What Are the Perks and Quirks of Writing on Medium and Substack?
I’m one of those writers who write on both Medium and Substack.
I have been a Medium member since 2019 and now have 5.5k followers. On the other hand, I joined Substack one year later and currently have 1,683 subscribers.
Some people say that you should only focus on one platform. Many talk about the advantages of Medium over Substack and vice versa. But right now, I’m happy to be using both!
Each platform has its unique features and advantages that help me grow in writing. They also offer specific benefits when it comes to earning money online.
Writing on Medium
Flexibility when it comes to topics
Medium’s appeal for me is the freedom I have when it comes to writing any topic I wish to write!
I can write an article today about passive income and then write a poem tomorrow. I can also write self-help, health, relationships and technology posts.
I don’t have to be limited by a specific niche.
Opportunities in publications
In relation to various topics, Medium also offers the opportunity to submit to different publications with their respective themes.
If I want an audience that would be interested in reading relationship topics, I can look for publications about love and relationships. If I want more exposure for a post about writing, I can submit to publications specializing in that.
Boosting Feature
Another advantage of submitting to publications is the chance for my article to be boosted.
If I want to have a chance at being boosted, I will look for popular publications with editors designated as nommers by Medium. Nommers have the power to nominate your posts for boosting!
And when your article gets boosted, you’ll have more views and earnings.
Search Engine Optimization
As someone who started blogging using my own WordPress site, I’m very impressed with the way Medium posts can rank well on search engines.
Ranking well for good keywords enables my posts to be viewed by more people. Even if I don’t earn through Medium’s Partner Program, I can still earn through affiliate products and through book sales from well-targeted posts.
I just have to make sure that some of these articles are not behind the paywall so that more people can read them.
Writing on Substack
A very specific niche!
My Substack Newsletter appeals to a very specific niche. And through experience, I realized that this kind of topic isn’t something that can do well on Medium. I’m talking about writing Catholic articles.
I don’t know if I’m right, but Catholic writers never seem to stay long on Medium. It’s as though they couldn’t find the right audience for their work.
On the other hand, I found a supportive Catholic community on Substack that regularly reads what I write about my faith.
Regular monthly subscribers
Even though I currently earn more on Medium than on Substack, I can say that Substack has a lot of potential in terms of earning or even passive income.
By the way I see it, I earn more on Medium because I write almost every day. On Substack, I only post twice a week.
In my article “The Truth About Earning Passive Income on Medium”, I discussed how Medium had been more of an active source of income for me rather than a passive one. If I miss writing for a long time, my earnings would dwindle quickly.
On Substack, I’m not pressured to write as often as this. And I have a regular group of people who support me monthly. This number can grow gradually in the future and may even surpass my Medium earnings.
Freedom in terms of format
Medium has now become a place where long-form posts are being favored over shorter pieces. If you want your article to be boosted, I think you have to get used to writing long articles.
On Substack, I have more flexibility when it comes to the type and length of writing that I can send my subscribers. While I most certainly intend to send posts that are worth people’s time and effort, I will not be limited to the criteria being used by curators on the platform.
Substack is also continuously launching various media formats such as podcasts and videos.
Notes and other features
Substack has just added the “Notes” feature and works like a social media feed where writers can post almost anything apart from their regular Newsletter articles.
Some say that this has helped them gain more subscribers.
Aside from this, however, Substack also has other unique features such as recommendations from other Newsletters, subscriber referrals and free subscription trials.
Final Thoughts
If you still can’t make up your mind whether to concentrate on Medium or Substack, don’t feel pressured to do so immediately.
You can take your time, get a feel of both platforms and see what works better for you.
On the other hand, you can be like me.
I take my chances on both Medium and Substack because they have their own perks and quirks that are just too appealing to set aside.
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This is really helpful as I contemplate moving my blog to Substack (or maybe double-posting text both places but adding voiceover on SS). Thank you.