How Donovan Woods drove fan activity with Sonikit

Donovan Woods’ album Without People is a deeply personal exploration of human connection in a time of global separation. Released via Meant Well Records, the project was crafted entirely during quarantine and brought to life through a one-of-a-kind digital campaign—powered in part by Sonikit’s pre-save technology.

To translate the album’s themes into a compelling digital experience, Woods’ team partnered with interactive design studio Wayward Creative to create a globe-spanning, art-filled microsite that allowed fans to explore visual interpretations of the album from creators around the world—all while listening to the music.

In this case study, we’ll explore how the team used Sonikit’s custom pre-save embed to create a seamless, branded, and data-rich fan experience that helped drive pre-saves, collect fan insights, and build a stronger connection between artist and audience.

🌍 Campaign Concept: Connecting Fans Through Art

The microsite for Without People invited fans to virtually travel the world—navigating an interactive globe to discover dance, painting, illustration, and mixed media projects created by artists from different countries. Each piece reflected a unique interpretation of the album’s themes.

As fans explored the map, they could listen to the full album in the background via Spotify or Apple Music, adding a deeply immersive element to the launch. But the campaign wasn’t just about storytelling—it was also about activation.

🎯 Pre-Saves Without Disruption, Powered by Sonikit

To maximize conversions without compromising the immersive experience, the team integrated Sonikit’s custom pre-save embed directly into the website.

Here’s how the integration elevated the campaign:

1. Pre-Saves Embedded Directly in the Experience

Using Sonikit’s lightweight integration, the development team embedded a pre-save form directly within the globe interface, allowing fans to pre-save the album without leaving the site. This reduced drop-off and created a smooth, branded user experience.

2. Support for Spotify and Apple Music

Fans could choose between Spotify and Apple Music with one click—removing friction and increasing the likelihood of conversion.

3. Advertising and Retargeting, Fully Intact

Since the pre-save functionality lived entirely within the microsite, all ad tracking pixels and analytics remained active, enabling the team to retarget fans who interacted with the campaign and measure the true ROI of their ad spend.

4. SMS Opt-In Collection Built In

Sonikit’s integration also allowed the team to collect phone numbers during the pre-save process, creating an opt-in SMS list for album updates, future releases, and exclusive fan content. This helped build a direct, high-conversion channel for ongoing communication.

5. Advanced Analytics for Smarter Marketing

Throughout the campaign, the Sonikit dashboard provided detailed insight into fan behavior, including:

• Pre-save conversion rates

• Top-performing regions and referral sources

• Streaming service preferences

• SMS opt-in rates

These insights not only helped optimize the campaign in real-time but also gave the team valuable data to inform future launches.

📊 Key Outcomes

The Donovan Woods Without People campaign highlights how pairing interactive storytelling with embedded music marketing tools can dramatically improve performance.

• Higher Engagement: Fans stayed longer, interacted more, and explored deeper into the content thanks to the immersive format.

• Increased Pre-Saves: The frictionless experience and multi-platform support led to significantly higher pre-save conversion rates.

• Actionable Fan Data: From geolocation to SMS opt-ins, the campaign delivered meaningful insights the team could use for future targeting.

🎧 Why It Matters for Indie Artists and Music Marketers

In today’s landscape, fans don’t just want to listen—they want to experience. With Sonikit, artists and labels can build custom campaigns that go far beyond static landing pages.

Whether you’re launching a new album, single, or tour, Sonikit helps you:

• Design interactive, branded experiences

• Capture key fan data like emails and phone numbers

• Drive pre-saves across multiple platforms

• Keep all your analytics and ad tracking intact

• Make data-driven marketing decisions

The Donovan Woods campaign proves that even in a remote-first world, it’s possible to create meaningful connections with fans—especially when the right tools are in place.

🚀 Launch Your Next Campaign with Sonikit

Ready to build your own immersive fan experience? Sonikit gives you the tools to control the design, collect fan data, and turn casual listeners into loyal fans. Create a free account to start building your next campaign.