OPINIONATED

Should Medium Have Ads?

How can we pave the way moving forward

Medium is a nice place to read and find niche content in some areas. However, not everyone who writes here makes enough money even if they publish every day. I believe one way to change this is to implement ads on the platform

I think the way they should go about it is by making a free version for everyone but with ads. I know it sounds cliche since every other company has done it, but it can work and won’t change how we as paid subscribers view our pages.

Furthermore, you can double the amount of readership and engagement while offering various options for everyone. Some people subscribe to Medium just to read articles while others are here to write or do both.

Plus, when you look at major newsletters and newspaper companies like the NY Times or Washington Post most of them cannot be viewed without paying a subscription fee which is where medium can get some market share.

The truth is sooner or later Medium will have to implement ads. I call this the ‘Netflix Effect’. You remember for years Netflix swore not to implement ads but look at them now. Money rules in these departments and the minds of medium will have to come up with a better way fast.

Finally, I think Medium should implement ads but only for free users. The whole nature and mood of the platform can stay the same for paid subscribers and be different for non-paying ones while increasing engagement.