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How to optimize your Medium as a freelance writer

Author: Kayla Matthews / Source: The Next Web

Whether you’ve only been a writer for a few months or several years, you’ve probably heard of Medium. You might even already have an account on the site, but are you using it to its fullest potential?

For those not familiar with Medium, it’s a free publishing platform that stands out from some other options because instead of focusing on the connections or clout you have as a writer, it emphasizes what you have to say.

Because of this, many freelancers create accounts and start writing on Medium. However, they don’t often see the site as a career-boosting opportunity, and perhaps that’s because they’re not using all of Medium to their advantage.

What makes it appealing to write on the site is that it has a gigantic community, which gives you a broad reach. I have found that many industries use this platform as a tool to engage their audiences and boost their brand exposure by providing informative blog entries.

Also, the formatting of each post is easy to upload and read while looking professional. For instance, as a blogger, formatting codes — mostly in HTML — is a skill that I have always had to know. Unfortunately, coding your own blogs can take quite some time if you don’t excel at using it.

However, with Medium’s professional setup and formatting, it’s easy to quickly add your text, edit, and publish it to your social media accounts within a matter of minutes. This is just one of Medium’s many benefits for freelancers.

Below, you’ll find several more ways you can use this go-to writer site to your benefit. In addition to its easy user experience, you might find that it can promote your brand and solidify your status as a writer.

Give praise and insights with the notes feature

Medium offers a feature that allows you to leave a private note associated with a section of an article by another author. To use it, highlight a portion of text and then look for the lock icon and click it. If you don’t see the lock icon, the author has disabled private notes in the Settings section.

A private note is a fantastic way for you to connect with other writers and give feedback that could boost their efforts. Here’s one example of a comment I made to an author:The example above that I wrote to another Medium user will alert them unless they disable their notes. Using this feature allows comments to be made for text requiring edits, such as improved clarity, revision, or expansion.

This networking capability has consistently helped me enhance my posts without using time-consuming emails, adding to my productivity as a freelance author. In this way, Medium can also be used as a kind of networking site for writers that allows them to build relationships with one another.