Medium’s New Changes: A Welcome Surprise for Writers
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Chapter 1: Positive Shifts on Medium
Recently, I’ve observed some exciting developments on Medium that I genuinely appreciate. Over the past month, my statistics have shown a significant uptick in daily views—ranging from 100% to 200%.
In particular, I believe this surge can be attributed to a piece I wrote discussing why Guardians of the Galaxy 3 stands out as the best Marvel film to date. The external views it received were impressive, especially from platforms like Flipboard.com, which is a pleasant reminder that at least one site values my writing.
It’s worth noting that a similar trend occurred with my article on the show Succession. Overall, I’m witnessing a notable increase in external traffic, including visits originating from email referrals.
Section 1.1: The Mystery of Email Referrals
What could be the source of these email referrals? Initially, I speculated that someone might have shared my post in their newsletter. However, I suspect these referrals are primarily coming from Medium's own emails. By analyzing my daily external views, it’s clear that the activity isn’t just a one-time spike; rather, it’s a consistent series of small surges over several weeks—likely a result of Medium’s Daily Digest emails.
Interestingly, these spikes began to appear around the start of May. For instance, my article about a person aiming to earn $100,000 this year using ChatGPT also saw similar spikes during that time.
Subsection 1.1.1: Speculations on Medium’s Algorithm
While I’m unsure what changes may have occurred, it seems likely that Medium adjusted their algorithm and recommendation system around that time. However, every time I think I’ve spotted a pattern, things shift again, leading to more confusion.
Section 1.2: A Fresh Look for Medium
Another notable change is Medium's revamped article page design. You can see it right now as you read this article—there are no longer sidebars displaying other writers' articles. I find this refreshing and reminiscent of Substack’s clean and aesthetic layout.
Having been a Medium user since 2016, I can appreciate how the platform's design has evolved, and I’m thrilled they’ve returned to this more user-friendly layout.
Chapter 2: Acknowledging Medium's Progress
Let’s be clear: I’m not here to criticize Medium without reason. When they make positive changes, I’ll gladly acknowledge them. While they still have room for improvement, I’m willing to celebrate any progress made.
If you scroll down to the end of this article, you’ll notice that my own posts are now being recommended, which I believe is a new feature. This is a commendable move by Medium, empowering writers by promoting their work more effectively.
I’m curious if the absence of recommendations for other authors’ stories in the sidebar contributes to this newfound visibility. By focusing on individual story pages, it levels the playing field, as previously, staff picks and trending articles dominated the sidebar and attracted excessive views.
My theory is that this change may lead to a decline in views for those staff-picked articles, but for now, I'm left pondering.
Ultimately, I’ll keep you updated on whether these trends persist in the coming weeks. I truly hope they do, as I want Medium to thrive as a blogging platform, and I wish the new team success in their endeavors.
What are your observations regarding these changes? Get my free 5-day course on how to gain your first 1,000 followers on Medium here. :)