Medium: Fix the Partner Program
The Partner Program is a great idea. It needs to be better.
--
Hey, guys. I have no problem with being removed from the Partner Program for lack of followers. None at all. I’m a late-comer to this platform, and am slowly acquiring a following. But you could be doing a better job with the program!
Background
A while back (8 months ago? I’m terrible with dates), anyone with fewer than 100 followers was told they had a decent amount of time to find them (6 months?), or they would be dropped from the “partner program”.
As mentioned above, I had no problem with the requirement. It was the need
to reapply and then re-meter all my published stores that gave me pause, and that led to this post.
My Thoughts
Right now, the payouts are like, 35 cents. So it doesn’t much matter
if I’m in the program or not. So I expect to be removed in March, as your latest email says will happen.
But there are several things you could do to be nice about it, for me and for future writers who join the program:
- Deactivate without deleting
- Provide a path to citizenship
- Keep money in Escrow
1. Deactivate Without Deleting
For one, you could simply inactivate my account, instead of deleting it.
I’ve already applied. I already filled out the forms and went through the hoops to join. You could simply suspend payments, keep the account in place, and re-activate it when the threshold is reached. I really don’t know why you are making me re-apply. It’s like you don’t recognize quality writing when you see it, or the quality writer who stands before you.
Update #1: It turned out that, in effect, the account was inactivated, rather than deleted. When I hit 100 and reapplied, the acceptance email told me the Stripe account was already connected, and all the information is in place, so there was no need to fill out the forms a second time.
Update #2: It turns out the “meter my story” settings on previously published stories were preserved as well — in contrast to what I was told by support. Had I known, I might have kept a record of stories added since I was dropped. As it is, the preservation saves me 2…
