Curation On Medium

Does it really make a difference?

I think that by now, you would have read numerous articles about curation on Medium. I definitely have read my fair share of it.

The message that I’ve gotten from those articles?

Mixed messages, to be honest.

Some say it is so crucial to get your articles curated.

Some say it shouldn’t matter.

Some writers get so worked up about their articles not being curated.

Some just get on with it.

Me? I’m in the middle.

To date, I have over 60 articles that have been published and out of that, probably around 20% have been curated by Medium.

Does it make a difference?

Yes and no.

All of my curated articles have been the ones that have gotten the most views, compared to the ones that were not curated. And those views also translated into more reads.

BUT, it doesn’t always translate into more fans, which is what makes you money on Medium.

Views and reads don’t make you money, claps do.

You can get millions of views and reads on your articles but if not a single one of them claps for you, your earnings will literally be a big fat ZERO.

My highest viewed article to date was curated under POETRY. It also is the one with the most fans and highest-earning one to date.

I have another one that is currently still pending on the stats for its earnings. It got curated under SELF and currently has the highest number of claps (984 to date and could well become my first article to hit 1k claps) of any article I’ve written.

Being curated definitely helped drive traffic to these articles. I know that readers were able to find it because it was featured in the home page of Medium and I’m grateful for that.

But, I also have two articles that were curated but got very low views, reads, and ZERO claps.

Those two articles will not make me a single cent.

On the other hand, I have articles that were not curated but received good views, reads and a decent amount of claps. Those articles will be making me more money compared to the two that got curated but no one clapped for.

For a new writer with a small following, being curated is definitely important. It helps to get your work out there to a much larger audience. And if your articles are good enough, it will draw a following for you.

But again, it doesn’t necessarily equate to good earnings.

If you look at the stats of my articles above, you can see that my article, ‘The Writer In Us,’ despite being curated under WRITING did not do so well in terms of overall.

Even the article ‘The Power Of A Positive Mindset’ didn’t get as many claps, despite getting over 150 views and 73 reads.

So yes, you do get more traction, but traction doesn’t equal more money.

If you’re a writer with a following of over a few thousand people, you won’t necessarily need your articles to be curated.

Why?

Because you already have a big following.

Your work will be reachable to the thousands that already follow you and if your work is published on big publications like The Startup, The Ascent, etc then it will get an even bigger following.

Getting your work published in publications will also increase your chances of being curated.

However, what matters in the long term is not curation, but your following.

People who love your work will read and support it because they appreciate the effort you’ve put into it. Once you’ve built a large enough following of readers who love your work, they will ensure that you can earn something on Medium. Having your articles curated is just a step in getting you there.

Will I want to still have my articles curated?

Of course.

If possible, I’d love to have every single one of my articles curated.

Because then I’ll have a larger audience and those who love my work will start following me and hopefully, support me as well.

But if I don’t, it wouldn’t matter as much because I am still going to write my best work and put it out there anyways.

Being curated on Medium isn’t my goal here.

Inspiring and helping others — while doing what I enjoy doing — that is why I’m here. And if I can make some money along the way, that’ll be great!

So, if you ask me if being curated makes a difference?

I’d say it really depends on who and how you are as a writer at the moment.

If you’re one of those big ones that have followers in the tens of thousands or even in the hundreds of thousands, it doesn’t matter as much. Although I bet once you’re in that league, your articles would probably get curated more often.

But if you’re still a new writer with a small following like me, then yes, curation would definitely be a huge boost for you. It’ll help to get your work out there and reach out to more readers.

Although, if you don’t get curated often (like me), please still put in your best effort into every single article that you write.

That is what matters the most.