Can You Use Medium for Traffic?
So, you may have read my previous post about making money from Medium.
https://my.wealthyaffiliate.com/dianescorpio/blog/make-money-with-medium
In this, I also mention that I rewrite posts from my websites, directing people to read the full article, with a clickable link.
And Jay's latest webinar also discusses this.
However, it is apparently against their rules!
I only noticed this when trying to find their guidelines on how to caption AI images.
(Which I still can't find, so if anybody knows, please tell me!)
Here is what Medium actually says:
Spam or Site Misuse
We do not allow spam or misuse of Medium. All spam or misuse will be immediately removed from Medium without notification. Examples of spam or misuse include:
Posting content primarily to drive traffic to, or increase the search rankings of, an external site, product, or service
Stories where the content is clipped with the purpose of linking to the rest of the article on a different website
I am not sure what to think about this.
I have never had any content removed, the posts have received engagement and yes, they have sent traffic.
Ordinarily, I would just continue, but as I have now joined the Medium Partner Program to monetize my account, I don't want to be suspended!
Decisions, decisions!
Recent Comments
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Hey Diane!
I'm not a super expert on Medium's rules, but I'll try to answer a couple of the questions.
First...here's how I caption my AI images... (I create mine in Midjourney.)
I just write: "Image created by the author in Midjourney." For screenshots I say: "Screenshot created by the author."
I honestly don't think it makes sense to only have part of an article that links to your website.
In Medium, you get paid when people read and interact with your article, and a person has to be on there for at least 30 seconds for it to count as a read. If you only have part of an article, it's not going count as a read. And the user experience won't be very good either.
As someone else suggested below, you can write your content on your blog, then import it into Medium, and that will tell Google that it's not duplicate content and your web content is most important.
I usually just write all of my articles in Medium because it's easier. I have no problem linking out to my website or to affiliate products. (I just make sure they're tagged.)
Like any other platform, they want to make sure the user experience is good and they don't want it full of spammy promotions. (I have seen some of that one there, and not surprisingly, those articles don't get any readers.)
As far as I know, you can use AI articles, but no one really likes them (unless you edit them) because they sound like AI. Most publications don't allow AI articles.
I hope that helps!
Christina
Thank you, much appreciated!
I don't write part of an article if using it for traffic.
I would just condense the main points, so if the original is 1500 words, then maybe 800 words.
And then suggest that people visit the website to read the full version.
That should be ok. Do readers click on the link to go to your website? Are you getting reads and views?
P.S. I love your images! They're so colorful! Which program do you use?
I have had some engagement and traffic but only really started taking it seriously last week, so I will report back in a few months.
I use DALL-E within ChatGPT for this style of image.
I tried Dall-E and couldn't get it to look this good, but maybe I'll have to try it again. Although, I like Midjourney.
Hey Diane, you're going viral on the whole WA Platform. Even. Jay created a video; "yes, you can use Medium for Traffic." - isn't that funny! haha, I am laughing., I knew Jay would put something out like this. Thats him! 😂😃
He clearly took this as a criticism, which it isn't, just a genuine observation and query.
I seem to be constantly under fire these days, and will probably take some time out again.
You always create controversial subjects that cause "fuel to feed the fire." In my ASL (not BS language) language. Sorry, that's the name that Partha gave me, "Blunt Brenda" (it fits). Perhaps you should take time out, but it will start again; it's like a vicious cycle. It's you, Diane. I love it anyway. Hot subjects fire us up. That's why I'm laughing; Jay's video is serious on the subject matter. He proves it works for him. Your intention was a query, but it's a hot query that feeds "fuel to fire." You've gone viral.
But I don't "always" aim to create controversy, that's the point.
It overshadows the 95% of my content, comments and thousands of hours I have spent helping people through PMs.
Hugs, I didn't consider this as criticism at all, you are just a person who reads a platform's rules, and that is actually a good thing. It avoids later issues and frustration if you would suddenly lose that traffic because of the rules, while you put a lot of time into it.
While I'm doing good on Pinterest, I take their rules very seriously, as I wouldn't want to lose my account there.
I can't believe he picked you out like that.
Yeah, I understand what you mean, but all this shouldn't necessarily put you into a self-imposed silence or be withdrawn to take time out again and again. We can't control people. I know you helped me with Pinterest, and I thank you for that. I wish you all the best in Medium. I struggle with understanding how all these "social media platforms" work. It's easy to research and write about it, but actively being involved in it is hard, and I'm not attracting any audience, so my content on Pinterest is dead.
I know nothing about how to be "engaged with it." I have not been able to figure anything out. Social media is my toughest one; I can't figure it out. If I don't know what I am doing, I see it as all black and white, with no gray in between, and I will most likely give it up.
My target audience is not the right one on that platform. It's evident because I got nowhere there from November to now. I am kvetching and don't know what I am doing wrong. If I go to use Medium, I am sure I will f up and get kicked out more than you would because I wouldn't know what I'm supposed to do there. That is why I did not start there for fear of screwing up. I think my Pinterest is screwed up because I have been using straight SPAM, that is what I believe, but I have no proof of that. My blog post is spammy, it has affiliate links, no one wants it.
I happen to LOVE your posts Diane, and I don't have time to read them all, but I always look forward to reading what posts of yours that I can.
