Help with your Medium account / Hubpages

1. 61

   TessSchlesingerposted 21 months ago

   I'm in the process of finishing with Medium as I'm taking a six month sabatical in order to write a series and a book. So I just wanted to emphasize some things.
   
   Hubpages pays you passive income. You can have a 10 year old article which still earns. That does not happen on Medium. Medium is set up like a newspaper. You have to write every day or several times a week to remain current. I stopped writing a few weeks ago. My income has dropped to about $3 a day. I was expecting that.
   
   Benefits of Medium
   1. They give you the email address of the readers who subscribe to you. I now have an email list of 320 loyal readers. I'm not going to, but let's say I charged them $5 per month to read me on substack (or elsewhere, that would be $1600 pe rmonth. Your email list is worth having.
   
   2. Medium has a far higher page rank than Hubpages. So if you prefer to earn from affiliate links, and if your story ranks, and if you remove it from behind the paywall, you could do pretty well.
   
   How to succeed on Medium
   
   1. Open your own publication. When it comes to distribution, work on publications is distributed first, so you're more likely to get distributed. The publication advertises the stories in the publication. If you publish in the publication of others, you lose two benefits, tthe first one being that your other work is not shown to your readers, and the second is you have no access to how many hours your readers read.
   
   2. Focus on length. You are paid according to how long your reader reads. Dont' waffle. Make sure every single paragraph gives top notch information. I have an article entitled "how to write a kick-ass article' somewhere. Find it, read it. Obey.
   
   3. Ignore everything about gaining followers. It doesn't work. Instead, find people who write the same kind of thing you do, read their work, and comment (intelligently) on it. A percentage will add you and read you. It's slow but there are people who have 75K followers on Medium, and I was earning more than they were with 5% of the followers. The reason is that I had readers - as opposed to followers.
   
   4. There is a certain 'doctor' on Medium who runs a huge magazine. He is not a doctor. He does not have a Ph.D. He flatters everybody in order to join his magazine. They fall for it. Anyone who is a professional writer knows that. Avoid. He is/was a computer salesman (that is what the qualification is.)
   
   5. Follow Joel Eisenberg on Medium. He knows what he is on about. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joel_Eisenberg
   
   6. Some topics work better on Medium than others - Woke, IT, Politics, Trans, etc. Find them, and have an opinion. Your opinion gets you read.
   
   7. Open up Patreon, Ko-fi and other accounts where your readers can donate to you. I get more income there (at times) than I do from Medium. It's well worth the time. It also has the benefit of increasing your email subscription list as you now have their emails.
   
   That's it.
   
   I wish you all luck. Cheers

   replyreport
   1. 70

      Miebakagh57posted 21 months agoin reply to this

      Tessa, friend? Thanks for all these insiightful and unique information.                                   I'm a Nigerian, and residing in my country, Nigeria. And, as is well known, Medium at present seems to serving Europe.                                   Someone, here few weeks ago has said Medium, would later extended membership/registration to other continents. And,  I'm waiting for that day.                                     Tessa, I've bookmark this page/thread for my future references.                                        Good health, and good luck in the task. And, best of all, congratulations in advance.

      replyreport
   2. 93

      OldRosesposted 21 months agoin reply to this

      I agree about the value of an email list.  Medium is a vanity project of Ev Williams, a co-founder of Twitter.  Medium has been a money loser for Williams since the start.  He may eventually decide to shut it down or stop paying authors.  Either way, it's good to have a way to bring your readers with you in the event that Medium closes or you decide to write on a different platform.
      
