3 Tips for Building Your Audience on Medium
A beginner’s guide to finding your people
Writing isn’t just about shaping your thoughts into words, or recording your knowledge and expertise for posterity — it’s about connecting with other people. Stories and ideas are powerful: They can change how we think, how we go about our lives, and who we become. But in order for that to happen, there needs to be someone on the other end of the line (or web page) reading and absorbing what you’re sharing. That’s where building your audience comes into play. Your “audience” is the core group of readers who know you, support you, and value what you have to say.
Getting to a place where you have a loyal audience — of hundreds, thousands, or even more readers — is a journey. We’re not going to sugarcoat it: Building a readership is difficult, and it takes a lot of time, energy, and experimentation. There are no shortcuts here, no easy roads to netting more views and shares. Some writers spend years (decades, even!) figuring out what they want to say and how they want to say it, and accumulating devoted readers along the way.
When you’re just starting out, the most important thing you can do is the hardest thing: craft content that is interesting, useful, and worth reading. It doesn’t have to interest everyone, but it does have to interest someone (or a small group of someones). This is hard! Writing is work! But taking the time to figure out what you really want to say, and saying it well, will make the process of building your audience that much easier. You’ll find lots of resources on writing in our Starter Pack, and we’re always sharing new resources on the craft of writing in Creators Hub.
Beyond that, here are some tips on building your audience on Medium, especially if you’re just getting started:
1. Follow, clap, highlight, and respond to other writers’ work.
Medium is a network of writers — and the more you engage with other writers in the network, the more they’ll engage with you. So, when you’re just starting out, take some time to explore! Browse topics that interest you, follow writers you love to read, and show your appreciation for great storytelling by clapping, highlighting, and leaving a response. (Found a favorite writer on Medium? Visit their profile’s “About” page to see who they follow. You might stumble on a new favorite.)
Engaging with writers and stories is the first step toward finding your people on Medium. It’s also a great way to learn — not only about what interests you, but about how other writers are using Medium, and what’s possible here.
2. Make your stories discoverable.
Beyond just writing something great, there are a few things you can do to help your stories circulate within the Medium ecosystem (and outside of it):
- Add relevant tags. Right after you press “Publish,” you’ll have an opportunity to add tags before your story goes live. You can add up to five! Doing so will help your story reach more readers within Medium itself.
- Workshop your titles. Your story’s title, or headline, is your first impression: It’s what will convince new readers to stick around (or not). We suggest using clear, direct titles that don’t overpromise. Your title should make it easy for readers to understand what your story is about, and why they should be interested. Here are some examples of effective titles.
- Optimize your stories for search. Ideally, your stories will find an audience not just on Medium, but on the wider reaches of the internet. Through search engine optimization (SEO), you can help your stories get discovered by Google and other major search engines. Medium allows you to set custom titles that only show up on search — for example, you can set a Google-friendly title that includes keywords you know readers will probably search for. To update your story’s SEO settings, click the “…” on your story page, navigate to “Settings” and select “SEO Settings” on the left. You’ll find much more on SEO in this handy guide.
- Consider submitting to publications. If Medium is a giant network, publications are smaller communities within it. Medium hosts thousands of publications run by independent writers and editors, about everything from data science to UX design to self-help and beyond. If you’re new to Medium, browse your homepage and the topics you’re interested in writing about — see any publications you enjoy reading? Check out the publication’s homepage. Are their submission guidelines public? (All publications on Medium are different, and submission policies vary widely.) Appearing in a publication can help new readers discover your work, and it can introduce you to a community of writers and editors in your subject area.
3. Spread the word!
If you’re starting from scratch, your first readers will probably be those who already know you: your friends, family, colleagues, and maybe the few fellow writers you happen to know. So, as a very first step, tell them what you’ve been up to. Share your work with the people who already know and support you, in the places where you already connect with them — whether that’s social media, a private group chat, an in-real-life gathering, those getting-to-know-you conversations at parties, or anywhere else.
Publishing something of your own is no small feat, and proudly promoting the work you’ve done doesn’t have to be boastful or cringe-inducing. In fact, the people who know you want to support you, and sharing your writing with them can help deepen your relationship. It’s also the first step toward growing your audience beyond the circle of people you already happen to know. Here’s more on how to self-promote in an authentic, engaging way:
Want to learn more about building an audience? Here are some more of our favorite resources:
Follow Creators Hub for much more on audience development, honing your writing craft, and getting started on Medium:
