How Highlights on Medium Changed Publishing Forever

How Highlights on Medium Changed Publishing Forever

Highlights on Medium has revolutionized the way we publish and interact with content online. This feature, developed by Nick and the product team at Medium, has not only attracted a loyal following of users but has also inspired copycat companies to incorporate similar features into their platforms. With Highlights, Medium saw an opportunity to make sharing writing on their platform easier and to establish themselves as one of the leading online publishing platforms.

But what makes Highlights so special? It goes beyond vanity metrics like views or clicks. Medium understands that depth and engagement are what truly matter in the world of publishing. They have created a community where people can interact with each other and become smarter through those interactions. By introducing Highlights, Medium has made the reading experience more social and engaging.

The idea for Highlights was inspired by the Notes feature on Medium, where users could leave notes in the margin of a post. They also had a feature called Recommend Notes, which allowed users to write something they liked about a post. These features provided valuable insights into how users were engaging with content and helped shape the development of Highlights.

However, the team at Medium soon realized that they needed to consider the user experience for those who were not following anyone on the platform or for those who already followed many others. Without some filtering, the latter group would open a popular post only to encounter a wasteland of blue highlights. This led to the introduction of filtering options to ensure that users were only seeing Highlights that were relevant to them.

For readers, highlighting is a way to engage with the content on a deeper level. They can highlight a quote, passage, or phrase that resonates with them, and they can even share those highlights on other platforms. It allows them to capture ideas and insights for later reference, or to comment and share their thoughts on a particular statement.

For writers, feedback is invaluable. Highlights provide authors with direct feedback from their audience and help them understand which parts of their posts are most engaging. This feedback is not only gratifying but also helps writers improve their craft. The high readership on Medium attracts the best writers, and they are rewarded financially for sharing quality posts.

Medium's success with Highlights has also led them to introduce Text Shots, a tool for sharing Highlights as screengrabs on Twitter. This further enhances the depth of discussion around the content and increases user engagement.

The key takeaway from Medium's success with Highlights is the importance of measuring the true value users are getting from your product. Vanity metrics may look impressive, but they don't necessarily reflect the depth of engagement. Medium prioritized depth of discussion over superficial metrics, leading to higher user retention and sustainable growth. It's crucial to identify the one metric that truly measures the value users are getting and base your feature prioritization on that.

In conclusion, Highlights on Medium has changed the publishing landscape forever. It has made publishing more social and engaging, providing readers with a way to interact with content on a deeper level. It has also empowered writers by giving them direct feedback and allowing them to improve their craft. The success of Highlights serves as a reminder to focus on meaningful metrics and prioritize features that truly add value to the user experience.

Actionable advice:

1. Evaluate your metrics: Take a closer look at the metrics you're currently using to measure user engagement. Are they truly reflecting the value users are getting from your product? If not, identify a better metric that aligns with the depth of engagement.
2. Prioritize meaningful features: Rank your features based on their estimated impact on the one metric that matters. Focus on developing features that will truly enhance the user experience and provide value.
3. Seek user feedback: Don't assume that everyone uses your product in the same way. Continuously gather feedback from your users and learn from their experiences. This will help you identify areas for improvement and make informed decisions about your product roadmap.

Source:

• "How Highlights on Medium changed publishing forever | productboard"
• "Binkt - Binkt, reward and deals App, restaurant loyalty ... | Inspiration gallery for startups"