This Is How Much Medium Paid Me for A Story with 38,000 Views

What goes viral on this platform still continues to be a mystery

There is no direct formula of boosting your stats and increasing your engagement on Medium. While many writers crave for curation and further distribution of their articles, it doesn’t guarantee the ultimate success.

When I joined Medium last year, I had no clue if any of my stories would go viral or get any massive views. Being a non-native writer, I was not confident if readers would be interested in my content at all.

Since I was unsure of how this platform generated income, I only focused on creating valuable content besides having an engaging audience.

The first few stories that I published on Medium were bad. I mean, really bad! They lacked a lot of things like proper structure as mentioned in Medium’s guidelines, adequate research, and that personal anecdote. As a result, I was lagging in terms of views, earnings, and fans.

However, things took an unexpected turn after I had published my 22nd story on this platform. It talked about a couple of side-hustles that helped me in making extra income from the comfort of my home. Instead of making this story all about myself, I tried to share how readers could implement those tips in their life.

About The Story

I’ve been working as a freelance writer and editor for over 7 years, and have always looked forward to motivating budding writers to get started with this unique profession, have a sense of flexibility, and be their own boss.

Besides working as a freelance writer and having a full-time job, I have always been obsessed with having multiple streams of income. And I believe, money is something that we all obsess about at some point in life. Especially when people are getting laid off or are unemployed during this pandemic.

That’s why I decided to create a story to share my personal freelance experiences and help my readers in finding different sources of income in case they were unemployed or were already having a traditional 9–5 job.

The story I published was How I Make An Extra $1,000 Per Month Without Breaking A Sweat in September last year. This was more of a personal story sharing why it’s good to have at least one side-hustle and how I am making an additional income every month besides having a full-time job.

I still remember it took me around an hour to write this story. Besides citing a research study, it was all basic information delivered in an easy and understandable tone.

The Impact It Created

Yes, you saw that right! To date, the story has earned exactly $1,055.79 with an average reading time of 2 minutes 11 seconds.

Right from the time the story was published, it started accumulating over 1,000 views daily for a couple of months. None of my previous stories had been even close to this number. So, it was a time for celebration indeed.

If you see the stats, the story, despite having many highs and lows, continued to gain traction and views from readers. And after being published for over 6 months today, it is still in game and bringing in some views and money.

I know this might not be a big deal for many people, but for me, it is. It made me realize that I was doing something right. It made me realize that people were able to relate to this story and apply those practical tips in strengthening their finances.

And this is one of the reasons that keeps me motivated to share my experiences with others and help them in some way or the other.

Other stats

Till date, the story has 694 fans with exactly 4533 claps and 37 comments. With 87% internal views, it has achieved a lifetime member reading time of over 312 hours.

This was special for me as I had never imagined of any of my stories hitting this milestone.

Key Takeaways

Forget about the money and keep generating valuable content

Out of the 27 articles written as of today, this has been the only article that gained such traction and applause from readers.

Undoubtedly, at least 10 of my articles were ‘chosen for distribution’ in multiple categories and were published in some of the biggest publications on Medium. But none of them fetched over 1,000 views.

And honestly, I hadn’t pictured the success of this story when I was penning it down. Just like my other stories, I wanted to be a hit. But I was unsure if it’d achieve that mark. So, without stressing myself out, I did this one thing — to keep writing without thinking too much about the results.

Focus on the quality of your content, not quantity. Think how your readers can resonate to your story, and how it can have an impact on their lives.

Focus on engaging your audience

If you think that a story’s views are going to be the ultimate game-changer for you, then that’s not true. In addition, you need to engage your audience and tell them you care about their interests.

For example, responding to my readers’ comments helps me in building a strong connection with them and understanding their expectations.

Use simple language

One thing that viral articles have in common is easy-to-understand content. You don’t need to use fancy words. While it’s good to have a strong command over grammar, don’t confuse your readers by using complicated and uncommon terms.

After all, we are here to solve our readers’ problems, and not to over complicate their lives.

Write about something that genuinely interests you

I believe this article outperformed my other articles because I knew what I was writing. I had in-depth knowledge of the subject I was writing about, and was willing to share as much information as possible to benefit my readers.

Moreover, readers are smart. They understand when you are showcasing your authentic skills and when you are just making stuff up. Now, it doesn’t mean that you have to be a PhD in a subject you want to write. Focus on creating content around the topic you are aware about, and be ready to share your personal story/lessons while keeping the content informative.

There is no secret mantra in making a story a big hit. The only thing that you should emphasize on is to deliver informative content while sharing your unique insights. Don’t stress too much on stats and views.

Before writing on a topic, place yourself in readers’ shoes and think if you as a reader would be interested in this topic. Ensure that your title and sub-title give a sense of clarity regarding what your article is going to be all about.

If you feel that your story idea can benefit others, then just go ahead and start working on it.