MEDIUM

By Bill Nolan -

When you think of blogging platforms what comes to mind? Obviously Blogger and Tumbler, but Medium is quickly blazing up the ranks and becoming the site for blogging. Why this platform? Many sites seem to be flooded with what feels like 10 year olds blogging about what they did at recess today. Medium is different. Its great content and user engagement is why we mentioned this site as an “Up and Comer” on the Savvy Social last year. Hopefully you took advantage and have been utilizing it for your business. If not don’t worry, It’s not too late.

If you’re not familiar with this platform, here’s a little history for you…

Created by the founders of Twitter, Medium is typically ranked in the top 3-4 spots for all blogging sites. If you consider that it has the clout and experience of exceptional developers behind it, and the fact that it’s still in its infancy stage, Medium is only going to continue to rise in popularity. Let’s take a look at what is driving this site to the top.

Setup is easy. If your business has a Twitter account, in essence, you have a Medium account… All you need to do is sign in with your Twitter account and start adding blogs, pictures, and links.

One of the best features on Medium are the “Collections”. We have a collection that spotlight’s social media, branding, and web design… you would create one that represents your business. You add your blogs to it and as you come across other great posts on Medium that pertain to your interests you add these blogs to your collection as well. On the flip side, other users will be adding your posts to their collections. That may sound a little confusing but it’s actually rather simple, and the end result is engagement! As your blogs get shared, your collection gains followers, and your business receives some added exposure!

The high amount of interaction on Medium is great for you and your company. You have the ability to recommend other users’ blogs, and leave them comments which creates a great opportunity for you to open the lines of communication with any user on the site. Your profile also gives you the ability to link to your other social media accounts which is a nice way to drive traffic to those sites.

Another feature that the platform provides is the ability to see how many times your blog posts have been read and recommended. This is an invaluable insight which lets you tweak your posts to make your company more appealing to the community! Also, you receive an email when your blog receives activity, whether it’s a recommendation, a comment, or if someone has submitted a blog that they would like you to publish in your collection. This easily helps you stay on top of what’s going on with your account.

All in all, Medium is a great platform and as I mentioned before, we expect to see it continue to grow well into the future. Keep in mind though, as with any social media platform, your business will only get out what it puts in. The best sites in the world are useless if there is no activity on them.