Why Gary Vaynerchuk Still Has the Biggest Medium Following
And why sometimes there’s no juice to squeeze out of yours
If you’re an entrepreneur and don’t know who Gary Vaynerchuk (GaryVee) is, here’s some water — you must be parched under that rock.
He is an entrepreneurial dynamo and easily one of the leading global minds on what’s next in culture, relevance and the internet.
He is also sitting pretty at the top of the Medium leaderboard with 304,771 followers. And he’s not even actively producing. In fact, his last story published was back in December 2018.
I’m finding that the more I write on this rapidly transformative platform, weaving through the vanity metrics and ones that matter, I have realised the true value of Medium — and it’s not as straightforward as you might think.
The Importance of 1000 True Fans
In short, GaryVee is a veteran. His extraordinary track record of ventures is a testament to his ability to immerse himself in the hearts of businesses, and completely change their beat. And people trust the processes he preaches because he is a living product of their success.
People follow him because they want his value. They stay because they’re hungry for more of his content. They want to be the first to know what’s going on in that irrepressible mind of his. They hit follow back when he was active on Medium and stay just in case he decides to drop something exclusive there again because they are already hooked on him and know it would be worth hanging around for.
These are his true fans.
Over a decade ago, Wired Executive Editor, Kevin Kelly wrote the highly influential “1,000 True Fans,” which predicted that the internet would allow expanses of people to make a living off their creations. He argued that chasing widespread celebrity wasn’t as important as nurturing direct relationships with a modest base of loyal and true fans. These fans would be so ignited by a person and confident enough in their intentions to practically buy whatever they produce.
When it comes to the modest base of fans, he argued that ‘1,000’ isn’t even an absolute figure but “a whole lot more feasible to aim for than a million fans.”
Kelly suggested garnering $100 per fan, per year, totalling an annual income of $100,000. When considering the same process for Medium writers, I can safely say that the Partner Program would cap such earnings from individual fans (the followers).
And this is a big part of the problem with only using Medium to garner a fanbase.
There are fans, and then there are true fans. Despite the 1,000+ follower counts, the majority of Medium writers are less likely to find any floating about in there.
Allow me to explain.
The Case For Writing About Medium
Writing on Medium about writing on Medium is a self-perpetuating feedback loop. Feeding Medium with more content about itself will inevitably help more people become part of it and equally help themselves get noticed by others within it.
Regardless of how ironic it is that I have mentioned this here, I can (and am) because I’m aware that I’m doing it from within the loop — hello there.
Yes, pieces tend to go viral (shout out to David Majister) because everyone wants to know the quickest, smartest and most effective ways to succeed. But think about it. Once you eventually navigate away from Medium, how many of your followers will actually follow you?
Do you really want to be known only to the world as a person who earns money and gains vanity metrics on Medium? Wouldn’t you rather spend time now writing quality pieces about your passions, which constantly challenge you? And that get eyeballs because of the emotions, knowledge and motivation they inspire?
I’m sure you probably think there are exceptions to this rule. The earning goliaths boast of their extravagant wealth, and how their elite expertise of the platform can enable you their same success whilst paying them for it.
This subject requires its own dedicated story, which I will get to, eventually. But I will say that there’s only so far self-publicity on Medium that can take you before it gets old for readers.
A New Outlook
One trend of the most popular Medium writers (shout out to J.J. Pryor): they’re all entrepreneurs. They are here on the platform to leverage the true fans they have earned through their tireless writing efforts into bigger ventures beyond its confines.
Kelly believed that by embracing online networks, creators could bypass traditional gatekeepers and middlemen, and earn directly from a smaller fanbase. Medium is one such advocate of this; writers and creators get paid for producing valuable content for its global members.
However, as keenly as we look to the platform to source our main income, ultimately, we are not in control of our own earning destinies.
Medium is a tool. A social and marketing tool that we are lucky to have in our arsenal. And the more people start seeing it that way, then the more they can start to really branch out. And the more able we each are to identify our specific purposes, the more likely we are to watch the number of our true fans climb.
So why not join them? Leverage away.
What do you enjoy writing about? What are your life goals? Do these correlate with one another in anyways? Who are your true fans? What value are they getting from you?
A lot of questions, but just remember that this is a process that takes time to explore.
“The journey of a thousand miles begins with one step.”
— Lao Tzu
This is probably the most commonly used motivational quote on the planet. And there’s a good reason for it; it’s the truth.
Final Thoughts
Ultimately, there is no point obsessing over the number of followers you have on Medium unless they are akin to your own base of ‘true fans’. Focus on the quality of those within your network and try to search further afield to find your audience — and even your tribe.
I’m beginning to connect with a world full of minds that could truly benefit and relate to the knowledge I can offer — beyond the realms of Medium. I’ve started believing in my gifts and upping my writing skills to champion the new identity I am carving into myself. I’m even pushing myself with a 30-day submissions challenge.
Are you a writer looking for your tribe? Love to read? Want full access to Medium? I’ve got you covered.
