Dr. Yildiz's Insight

Dear readers and writers, this interview aims to familiarize you with the Medium Friendship program, which encourages the dissemination of beloved stories on social media to enhance visibility, engagement, and revenue for writers.

The collaborative endeavor seeks to elevate traffic on Medium.com, allowing external readers to access content freely while simultaneously providing financial support to writers in line with Medium's intent for the Friend of Medium subscription.

Towards the conclusion, we will highlight some early adopters of the Medium Friendship subscription, enabling you to connect with them.

Why I Joined Medium Friendship

Supporting a platform that provides countless benefits to both writers and readers is essential. As a Friend of Medium, I can significantly uplift the writers I admire, thus enhancing the collaborative environment for storytelling.

Readers who join the Medium Friendship initiative gain access to the exclusive Friend Link feature, which simplifies the sharing of impactful stories, thereby fostering a strong community around noteworthy narratives.

This initiative allows writers to potentially earn four times more than under standard membership support. The $15 monthly subscription can substantially enhance backing for writers, making a significant difference compared to the typical $5 membership.

This elevated support can drastically affect writers' earnings, allowing them to thrive through the generosity of their dedicated supporters.

Friends of Medium contribute to writers' financial success, especially when accessing member-only stories, significantly boosting their earnings compared to regular subscribers.

Metrics such as read time, claps, highlights, replies, and follows influence writers’ earnings on Medium. However, Medium Friendship amplifies these metrics fourfold, greatly enhancing the financial rewards for engaging content.

A distinctive advantage for writers lies in the ability to monetize external reading times by sharing links with supportive readers, ultimately aiding the platform's growth and sustainability.

Traditionally, external reading times from non-members do not yield income for writers. Yet, the Friend Link system allows non-members to support writers’ earnings by reading stories through a Friend of Medium’s link, thereby improving financial prospects and encouraging active reader-writer relationships.

The Power of Social Media: Amplify Your Voice and Brand! - YouTube

Exploring New Avenues to Support Writers

Can you elaborate on why you're passionately promoting this program?

The answer is straightforward. As a devoted reader, I engage with over a hundred stories daily, absorbing diverse perspectives that enrich my knowledge. However, I felt that paying only $5 a month didn’t reflect the immense value I received. This realization ignited a sense of responsibility within me — a chance to contribute more and actively support this ecosystem of knowledge and creativity.

I advocate for increased reader support for writers to nurture a more vibrant and sustainable platform. When writers thrive, readers benefit too. I elaborated on this in a previous story.

You upgraded your account recently. Have you seen any changes as a writer?

My upgrade wasn't motivated by personal gain as a writer; rather, it was to improve the visibility and income of my fellow writers, driven by my love for reading. While I don’t notice immediate tangible benefits for writers, the upgrade inspires others to enhance their collective value for the platform.

Celebrating My Reading Anniversary with Medium Friendship

Now, how can readers effectively amplify their favorite stories and promote their beloved writers?

This is an excellent question. I have had enlightening discussions with early adopters of Medium Friendship, gathering insights I plan to share in an upcoming article. Many of these readers, who are also writers, have shared remarkable stories but struggle to reach a broader audience due to limited social media followings.

To amplify critical narratives on social media, having a large following isn't always necessary. Since 2020, I’ve created community-based social media platforms that allow me to share stories and attract significant views from engaged community members who also re-share content.

I'm excited to introduce each customized platform tailored to major social media sites. Through these innovative tools, I’ve successfully expanded my publications, attracting thousands of new readers to Medium.

Can you provide examples of the social media platforms you’ve customized for your community of writers and readers?

Absolutely! I cover platforms like LinkedIn, Reddit, Quora, Pinterest, Facebook, and X (formerly Twitter). However, I must emphasize that social media can be a double-edged sword. For personal reasons, I regularly engage in social media detoxes.

Why is LinkedIn particularly valuable, and how have you customized it?

Having been active on LinkedIn since its inception, I find it invaluable for managing my professional network. In support of the writing and reading community, I’ve created LinkedIn pages and groups and elaborated on these initiatives in two stories.

Amplify Your Medium Stories with LinkedIn Groups

Here are the LinkedIn links for writers and readers to join:

We read your previous story about Reddit, where you mentioned it as one of the most viral platforms. Could you elaborate on that?

Reddit has an exceptional algorithm and hosts millions of discerning readers, but navigating its communities can be tricky due to ongoing tribal dynamics. I prefer peace over conflict, so I created my own community, facilitating an easy platform for writers and readers to share their stories effortlessly.