Kevin
Um I have to say I have never read an article worth reading on Medium, the articles I read are all about driving traffic. Having watched Medium since it started my personal view is that they are not sure what they are doing.
As we know from WA having a no spam rule in place does not eliminate spam. We also know the rules are not strictly enforced.
My two penny worth is this they have the rule in place if they want to enforce it as every other platform does, but that does not mean it will be enforced .
I am not saying that that is correct just my observation over the last three years or so.
It is definitely not a platform I would choose to monetize not least of which because it is a third party platform over which you have no control.
Just to play Devil's Advocate, there are countless articles on Medium on all sorts of topics.
And I have found it much easier to monetize than my blog. Yes, there's a risk with putting your content on their platform. But technically, your hosting company can kick you off their platform too. Nothing is truly safe.
Absolutely true, Christina and if you are having that success perhaps I should do the sensible thing and copy what other successful people are doing. I did make it clear I was talking about the articles I have read, and my primary interest is marketing
Hello Diane.
This is very strange. I found a video on YouTube from one girl who is in partner program and in that video she is showing how to copy paste your article from your website to Medium.
So I actually started to do that as well some time ago.
So far my content was not removed.
Nat
I copy and paste because this way I don't have the old date there if I want to publish older article. She is showing both ways in the video.
If you use the import option, then it adds a canonical tag, so Google knows that the version on your website is the original.
Diane, did you see Christine's (cld111) WA blog about getting paid from Medium? Read her post 2 important lessons WA taught me to help increase my income Read what she said. She suggested how she did it. She's a full-time housewife and does blogging solely on Medium. As Partha stated, all platforms, including WA, want you to stay on the platform "forever" as long as you are alive. Christine did say she used a link to get subscribers to her newsletter. She even uses affiliate links, proving that Medium's rules must be severely outdated and have not been revised to reflect current information. Christine would not have gotten paid at all if this were the case. See her earnings as evidence. You can consult her to learn how to do that regarding the partner program.
I don't think Jay is in the Partner program. He has not mentioned it. I have seen lots of writers doing total spamming on Medium and they still get paid, and most of them are affiliate links, they do have to put in the disclaimer there and often refer back to their website.
Some WA members reported being suspended from Medium for not following their rules, but for the most part, it's true for all social media platforms, including WA.
Everyone is linking to their website. If they didn't allow it, everyone would be kicked off. Then they have no one on there, so I guess they became less stringent on the rules.
I studied a lot of different content written by Medium writers. They are full-time writers, and I've seen them use AI. You mentioned previously that AI content is not allowed; they must be original and human stories. Many articles have AI content, and some are straightforward spamming, yet they are still there. That makes zero sense.
Thanks for the mention!
I honestly don't think it makes sense to use full AI articles because they're not that interesting. It's fine to use AI to help you outline and come up with ideas. But I would edit before posting.
I don't think it's against Medium's rules, but it will help with readership and earnings.
Hi Christine, sure, you are welcome. Yes, I am fully aware of that. I agree it is not attractive, but some people use AI to create so far out there weird sci-fi stories. AI can make that, as you know. They are more intelligent than us in many ways with creativity that we have not considered before. I was saying that I have seen others who use total AI and are full of spam affiliate links, and they are on the paid partner program, so it's allowed others to do it, and they have not been suspended or banned from Medium, as Diane fears. I would worry it if the rules said that. If Medium didn't allow it, no one would get paid; everyone would be kicked out. The rules Diane mentioned are not being rigorously followed. Yeah, thanks for sharing your thoughts. I wanted to know how to circumvent the rules. I read your response to Diane. I get it now. I know you said it is much easier than blogging there than for the Big G, I knew you had a hard time there. Its true you get more engagement on Medium or on any other social media than just blogging for ranking on Google. I see your point now.
HMM, Jay just responded in a video yes you can use Medium for traffic- LOL its funny how this now went viral.
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Using Medium as a platform to drive traffic to your website can be a great strategy. It allows you to reach a wider audience and engage with readers who may not have come across your website otherwise. By rewriting posts from your website and providing a clickable link to the full article, you can generate traffic and potentially attract new readers to your website.
Medium has a large and active user base, which means there is a good chance of getting your content in front of a relevant audience. When you rewrite and repurpose your posts for Medium, it's important to keep in mind that the content should still provide value and be engaging to readers. By offering a teaser or summary of the full article and directing readers to your website for more information, you can pique their interest and encourage them to click through to your site.
It's worth noting that while Medium can be a valuable source of traffic, it's important to have a well-rounded approach to driving traffic to your website. Consider utilizing other platforms and strategies such as social media, search engine optimization, and email marketing to diversify your traffic sources and reach a broader audience.
Have you tried using Medium to drive traffic to your website? If so, I'd love to hear about your experiences and any tips you may have!
Please don't use AI when responding to posts.
ok please chick may task is bad or good?
http://thesummertravel.wordpress.com
You don't have an Affiliate Disclosure or a Privacy Policy, both of which are legal requirements.
Your posts are very short, most of them are under 400 words.
You don't seem to have a specific niche, you are covering different subjects, from making money, to pets, to fitness.
You need to show Google that you are an authority on one small aspect of one niche, by writing about the same topic, with in-depth posts that are better than your competitors.
These are all the types of things that are taught in the Premium membership.