“You should have three hobbies: the one, that keeps you fit, the one, that you can express yourself with, and the one, that gets you money”, they say. Why not combine them all into one by starting a travel blog?Many people spend their free time travelling around the world, some of them decide to turn their passion into something more than just a vacation. It can be scary creating a blog for the first time, but the fear should not stop anyone.You should consider many things before starting a travel blog, because caution is the parent of safety.
If you have no experience or no idea, how to transform your hobby into something special, this article surely will help you to start your own journey!
Choose something for yourself.
When starting your own travel blog, you should decide, what do you want your content to be like. What aspect of travelling in particular are you passionate about? Why exactly your blog is worth checking and generally better among others? You have to like what you post yourself, because only that way people will be attracted to it. Choose a theme, which you can talk about a lot and not repeat yourself, while still coming up with original ideas.
Try looking through already existing travel blogs and analyze, what topic has not been already covered or is rather unpopular. Maybe it will be just perfect for you!
Work, work and work!
Creating a travel blog is not just only about taking pictures and posting them with a small caption. If it was so easy, wouldn’t be everyone, who has a camera and a Wi-Fi connection and travels frequently, considered a travel blogger? Definitely not. It takes a lot of time and dedication to keep your blog interesting and trendy, so not everyone is able to do so. Learn new things, invest in your equipment, outgrow yourself, be open to innovation and change. Every successful blog is constantly being updated by its owner in order to keep people’s attention, which requires much effort and skills, which you can improve in the process.
Don’t be afraid to fail.
It is OK to make mistakes, and the same goes with a travel blog. You will not fail only if you don’t do anything! Making mistakes is the best way to gain experience and knowledge, so do not hesitate and never stop trying. You will improve your travel blog only by making more content for it, visiting different places, meeting new people and investigating different cultures. The most important part is not being afraid to go out of your comfort zone. And if the hate still bothers you, sort out the comments to find constructive criticism or just ignore it.
What about money?
Since travel blogs consume much time, as I have mentioned before, many content creators choose to monetize their content. Though not everyone is ready for the fact, that such blogs do not bring a fixed income, unless they have a lot of followers, you have to consider that you will have to invest in it, before it pays back. When your blog is well-known, you are able to earn from it by selling ads. Companies are interested in the best offer, they can get, considering money to quality ratio, so don’t expect them to come forward right here, right know.
Came up with a catchy name!
It is definitely not a number one priority, but that extra effort can turn out rather helpful. People will most likely remember your blog’s name, which is quite beneficial to a travel blog’s success and in the media in general. It should reflect your project’s main purpose and be easy to pronounce. You want people to instantly remember you, so keep it short, simple and with no attachments to your age or location. That fact does not allow you to expand your blog post’s theme. Spend a few more minutes deciding on it, because (let’s be honest) a properly chosen title will stay in people’s heads for a long time.
Create the “face” of your blog.
The most important thing is your website, because it is literally the main thing in making your travel blog. Design it very thoroughly or even hire a professional. The actual look of the website is what gives people the first impression, which was proved to be the most influential. It definitely should be easy to read, the words should be a proper size, the colors should be in a harmony and not distract your potential followers from the info they are interested in. Make an accent on your blog’s name, so it will be remembered. Use unique features like designing your own theme, showing your previous location on the map or making an interactive 360-degree view of your last destination. Feel free to choose! The rule is simple: make it attractive to people, so that they would want to visit your travel blog again.
Look at your competitors.
“Following someone is the highest form of respect”. Do not be ashamed to judge your opponent’s content. Read somebody’s blog from a follower’s perspective, so that way you will know, what attracts you as a consumer and how you can improve your own blog by getting inspiration from your competitor. There is nothing wrong in it.
People tend to think that “there is so many blogs”, “it takes too much effort” or “my blog will just stay unnoticed among thousands and thousands other”, so they keep their will to create a travel blog only in their heads. Don’t be like them. Take that first step and let your dream become your reality! You will be amazed with the result.
Author Bio:
Polehenka Alex is a marketing enthusiast and a germanic philology student from Ukraine. She is now working for a company called RGray which is situated in Kyiv.