Writers and readers from Medium are welcome to join our community. We encourage the use of Friend Links to maximize readership on Medium.

Here is the link to our community: - r/ILLUMINATION_Writers

Two years ago, you mentioned that some stories in the Quora space of ILLUMINATION-Curated went viral. Can you introduce Quora?

Certainly! Quora Spaces offer remarkable collaboration and user-friendly features. While many see Quora primarily as a Q&A platform, spaces possess significant power akin to other social media formats.

Among the various spaces I’ve created, the ILLUMINATION-Curated Quora space stands out, garnering a larger following. When a story resonates, readers eagerly share it with their followers, creating a ripple effect of engagement.

How Writers Can Benefit From Quora Spaces

Join my Quora Spaces and share your stories with thousands of followers.

I’m happy to provide access to all interested readers and offer moderator roles to writers keen on publishing stories from other authors. This includes accepting story links from Medium.

My Quora spaces are inclusive, welcoming stories from all sources, including self-published works. We also support writers on platforms like Vocal Media and NewsBreak within the Quora community.

Here are the links to our Quora spaces: - ILLUMINATION-Curated on Medium - ILLUMINATION on Medium - Technology Hits on Medium - Technology Hits TSEE Club — Medium and other platforms - Technology and Design — Generic — all platforms, including blogs - Biohacking & Health Tips — Generic — all platforms, including blogs - Fiction Club ILLUMINATION on Medium - Poetry Club ILLUMINATION on Medium - Vocal Stories — For Vocal Media Writers - Share News Break Stories — For News Break Writers

What about Pinterest? You also mentioned that some of your pins went viral there. How can writers and readers utilize Pinterest effectively?

Absolutely! Pinterest has a powerful algorithm. To drive traffic to Medium, it’s essential that the visuals are captivating. I’ve set up pinboards where both writers and readers can create pins and explore stories. Engaging on Pinterest provides a platform for discovering and sharing captivating narratives.

Despite not having a large following on Pinterest, my pins amassed 691K views this month, even with limited pinning opportunities. A few months ago, they exceeded a million views. In the coming year, I plan to engage more actively on this platform as part of the Medium Friendship initiative.

Simple Tips for Freelancers to Get the Best Out of Pinterest

I recently created a new pinboard specifically for Medium Friends. From now on, you can pin your favorite stories to enhance their visibility.

Pinterest can be daunting for beginners. For instance, when creating a pin for a story, it often defaults to ‘new ideas.’ As a sharer, you must manually copy and paste the board link for a smoother sharing process.

Here are two older pinboards where you can pin your favorite stories:

What about Facebook?

I’ve been on Facebook since its early days for personal use. I love sharing Medium stories with friends and plan to share more friend links moving forward. I’ve also created several Facebook pages, which I’ve detailed in a story. Facebook can drive substantial traffic to Medium.

Amplify Your Medium Stories with Facebook Pages and Groups

Here are some main pages:

Finally, how do you feel about Twitter?

I have mixed feelings about Twitter for various reasons. For instance, my account was terminated without warning in 2020, but I won’t let my biases influence others. While it can be useful for visibility, I’ve grown weary of bot accounts that add little value.

I share every story I publish or read on Medium across my publications on Twitter to boost visibility. While my tweets used to garner substantial impressions, there’s been a noticeable decline since Elon Musk took over the platform. I suspect this is due to a cleanup of non-active accounts.

I maintain a Twitter list to support our writers, though it has been problematic and hasn’t met my expectations. This raises concerns about the time invested versus the value derived from Twitter.

Here is the Twitter List I created in 2020:

You may also follow my account (digitalmehmet) and publication accounts like ILLUMINATION, ILLUMINATION-Curated, and Technology Hits. Most of our editors have X accounts as well. We retweet your tweets to enhance visibility.

Are there any other platforms we haven’t discussed?

My primary platform is my own website, where I blog and re-blog significant stories on my various blog sites. I’ve automated these systems to save time. If readers have noteworthy stories that need amplification, I’m happy to create blog posts for them as a giveback to the community.

I used to have a great passion for Tumblr and engaged with it extensively. Unfortunately, in January 2022, my account was banned for sharing Medium stories, deemed spam. Despite efforts to appeal this decision, they upheld it. It was a loss for them, considering the curated content I provided for free. Unless invited, I won’t be investing further in that platform.

I documented my thoughts in a Medium story: - Why Tumblr Might Terminate an Account

We also plan to join Mastodon in 2024.

