Oh! Medium Updates Its 3 Distribution Categories — Here’s What You Need To Know
There’s a method to the madness. If you hit publish, your stories land in one of these three (new) categories:
Ever hit the ‘publish’ button on Medium and wondered where your precious words are going?
Hopefully not into the void. haha. Just kidding!
I received a lot of emails and DM’s based on my Substack story on Medium’s latest updates and changes a few weeks ago.
Even top writers and earners Sinem Guenel and Zulie Rane who recently became editors for Better Marketing, one of Medium’s biggest publications, told me in our interview that the Boost means all or nothing.
If you want to get read, you need to get Boosted.
This is the VIP lane.
However, I was asked about organic reach and distribution.
Let’s pull back the curtain based on Medium’s latest update on its quality guidelines for the Boost which also tells us a lot about the three updated distribution categories.
Medium’s three distribution categories
Good news!
There’s a method to the madness. If you hit publish, your stories land in one of these three categories:
Boosted
General Distribution
Network Only
Yep, that’s it.
Three categories steer the fate of your storytelling.
Intrigued? Let’s learn more.
1 — Boosted = The VIP Lane
Imagine Medium’s curation team sitting in a hip office, sipping on lattes, scouring for gems.
Your gem.
If they pick your story, it gets “Boosted” and is shown to a wider audience like it’s the belle of the ball.
Here's an example from
2 — General Distribution: The Beating Heart
This is where most stories find their home.
It’s the heartbeat of Medium.
If your story is generally well-behaved — meaning it doesn’t break any rules — it gets distributed to readers who are genuinely interested in what you have to say.
They follow the topics you write about, or they follow you, or the publication you’re in.
General distribution is the natural habitat for stories.
No jazz, no frills.
Just good ol’ content finding its way to people who care.
Here’s an example from my content library:
3 — Network Only: The Cozy Nook
Ah, the sweet, intimate setting of “Network Only” stories.
These stories are like those indie coffee shops frequented by friends who love to talk about the latest news.
If your story falls under this category (e.g. this one because it’s a meta story about Medium), it means the distribution is limited to your network of followers and the publication, if you’re in one.
Don’t underestimate this nook.
Your story is still searchable, shareable, and lovable — just on a smaller scale.
Whenever I write a meta story about Medium I know that it’s “Network Only” but that’s fine for me.
With my following, it reaches the right audience.
Here’s an example from my content library:
So, What’s The Big Deal?
Why should you care about all this?
Simple.
Knowing how Medium works can help you tailor your stories to reach the right eyes or a LOT of eyes.
But here’s the kicker — no single lane promises fame or obscurity.
Stories that aren’t Boosted can — and do — rake in thousands of views.
Want to learn more about the current state of Medium?
I interviewed the funny, quirky, honest, and lovely
. She knows all things Medium and was even thinking about a hostile takeover of Medium’s HQ.Robin is a professional writer, editor, and (hot & new!) boost nominator!
What’s next on my Substack? Your feedback is needed!
I know you are waiting for parts 2 and 3 of my Substack for Beginners series. I’m working on it. In addition, there will be two interviews with a Substack spokesperson and a Substack top writer.
With the holidays quickly approaching, I thought it would be great to ask you what you’d like to see and read from me and my Substack within the upcoming weeks.
Leave a comment below or send me an email (reply to your email in your inbox).
Thanks for including me, Kristina.
I do wonder what the justification is for Medium paying out Boosted stories at higher rates. I have lots of examples of stories that got similar rates of engagement but the unBoosted one makes twenty bucks and other Boosted one makes several hundred dollars. All of us who take our writing seriously have probably experienced the deep disappointment of putting significant work into a piece we believe deserves a Boost and gets decent engagement but makes very little money. (Hello "How About A Nice Facial With That Uterine Biopsy?" https://medium.com/the-narrative-arc/how-about-a-nice-facial-with-that-uterine-biopsy-038df49a7bad!) What's everybody's opinion on this? My opinion is that if a story resonates enough with readers to gain tons of organic engagement, it doesn't really need the extra payout -- but it does deserve a fair payment. I'd like to see Boosts used just to show the story to more people. Think about it: Writers would get paid for their ability to interest readers, period. And Medium would have the ability to show what they perceive as the best stories to wider audiences, thus (theoretically) resulting in members seeing higher-quality work. There's a conflict over whether human judgment or algorithms are the best at determining distribution of content on any given platform. Humans are biased and can have poor motivations, but algorithms have a tendency to send conspiracy theories and other problematic content viral. If humans bestow Boosts based on what they believe to be high quality, but payments are based on what readers engage with, readers get at least a little of the best of both worlds. Opinions?
My finger has been hovering over the "cancel membership" button on Medium all month. This may make the decision easier. If I can't get read, there is little point in staying there. Especially when I can't see the people I follow, either. And no, I'm not upgrading to FOM. Nope.