How to Grow on Medium (Even If You're Starting From Zero)

These tips can help you reach a large audience and make some money in the process.

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By

Alberto Cabas Vidani

In 2022, I started publishing in English, after 12 years creating content in Italian.

I wanted to start from written content, to have the time to fix any language mistake. But I didn’t want to wait 6-12 months for my blog to start ranking on Google.

So, I started writing on Medium.com. It’s the Youtube for writers, though much smaller.

I was also intrigued by its Partner Program. It gives you passive income based on the performance of your articles.

I’ve been knee-deep in the platform for more than 18 months. This is how you can grow faster if you are starting from scratch.

My rollercoaster 2023

My 2023 started with excitement:

• some articles got a great response from the readers,

• earnings were growing,

• I was invited to speak at Medium Day.

Then the Boost arrived. It’s a curation mechanism:

• Boost nominators pick articles they like,

• Boost curators can approve them for the Boost,

• Boosted articles’ reach gets amplified.

The earnings formula changed too, giving outrageous weight to the Boost.

It was “Boost or bust”: Boosted articles earned hundreds of dollars, while the others just pennies.

Things change constantly

My excitement vanished.

I started spending more time on every article, trying to get Boosted. My output shrank, but I managed to get only one Boost in the last part of the year.

There are about 100 Boost nominators. They can cover just a fraction of the articles. And there small number can’t counterbalance their personal biases.

Fortunately, at Medium they listened to the authors’ complaints. In October, after only 3 months, they changed the earnings formula again. Now the Boost has less weight while the reading time is back in the calculation.

I kept studying other authors’ performances, talking to them, talking to publication editors, listening to interviews. I noticed many of them getting views and earnings while ignoring the Boost, like in the old days (before 2023).

This made me excited about Medium again. Here’s what’s still working on the platform, based on my own experience and on hundreds of hours of studying top performers.

Quantity is still the name of the game

The most famous author on Medium is currently Eve Arnold. Her growth has been exponential. She has 67000 followers and makes 4 figures every month.

She’s been publishing daily for 3 years.

You don’t need that kind of output. But to see significant growth on Medium, you still need to publish at least twice per week. To maximize your chances, aim for 4-6 minutes long articles.

This way, you appear more frequently in front of the readers, get more feedback, and develop a sense of what works on the platform.

Be personal

For a while, the Medium algorithm was stupid. Simple, generic self-improvement advice could make you rich. Those times are gone.

Now the audience, the algorithm, and the Boost nominators reward authentic content. Which, by the way, is what works everywhere online.

So, include in your article at least one of these:

• personal stories,

• personal results,

• results from people you helped,

• personal, thoughtful and informed opinions.

Broad topics, specific delivery

Nick Wignall is a psychologist, and another ridiculously successful Medium author. He has more than 330k followers. But most importantly, he makes 4 figures monthly, publishing 2 articles every week, with about 5 hours of work.

All his articles tackle broad problems, like anxiety.

This is intentional. In a class for a community I am part of, Nick taught that he chooses topics with the maximum potential reach. Then it makes the articles unique by differentiating his advice from what you can read in the top ranking articles on Google.

I experienced this firsthand: if you can frame your article as the solution to a broad problem, you get more views.

But Medium readers aren’t newbies. So, you need to add something original to the article, for example your experience, an unexpected perspective, or a new tip.

Headlines make or break your articles

This is old copywriting advice. People read your article only if the headline makes them stop scrolling and click.

So, spend “too much” time on your headline. Write 10 variations and check them with a headline analyzer. Walter Rhein, another successful writer, swears by CoSchedule’s analyzer.

The best you can do to improve is to spy on other authors:

• scroll Medium’s feed and analyze the best headlines,

• search for a topic within Medium, the top results are usually the most read, thus the ones with the best headlines.

And keep in mind these evergreen guidelines:

• be clear, not clever

• state the problem solved or the benefit provided,

• show your expertise,

• leave something to curiosity,

• add a twist.

Read Ratio Rules

Medium defines read ratio as the percentage of viewers reading your article for at least 30 seconds.

This number is crucial for two reasons:

• you earn money only for Reads, not Views (i.e., people bouncing before the 30s mark don’t make you money),

• many authors noticed that articles with high read ratio (at least 70%) receive larger distribution.

I also experienced it myself. When I raised the read ratio for an article from below 50% to around 70%, my views spiked.

How do you increase the read ratio?

First of all, write very short introductions. Confirm to the reader he’s in the right place and build curiosity for the rest of the article. If you write personal essays and are a good storyteller, you can take more time setting the scene. But be sure to captivate your reader with your story.

Second, remember to deliver on your headline’s promise. Readers don’t want to waste time. In a minute they can jump to a dozen alternative articles as soon as yours starts to meander.

Third, keep a high rate of revelation. In other words, keep revealing new knowledge, advancing the story, provoking emotion in your reader.

Use publications

Medium publications are independently managed magazines. They have their own following and usually deal with a specific set of topics.

When you have a small following, you can draw from a publication audience to get more views. It always works.

So, search for the topics you want to talk about and find the most relevant publications. You’ll have to wait a bit more for the editors’ feedback, but it will accelerate your growth.

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Alberto Cabas Vidani

I hope you will use these tips to grow on medium this year. It can help you reach a large audience and make some money in the process, too!

If you need more help, there’s my free email course: https://albertocabasvidani.gumroad.com/l/medium-jumpstart

Or you can contact me on 𝕏. My DMs are open.

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