The Boost on Medium: Answering Most Frequently Asked Questions for Beginners
Since its inception, the Boost initiative has given hope to writers. However, it is still at the pilot stage, and we keep learning about its intention, mechanisms, and selection criteria.
Non-members can read this story for free via my friend link.
Dear subscribers, thank you for being integral to my publications on Medium.com. Over the past 12 months, my email inbox and Slack messages have been flooded with inquiries about the boost program on Medium. Given my close involvement with this initiative since its inception and my role as a boost nominator for several months, I have decided to answer these questions transparently to the best of my ability.
Responding individually to each request has proven time-consuming as I support 27000+ writers with only 149 volunteer editors. This journey is ongoing, and I plan to update this story until the program transitions into business as usual. Please consider saving it and sharing the friend link.
I recognize Medium’s substantial investment in this program and advocate for its success. Consequently, I remain committed to providing feedback to the leadership, offering a raw data point supporting its growth and efficacy.
In this post, I will start with the most basic questions and delve into more complex ones to give you a high-level perspective of this initiative based on my experience, observations, and feedback from writers and readers, including early adopters of Friend of Medium. I also provide some sample boosted stories at the end for writers and readers to benefit from them.
What is the boost program on Medium.com?
This is the most fundamental question usually asked by new writers just joining the platform and some of my subscribers. They read about it in stories and comments but need context and background to conceptualize it. I want to give a high-level perspective for beginners.
As far as I remember, the Boost program started in November 2022 but gained more popularity in August 2023, when Medium made significant changes to prioritize quality over quantity. Therefore, I changed the strategy for my publications, and all our guidelines were updated accordingly.
This was a significant shift from writers focusing on quantity to reaching a broader audience. Now, Medium rewards high-quality content to achieve writers’ goals and please readers.
The Boost program is one of the recognition attributes of well-crafted and impactful stories for readers. However, Medium still distributes well-written and impactful stories even if they are not boosted.
Unlike previously algorithmic selection for further distribution, Medium now allows the community (selected boost nominators), mainly publication owners and some independent ones, to nominate stories to a portal with justification. But curators of Medium also boost stories.
In essence, for this pilot program, human curators review nominated stories. If they concur with the quality, impact, and alignment with Medium’s standards, they boost the story by programming it in the distribution system. This strategic move leverages the platform’s automation power to amplify the story’s reach.
My understanding is that boosted stories gain exposure not only to the writer’s followers but also to the followers of the publication hosting the story and those interested in the relevant topics covered in the story. This broader visibility ensures that well-crafted and impactful stories reach a wider audience, utilizing the platform’s distribution capabilities.
Why is boosting important for writers?
Boosting is important for writers, especially beginners, as it elevates the visibility and engagement of selected stories, increasing their potential income. It serves as a fast track to building an audience on Medium. It also gives a purpose to new writers to incrementally improve their skills by following the further distribution rules.
Why is boosting important for readers?
For readers, boosting is crucial because it entails content that undergoes nomination and curation by humans, validation by seasoned editors or subject matter experts, and approval by Medium’s official curation team. Stories chosen by the Boost program adhere to rigorous criteria akin to the standards of peer-reviewed papers in scientific journals. Therefore, readers receive curated content and can trust its quality without concern.
Why is boosting important for the platform and publications?
It is important for the platform and publications because more boosted stories create a higher-quality content ecosystem with trusted/validated and valuable information. This new ecosystem can boost publication subscribers' and platform readers’ confidence in consuming valuable content and reward writers with increased visibility for their valuable work. As boosted stories bring more readers, publications gain more followers and writers, allowing them to grow faster. So, it’s a win-win-win-win for readers, writers, publications, and the platform.
What are the key requirements for a story to be considered for boosting? And how do your pubs do this?
In my experience, the key requirements for a story to qualify for boosting include its originality, quality of content, engaging writing style, impact on a broad audience, depth of explanations, memorability, and valuable takeaways. However, I’d like to highlight that a story must not fulfill all these criteria simultaneously. Sometimes, meeting just one or two of these requirements is sufficient for a story to be considered eligible for boosting.
To guide the writers, I share the following five questions while self-editing their stories to increase the chance of curation. Medium communicated this during the announcement of the program in 2022. Medium published the details in this guide.
1 — Is my story impactful and constructive? 2 — Is my story original? 3 — Do I write from relevant experience? 4 — Is my story well-crafted? 5 — Does my story feel memorable?
