avatarSusie Pinon

Summary

The article discourages new Medium writers from engaging in follow-for-follow practices, emphasizing the importance of organic growth and high-quality content for long-term success.

Abstract

The author, a seasoned Medium writer, addresses the challenges faced by new writers on the platform, particularly the pressure to quickly amass followers to become eligible for monetization. The article argues against the follow-for-follow approach, asserting that it leads to a follower base that is not genuinely interested in the writer's content. Instead, the author suggests focusing on producing quality content, engaging with the community, and utilizing Medium's features effectively to build a meaningful readership. The piece also touches on Medium's efforts to remove bot followers and underscores the value of authentic engagement over inflated follower counts.

Opinions

  • Follow-for-follow techniques are ineffective for achieving genuine readership and long-term success on Medium.
  • New followers gained through follow-for-follow are likely to be uninterested in the writer's work and may unfollow once their own goals are met.
  • Quality content and authentic engagement are more valuable than a high number of disengaged followers.
  • Medium's cleanup of bot accounts reinforces the importance of real connections and readership.
  • The author believes that writers should focus on studying successful writers, joining publications, and optimizing their profiles to attract a genuine audience.
  • Networking and building connections through insightful comments and consistent, high-quality output are key strategies for growth on Medium.
  • The article suggests that becoming a member and engaging with the platform in the intended manner will lead to better outcomes for writers.

Stop Asking for People to Follow You (Back)

New writers, I am begging you. You can grow a following in time — this ain’t the way.

Being a new writer on Medium in 2021 is definitely different than what it was a couple of years back. When I started, I posted my first article on the last day of January and it earned me a whopping 5 cents by midnight.

I was over the moon, and probably had less than fifteen followers. I was still eligible to earn money though, which new writers now, are not.

Nowadays, Medium is a whole new monster. It seems highly competitive — not in the best way, but that’s just my opinion.

All writers want to earn for their hard work and I don’t blame them for a second. With the days passing by quickly, making it to that 100 follower mark by the end of the calendar year is somewhat, if not considerably stressful.

I feel you, I really do. But asking for people to follow you back is like asking repeatedly for people to drop money in your tip jar after you performed at an open-mic night. It’s awkward, weird, and it isn’t effective for long-term success (assuming that’s what you’re after.)

What Happens With Follow-For-Follow?

When you get new followers as a result of a follow-for-follow technique, it might feel great! It shows a list of people on your profile who will now be shown your work and read everything you post. They might use your referral code to convert to a member and even opt-in for email notifications. Right?

No, quite the contrary.

When someone follows you just because they want you to follow them, they are not interested in your work, like at all. Sorry if that sounds mean, but you are just a number to them.

“Great content, follow back.”

“Please follow and share. Follow me, I follow back.”

“I followed you, when will you follow me back?”

They likely didn’t read anything from you and won’t be reading anything you write in the near future, if ever.

And if you don’t follow them back promptly, they will soon unfollow you, because you are a number to them.

Then, once they hit the 100 followers threshold (or maybe a little bit more to play it safe), they will unfollow (almost) everyone they did before so they can build a genuine network. Because like I keep saying, they probably don’t have an interest in your stuff.

So…then what’s the point?

When people follow me, I don’t automatically follow them back to be “nice.” Because in reality, I would just be a ghost follower.

I only follow someone when I appreciate their work because I genuinely want to read more of what they post in the future. I don’t want random writers I have no connection to clogging up my feed. I want my homepage to be optimized and I want Medium to show me writers they think I will like.

I don’t expect people to follow me back just because I follow them. Maybe I take an interest in them but my content just doesn’t resonate with them. That’s cool because I don’t want a ghost follower, either.

How Many of Your Followers Are Real People?

I remember a few months ago, back in June of this year when a publication on Medium lost around 63k followers over night. Some big accounts lost thousands if not tens of thousands of followers in a singular day, and it was the hottest news on the platform.

Why, you might ask?

Medium did a deep cleaning and extracted all the bots from the website. They described it as “keeping Medium authentic.”

Imagine 63k followers of which are ghosts? If fake hype and little money are what you’re after, then you know what to do. But to me, the tactic is just simply meaningless.

Just for reference, I don’t recall losing any followers during this time. If I did, I broke even because my follower account remained the same through this overnight “crisis.”

That’s because the people who follow me want to. I don’t ask them to nor expect them too just for the sake of following.

Asking for Followers is Not Cute

There are so many seasoned writers available to study, and even after being here for almost two years, I still study them on the daily. When I see people asking for followers, I just want them to stop because I know it’s a waste of time.

Here’s what you can do instead:

  • Spend your time studying the top dogs here.
  • Focus your energy into making high-quality content.
  • Join publications and study the editors.
  • Sign up for newsletters to get the inside scoop.
  • Become a member so you can build genuine connections and network the right way.
  • Read, read, and read some more. Read what does well and what interests you.
  • Be consistent. Try to put out just one piece per day. High quality is better than more, more, more.
  • Clap often — don’t be cheap.
  • Leave insightful comments and mean it. Ask questions.
  • Make sure your profile is visually appealing. Add a profile picture, header, and bio. Learn how to perfect your Medium profile for success here.
  • Watch Youtube videos on Medium.
  • Be open to constructive feedback.

Medium is a wonderful place and a world of opportunity. Set yourself up for success by using the platform in the way it was designed to be used. I promise you will find more success that way.

Are you looking to reach a broader audience? Become a writer for The Orange Journal, a growing personal-development publication on Medium. While I do add any writer who wants to join, I do not accept every piece unless it meets the formatting guidelines. Quality over quantity, always.

Drop your handle below and remember to follow The Orange Journal for consideration.

Can’t wait to read you!

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