      Here's suggestion.  Every Friday, I download my email list to my laptop so that if Medium closes its doors, I have a recent copy of my email list.

      replyreport
      1. 70

         Miebakagh57posted 21 months agoin reply to this

         Just noted. Though I'm not on Medium.                                       Thank you, OldRoses.

         replyreport
         1. 93

            OldRosesposted 21 months agoin reply to this

            I was replying to Tess' post.

            replyreport
            1. 70

               Miebakagh57posted 21 months agoin reply to this

               Yes. But I had to take note of it. In case I land on Medium, right?

               replyreport
      2. 61

         TessSchlesingerposted 21 months agoin reply to this

         ++++

         replyreport
2. 89

   Pamela99posted 21 months ago

   I am fairly new to Medium, but working to be successful on that site. I appreciate your advice, and Misbah has helped me too. The problem is some of those topics are not what I ever write about. I guess I will figure it out.

   replyreport
   1. 61

      TessSchlesingerposted 21 months agoin reply to this

      I have had an idea for some time. Perhas someone can open up a publication callede 'The Hubpages Connection" and people who write on Hubpages there can use both publications to build a following.

      replyreport
3. 61

   charity mtisiposted 21 months ago

   Thank you so much , i did write a few articles on Medium , but stopped 2 years ago. At least now i can revamp with the information you have given us.
   Bless you and all the best with your series and book.

   replyreport
   1. 61

      TessSchlesingerposted 21 months agoin reply to this

      Thank you,

      replyreport
4. 89

   Pamela99posted 21 months ago

   I don't understand how to remove it from behind the paywall.

   replyreport
   1. 61

      TessSchlesingerposted 21 months agoin reply to this

      When you initially publish, you have the option of either earning or not earning. If you chose not to earn, then you are not behind the paywall. You can also change that setting once you have published.

      replyreport
   2. 61

      TessSchlesingerposted 21 months agoin reply to this

      Go to 'more settings,' and say that you do not want to be paid (part of the partner payment program) for that article.

      replyreport
5. 86

   Misbah786posted 21 months ago

   Thank you very much for all of your suggestions and best wishes, Tess. My stats as well as the earnings have improved in the last three to four days after I started my own publication and became a member. I took two of my articles out of the publication 'illumination.' I'm not sure whether that was the right decision, but I did it, and I also changed the titles of a couple of pieces to test if such modifications had any effect on obtaining traction. If I'm not mistaken, the doctor you mentioned is the owner of  ‘illumination’ ?
   The second thing that worries me is that I write about a wide range of topics, including psychology, spirituality, mindfulness, recipes, personal essays, poetry, and whatever else interests me. I currently have one publication, Misbah Sheikh's Lifestyle, and I'm not sure if poetry and personal essays are appropriate for a lifestyle publication. Any suggestions?
   
   I will undoubtedly find and read your story 'how to write a kick-ass article,' and I will try my best to obey. Lol!
   
   Best wishes for the future!

   replyreport
   1. 61

      TessSchlesingerposted 21 months agoin reply to this

      I cannot comment on who owns what, but ask around.
      
      My kickass article is in my Born to write magazine under the writing school section, somewhere.
      
      https://medium.com/born-to-write/tagged/schools
      
      I have six magazines on Medium. Each of those are subdided. However, my last one 'Tessa's web-log' had no sub divisions, and I wrote about everything and anything. Granted that by that time, I already had a good following, but you don't have to write about the same thing. Forget about niche.
      
      People who love reading will generally have a variety of things they read about. What they want is a new tidbit of data in every paragraph (I explain this in how to write a kickass essay).
      
      If you get in with the poetry crowd, you should develop a following. The problem is that poetry is short, and therefore it doesn't earn much. Might I suggest that you put interesting photos alongside your poetry, so that people are on your page longer. Pixabay is a good site.
      
      With regard to your title, make absolutely sure that your title reflects exactly what is in your article, and confirm that in your introductory paragraph.

      replyreport
      1. 86

         Misbah786posted 21 months agoin reply to this

         Tess, thank you for sharing the link. In my poetry articles, I always include photos, quotes, and, sometimes even related videos/ video songs to keep the readers entertained and engaged.

         replyreport
         1. 61

            TessSchlesingerposted 21 months agoin reply to this

            +++ Good.

            replyreport
6. 93

   Readmikenowposted 21 months ago

   You've provided some very worthwhile information.
   