These criteria collectively emphasize the importance of delivering meaningful, original, and well-crafted content that resonates with readers on both intellectual and emotional levels. In July 2023, I wrote a detailed article explaining the criteria. Here is the link: New Writers: Enhance the Chance of Boosting Using This Checklist.
What do you mean by the IMPACT of the story?
This was the most frequently asked question during the review process when I asked writers to enhance the impact of their stories. It sounds complicated and subjective; therefore, I want to give some perspectives.
The story’s impact is derived from its originality, achieved through exploring uncharted territories, providing fresh insights, or presenting a unique perspective on familiar subjects.
The story’s impact is rooted in the author’s authentic and credible viewpoint, driven by firsthand experience, subject matter expertise, thorough research, or a combination of these factors.
The story’s impact is attributed to the high quality of writing, characterized by a solid narrative structure, clarity of presentation, meticulous attention to detail with nuances to essential aspects of the story, and compelling content.
The story’s impact can be measured by its ability to leave a lasting impression on readers, evoking deep thoughts, emotions, and a sense of value. The best stories linger in readers’ minds, prompting continued contemplation and inspiring them to share the story with others.
By engaging readers on various levels, provoking thoughtful contemplation, and eliciting emotional responses, the story becomes a memorable experience that reinforces the value of content subscription. Medium's main goal is to increase subscribers by giving them valuable stories for their subscriptions, especially Friends of Medium, who pay three times more than the standard subscription fee.
Will my stories be boosted if I follow the guidelines and answer these five questions when writing and self-editing?
Before being a boost nominator, I thought every story meeting the guidelines would be boosted. However, when I became a nominator, I learned that my assumption was wrong; therefore, I clearly communicated with the writers of my publications to set their expectations.
Medium does not give any guarantee even if you diligently follow the rules. Based on feedback from my mentors and several fellow Boost nominators, I liken the Boost program to an art appraisal, much like a painter crafting a beautiful composition that might not universally resonate with every buyer.
So, this analogy means that even though objective criteria play a vital role, we must accept the program’s subjective nature. I realized this when participating in the appraisal of creative non-fiction competitions as a writer and evaluator.
Boost nominators play a vital role in the process. They nominate stories in line with the guidelines. For instance, I nominated excellent stories, but only around 70% and sometimes 90% were selected for boosting by Medium curators. The remaining 10% to 30% were not chosen, although they met guidelines and occasionally exceeded them based on my personal assessment or guidance from senior editors undergoing meticulous editing before nomination.
Why Medium does not boost if my story meets or exceeds guidelines?
I don’t have a clear and definite answer to this valid question, but I have some ideas and assumptions. In essence, while adherence to guidelines significantly increases the chances of boosting, it’s not guaranteed due to the process’s selective and subjective nature and the program’s current constraints in its beta phase.
Firstly, the program is currently in the pilot (beta phase) and operates with limited resources. This limited capacity might contribute to the number of boosted stories.
As the program advances beyond the beta phase, there’s an expectation of increased resources and potentially more curators, enhancing the overall boosting power of the platform.
I believe that curators have additional undocumented or loosely documented criteria items. For example, some boost nominators believe that if a curator does not like the cover image of an exceptional story, they will not choose it for a boost.
This is an assumption, but when I checked some great stories that were not boosted, I noticed that the image either had a negative connotation or a clickbaity feature.
Of course, this is subjective, as we all interpret images differently. However, to be on the safe side, I always suggest writers carefully consider the images and try to find the best ones that suit their stories.
Sometimes stories are written meticulously, but if the content does not resonate with the curator and a topic is not interesting to a broader readership on Medium, I believe that curators do not choose them.
Since the program is at the beta stage and there is no feedback mechanism, nominators work in the dark. It is impossible to read the minds of curators. Therefore, I once asked for some feedback on stories that were not accepted, but I admired them and found them very well-written. However, I was told that the program cannot provide feedback yet.
However, for technical issues, such as entering old dates into a nominated story due to repurposed content, the team is responsive and solves them instantly. There is a feedback form for these types of technical defects. You may contact Ariel Meadow Stallings for inquiries.
Why do ILLUMINATION publications not nominate self-published stories and always recommend drafts?
Although we accept self-published stories in all our pubs, we don’t recommend it as it does not give us any control or influence on the nomination.
Curators can see self-published stories before editing them, and they might make a decision. The chance of immaturely published pieces could be low if they see a story without meeting key requirements.
