Effortlessly import your meta-data to Zil Distribution.
At Zil Distribution, we understand the importance of providing simple solutions for our partners. That’s why we’ve made it easy for you to migrate your music catalog to our platform using Google Drive and Sheets.
Our system automatically extracts all the necessary information from your catalog and uploads it to our servers directly from Google’s services, making the process quick and effortless.
In this article, we’ll guide you through the simple steps involved in transferring your music catalog to Zil Distribution using our metadata importer.
Step 1: Getting started
Let’s get started! The first thing to do is access the link provided to you by our operations team. This link will take you to the Google Sheet that contains all the necessary pages for transferring your music catalog to Zil Distribution.
Step 2: Stores and Countries
Once you access the link, you’ll find four pages to complete. You can navigate through these pages using the menu at the bottom left of the Google Sheet. Remember, the “Stores” and “Countries” pages apply to your entire catalog, so let’s start by completing these.
On the “Stores” and “Countries” pages, you’ll see a list of stores and countries, respectively, along with a button next to each one that allows you to select one of two options: TRUE or FALSE If you don’t want to distribute your catalog in a particular store or country, simply select FALSE
Step 3: Artists
We recommend that you start by uploading all of your artists, as they will be needed on the Metadata page.
Please make sure to fill in all the required information for each artist. If an artist already exists on our platform, their data will not be modified. If they don’t exist, we will create their accounts accordingly.
The following are some clarifications to help you understand what is required on the “Artists” page:
Artistic Name: This is the stage name or pseudonym that will be displayed in the stores.
Email: Please note that the email address provided must be unique, as each artist will be granted access to a special dashboard.
IPI: This field is optional and only needs to be completed if publishing is required.
Spotify URI and Apple ID: These fields are mandatory. If an artist doesn’t have these identifiers, please contact our operations team for assistance.
Step 4: Data uploading
Uploading your audio files and cover art is a breeze with Zil Distribution. Our system automatically retrieves the .WAV audio files and .JPG or .JPEG cover art files directly from your Google Drive account. Simply upload the files to your Google Drive and add the corresponding links to the appropriate album line on the Metadata page.
Please verify that each link you provide for the audio files and cover art is set to public and that you link directly to the file and not to a folder containing the file.
Step 5: Metadata Structure
In the final step, we ask that you please take your time and complete the metadata carefully and accurately, as any mistakes could result in manual corrections that are time-consuming to implement. It’s crucial to review each piece of information before submitting it to ensure that everything is correct.
Before we begin, it’s important to understand the data structure. The hierarchical order goes from the last column to the first, meaning there should be a row for each artist participating in a release, even if the information for Tracks, Albums, and Projects must be filled in multiple times.
In other words, each row corresponds to a specific artist, with the data for each column providing information about the Tracks, Albums, and Projects they are involved in. This way, the data can be easily organized and updated as needed.
Step 6: Metadata, let’s start adding your releases!
Here are some clarifications on the required fields:
Project Name is the name of the Project, an entity that groups related albums, which is only visible on our platform.
fantasyName is the name of the Album. This name will be published in the stores.
Please make sure to select one of the multiple options in the required fields, and do not enter any other non-predefined value. When it comes to the artists, please follow this methodology to avoid linking issues.
Step 7: Auto-Split
To activate our automatic royalty distribution tool, set the “has Autosplit” value to TRUE and fill in the “Split Percentage.” You can also add a “Start Limit” to collect all royalties until the artist finishes paying their advance. If you don’t want to use this feature, leave it blank.