   Thanks

   replyreport
   1. 61

      TessSchlesingerposted 21 months agoin reply to this

      ++++

      replyreport
7. 97

   Carb Divaposted 21 months ago

   I'm a newbie on Medium, but have been on HubPages for almost 12 years. Your first suggestion is to "Open your own publication." I have found the Medium guidelines for that, but I'm confused about "content." Can I post articles written on Medium in my publication, or must it be different (new) content?

   replyreport
   1. 61

      TessSchlesingerposted 21 months agoin reply to this

      Yes, you can transfer previous content to your publication. It won't, however, necessarily bring fresh readership to your piece.
      
      Once I opened my publication, I transferred all my old pieces to my publications. What I also did was look at pieces that I thought deserved a better readership, did a copy/paste onto the new publication, deleted the old article, waited a few days, then republished them in my new publication.
      
      You are not allowed to republish an old piece on Medium. You can, however, delete, and then republish a few days later (obviously not in someone else's publication.
      
      I also removed all my stuff from other publications and put it into my own.
      
      What also helps is putting a menu with links right at the the top of your publication. It has to be kept updated. Pin it there so that people can see what articles are in your publication. Doing that means that even older articles get read.
      
      Remember that Medium doesn't do passive income. It is not pushing older articles. It works on the same principle that any newspaper or magazine does - bringing new reading content to its readers.

      replyreport
   2. 61

      TessSchlesingerposted 21 months agoin reply to this

      It must be different content. A publication on Medium is still on Medium.

      replyreport
      1. 98

         theraggededgeposted 21 months agoin reply to this

         But an existing article can be transferred.

         replyreport
         1. 61

            TessSchlesingerposted 21 months agoin reply to this

            Yes, but I explained that. However, I said that older articles that hadn't done well could be rewritten if you dleted it. And it's easier to copy and paste than to re-type the entire thing.

            replyreport
   3. 98

      theraggededgeposted 21 months agoin reply to this

      Once you have started your publication (and I'm not sure of the value of doing so unless you are well-known) you can click on your own story/article, then on the three dots and then on Add to publication. You should see yours listed.
      
      You don't have to unpublish and republish.
      
      

      replyreport
8. 89

   Pamela99posted 21 months ago

   I don't understand the benefits of choosing not to earn and the paywall.

   replyreport
   1. 61

      TessSchlesingerposted 21 months agoin reply to this

      It's only beneficial if you have a product you want to sell. In that case, if it ranks on Google, then people can read your article, and you will earn via affiliate income. If you do not earn, everybody can read your story. If you chose to earn, only those poeple who have a paid membership can read your stories.

      replyreport
9. 96

   eugbugposted 21 months ago

   Can you clarify what you mean by this. Do you mean publishing in more than one publication?
   
   "What I also did was look at pieces that I thought deserved a better readership, did a copy/paste onto the new publication, deleted the old article, waited a few days, then republished them in my new publication.
   
   You are not allowed to republish an old piece on Medium. You can, however, delete, and then republish a few days later (obviously not in someone else's publication"
   
   What's the difference between copying and pasting old articles into a new publication and republishing? Medium have told me that it's ok to delete a story and republish it at a later date (But there must only be one instance of the story). This is an excerpt I wrote on Medium about the subject:
   
   
   

   replyreport
   1. 61

      TessSchlesingerposted 21 months agoin reply to this

      That's exactly what I meant. Just for ease of transferring it to your publication, I copy and paste. I didn't want to retype the whole thing again. And, yes, so long as there is only one copy, it's acceptable.

      replyreport
10. 89

    Pamela99posted 21 months ago

    Thanks for a good suggestion!

    replyreport
11. 97

    EricDockettposted 21 months ago

    Let's talk about point number two, just so I understand.
    
    Are you saying you could write an article like "10 Best Big Screen TVs of 2022", not care about being curated or even followers for that matter, forgo the paywall and plop in your own Amazon links instead, and Medium is cool with that?
    
    That seems contrary to their mission statement.

    replyreport
    1. 61

       TessSchlesingerposted 21 months agoin reply to this

       When they started, affiliate links were frowned on. Now, so long as you mark that the article has affiliate links, they let it go. Of course, if anything is abused, then the policy is going to be withdrawn.
       
       https://medium.com/menlo-office/affilia … 3522a2ffca
       
       As for their mission statement, that they are now a site for writers, well, the site has gone down, as it is now longer a site for readers. A good many of us moan about it, but, essentially, 18 months ago, Ev Williams changed the site for one for readers to one for writers.
       
       So which Medium mission statement are you talking about?

       replyreport
       1. 97

          EricDockettposted 21 months agoin reply to this

          Reading the "Our story" section, it seems like their intent is to stay away from sales-oriented blogging and push for more editorial and story-focused writing.
          
          I think that you are right that Medium articles seem to rank really well.  A big part of the struggle of converting affiliate sales is getting the traffic. Obviously, links need to be relevant and useful to the reader, and must be disclosed as per FTC guidelines. But if Medium is okay with that, that opens up some interesting opportunities.

          replyreport
          1. 61

             TessSchlesingerposted 21 months agoin reply to this

             Indeed, it does. Here's where I think that Medium wins (but not on passive income, unless it's an affiliate link that is not behind a paywall).
             
             1. You get to develop an email list. Any of your readers that sign up as your subscriber (as opposed to follower) is a win for you. When you leave Medium, provided you download them, you take them with you.
             
             2. You can earn money through donations - there are at least three of four sites where people can donate money to you.
             
             3. You can earn through affiliate links.
             
             4. You can earn through people reading your stories.
             
             If medium is truly intent on staying away from sales orientated blogging, then you have to ask yourself about all those people who are selling 'writing' courses and 'Medium' courses on Medium. They are a lot of junk and I'm pretty sure any Hubpages writer is way ahead in terms of anything the offer.
             
             If you read the 'creators club' or something like that, the 'tips' they offer are childish. And they are pushing all newbies.
             
             I genuinely believe if one plays to what Medium is, there is money to be made.

             replyreport
12. 93

    Justine Guiaoposted 21 months ago

    Hi! I am not on Medium but is it right that we can post a same article on both platforms, medium and hubpages? Or we can?

    replyreport
    1. 61

       TessSchlesingerposted 21 months agoin reply to this

       I'm not sure about that. Initially, I used my best performing artilces on hubpages for Medium, but I changed them slightly. They ranked on Google, but they went nowhere on Medium.
       
       Actually, yes, you can duplicate them on Medium. Just remembered it's Vocal Media you can't duplicate.

       replyreport
       1. 98

          theraggededgeposted 21 months agoin reply to this

          I published articles on VM that were already published on Medium. I've seen a lot of people say they have because Medium is essentially a 'closed' platform when it comes to earnings, but Vocal isn't.
          
          If you republish HubPages articles on Medium, remember to use the canonical link, which tells search engines to ignore the Medium URL and treat HP as the original. You'll find it in Advanced Settings.
          
          All articles on HP have to be original, i.e. first publication. Later, you can repost them where you like. You'll get a copyright warning on the hub, but you can ignore it.

          replyreport
          1. 61

             TessSchlesingerposted 21 months agoin reply to this

             Most of my earnings on VM have come from bonuses, not actually from being read. One of the problems I have with Medium at the moment is that they have signed on with Cloudflare.Cloudflare, however, has 20 different sites, one of which is Levitrares. Levitrares keeps stealing people's work on Medium. Medium, apparently, knows about this.They said they were 'working' on it.
             
             When I've finished my book and my series, I am going to publish on Substack and post to the people who signed up for my subscription on Medium. They definitely want to read my work because I have received many hundreds of requests (to my website email) to make sure that when I publish again, they are notified.
             
             While there have been months I have been paid between $2000 and
             $4000, for the most part, it's been between $800 and $1200. My income comes mainly from donations on Patreon and Ko-fi.
             
             People who like your content will donate to you.
             
             I believe that the landscape in writing is changing rapidly now, and writing sites are going to be making money mostly from hopefuls who think they are going to make money from writing. Because business is now going for the 'moral highground' which is defined by 'woke,' I think it is essential to be as widespread as possible.
             
             Sites I would maintain.
             
