Setting up a Pre-Order is Easy!
You may set up and purchase your iTunes pre-orders directly in your TuneCore account as part of the upload process. Once you’ve completed your Album or Single Checklist, you may complete the “Pre-order (Optional)” step. When you set up your pre-order, you’ll be able to:
- Set a pre-order start date
- Select Track Previews (optional)
- Select Instant Gratification Tracks (optional)
- Set Special Pre-Order Pricing (optional)
Please note: a pre-order cannot be added to a release after it has been paid for and distributed to stores. You need to set up your pre-order during the upload process to take advantage of this feature.
TuneCore can process your pre-order request for a set fee per release (plus the distribution fee). The pre-order fee for just iTunes is $22.49.
Important: If you want to attach a PDF booklet (it’s optional), you need to do so PRIOR to distribution and pre-order. Please follow the steps found here.
Keep in Mind:
- Timing: After the release is delivered to iTunes, most releases take 24-72 hours to go live. However, a random percentage of releases go through an internal store review process, which can take up to 16 business days from the day they're received by the store.
- Sales Reporting: Any pre-order album sales will not be reported to your iTunes Daily Trend Reports until the actual release date of your album. This is because customers are not actually charged for a pre-order purchase until the release is fully live and available within the iTunes Music Store. However, if there are Instant Gratification tracks available on your pre-order, these sales will be treated as a regular track sale and will appear on your iTunes Daily Trend Reports since customers are able to purchase and download the track.
- Pricing: If the album price is changed between the pre-order start date and the sales start date, customers who pre-ordered the album will be charged the lesser of the two prices.