My Highest Performing Medium Articles Have 3 Things in Common
What it means to earn by writing about what you love.
I’ve been writing on Medium since 2020, and like myself, the platform has undergone a lot of changes in these three years.
The kind of stories that went viral in 2020 barely rake up a few hundred views now. With more writers joining the platform, the competition has gotten tougher.
But the good news is that no matter what update the platform brings about, one thing has remained constant: how much Medium cares about its writers.
In the latest update, Medium opened up the doors to the Partner Program to writers from 12 new countries.
If you’re a new writer, or someone struggling to earn anything significant with your writing on Medium, I’m here to help you with my experience.
This article contains a detailed breakdown of my three most successful stories of the past three months. I’ve shared the stats and my observations on what made each of these stories tick.
Want to learn what stories to write to get engagement and paid for your skills? Read on, and feel free to share your insights in the comments.
1. Documenting self-experiments
This is the lesson from the first article I’m sharing as a case study today. It was a deep dive into my experiences of learning to pole dance at 30.
Title: I Started Pole Dancing at 30
Views: 7.8k (36% read ratio)
Earnings: ~$400
USP of the story: The uniqueness.
I tried something new (pole dancing) and documented it.
No AI could’ve recreated my unique experience.
It has the “I never thought about this” factor which got me great reader engagement and $$$. You can read the story here:
Key takeaway for writers
To be a better writer, strive to live a more enriched life.✨
- Conduct a ton of self-experiments,
- Document your learnings,
- Be authentic in your presentation, and
- Tell a compelling story.
The algorithm and the readers will love you equally. 🧡
2. Adding value-packed takeaways
The second article on this list is a book listicle — the article format that has been the most successful for me on Medium over the years.
Title: 5 Life-Changing Psychology Lessons From 5 Best Books of All Time
Views: 2.7k (28% read ratio)
Earnings: ~$150
USP of the story: Gives HUGE value in less time
I’ve presented psychology lessons from a lifetime of reading books in an easy-to-skim manner with key takeaways.
This helped people learn psychology without reading all the books themselves.
Key takeaway for writers
Add personalized insights into your article, no matter what your topic is. Your goal as a writer is to create a piece no one else can come up with. 💪
3. Knowing who you’re writing for
The third article on this list is a step-by-step guide on how I structured my fitness and diet to build muscle and lose fat as a 30-year-old woman.
Title: How I Built Muscle While Losing Fat: A 30-Day Plan for Women
Views: 3k (21% read ratio)
Earnings: ~$150
USP of the story: Outlining my fitness journey. The article is filled with personalized insights no AI can replicate. I have:
- Shared my exact process of losing weight and building muscle,
- Backed it up with research, and
- Made it actionable for the reader.
Key takeaway for writers
Notice how the article mentions “for women” in the title itself. If you scroll through a bit more, you’d realize that the exercise and diet plan are tailor-made for women in their 30s.
I could have written a generic fitness article. But if you’ve played around with ChatGPT for even a little while, you’ll know that AI can write full-length, research-backed articles in a few seconds.
Generic articles are starting to lose their appeal. The magic lies in niching down and addressing the problems of your target audience.
The takeaway for every writer here is that you need to quit trying for a wider appeal. Be as specific as possible. 🎯
Know who you’re writing for and aim to deliver them value. Your article will resonate 🙌
Medium has undergone a ton of changes since I first started writing, and every update brings in new takeaways for writers and readers.
Based on my highest-earning articles from the past three months, here are the three top tips to succeed on Medium in 2023:
- Document your self-experiments.
- Add personalized insights to your stories.
- Quit trying to be ‘generic’. Be specific instead.
Want to make your first $100 on Medium? Get Project Medium. It’s my flagship course that helped 50+ writers earn their first $100 and beyond on Medium.