Medium Formatting

HTML Elements of Medium Post

Understanding the HTML elements of a Medium Post and how to customize them to maximize views and external traffic

A major component to successful writing on Medium is making your content easily accessible to search engines. If readers do not see your writing, internally, on Medium within 72 hours, there is little chance they will see it again. That is, unless you optimize the HTML elements of your Medium post, which helps with both rank within Medium’s internal search algorithm and in major search engines, such as Google.

Google’s algorithm evaluates a number of “on-page” factors to determine what a page is about. These on-page ranking factors include the following:

• Title
• Subheadings
• Meta description
• URL
• The content of the article
• Image tags

Medium provides writers with the ability to include a target keyword in each of these fields. If you want to generate huge amounts of external views, it is essential to optimize each of these fields.

Title

A title tag is an HTML element that specifies the title of a web page. Title tags are displayed on search engine results pages (SERPs) as the clickable headline for a given result, and are important for usability, SEO, and social sharing. The title tag of a web page is meant to be an accurate and concise description of a page’s content.

• Google typically displays the first 50–60 characters of a title tag. If you keep your titles under 60 characters, our research suggests that you can expect about 90% of your titles to display properly. There’s no exact character limit, because characters can vary in width and Google’s display titles max out (currently) at 600 pixels.
• Avoid titles that are just a list of keywords or repeat variations of the same keyword over and over. These titles are bad for search users and could get you into trouble with search engines. Search engines understand variations of keywords, and it’s unnecessary and counterproductive to stuff every version of your keyword into a title.
• According to Moz’s testing and experience, keywords closer to the beginning of your title tag may have more impact on search rankings. In addition, user experience research shows that people may scan as few as the first two words of a headline. This is why they recommend titles where the most unique aspect of the page (e.g. the product name) appears first. Avoid titles like:

Brand Name | Major Product Category — Minor Product Category — Name of Product

• Titles like this example front-load repetitive information and provide very little unique value at first glance. In addition, if search engines cut off a title like this, the most unique portion is the most likely to disappear.

Subheadings

A subheading, or subhead, are mini-headlines and play a huge role in capturing and holding the scanners attention. It also keeps them moving down the page from one subhead to the next.

The subheading would ideally be:

• Useful — it shows a promise and a benefit to the reader.
• Unique — it contains a fact or opinion your reader may not be aware of.
• Ultra-specific — this makes a subheading stand out and demand attention.
• Urgent — urgency gets your reader to take notice and action.

Meta Description

The meta description is an HTML attribute that provides a brief summary of a web page. Search engines such as Google often display the meta description in search results where they can highly influence user click-through rates.

• Meta descriptions can be any length, but Google generally truncates snippets to ~155–160 characters. It’s best to keep meta descriptions long enough that they’re sufficiently descriptive, so we recommend descriptions between 50–160 characters.
• A page’s meta description should intelligently (read: in a natural, active, non-spammy way) employ the keywords that page is targeting, but also create a compelling description that a searcher will want to click. It should be directly relevant to the page it describes, and unique from the descriptions for other pages.

URL

A URL (Uniform Resource Locator), more commonly known as a “web address”, specifies the location of a resource (such as a web page) on the internet. The URL also specifies how to retrieve that resource, also known as the “protocol”, such as HTTP, HTTPS, FTP, etc.

• A well-crafted URL provides both humans and search engines an easy-to-understand indication of what the destination page will be about.
• URLs are a minor ranking factor search engines use when determining a particular page or resource’s relevance to a search query. While they do give weight to the authority of the overall domain itself, keyword use in a URL can also act as a ranking factor.
• Well-written URLs can serve as their own anchor text when copied and pasted as links in forums, blogs, social media networks, or other online venues.

Article Content

On the Internet, content sends signals to visitors and search engines about the quality and purpose of a site. Good writing, images, and other forms of content help visitors engage with a site and can build trust. Meanwhile, duplicate content and keyword-stuffed copywriting can indicate that a site is low-quality or even spammy. Content, especially when created according to a defined content strategy, is a cornerstone of effective digital marketing.

• Keyword Research: If you want to generate traffic through search, it’s best to do keyword research before you start writing. This way, you can focus on keywords for which a certain amount of search volume already exists — in other words, write toward topics (or find keyword niches!) that people are already searching for information about.
• Keyword Optimization: Know where and how to use keywords in your content for maximum searchability.
• Content Organization: The content on your site should be organized in a logical way. This is not only good for SEO, it also helps visitors on your site find other related content easily. (The longer they stay on your site, the better.)
• Content Promotion: Increase visibility to new content you create by sharing it on social networks and building links to your content (both internally and from external sites). As I’ve written about before, I love to use Signal. Signal auto-tweets your articles on repeat to help you share your articles and grow your audience on your schedule.

Image Tags

Up until recently, Medium did not allow proper image tagging. However, a few weeks ago, Medium added alt-text functionality, which allows writers to properly tag their images.

If you’re creating content on a topic that requires the support of visuals, consider how your audience might prefer to find answers to their questions on that topic. In many cases, Google searchers don’t want the classic blue, hyperlinked search result — they want the image itself, embedded inside your webpage.

One of the most important things image alt text can do for you is turn your images into hyperlinked search results — giving your website yet another way to receive organic visitors.

— Casey Botticello

Thanks for reading this article! Leave a comment below if you have any questions. Be sure to sign up for the Blogging Guide newsletter, to get the latest tips, tricks, and news about writing on Medium and to join our Facebook group, Medium Writing, to share your latest Medium posts and connect with other writers.

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Casey Botticello is a partner at Black Edge Consulting. Black Edge Consulting is a strategic communications firm, specializing in online reputation management, digital marketing, and crisis management. Prior to founding Black Edge Consulting, he worked for BGR Group, a bipartisan lobbying and strategic communications firm.

Casey is the founder of the Cryptocurrency Alliance, a Super PAC dedicated to cryptocurrency and blockchain advocacy. He is a graduate of The University of Pennsylvania, where he received his B.A. in Urban Studies.

You can connect with him on LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook, or by visiting his website, Blogging Guide.