How Did I Gain 100 Followers On Medium -Organically?
Now There’s A Question?
Introduction
I started my Medium.com writing journey on the 10th of January, 2023, and I got accepted by the Medium Partner Program (MPP) on the 6th of February.
In this article, you will learn.
- My BackStory on WordPress.Com
- My Fears About Writing Online as a Non-American
- Me As A Reader on Medium.
- The High-level Plan/Strategy
- The Detailed Level Plan Strategy
- How I Got 100 Follower Organically
- Parting Thoughts And Actions You Can Take
Let’s Get Started
My BackStory on WordPress.Com
I am not new to blogging. I have a WordPress.Com blog that I started cluelessly in 2016 on a part-time basis. Because I wanted a hobby and realised I like to write.
The one thing many people don’t realise is that WordPress.Com has its own native community, just like Medium.
However, earning money on WordPress.com is an entirely different model.
Through the Wordpress.Com community, I learned that I could write for Medium.Com.
My Fear About Earning Online.
I live in the United Kingdom, and all blogging/writing platforms are American, meaning earnings are in dollars, and I have to figure out how to fill out the W8BEN(individual) or W8BENE(company) forms to get paid, not be double taxed, and UK self-assessment.
All these elements scared me and stopped me from going for an online writing side hustle.
In 2023, I decided to invest a lot of time in YouTube because YouTube helps non-Americans fill out the W8.
As luck would have it, some of the native community on WordPress.Com wrote about writing on Medium.com, how to do it, etc.
I was sold on writing for Medium because they help with the W8BEN form. Additionally, gaining 100 followers on Medium was much easier than gaining 1000 on YouTube. Not to worry, I am not giving up on YouTube. That is still in the plan for 2023.
And the final fear, I am not a good writer. But self-doubt is a plague that all writers face, even Steven King.
Me As A Reader on Medium.
I have been a free reader of Medium for years, and I never actually thought I could write for Medium. I firmly believed Medium was an exclusive club because I followed President Obama, Deepak Chopra, and Ryan Holiday.
Anyway, I always saw adverts for the free month’s trial, but I never took it up because reading three articles a month was enough for me.
The High-level Plan/Strategy
The plan for the rest of January and February 2023 was to get on the Medium Partner Program(MPP) within the first three weeks of the free month’s Medium trial, leaving a few days to see how the earnings per story worked; This would take me to early February.
I would use the rest of February to test myself as a writer, the effort I put into it, and whether I maintain a balanced life. Based on these yardsticks, and my earnings, I would decide how to carry on with Medium for the rest of 2023.
Finally and most importantly, I asked the Universe to help and guide me with this plan. Yes! I believe in manifesting, and it works.
The Detailed Level Plan/Strategy
From the WordPress.Com bloggers, I learnt some valuable starter points:
- Canonical Link- which allows me to reuse my blog post on Medium.
- Writing for publications like New Writers Welcome is necessary for growth.
- I heard about follow-for-follow.
What I Knew I Would NOT Do.
- I would NOT Follow-for-Follow, because that is a house built on quicksand, and I want to do well here and earn well for a long time.
- Writing every day, or multiple times a day, is just heading for burnout. Therefore, I won’t be doing this in the long run. But February, my test month, was the exception.
- I would not be niching down from day one. I will niche down eventually.
What I Knew I WOULD Do.
- Create my About page.
- Create my profile graphic.
- Draft my first post.
- Use a few of my old posts from my blog (after a revamp).
- Learn how to submit to New Writers Welcome.
- Before submitting to a publication, I decided to have a few self-published posts ready; this would allow a publication to see my writing.
- I read and engaged with fellow writers sincerely and meaningfully (from the heart).
- I read many posts about how to write, what to do, how to fill out W8BEN once accepted by MPP, and how to meter old posts once I became MPP.
- I only followed writers who resonate with me.
- I wanted to write poetry, so I looked for poetry and poetry publications.
- I wanted to join in prompts, to help me write about any topic.
- I would monitor my time on Medium, reading, writing, and looking at stats to figure out my rhythm.
Here Is What I Did And What I Believe Got Me 100 Followers Organically.
I self-published three stories before I applied to New Writers Welcome. I wrote one article for New Writers Welcome, then looked for poetry publications. Then, I looked for prompts, which led me to the best find ever, The Engagement Club by Jason Edmunds.
While writing/publishing my posts, I spent more time reading and engaging with other writers’ posts. I only followed writers who I will always enjoy reading what they have to write regardless of the topic.
I did not follow-for-follow because that is like building a house on quicksand, and it will not help me earn money or grow in the long run. But, if someone followed me, I would visit their blog, read their about page, read some of their blog posts, leave comments, and only follow back if I resonated with the work, and I could see myself liking their work forever.
Additionally, with my first post, I sent a friend link to my WordPress.Com friends, who supported me. So I got about four followers from that.
There you have it. These are the steps that got me to 100 followers, and The Engagement Club by Jason Edmunds played a good part in my growth, and I strongly recommend you check that out.
I wrote eight posts from the 10th of January to the 3rd of February 2023 before I became MPP.
I only followed those who I knew; I would reread their work time and time. I read and engaged more than I wrote. And I continued to ask The Universe for help.
This table shows the eight stories, the date published, and if they were self-published. I did not write daily, but I did read and engage daily.
Finally, the final point, I enjoyed myself, and I made genuine connections. I was only against the clock because of the trial and my plan. I don’t prescribe to follow-for-follow, writing multiple times a day, or writing every day on Medium. These activities will lead to burnout and make me depressed about it all. I am here to improve my writing, make connections, and earn some money along the way. Having said that, I did write multiple times a day for February.
Parting Thoughts And Actions You Can Take.
- Enjoy writing good stories, and follow the Medium guidelines on how to do this.
- Make sincere and genuine connections by leaving honest comments that show you have read the writer’s stories. Be Respectful of the effort the writer put into that piece.
- Clap up to 50 times, Highlight, and have fun reading others’ work.
- Only follow people who resonate with you.
- Submit to Publications.
- Take part in The Engagement Club by Jason Edmunds.
- Be patient, you will get your 100 followers easily, and they will be genuine readers.
- Don’t do the bare minimum of one post to join the Medium Partner Program.
- Don’t write a follow-for-follow post or leave comments to follow in someone’s story. Medium doesn’t encourage that. You are building a House on quicksand, which will hurt you in the future. By doing this, you damage your reputation as a serious writer.
- Enjoy yourself, and be genuine.
So, that is the story of how I got to 100 followers and MPP in just under four weeks. (**Note on 1st August 2023 — Medium changed its policy — 100 followers are not required for MPP**).
I wish you good luck and success in your writing.
Want to Join Medium and read more great stories? Use my referral link here — it’s free at no cost to you.
You might like to read my post when I celebrated becoming MPP.
© 2023 Bella of Thoughtsnlifeblog
This post has been specifically written to be published in How To Increase Your Follower Numbers Publication.