After a decade of writing online, both as a writer and a blogger, I realized that it was time for something new. I wrote for Steemit but the steady decline in content quality drove me out of the place.
I knew about Medium, and when I started looking into it as a platform I could use, it more than impressed me. Let me state the most compelling reasons for which I joined Medium.
They may be the same reasons for which you joined too. If you haven’t and read this article, I can place a bet that you will join soon!
Easy writing
After working in WordPress this is a breeze. I don’t think there is any place easier to start your own blog and publish content. No content management system can match Medium’s simple but intuitive interface. Not to forget the neat, clean look.
No wonder Medium has become so popular in a short time. Several accomplished authors and eminent personalities are on the platform too.
Hosting
The biggest hassle in running your own website is hosting. The downtime with some well-known hosts go unnoticed by new site owners but has a major impact on traffic.
Ever experienced an error when you try to access a website? Chances are,a server belonging to the hosting company is playing up. Shared hosting is the worst — they cram hundreds of websites into a small space. If any of the websites sharing the server experiences a surge in traffic they go offline in an instant.
I don’t expect any such problems on Medium. I cannot find a single report of a Medium blog being down. That makes me feel assured that hosting my content here is a good decision.
Ranking
SEO gurus refer to Medium as a great site for parasite SEO. What they mean is that you can rank your content on this site without backlinks. The search engines favor established sites with fresh and unique content.
I have no intention of being a parasite. But it is a plus point that good content can rank faster as compared to a new self-hosted blog.
Responsive
I consume content from the web on my desktop smartphone and my iPad. Medium pages resize seamlessly. In this age, there are still sites that don’t believe in smartphones. Nothing can be a bigger turnoff than having to scroll to see what is on the right side of the screen. The site loads fast with good optimization.
Attention spans are on the decrease and patience is a rare virtue. Visitors to a website are usually gone after a few seconds of waiting for the page to load.
Community
A virtual wall means a community with one thing in common — seriousness in creating good content. Clapping and highlighting are cool features that show appreciation and involvement. No one can understand a writer better than another writer who reads your content.
When you know that you’re part of a community that gets it is a huge motivator for anyone serious about writing. Publications are a great add-on to the main community.
Editor
The best feature I liked while making myself familiar with the site is the editor. It actually encourages you to write! I have used notepads to type out drafts and then copied and pasted the final version into the WP editor.
Medium’s editor is clean and has the right number of features to make it possible to write a perfect post.
Importing content
This is a boon for those who would like more exposure for their content. When I read about the import feature the first thing I looked for is a safeguard against plagiarized content. The ability to affix a canonical tag is the perfect solution for anyone who wants to bring over his or her own content on another site. I may not use it right away, but it is a very useful thing to have.
Analytics
I’ve always been a data enthusiast, and I was not disappointed. There is enough information available to make it useful and take action. It is not as complicated or confusing as Google Analytics. I look forward to browsing through my stats and know what I can do to make my figures look better.
API
I am of the firm belief that the API of any social media website makes it possible for spammers and robots to take over. Twitter and Facebook have systems in place to check spam, but it can only do so much. The reason that Medium seems calmer is that there are no aggressive bots and spammers to play havoc on the site.
Partner Program
I am excited to be a part of the Partner Program which will enable me to monetize my content. Contextual ads are intrusive and blatant affiliate links can be sneaky. It is a refreshing change to see a new model of monetization that is not so much in the face.
I look forward to posting regularly and participating in the community. Thanks for reading!
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