Sometimes, writers cannot see their blind spots, but independent editors can do so. It happened to me multiple times. For example, I failed to see typos in my stories. But I am good at seeing the typos of other writers.
In addition, if a curator sees the story and we nominate it, they call it duplication. So, we waste our time by editing and nominating stories with an executive summary. The editing process is time-consuming, and there is no benefit for the editors as they are all volunteers. Most editors love doing it if they see good results, like boosting their fellow writers.
I wrote a perfect story about my Medium experience, but your boost-nominating publication did not publish and nominate it. Why?
This one is simple to answer as Medium does not boost any story about Medium. We clarified it in our submission guidelines; therefore, we no longer accept Medium meta stories on ILLUMINATION and ILLUMINATION-Curated except for those written by editors or administrators for updating writers and readers like this post, newsletters, editorial bulletins, or curated/featured collection. However, we still support Medium-related stories on Synergy, Readers Hope, or ILLUMINATION’s Mirror, as some stories are really helpful for aspiring and even experienced writers.
My meticulous scientific/technical paper was not boosted. Why?
Some writers measure quality based on their scientific experience with peer-reviewed journals. But Medium is not an academic platform. If your story does not appeal to a broad audience, the chance is very low, as I mentioned in the basic requirements section with five questions.
On a few occasions a few months ago, some writers with academic backgrounds wrote about cancer or other complex health issues. Coming from a science background, I loved them, like our editing team, as they were rigorously written.
Therefore, I requested feedback as an exception. Gratefully, the program manager responded to my request, saying that it had nothing to do with the topic but with how the writers wrote the stories. For example, they said that if a story were written like a user manual, curators would not accept them.
I had multiple stories get boosted, but they did not reach a broad audience, and some now get ZERO views. Why?
I have received this question lately from many writers. The same thing happened to me, but I have no answer to this as a boost nominator, as there is no documentation or conversation about it from Medium.
I escalated this to the program management, as it happened to me, too. For example, my boosted stories used to get multiple times more views in early 2023, but now they don’t.
There might be multiple factors. One of my guesses is that sometimes there might be glitches in the system. The other guess is that if a story did not get enough engagement, the algorithm might have marked it as a low-impact story and stopped distributing it to a broader audience.
As these are only my assumptions, please don’t think they are the case for the low visibility of boosted stories. There might be multiple factors, so we wait for Medium to share details when they complete the pilot program.
Having over 40 years of experience with technology, I have realized that there is no such thing as a perfect beta program. These initiatives serve as invaluable tools or platforms for stakeholders to identify defects and implement improvements, leveraging a wealth of data in the process.
I have over 50K followers, but none of my stories got boosted in your publications. Why don’t they get boosted if so many people follow me?
This is a very common question from writers with 10K+ followers. The answer is easy. The boost program does not favor the writer's popularity but focuses on the quality and impact of the story for readers. Some writers speculate that Medium does not want to pay to establish writers as the rate for boosted stories is high, but I have not seen convincing evidence yet.
I looked at your boost repository, and some writers with little following had multiple boosts, and some prolific ones had none. Why?
This is related to the previous question. Yes, some writers had multiple boosted stories as they wrote well-crafted and impactful stories, increasing their chances. They are also patient and leverage the free services of editors to mature their content. They don’t write for the sake of writing but to impact their readers by sharing meaningful content and investing their time to improve them, meeting and exceeding the requirements.
You used to publish much quicker from ILLUMINATION-Curated, but now it takes longer; why?
Yes, previously, 30 editors of ILLUMINATION-Curated used to review and publish stories quickly. But now it is a formal boost nominating publication, so we have to prescreen every story to find exceptional ones and add them to a detailed review process. Sometimes editors disagree, so we need to reach a consensus with my coordination. These editors are volunteers and live in different time zones. Therefore, the process takes time. We also have limited credits and must use them wisely for the most exceptional pieces. I always expedite time-sensitive content when writers contact me privately. I have a full-time job, and my secondary task is publication activities like supporting 27000 writers, taking significant time and effort. Senior editors do the review for free; thus, I’d appreciate your patience.
Conclusions and Takeaways
There were many more questions, but to keep this story in a reasonable size, I only covered the most frequently asked questions. If some of these questions are asked more often, I will add them to this list so you may save it as a reference to check out in the future. I want this to be a useful resource for writers.
