Actually, yes it does. The problem here is that there are so many people who have no idea what going viral (on Medium specifically) means. It means at least 40,000 views and at least 30,000 reads. (Translates to about $2500 for the article)

When that happens, one immediately gains between 800 to 1500 new followers within days. That pushes those new readers to see your other work, and if you're any good, after that, you will grow rapidly.

It absolutely and utterly does ensure that you have a better readership after that.

I'm speaking, of course, if you're a writer - not someone who is writing about 'writing' or pushing a product.