             Hubpages - but I think ti's going to be less and less money.
             Medium - where you can build a following, but money comes from donations.
             Vocal Media, where it's essential to build your own following, but good SEO definitely helps.
             Substack - once you have a subscription list
             Google play - if you can write ebooks
             Smashwords and D2D who have just bought them - ebooks
             KPD - if you write ebooks
             
             There are numerous donation sites. Patreon only takes monthly, so I would go with the others who allow once offs
             
             
             Be aware that some sites focus on evergreen, but most of them look at trending and daily.

             replyreport
13. 98

    theraggededgeposted 21 months ago

    Good info. I gave up on Vocal and deleted my account. Their approval process is way too long and I didn't have the enthusiasm to 'work' Vocal in the same way as Medium. Ko-fi felt a bit, I don't know, 'beggy'.
    
    HubPages is still doing okay for me. My earnings are pretty good. Not as good as before, but I haven't written anything in a while.
    
    Medium... well, it was going great and at the same level as HP, but lately... ugh. Too much competition, as I think you mentioned before. It's not difficult to make it past the $100 mark, but it seems to be hard getting much more than that.

    replyreport
    1. 61

       TessSchlesingerposted 21 months agoin reply to this

       Yup. I've removed virtually everything from Hubpages. Your traffic will come from your subscribers on Medium - not from your followers. Medium is not distributing anyone who is not a minority.

       replyreport
       1. 98

          theraggededgeposted 21 months agoin reply to this

          My articles are getting distributed I'd say 2/3. The shorter pieces, not so much. But I like to have short ones because... people and their attention spans

          replyreport
          1. 61

             TessSchlesingerposted 21 months agoin reply to this

             What's your readership?
             
             Just curious. Nothing of mine has been distributed since December. They effectively shut me down.
             
             When I explained to my readership, they donated me mass of money to keep writing.
             
             It's also why I am now going to focus on writing books where my characters can say what they like, and where I will write where only subscribers can see what I write.
             
             I'm also concerned that, for both hubpages and Medium there are various sites that are now stealing content (e.g. Levitrares), and Google won't (or can't) do anything about it.

             replyreport
14. 92

    Abby Slutskyposted 21 months ago

    I was not that familiar with Patreon. Did you need number of fans to get started there or can you just build it as you go?

    replyreport
    1. 61

       TessSchlesingerposted 21 months agoin reply to this

       you build as you go.
       
       I don't publish on Patreon or any of the donation sites. I simply provide a link on Medium. That is one of the reasons it's worth having  Medium account. It's not only that you get paid for reads. It's what else it gives you.

       replyreport
       1. 70

          Miebakagh57posted 21 months agoin reply to this

          Someday, somehow I should give Medium a try. It has a more positive aspect.                                  Thank you, Tessa, for selling us more of Medium, after testing the ropes.                                You're a good leader.

          replyreport
          1. 61

             TessSchlesingerposted 21 months agoin reply to this

             That's funny. Yes, I'm supposedly a natural leader from all the tests I have done. The unfortunate aspect is I'm an INTJ, and INTJs have no desire to be leaders!

             replyreport
             1. 70

                Miebakagh57posted 21 months agoin reply to this

                That's also funny.

                replyreport
                1. 61

                   TessSchlesingerposted 21 months agoin reply to this

                   ++++

                   replyreport
15. 93

    Readmikenowposted 21 months ago

    I understand you can also schedule articles on Medium.
    
    Does this mean you can write many articles at once and schedule them to be distributed on different dates throughout the month or year?
    
    I think that is an important feature.

    replyreport
    1. 98

       theraggededgeposted 21 months agoin reply to this

       Yes, someone discovered you can schedule them up to 2030.

       replyreport
       1. 61

          TessSchlesingerposted 21 months agoin reply to this

          How do you do that?

          replyreport
          1. 98

             theraggededgeposted 21 months agoin reply to this

             When you press Publish, there is a box that says, 'Schedule for later'... or something like that.

             replyreport
             1. 61

                TessSchlesingerposted 21 months agoin reply to this

                Thanks. That is very helpful.

                replyreport
    2. 61

       TessSchlesingerposted 21 months agoin reply to this

       I don't know about this. Maybe someone else will know.

       replyreport