7 Top Tips for Successfully Running a Second Medium Account
Managing multiple profiles is easier than you think.
When I checked my stats for my second Medium account today, I was pleasantly surprised to see that my earnings for this month have already exceeded those for the whole of December.
I only have 56 followers so this was unexpected. My primary account (this one) has a few shy of 800 as I write this. My second account currently has better stats and higher earnings than my main one.
These are the top tips I’ve learned by creating a successful second account:
Top tip #1 — establish your primary account first
Wait until your first account is established and you know your way around Medium, how to publish, pitch publications, etc. Don’t even think about starting two accounts at the same time, unless you really know what you’re doing. It takes time to build up an audience for your writing.
When you are confident and familiar with the process, and people are finding and enjoying your writing, you might be ready to expand.
Top tip #2 — consider your reasons for expansion
Think about your reasons for starting a new account and factor those in when you decide on your profile name, picture and writing topics.
One of the advantages of a second account is being able to write in a niche completely different to whatever your main profile is known for.
Another consideration is being able to write about personal experiences without potentially upsetting someone in your life such as family members or friends. Do be careful not to use names, locations or other details in your stories that people could recognize and identify as relating to you.
If you want to remain anonymous, make sure you don’t use a profile picture of your face! You need to use an image that doesn’t infringe anyone else’s rights and is free from copyright.
Top tip #3 — reach out to publications you know
When you have created your second account, reach out to the publications you are already a writer for and ask if they will add your second account to their cohort of writers too.
Only do this with publications where you have a direct line of communication with one of the editors, maybe via email. And of course, ask politely and make no assumptions.
This will help your new account to be seen and to gain a readership quickly. Don’t abuse this favor and spam your favorite publications with constant submissions from two accounts.
Top tip #4 — switch browsers to avoid confusion
Use a different browser for each account. This is vital. Especially if you have autofill settings on for your usernames and passwords, you could spend half your time logging out and logging in if you try to use the same browser.
Whether you write primarily on desktop, laptop or phone, open a different browser for each of them to keep your accounts separate. I use Chrome and Firefox on my MacBook and iPhone. It helps me to avoid mixing up my two very different profiles.
I do find if I click on a Medium link on an email it will automatically open with my primary account, so watch out for this.
Top tip #5 — submit your posts at the same time
Publish on the same day, or at least submit to publications on the same day if you can. It will make it easier to cross-check both accounts.
You are less likely to forget to check up on the other account, reply to responses etc., if you are submitting stories from both on the same day.
Keep both different browsers open on your computer or phone and switch between them. Don’t obsess over checking your responses and stats, but don’t allow responses to go cold before you acknowledge and reply to them either.
Remember you have two different sets of readers now. They are the most important people to take care of — without readers you are whistling into the wind.
Top tip #6 — promote your work separately
You should have at least one social media account in your pen name.
You still need to promote your work beyond the Medium platform, or your new pen name account will potentially fall flat.
Remember to open these with the same browser as your Medium account and use the same name and profile pic on Medium as on your social media, for simplicity.
Don’t overdo this and have multiple accounts and pages or you will end up spending all of your time managing your socials instead of writing.
Top tip #7 — monitor your stats
You can start a second account as an experiment quite easily by following the first 6 tips and if it doesn’t work out, go back to focusing on your primary account for now.
Keep an eye on your stats, watch for daily reads and see which stories have more views, more reads and greater reading time. Write more of those stories.
Give it a little time. My second profile only had a handful of followers for the first few months and I didn’t focus on it as much as my main account. But it only takes a few good pieces of writing to get the ball rolling, and then you will reap the rewards of the online visibility of two back catalogues of established posts.
Herein lies the secret to Medium success — exponential growth from readership of an existing body of work. Don’t think post by post, always try to see the bigger picture.
Final thoughts
When you first begin writing on Medium, the whole process can seem a little daunting. But once you are established, you might be keen to write in different niches or have other reasons to create a second account.
If you apply these top tips, I can’t guarantee you will have great success, but it might help to simplify and clarify the main steps to follow.
In summary:
- establish your primary account first
- consider your reasons for expansion
- reach out to publications you know
- switch browsers to avoid confusion
- submit your posts at the same time
- promote your work separately
- monitor your stats
Thanks for reading. View some of my more successful stories from my main account here: