How to Start a Travel Blog:
Are you thinking of starting a travel blog but don’t know where to start? Becoming a traveling blogger isn’t as always simple as you might think.
On the one hand, with so much information available on the internet, it can be pretty overwhelming to decide on a good path, or what to follow. But the good news is I have tried to cover this issue for you in the handy article you are reading now.
This article provides you an essential guide on how to start a travel blog. In this article, I have highlighted some basic things to keep in mind before starting a travel blog. Continue reading if all you want some ideas on how to become a successful traveling blogger.
Essential Guide for Starting a Travel Blog:
Traveling and experiencing new things is a dream way of living for many people. After all, there are several benefits of traveling. If you’re thinking of starting a travel blog, then consider these essential points:
Start with Your Passion and Choosing a Niche:
One of the first steps in starting your traveling blog is choosing a niche or finding what you want the focus of your blog to be.
Ask yourself what you enjoy the most about traveling or what you want to discuss in your blog. It could be about people, luxury travel, backpacking, food, or being a more responsible traveler.
Reason being that when you’ve got a clear focus, you’ll be able to come up with the killer content for your blog, thereby building a higher-traffic blog, and increasing your chances for success!
Select a Domain Name or Handle:
Once you’ve identified your traveling passion, you can develop a domain name or a name for your website. Of course, there’s no such thing as a right or wrong domain name or personal handle, but you should always choose a name that’s simple and easy to remember.
Myself, I went with Roaming Sparrow, as I want to roam around, and Sparrows are signs of good luck and freedom. At times, I regret picking that name, like I think it may be dumb, but other times I like it, so, here we are. :D For the most part however, I am happy with the name.
Here are some things that you should consider when picking the best domain name:
- Always keep your domain name short and catchy (*2 -3 words).
- Don’t use any slang or jargon for your website name. It only confuses your audience.
- It will help if you don’t pick a name that’s specific for your age, such as “thirty-something travel.” The reason is that it’ll become unrelated once you get older.
- Avoid using cliché words or phrases (*cough "Nomad").
- Finally, choose a domain name that can last for years to come.
Sign up for Web Hosting:
Once you’ve come up with a catchy domain name for your travel blog, you should consider signing up for a web host. If you don’t know what web hosting is, it is, in the simplest form an engine that’s going to power your travel blog. Besides, it ensures quick and readily available to your visitors.
Nowadays, there are many web hosting companies are available, such as WordPress, Hostgator, Bluehost, SiteGroud, etc. Hence, it is a matter of personal preferences and needs.
For myself, I use GreenGeeks - I have about 20 web pages hosted on them and used them for years now. Sold and easy to use. This is my affiliate link for them, if you do sign up you will help support my effors.
My web page is a WordPress web page, I recommend using WordPress as its easy to set up and you have a lot of options out of the box. GreenGeeks provides a one click install of this, also a free security certificate so you can have HTTPS, and provide better encryption for your readers.
Put Some Thoughts into your Design:
Besides having quality content, it is essential to create an appealing website design for your travel blog. Remember, it takes just seconds for visitors to decide whether to stay or leave your website. Hence, maintaining a strong and appealing website design can significantly ensure a successful travel blog.
I like to use WordPress again as there are a lot of themes out there you can install, and customize make your site look nice. The scope of setting up a WordPress site and installing a theme is beyond the breath of this article, but there are numerous tutorials out there and how to do it. It's a lot easier than you might think.
Another essential thing related to this aspect is making your website easy to navigate and understand. You can also include a comment section and a social sharing plug-in to ensure easy and quick interaction with your audience.
Create your Main Pages:
Every website requires a few basic pages apart from the blog posts. Following are some essential basic pages that you should consider including in your website.
Home Page:
This would be your main page that visitor see when they come to your site. It should be clear as to what your page is about and what they can get on it. Consider adding a nice splash image on the top to get people's imaginations going.
