How To Start A Travel Blog (2022 Guide) – Forbes Advisor

One of the best ways to ensure your travel blog is on the right track is to give it some time to conceptualize and plan — or at least decide where to go. While some people prefer the convenience of planning every detail, others like the freedom to customize content on the fly.

Luckily, there’s room for both approaches in travel blogging. However, when you’re just starting out, it’s important to make a few decisions to guide your future adventures.

Choose a blog style

Would you like to focus on domestic or international travel? Are you interested in all continents or is there a specific region in which you would like to become an expert? Do you prefer to post “how-to” content, or do you want to share experiences, memories and glitches instead? Are you interested in documenting the practical logistics of travel, or are you the free spirit type who likes to travel the world and spontaneously take your readers with you?

Although the theme of your blog may change over time as you discover the tone, voice, and style that best suits you, consider allowing the inspiration and desire to start your blog to help you to help build the initial branding backbone of your blog. What excites you about blogging? What do you love most about travelling?

You should consider what initial interests you want to invest in. While successful travel blogs combine a variety of skills, there’s nothing wrong with turning to photography first while developing your writing skills, or vice versa. Similarly, a travel blog that focuses on food and culinary tastings will look very different than a travel blog dedicated to months of backpacking the most remote parts of the world.

Figuring out these things also has positive implications beyond the content of your blog: it can help you decide what gear to buy, what training (if any) you want or need to invest in, and what type of experiences interest you most. The more excited and passionate you are about the subject of your writing, the better your content will be.

audience

While much of your blog’s identity is something that probably goes hand-in-hand with figuring out your answers to content questions, finding your audience is important enough to warrant dedicated thought and research. For better or worse, social media plays a key role in nurturing travel bloggers — and when it comes to social media, you want to know what audience you’re writing, shooting, and editing video for.

A general rule of thumb is to target any audience you can relate to. Do you feel most comfortable traveling alone or do you always travel in a group or with your family? If you’re a young adult or traveling student, maybe you’re writing for people like you and not for retirees. Budget travelers may also have different content priorities than luxury travelers.

The differences in travel interests and priorities can be huge from demographic to demographic. In general, the more you have in common with your audience, the more your content will resonate with them. An ideal audience also has the potential to grow with you. Age is perhaps the most obvious example, but think about hobbies too: a photography travel blog’s audience is likely to support a shift toward videography over time, while a nature and wildlife-focused blog may lose its audience as the content suddenly focuses on the urban jungle and the street food.

Decide on a name

Once you’ve decided on the initial approach to your blog, it’s time to choose a name. While your content may change over time, your name is unlikely to change — and when you’re a successful travel blogger, your name is one of the most important parts of your brand.

Choose something creative, memorable, and not too over the top (“nomad” comes to mind as an overused word). Avoid anything that isn’t likely to age well, or that limits you to a certain type of content: 21 and Traveling or American Adventures are cute but might be difficult to pull off as you get older or travel from America. Importantly, the name can be easily shared with others; Numbers and symbols might seem cool at first, but they become a lot less so when you spell out your blog’s URL over hostel breakfast in a place where hardly anyone speaks your native language.

Once you have a good name, google it to make sure no one else is using the name. If there’s nothing out there, you’re probably in the clear. If you find anything similar, go back to the drawing board – even if it hurts. A new name is better than getting into any litigation later.

Leave room for growth

Very few travel blogs (or any type of blog or media project) end up exactly how they were initially envisioned. Ideas develop over time – and often for good reason. The exchange student you have when you are 20 will have different interests, ideas, priorities, and skills than the adult you are when you are 30. It may seem like you’re about to make big decisions, but don’t settle for hard-and-fast rules of “only” and “never”: This blog is your boarding pass, not your baggage claim receipt.