curator batch, select:
- 3 curators in your core genre. These are the ones whose opinion you most trust. Aim for the middle of the pricing range here — not the cheapest, not the most expensive.
- 2 curators one step adjacent. If you make indie pop, pick 2 curators who mostly cover dream pop or alt R&B. Adjacent taste finds blind spots your core genre won't.
- 1 wildcard. An A&R, an Artist-Curator, or a curator in a category you don't usually think about. This is where your most unexpected note usually comes from.
What to optimize for in curator selection
In order of importance:
- Specialty overlap. Read their "specialties" list and bio. If 2+ specialties clearly match your music, you're in the right place.
- Response rate. Curators with high response rates actually close submissions within the 7-day window. Low response rate = your money gets tied up and you wait.
- Rating. A proxy for quality, but not a strict filter. A newer curator with 4 great reviews can be more useful than an established one with 100 mixed ones.
- Turnaround time. If you're launching in 5 days, skip curators whose typical turnaround is "1 week" — they'll review after launch, which is still valuable but serves a different goal.
- Price. Dead last. Price is the constraint, not the selector.
Pricing math for batch submissions
Here's how a batch cost is actually built up (all numbers illustrative):
- Sum of each curator's review price. That's your subtotal.
- Promo code discount, if you have one, applied to the subtotal.
- No added platform fee for buyers — the listed price is what you pay per curator.
- Processing is absorbed on the platform side, so there's no extra line item for Stripe.
Practically, this means a batch of 6 curators whose prices range from the low end to the mid range will land somewhere you can plan around. It's not a mystery number, which means you can budget a full release campaign months in advance.
A simple budgeting framework
Think of your batch in "release-month dollars", not per-submission:
- Minimum viable campaign — 4 curators, mid-priced, one wildcard. Plenty for your first single of the year.
- Standard release push — 6–8 curators across your genre and one tier up, run a week before release.
- Major push — 10+ curators, often across two batches spaced a week apart. Reserve this for songs you believe in.
Fewer, better-picked curators beat more, cheaper ones every time. A 4-curator campaign with the right curators will outperform a 12-curator campaign of mediocre fits.
The cover message for a batch
Here's a trap: writing one generic cover message for all 6 curators. It reads generic, and every curator knows it.
The fix is a shared core plus a one-line personalization per curator:
- Shared core (3 sentences): who you are, what the track is, what you want feedback on.
- Personal one-liner: something specific about that curator. "I've had your 'Low Gravity' playlist on rotation all winter — would love your take on whether this fits." Or just: "Saw your note on [artist's track] — the arrangement feedback you gave there is exactly why I'm submitting this one to you."
You can still write and send the batch in one sitting. The personalization line takes 30 seconds per curator and raises the real engagement rate noticeably. Curators are humans. They notice when you noticed them.
Tracking and reading the results
Your campaign dashboard shows the status of each submission in the batch. Some things to expect:
- Early reviews (day 1–3). Usually from curators with 24-hour turnaround or a naturally fast pace.
- Mid reviews (day 3–5). The bulk of the action. This is when you'll start seeing patterns.
- Late reviews (day 5–7). The most thorough reviews often come last.
- Expired entries. Will auto-refund. Don't stress about them; they're normal and the platform handles them.
How to read a batch of reviews
Do not read them one at a time as they come in. You'll get whiplash. Wait until at least 4 are in, then read all of them in one sitting with these two questions in mind:
- What's the repeated note? Ignore anything mentioned by only one curator. Look for things 3+ curators say independently. That's your signal.
- What's the absence? What did nobody mention? If nobody talked about your lyrics, the lyrics probably aren't the issue. If nobody praised the mix, it might need another pass.
This is the single most underused tactic in releases — the reviews are data, and they're most useful in aggregate.
Advanced tactics
Once you've run a few batches, a couple of moves worth trying:
The staggered double-batch
For big songs, run two smaller batches a week apart rather than one big batch. The first batch gives you notes you can act on before the second batch lands. You'll get higher-quality reviews because your cover message in batch 2 can reference what batch 1 said.
The relationship batch
If a curator gave you an amazing review last release, submit your next track to them the moment they accept submissions again — even if the rest of the batch is different curators. Consistency turns into recognition turns into bigger conversations. This is how a curator roster becomes a real network.
The genre-expansion batch
Once a year, pick a batch that's entirely curators in an adjacent genre. You won't get as many immediately-useful notes, but you'll occasionally find a curator whose taste unlocks a new audience for your music.
What not to do
- Don't resubmit the exact same track to the exact same curators a month later. That's an obvious pattern and a good way to damage your reputation.
- Don't cancel a batch halfway through. Let it run. The reviews that come in later are usually the best ones.
- Don't reply emotionally to a bad review. Read it a day later, decide if there's anything to take, and move on. The curator is a professional; so are you.
Next moves
Once your first batch is done:
- Save the curators who gave you the best reviews to your My Curators list. That list becomes your release strategy.
- If you're a working artist with your own audience, consider signing up as an Artist-Curator yourself — reviewing other artists' music is one of the best ways to pay for your own submissions. See our Artist-Curator playbook.
- If your batch surfaced a curator you want to work with more, check their services — many curators offer longer consultations, A&R sessions, or release strategy packages beyond track reviews.
Done right, a batch isn't an expense — it's the research budget for your next release.