The key point is the boost program is still in the pilot phase, so please keep your expectations low. Writing is an art form, so if your story is not accepted, please don’t take it personally, as it does not mean your story has no value. It means that it does not meet the specific criteria of the platform.
Yes, boosted stories bring more readers and engagement, but non-boosted stories sometimes perform better. Medium still distributes high-quality stories, so your efforts are not wasted. Besides, this is a serendipitous platform.
Occasionally, a story with few views might bring unexpected benefits. It happened to me multiple times. For example, a story catalyzed me into earning a $55K income from just one client. Such serendipitous encounters also happened to some of my proteges, so please stay optimistic and focus on adding value to your readers and prospective clients. The more you give the more you receive from my observations.
Sample Boosted Stories from My Publications
There are many, but I only chose some from different topics to give you an idea. You may review these stories and connect with the writers.
Finding Comfort in Blocks: How Minecraft Eased My First Time Loneliness and Intense Grief at 17 Aiden (Illumination Gaming)
My Perspectives on the Ukraine Invasion Two Years Later as a Ukrainian Descendant Oksana Kukurudza’s Sunflowers Rarely Break
We need a materialist approach to fighting racism Rebecca Ruth Gould
How I managed to be productive at every level in the company. Lisa Bage
It Took Two Divorces for Me to Learn What Destroys a Marriage Holly Paige
25 Years After Starting a First-Aid Business With a 6-Month-Old Baby, We’re Still Thriving Gill McCulloch
The Most Interesting Thing About Being a Scuba Diving Instructor Happened After I Quit Andy Murphy
Our New Hearing Aids — Startling Surprises in the Family Bill Myers
What I Think About Wedding Photography After 12 Years Silviu-Florin Salomia
The Power of Placebo To Boost High Performance and Self-Belief Sean Kernan
I Harvested 10 Lessons When I Weeded My Portfolio Garden Mark Armstrong
I Stumped Google’s Gemini — But Not ChatGPT Wayne Stelk, PhD
How the Election of Barack Obama Changed Race Relations in America William Spivey
What Happened When I Pushed My Body Past the Breaking Point Joshua Mason 🔱
How to Deal with Painful Emotions from Our Past: Mickey Singer’s Tough Love Teaching David Gerken
If You Don’t Believe in Angels, This Could Change Your Mind Bebe Nicholson
Why Women in Pakistan Are Not Oppressed, But They Thrive Ammara Hassan
Navigating the Maze of Modern Loneliness with Observations and Interactions Jussi Luukkonen — your curiosity guide
Defining Spiritual Faith in a Life of Distraction Pernoste & Dahl
I’ll Never Forget the Lesson I Learned on My First Day of teaching Dr. Daniel H. Shapiro
Enjoying and Making Sense of My Life Beyond Deaf Silence Joellyn Rose Keener, Author of Deaf and Determined
Working Hard and Doing the Right Thing Will No Longer Get You the American Dream Toni Crowe
Design-Wise Clues: The Twentieth Century and Beyond Matthew Bamberg
I Wrote a Novel: Here Are 5 Laws of Creativity I Learned in the Process Kyle Chastain
What Car Shows Mean to Me and How They Enriched My Life Aiden (Illumination Gaming)
Timing Will Never Be Perfect; Do What You’re Meant to Do Now Vincent Van Patten
Why Do We Love to Believe Wacky and Weird Stuff? James Alexander, MATheol, MA, PhD
This Teacher’s Act Made Me Look For Him After 43 Years. Am I Too Late? Wendy King
The Good Clime Retrieves The Sunken Heart — One Mild Allusion To Settle The Harmed Mind — Goodness… The Doctor — Joanie Adams
Surprising Life Lessons I Learned from Army Reserve Officer Training Danielle Spinks Earl
Come Take a Peek Into the Minds, Lives, and Fears … of Queers Brian Feutz
Things I Miss About the U.S. As an American Living in Paris Jolie Porter
Common Medical Myths That Many People Continue to Believe Despite Proof to the Contrary David Mokotoff, MD
Is It Possible to Completely Heal from Covert Narcissistic Abuse? Melissa Kalt, MD
Let’s Talk about Atheists and Firm Believers in the God of Abraham Marcus aka Gregory Maidman
Insider Insights: 10 Guidelines for Excelling as a Patient From an ER Doctor Joan Naidorf MD
When Helping Is Hurting: AI is Hurting Our Students Denise P King
Gaming, Fun, and Humor: The Lifelines That Rescued Me From Social Media’s Grip on My Life Aiden (Illumination Gaming)
Can Companion Robots Solve the Loneliness Epidemic Among Elders? Mark Sanford, Ph.D.