About Page:
This page will allow the potential audience to know more about you. Consider adding what your blog is about and how your audience will benefit from it, and of course talk about who you are and what you want to do.
Contact Page:
It would be helpful for providing a way that visitors can reach you. An online forum here, or just a link to your email address would be sufficient. But tell them how to get in contact with you.
Work With Me page:
This is a page that talks about what ways you like to collaborate with others. Do you accept bookings or hotel rooms for review? Do you do guest posts or sponsored posts? Let those who want to know, the know how, here.
Besides, other pages worth consider for your website include “Privacy Page” and “Copyright Page.”
Don’t get Bogged with Technical Stuff:
Sooner or later, you’ll begin to hear phrases such as Search Engine Optimization, affiliate marketing, page ranking, and other related terms. Of course, it’s always useful to learn all these technicalities, but don’t lead them to overwhelm you. Gradually ease yourself into this world.
It would be best to stay focused on posting quality travel content, especially during the initial stage. This will have a greater impact than the other technical points that you will develop in the future.
Stay Knowledgeable by Researching:
One irritating myth about travel blogging is that you don’t need to produce polished and quality content for your blog. But this assumption isn’t so true.
Nowadays, the travel blog industry is getting more competitive, making it even more important to create quality content. We recommend at least spending some time researching the topic you’ll be writing for your blog.
Remember, staying informative and authoritative is a bonus point for attracting potential readers and industrial partners.
However, there's always exceptions to the rule, and about your own personal writing style, content, and finesse that will get people coming back.
Essential Things to Know Before Becoming a Travelling Blogger:
If you’re a beginner, here are some necessary things that you should remember before starting your travel blog:
Blogging Requires Dedication and Time:
There's a saying that content is king, this is very true in the travel blogging sphere. If you plan to make your travel blog profitable, you will need to dedicate your time and effort. Remember, you’ll spend a reasonable amount of time in front of your computer if you want to be a successful traveling blogger.
From typing articles and reviews, to learning a bit more about how the web operates and how to post generate content... It is a sizable learning curve but not one that is not surmountable.
Beginning Sucks:
Every blogger will agree to this point, but it’s only natural. Our advice is that you don’t get obsessed or stress about your work, for you’ll eventually get better by doing. Remember, blogging is not about perfection but more of progress. Every day incrementally getting better.
At times, you feel like giving up, at times you feel like it doesn't matter perhaps you will never succeed. These are all natural thoughts to have, the key is to keep going, push through, perseverance, And will either go crazy or be successful, both are fun destinations to get to.
Creating Products is Essential:
If you want to earn some bucks, then we say, make your blog a product selling platform. Of course, you can make money through sponsored posts, ads, or other related aspects. However, the most dependable way to earn profit from your blog would be through products, such as courses, photography, eBooks, design work, art, or consulting services.
If you go with the word press website, can use a plug-in called WooCommerce make selling online easy. There's also a second plug-in you can use that can accept Cryptocurrency such as BTC, ETH, HIVE, and more!
Failing is Inevitable, but that’s Fine:
Of course, it’s discouraging when things don’t go the way we expected. But the bottom line is that you should never give up if becoming a traveling blogger is what you want.
Expect to Meet Mean People:
After all, blogging requires you to stay online for a pretty amount of time. Remember, the internet houses both good and bad people, so it’s best you don’t take it personally when you meet such mean people.
Wrapping up:
If you’ve made this far, then we say, big congratulation. You now know all the essential things for starting a travel blog. However, the time has changed with the Covid-19 pandemic, which means you will need to make some changes with your travel. If you’re looking for how to travel safely after Covid-19, then click here.
As always thanks for taking time to read my blog. I'm going do a few more articles around this topic, I hope you come back to enjoy them.
Much love freinds.
| Travel Photos: | @RoamingSparrow |
| Photo Repository: | Roamingsparrow.SmugMug.com |
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