The best way to dilute your perceived brand authority as a writer is commoditizing your work. AI is tempting everyone writing on Medium to enter the quantity trap. You see some author publishing every day and feel like you’re being left out.
You start thinking maybe you should start publishing more. Please don’t.
I will tell you why
You can never compete in the quantity game. That is turning your work into low-priced fast-moving consumer goods. That’s the worst thing you can do to your brand. Writers ought to have some self-respect.
You can only compete on:
- Value and proposition.
- Having soul in the game.
- Being relevant and relatable.
Like I said in this piece, we are past the time of sharing five tips to do this or five tips not to do that. With AI in the mix, it is no longer about what is posted, But who posted it.
You should worry more about what the writing reflects about you than a 30-article-per-month goal.
Growth doesn’t even work that way. Frequency is one thing. Quality and TIME are other crucial factors. Fast writing your way to success is as rare as a green dog. Resist the urge to break your great idea into three fluff-filled pieces.
Oh, is it the Medium money?
I was initially sad that the Medium Partner program does not apply in my country. But then I realized it was a blessing in disguise. It gives me a reason to focus on why I am here rather than looking at what numbers each post gets. Any platform that introduces a payment model, its users largely become commodities. Few earn actual money. The masses forage on pennies.
If your goal is solely to get Medium money, I understand the pressure to publish more. You write one piece and it flops. You think if I write another it will help. Before you realize it, you have 100 articles on your profile that even you, the author, won’t spend 40 seconds reading. People smell it when you’re writing just for the views.
Let’s talk business
There are better ways to make money online. Any earning model tied to your activity within a particular platform is unsustainable and not to be relied upon. Unles you’re Mr. Beast, which you are not.
Here is the question; what is your main business? That main business should be your digital home and you use these platforms you have little control over as DISTRIBUTION channels. Whether it is LinkedIn, Medium, or X — they’re at best distribution channels.
Since I write experience-based insights, here is an example; I have a marketing agency that also provides hosting and web design services. I also have an eBook.
I spend ZERO on marketing. No cold DMs, no networking events. My audience of 32,000+ followers on LinkedIn is where I get most of the qualified leads. The combined monthly income is not even close to 10x what most writers earn here per month.
It takes the pressure of speed off if you are not beholden to a platform’s built-in way of earning. I am basically talking about diversification.
The value of trust is raising
The marketplace of ideas has become chaotic. But thanks to one thing. People now come online with an understanding that everyone can easily come up with something. And they also know that the invisible hand of AI is becoming harder to spot. So who did the posting matters more than what was posted. Reputation and provenance will prevail.
Take a look at your articles and ask yourself, “What kind of reputation am I building here?” And when the pressure to publish more comes, ask yourself “To what end?”
Thank you for reading. You may want to stalk me here: https://medium.com/@ShukuruAmos