How I Learned to Meditate Again After a 40-Year Lapse, and What I Get From It Martin D. Hirsch
Does Your Academic Performance Determine the Rest of Your Life? Clarissa Ai Ling Lee, PhD
Thinking Back on an Unsustainable Diet in a 12-Step Program and a Dramatic Weight Loss The Sturg
The Artistic Meaning of Images Within Images Lorwen Harris Nagle, PhD
If You Want to Lose Weight, You Must Lose the Heavy Thinking First Elaine Hilides
My Daughter’s Transgender Identity Didn’t Make Sense Tony Leo
Beyond Blind Spots: A Multi-Perspective Journey Toward Greater Understanding George M Pantazis
Who Is in Charge Here?–How Our Minds Control the Body Dr Emmanuel Ogamdi
Can We Lose Fat and Gain Muscle At the Same Time? Matt Williams-Spooner, Ph.D.
Seeing a Cop In Line At Starbucks Gave Me The Jitters G Correia
5 Surprising Links Between Fitness and Photography Zacc Rowlands
Synaesthesia I: A Life of Colors, The Early Years Donn K. Harris
When The Great Himalayas Went Grey on Us, Literally Somil Gupta
Why Ban “Divisive” Teachings While Protecting Divisive Confederate Monuments? Guy Nave
Overcoming Post-COVID-19 Long-Lasting Olfactory Issues Antonio Segovia, MD.
Grandma and God Brought Me Home AJ from a partner pub
How My Grandmother’s Legacy Goes Beyond the Wrinkles Gabriela Trofin-Tatár
Should Doctors Be Less or More Empathetic? Dr. Julian Barkan
How Cholesterol Levels Impact Your Heart Health Dr. K P Vasudeva Rao
Four Ways to Balance Your Content Creation Obsession by Clayton Moulynox
Lessons from the Grave Sara Fellers from a partner pub
Facing the Judge and Jury of Your Inner Critic jules — Miz Mindful
Neuroscience Behind Why I Read 1000 Books With My Son Before He Turned 5 Prashansa Gadgil
How I Mastered 4 Essential Requirements to Become a Better Leader and Served My Clients Jozsef Kovacs
Why Business Organizations Must Implement the Zero Trust Security Strategy and Execute It… David Pui | Digital Transformation Architect
How Survivorship Bias Colors Our World: Impact and How to Overcome It Sridhar Pai Tonse — Leadgen Coach- Tech Startups
AI Can Now Create Photorealistic Videos From Just a Text Prompt Aiden (Illumination Gaming)
Our other boost nominator, Aiden, compiles the boosted stories and analyzes them as part of his educational giveback activity. Here are the links to his assessments with some perspectives from his experience.
ILLUMINATION-Curators compile them monthly and distribute them to our 100K+ subscribers on Medium, Substack, and Convertkit. Here is the latest version posted yesterday. You may subscribe to the account, which is also a Friend of Medium profile, to support our writers.
I compiled my boosted stories, analyzing them for writers to see why they got more visibility in 2023. This story might be helpful to new writers.
Medium is a large community and the ideal platform for writers and readers to collaborate. I noticed that many writers and readers are still non-members. I wrote an open letter to them inviting them to join our journey. I hope my points in the attached story convince non-members.
I interview influential writers to support my subscribers, Friends of Medium, and my pubs’ subscribers. You may find them in the attached collection.
Thank you for reading my perspectives. I wish you a healthy and happy life.
To inform my new readers, I wrote numerous articles that might inform and inspire you. My topics include brain health and cognitive function, significant health conditions, longevity, nutrition/food, valuable nutrients, ketogenic lifestyle, self-healing, weight management, writing/reading, and humor.
I publish my health and wellness stories on EUPHORIA. My posts do not include professional or health advice. I only document my reviews, observations, experiences, and perspectives to provide information and create awareness. 100+ Insightful Life Lessons from My Circles for the Last 50+ Years
If you are a writer, you are welcome to join my publications by sending a request via this link. I support 27K+ writers who contribute to my publications on this platform. I also have another profile to write and curate tech stories.
Importance and Value of Medium Friendship for Writers and Readers
