avatarCasey Botticello

Summary

The Medium Friend Link is a feature that allows writers to share their paywalled articles with anyone for free, providing unrestricted access to readers who are not Medium subscribers.

Abstract

The Medium Friend Link is an underutilized tool that grants free access to stories published on Medium, regardless of the reader's subscription status. This feature is particularly useful for authors who wish to share their work with a broader audience, including those who have exhausted their monthly free articles or are not paying members. The friend link can be shared directly with friends or through social media platforms, enhancing the reach of an article without impacting the author's earnings. Medium generates a unique friend link for each paywalled article, which can be accessed and distributed by the author from a desktop device. Notably, the use of friend links does not negatively affect an author's Medium earnings, as interactions from subscribing members still count towards their revenue.

Opinions

  • The Friend Link is considered a highly beneficial yet often overlooked feature for Medium writers.
  • Sharing a Friend Link is seen as an effective strategy to introduce new readers to an author's work, especially those who might not otherwise subscribe to Medium.
  • The ability to share articles freely through Friend Links is appreciated as it does not compromise the author's potential earnings from Medium's paywall system.
  • There is an acknowledgment that the Friend Link can be shared by anyone who obtains it, thus potentially increasing the article's reach beyond the author's immediate network.
  • A limitation noted is that Friend Links can only be generated and shared from a desktop device, not from mobile.
  • The article encourages readers to engage with the content by leaving comments and suggests subscribing to a newsletter and joining a Facebook group for further community interaction and learning opportunities.

Medium Formatting

The Medium Friend Link

Medium’s tool which allows you to share your articles with anyone

Source: Casey Botticello of Blogging Guide

One of the most overlooked features available to all Medium writers is the Friend Link. Medium’s friend link gives anyone free access to your story — even if they’re not a subscribing Medium member or they have already read all their complimentary stories for the month.

Source: Medium Blogging Guide

Medium’s Friend Link gives anyone free access to your story — even if they’re not a subscribing Medium member or they have already read all their complimentary stories for the month.

Authors receive friend links for every story that’s behind Medium’s metered paywall. You can share a friend link directly with friends or through any social media platform. This tool allows your article to reach readers who are not Medium subscribers and is a great way to introduce them to your writing.

To Utilize Medium’s Friend Link:

  1. Go to the article you want to share
  2. Click Edit in the top right hand corner of the article
  3. Click “Share Friend Link”
  4. Copy the newly generated link, and share with friends or social media
How to use Medium’s Friend Link | Source: Casey Botticello

Note: The one exception appears to be using the friend link on Medium itself. For example, if you post the friend link to a related article in another article, this link will revert to the standard pay-walled link.

But outside of Medium (on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, or any other platform) you are able to share your article with anyone, for free!

Additional Notes on Using Medium’s Friend Link

  • The Friend Link works for anyone who has the link. So if you are the reader of a writer’s Friend link, you too can share the story with friends and family — paywall free!
  • The Friend Link will not negatively impact your Medium Earnings. This is because you only earn when subscribing members engage with your work. Even if a subscribing member finds your article through as Friend link, their claps will still count toward your earnings as they always do.
  • You can only share a Friend Link from a desktop device and not on mobile.

— 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.

If you liked this article, here are some other articles you may enjoy:

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.

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