Technical writing strategy

Where to Publish — Medium, Substack, Personal Site, LinkedIn

9 min read · Updated April 2026 · Free playbook

Power tip

The optimal strategy isn't choosing one platform — it's using each for its strength. Publish the canonical version on your personal site or Substack (you own it), then repurpose key insights as LinkedIn posts that link back. Medium works for discovery but you don't own the audience.

Where you publish matters almost as much as what you publish. Each platform has different strengths, audiences, and trade-offs. The wrong choice means your best writing reaches nobody. The right strategy puts your content in front of the people who can advance your career.

Platform Comparison

LinkedIn Articles & Posts

Best for: Reach, networking, career visibility

Audience: Recruiters, hiring managers, peers, leadership

Format: Short-form posts (1,300 characters ideal) and long-form articles

Pros: Built-in professional audience, high engagement for AI content, posts can lead directly to job opportunities and inbound recruiter messages

Cons: Content disappears from feeds within 48 hours, not indexed well by Google, you don't own the algorithm or the audience

Verdict: Essential for visibility. Use for short insights and as a promotion channel for longer content published elsewhere

Medium

Best for: Discovery, reaching new audiences, SEO for technical topics

Audience: Technical practitioners, learners, developer community

Format: Long-form articles (1,500-3,000 words)

Pros: Strong domain authority (ranks well on Google), built-in recommendation engine, publications like Towards Data Science amplify reach massively

Cons: Paywall frustrates readers, you don't own the audience, monetization is modest, algorithm changes can tank your visibility overnight

Verdict: Great for discovery and SEO. Publish here to get found, but always link to your own platform for deeper engagement

Substack

Best for: Building a subscriber list you own, long-form writing, community

Audience: Engaged readers who opted in — higher quality than any other platform

Format: Newsletter-style posts, any length

Pros: You own the email list, high open rates (40-60% typical for technical newsletters), no algorithm to fight, direct relationship with readers

Cons: No built-in discovery — you need to drive subscribers from other platforms, slower growth curve

Verdict: The best long-term investment. Every other platform should funnel into your newsletter. Start it early, even if growth is slow

Personal Website / Blog

Best for: Complete ownership, SEO, professional credibility

Audience: People who search for your name or your topics on Google

Format: Any — you control everything

Pros: Total control over design, SEO, and content. Your domain builds authority over time. It's your permanent portfolio that outlasts any platform

Cons: Requires setup and maintenance, zero built-in audience, SEO takes 6-12 months to build

Verdict: Worth having but not essential to start. Build it when you have 10+ posts worth showcasing. Use a static site generator (Hugo, Astro) for speed

The Optimal Multi-Platform Strategy

Step 1: Write your canonical post on Substack or your personal site. This is where the full, detailed version lives permanently.

Step 2: Republish on Medium (use canonical URL tags to avoid SEO penalties). This gets you discovery through Medium's recommendation engine and Google search.

Step 3: Create 2-3 LinkedIn posts from the key insights. Each post highlights one section of the longer piece and links to the full version. Spread these across the week for maximum reach.

Step 4: Share in relevant communities (Reddit, Discord, Slack groups). Tailor the framing for each community — what resonates on r/MachineLearning is different from what works in an MLOps Slack channel.

Platform Red Flags

Don't publish exclusively on a platform you don't control. Medium can change its algorithm. LinkedIn can throttle your reach. Twitter/X can change its entire business model. Always maintain a copy on a platform you own (Substack or personal site).

Don't spread too thin. It's better to be excellent on 2 platforms than mediocre on 5. Start with LinkedIn (for reach) and one owned platform (for permanence). Add others only when the first two feel effortless.

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Where to Publish — Medium, Substack, Personal Site, LinkedIn

Platform Comparison

The Optimal Multi-Platform Strategy

Platform Red Flags

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