In Closing

Thank you, Dr. Yildiz, for sharing these insights with our readers. Is there anything else you’d like to add?

Thank you for this opportunity. One final thought is directed toward inspiring our non-member writers. I recently discovered that out of over 25,000 writers supported by my publications, more than 8,000 are non-members. We deeply value their contribution to our diverse community.

This revelation indicates that these 8,000 writers, while sharing valuable content, are not yet part of the paying community. This means around 17,000 paid writers are missing out on support from this segment of readers.

If these 8,000 writers chose to invest just $5 a month, it could significantly boost our collective earnings—approximately $480,000 annually—benefiting all writers. The Medium Friendship subscription will further enhance happiness among fellow writers.

While the numerous content-sharing options discussed may seem daunting for those less inclined toward social media, saving the platform links allows for efficient sharing in under five minutes, even with multiple reads.

As I mentioned earlier, it’s just about copying and pasting.

Here's How Writers and Readers Can Use Social Media Productively

A six-minute investment can lead to productivity and desired outcomes through mindful and meaningful social media engagement.

Thank you for your attention, and I wish all writers and readers a joyful and prosperous New Year!

Now, let’s introduce you to some early adopters Dr. Yildiz has been engaging with. We’ve chosen a few, but the list continues to grow, so we can’t include everyone in this story.

Congratulations to these early adopters! - Lanu Pitan? - The Sturg - Josh Balerite Acol - Aiden (Illumination Gaming) - Tree Langdon - Bill Abbate - Rebecca Romanelli - Annelise Lords - David B. Grinberg - Mike Broadly, DHSc - Luay Rahil - Dr. John Frederick Rose - Dr. Gabriella Korosi - Dr. Christine Chuckle - Dr. Julian Barkan - Michael Burg, MD (Satire Sommelier) - Wayne Stelk, PhD - Seda Anbarc? - Sven Vandenberghe - tarun bhatt - Pernoste & Dahl - Elaine Hilides - Angie Mangino - Haimish Mead - Rui Alves - Amir Bibi - Marcus Musick - The Bumble Life - Ali Alzahrani, Editor - Zeem - Barbara J. Martin - Sherry Atkinson - Jay Squires - Tom Kane - Fiona McDerment - Ammara Hassan - Rick Allen - Akaahan Terungwa - Mariana Busarova - Daniela Dragas - john creed - Meghan E. Gattignolo - Britt H. - Shanté Nixon - Darlene López - Arosa Jabein - James Boylan - Ivylockewrites - Jodes Wiltshire - Kashi Writes - Robin Christine Honigsberg - Jill Ebstein - Libby Shively McAvoy - Lysandros Lysandrou - Alina Pitt - Senetta Diane - Omni Essence - Power of Positivity - Deborah Camp - Misty Rae - Doc Samurai Sam - Wesley van Peer - Hira Chaudhry - Anshul Kummar - Memoona Bilal - Charles Davie - Ani Vals - Cancer Husband - Usman Khalid Qureshi - Pete J J - Jake Roper - Gill McCulloch - FranMorelandJohns - Lovely Poems - Sanjay Singhal - Michael Zwierzanski - Margie Pearl - Ruby Noir? - Patricia Ross - Marcus aka Gregory Maidman - Frank Ontario | empathy, logic, love - Prasanna Srinath Subhasinghe - Joanie Adams — Sightseer; Conjurer Of Words - Oksana Kukurudza’s Sunflowers Rarely Break - Jamel Hendley/Greenviool/PawProfits - JD Adams ~ Stories From the Mountain - Pierre. Climate change & solutions - Parenteeny — teenagers can do more

Thank you for engaging with this interview featuring Dr. Yildiz. We wish you a wonderful New Year!

We also interviewed Dr. Yildiz on another topic that may interest you.

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We created several bulletins, and here are two important ones:

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It is a platform to find your voice, create serendipity, and reap intangible benefits strategically for long-term success.

Urgent Notice: Beware of Fake Accounts Impersonating Influential Writers

Stay aware of the increasing number of cybersecurity threats on Medium.

New writers can find details about our publications:

Master Copy: Onboarding Information for New Writers

Welcome and information pack for new contributors of ILLUMINATION Integrated Publications on Medium.

You can also find all our updated submission guidelines in the attached link:

Easy Access to New Submission Guidelines for ILLUMINATION Publications

Updated submission guidelines for ILLUMINATION Integrated Publications to enhance your chances of success.