What People Are Not Seeing When Using Medium and Substack
Writers are starting to share their Substack experience or thinking on Medium
This is a good thing for both platforms.
This article will be primarily about Substack. Just kidding.
In October or more recently, I have seen all kinds of Substack experiences popping up in the search from those who used both Medium and Substack.
Some fariote Medium over Subtuck, while others are tired of not seeing any progress on Medium and have gone for Substack.
This is the first issue for newer writers. Substack is not a direct alternative to Medium when you are not doing well on Medium.
More than 50% of the time, those who can get a head start on Subtuck are because they have already built an online presence elsewhere or have their content, framework, and workflow in place.
I would say Medium is actually a bit easier to start for a newer writer with not much time and experience to interact with others.
Yet, eventually, you’ll have to put time into both. It’s pretty rare to do well without putting in the genuine effort of talking to readers or fellow writers who also write what you’re interested in.
Unless you write about tech, you might get a pass for ghosting everyone.
How most new accounts start and why their feedback is useful
The first story I read was about a writer who closed their Substack account and came back to Medium.
The thing with Medium writers who try to grow on Substack has a big misunderstanding of how it works.
A Medium writer would go on Substack, post, and wait for traffic to come in, which doesn’t work if you do not already have a following and subscribers already there.
This writer has over a few thousand followers on Medium, so naturally, they will feel discouraged when seeing below-average results.
I have to say the Medium Partner Program has built a perception strong enough to make someone feel they are not worthy when their writing did not earn anything on another platform.
Any writer can start earning on their very first day, so the comparison is not just how much you earn, it’s more about how much you enjoy seeing readers while you figure this out.
Whether the money is important is based on the writer.
In the article, they also wrote about the strategy of someone who sells digital products or courses, and also while getting a good amount of paid subscribers.
The example they chose was a top seller on Substack. Watching or somewhat comparing results to those who are good at what they do will definitely make us turn around and go the other way.
One thing Medium has is the direct money factor to reward and motivate writers on the spot. If you go viral or get boosted on Medium, then you can see your traffic and earnings skyrocket overnight.
With Substack, it will be a bit different; if you went viral, you would have a system and content set up beforehand to monetize this inflow of traffic.
Sometimes, you might not even get anything but a bunch of views. It really depends on your niche as well.
This makes a good point on how they are different.
The next writer is where they compare both of their Substack and Medium experiences with the same set of time, like 90 days.
The earnings model differs in that not many writers are looking at
Medium pays per read by a member, or now by a qualified read.
And Substack is a monthly direct paid subscription from a single reader to the writer.
On both platforms, you can promote your products or services for additional income.
One might say when they see $0.02 from Medium, they feel like over the moon. Yet, what they didn’t see is the many months more of grind they have to put in to make a few more dollars.
I have to agree that was how I felt when I saw my first read with a payout of a few cents. Back then, it was more.
Now, when we talk about the Substack payment model, you need to look at it differently. It’s almost as if you’re selling something without saying it.
This generally gives you a very low ROI because sales are more about giving reminders than creating the best product or services when the readers are already liking what you have to share.
For me, like many writers, I haven’t gotten over it to go create digital products for me to promote. Probably would bomb it anyway and give me months of self-doubt about which part went wrong.
The difference between marking your first $1 on Medium and first paid subscribers on Substack is another level of comparison:
One means that Medium and its readers still value you, the other means a person actually took the time to think and went through the checkout process like you’re really providing something of value.
This writer gave a good example of how Substack feels like buying a house, and Medium is like renting a great apartment.
I would have to point out the metric difference, as Medium is about how you can convince the algorithm that your work is worth distribution, and Substack is more like making your 9 friends want to cheer for you, and then your reach will expand depending on how they engage with your content.
Yes, you can have 9 friends on Medium, too, and the algorithm on Substack is working as well. The difference is that I can always reach the 9 friends on Substack and not really on Medium.
Medium is actually much more competitive because the chances of finding a good matching reader are very slim. Just look at your stats.
What both platforms have in common
The reader base is limited to the connection you build. Someone who has been here for years can go to Substack and then come back.
That would not be an option for any newer writer on Medium. So picking which one is your primary focus is key to deciding what you’ll likely spend more time on.
What I have seen is that if you interact with other writers, they are likely to come see you when they remember you. This is true on both platforms, and you can rely less on the algorithm.
They are also very topic- or niche-heavy, as this is due to the recent years of the “for you” filter, which does most of the distribution on both platforms.
The best way to approach both is to have a clear section of what you’re going to write about and who you are as a person who also supports others.
Your first impression is important and will help you build a reputation. In this matter, being consistent in showing up for your readers would help you establish goodwill that carries forward.
Most newer writers misunderstand goodwill with being active. Yes, it’s about the same thing; what’s different is who you interact with and when.
A perfect place where I can plug in my Gumroad, which I talk about both for Medium and Substack.
Both of them require a lot of time when you first get started, while I haven’t been doing that because there are just too many articles I have to go through daily in the publications.
I’ve been relying solely on the goodwill, which will run out if my content starts to get boring.
I care, but at this time, there’s really nothing I will change until I get more data.
There’s another writer who did a 1-year-plus review on their Substack experience; their account is much larger on both platforms, so I’ll do a separate review when I can next time.
Thanks for Reading
This story was originally published on [Medium] and is cross-posted here for a wider audience.
Leave a comment if you feel anything
Feel free to do whatever you like.
Showing up is the best form of support, and it is always appreciated.
I think you have to be sure what you want to achieve most when you write for each platform.
Medium is great for learning and interacting with other writers. I read and comment on their work. I can showcase my work in different publications with different editorial focus and readership. I like that because I write about several topics.
On Substack I have three paid subscribers and many free subscribers, but still less than 500. I use it for showcasing my particular style of writing. I post once every ten days and do a deeper dive on topics. My readers find me slowly but I usually add 30 or more per month. I also cooperate with Planet Ral in her Zine. I ended up with quite a few followers from Nigeria. I use notes to talk and connect with other writers. I’m not doing better than most but I’m enjoying getting to know the readers who follow me.
Each is not enough to feed me, but I love writing both.🌹
A good summary Bin - it is really challenging to succeed on either platform!