GTracks - ECommerce Platform For Gospel Music

Technology

PHP, WordPress

Industry

Media & Entertainment

Project Type

Music

Location

United Kingdom

About The Project

GTracks wanted a platform where independent artists and DJs could distribute their music. Specifically made for gospel music, you can directly download, purchase, or listen to them on the platform. When you choose GTracks, you get complete control over your published content.

The challenge wasn’t just building an eCommerce store. It was creating a whole ecosystem that revolves around this genre of music and gives multiple options for monetization, tracking sales, and getting royalties.

Based on requirements and feedback from the client, they already had a website. Payment services are integrated via WooCommerce, and bulk email services enable the admin to broadcast customizable template emails to different user roles. DJs, on the other hand, wanted complete freedom to share without barriers.

The platform had to serve everyone differently, yet feel unified and intuitive. That’s where the complexity began. The team needed to move beyond standard WooCommerce to create something genuinely custom. One requirement was showing listings. Popular artists and tracks are automatically sorted and displayed using shortcodes based on purchases and plays.

Key Project Deliverables

Added comforting solutions to the user experience. These were the major product developments presented to the clients.

Music Player Integration

We have integrated a music player, so within the eCommerce platform here, users can also listen to tracks. This can be done without purchasing the track. Further, this reduces buyer hesitation and increases conversion rates.

Digital Product Security

Secure file delivery is locked to individual purchasers. This prevents unauthorized sharing and protects the artist’s IP. Downloadable files are encrypted and available only to the user who purchased the music.

Role-Based Pricing

Admins can set different pricing rules, and you can charge rates for artists, DJs, and listeners based on their account tier. We have added custom pricing options for the different roles as well, so admins can set role-based pricing.

Multi-Currency Support

Global payment support helps customers check out in their local currency. This creates a localized experience and builds customer trust. It also caters to a global customer base and increases sales.

Social Feed Integration

This builds credibility by showcasing an active, popular brand presence. We implemented the social media feeds viewport on the homepage for business social profiles.

Custom Search Feature

We have implemented the smart search functionality that finds music, pages, artists, and DJs in seconds. In addition, you get auto-generated popularity lists powered by plays and purchases.

Major Project Challenges

When Gtracks first outlined their requirements, our team realized this wasn’t just another development project. Gtracks had a completely different business model. One that incentivized free artist contributions while monetizing listener purchases. On the surface, it may seem simple. But it created a once-in-a-lifetime requirement of logical hurdles that needed creative problem-solving.

The core challenge was to create a platform where DJs can upload unlimited tracks for free. Apart from that, artists can get paid as well to upload and can price their tracks however they want. Listeners can preview tracks. But after a few listens, you might have to pay. All of this required a role-based pricing and tier-type subscription/purchase that can be changed based on the user.

Traditional eCommerce solutions weren’t designed for this. Standard music platforms treat all creators equally. But Gtracks wasn’t building a standard platform. They were building something intentionally different. The client also had a specific vision for the platform featuring Gospel music.

Lastly, the team had to think beyond plugins. They had to think about how musicians actually work, how DJs distribute content, and how listeners discover music.

Solutions & Impact

Meeting client requirements is our priority, even when they seem nearly impossible. Although challenging, our team works diligently to fulfil each requirement, leaving no unfinished tasks. We are determined to achieve results and satisfy the client’s needs, despite any difficulties faced along the way. The best solutions we provided were:

Rather than creating custom user types from scratch, we used WooCommerce’s vendor system and extended it through custom permissions and role manipulation.
We created a preview system that counts listens. After three plays from the same IP address, the interface shifts from “Listen Now” to “Add to Cart.”
Downloaded files needed to be secured for paying customers only. We implemented user-specific encryption on all downloadable music files.
Sharing a purchased track wouldn’t help a friend access it without payment. Each user gets a unique decryption key tied to their purchase record. This feature was implemented as well.

Lastly, the platform automatically surfaces top artists and tracks via custom shortcodes that sort by real-time play counts and purchase history. No manual curation. No stale featured sections. The system constantly learns what’s popular and adjusts what’s visible.