Summary:
Creating a travel blog is now simpler than ever, thanks to platforms like Blogmaker, which eliminate the technical challenges traditionally associated with blogging. By using Blogmaker, aspiring travel bloggers can easily set up and manage their blogs, ensuring they maintain full ownership of their content. The platform also offers built-in SEO features and customization options to help bloggers stand out. Emphasizing authenticity and consistent content, Blogmaker encourages bloggers to develop their unique voice and engage with their audience effectively.
Table of Contents
This article will not talk about the benefits of starting a travel blog, there are plenty of blogs that do that. And I am sure you've already decided to start a travel blog and just need that extra nudge to make it a reality and start publishing your travel articles.
However, what this article will do is show you exactly how easy it is to create your travel blog.
One of the biggest regrets travel bloggers usually have is selecting the wrong setup. I am here to show you how to do it properly so you don't have to worry about the technical part of running a blog, ever.
The best part: You can create your blog after reading this article. So buckle up!
The old ways
Starting a travel blog is way easier now than it used to be.
You no longer need to hire a web designer or a web developer, or both, who then would take their time to deliver your blog.
Also, another way to create a blog a few years ago was to DIY. Which is another hindrance to your actual publishing.
Back then, you would follow some tutorial that guided you on how to download some files, select a hosting provider, upload files, deal with plugins, maintain the blog poorly, eventually hire someone, witness your blog degrading over time and get bloated, quit, start over. And on and on and on.
Also, some travel bloggers will tell you to not us "Wix or Squarespace, but use WordPress", which is basically like suggesting the same thing as the wrong one.
You are not a programmer. You are a blogger. A travel blogger!
Luckily now there's a new way that takes all the technical burden from creating a running a blog.
How to actually create and run your blog
To create your travel blog, you don't need to have any programming knowledge.
We at Blogmaker have taken the technical burden of creating a blog and made a tool that helps you publish a professional blog with ease.
- Create your account on Blogmaker. It's only $49/year. Yes, per year!
- Create your blog
- Start publishing your articles
That's it.
What not do do!
This is very important. Do not create and run your blog in any of the free platforms, like Substack or Medium, because once you put your content up there, they own your content, too, and you're not the sole original owner of your content. The content you've actually created based on your own experience.
Also, when posting your content in these free platforms, you're subject to their whims which can change at any moment.
With Blogmaker, you fully own your content and your blog. And we're here to support you at every step of the way.
What is Blogmaker?
Hi! I'm Val Sopi, founder of Blogmaker.
The reason I created Blogmaker is to make it easy for anyone to create their professional and modern blog.
You can simply create your blog and publish your articles in mere minutes.
Additionally, your blog comes with the technical SEO aspect built–in, so you don't have to worry about things like schema, meta data, etc. They are simply built–in and feed off from the articles that you've written.
When search engines like Google and Bing visit your blog built on Blogmaker, they will immediately understand the structure of it and index it properly, so anyone searching for what you've written will come across your posts.
With all that said, let's talk about a few extra steps you can take to make your blog really shine.
How to write on your travel blog
Don't be like everyone else. Take an angle and stick to it.
If you want to cover only the positives about a destination, than do just that, consistently.
If you want to take a freer approach and cover your unfiltered perspective on each destination, than do that.
Whichever angle you take, stick to it.
But, overall, be true to yourself. Be like you are. Be original.
And always consider what is resonating the most with your audience and double down on that.
Does it all have to be perfect?
Absolutely not! People are hungry for originality and the unpolished look. The more authentic you are the more you will attract genuine followers.
You want to stand out! And nothing stands out mare than the real you, which the world has never seen before.
Gone are the days when every production aspect has to be professional grade.
With the proliferation of AI, people are craving original non–perfect things more and more.
People want authenticity, more than anything.
How to promote your writing
Technically speaking, once you create your blog on Blogmaker, submit your Sitemap (you only have to do this once) on Google Search Console and Bing Webmaster Tools. What this does is tell search engines to index your posts ready to be found.
Other ways to promote your content is to write for other more known publications and list your blog in the about section of that article or anywhere you find it on your post. What this does is also give you a very valuable backlink from a highly ranked outlet, which raises the authority of your domain and blog, and ultimately has a direct effect on how high search engines showcase your articles.
Social media is another way to get people to see your articles. You can do this by sharing photos of your travels, creating a following, and always redirecting your audience to your writings.
Sending Newsletters
Blogmaker supports newsletter sending, as well.
Readers stumbling upon your blog can subscribe and then you can notify them directly in their inbox about any of your latest posts depicting your travels.
How to name your blog
Naming your blog can feel daunting, but it doesn't have to be.
Stay away from trying to be too different, or weird. It might sound cool to you, but the rest of the world has too many things on their plate to start and make sense of something they've never seen and are encountering for the very first time.
Choose a name: Cynthia's Explorations, Adrian's World.
Yes, be generic. Something people can remember easily. A household name. Something that sounds like it's been around for a while, or something they should already know about.
Your blog's design
Depending on the type of travel blog you run, you can choose the fonts and colors that match your creative sentiment, and this is all easy in Blogmaker. Through the DesignStudio customization section you can play with various colors, upload your cover image, and set the fonts (and their default sizes and weights) that truly represent you, your personality, and your blog's overall theme and tone.
Blog galleries
As a travel blog, your readers are constantly looking for your travel photos.
Each post should be accompanied with photos and a description of where they were taken.
It's also important to invest in a decent point–and–shoot camera, but also your iPhone camera would do.
What about your blog's domain
Blogmaker provides a free .bmaker.app domain, which means that your blog's domain can potentially be your-blogs-name.bmaker.app however, we highly recommend that you get a your-blogs-name.com domain.
Having your own domain sends a clear message that your blog is serious.
We suggest you get your domain via Cloudflare Domains.
And, here's an guide on how to connect your custom domain to your blog in Blogmaker.
Your writing ritual
Writing constantly and staying on schedule is not an easy thing to do.
However, certain rituals and habits help.
Make it a habit: Same space + time, with tea or beer on hand, whatever works for you.
Should you use AI
AI is here to stay. There's no way around it. However, in my opinion AI is great for doing menial tasks, like rewrites, grammar fixes, maybe paragraph elaborations. But it should never be used to come with concepts and ideas. That is our job.
In conclusion
To recap the major points we discussed in this article:
- Select a household name for your blog
- Get a domain on Cloudflare domains
- Create your blog on Blogmaker
- Be original in your writing
- Stay in touch with your audience by emailing them a newsletter straight from Blogmaker
And, that's all you need to become a successful travel blogger.
Angela F —
"I am moving our blog over from WP, and every time I do something with blogstatic, I love it more. This is a fantastic product, and customer support is stellar. Val is always so helpful, even when the fault is entirely mine. Highly recommend."
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