Is starting a travel blog during lockdown really as ridiculous an idea as it sounds?
If you pull it off you’ll be in a prime position to reap the rewards once we’re all able to jet off to those exotic locations around the world which remind us that we live on a pretty wonderful planet.
Plus, while established travel blogs are struggling to pivot their approach, you’ve got the advantage of starting from scratch.
Get moving with these three tips for a lockdown travel blog.
- Localise your content
With people in many parts of the world restricted to their homes and immediate neighbourhoods, it’s the ideal time to share content about your everyday routine that might help you bond with an audience facing the same challenges – from trying to stay in trim to learning to decipher instructions on meal box recipes.
This is also a brilliant time to big up local businesses switching their physical operations to digital and build a powerful profile in your own region – if you join your local Chamber of Commerce you can perhaps even share your blog on their website.
- Books that transport
In an era where pretty much everyone is armchair travelling, how about setting up a virtual book club where you share your thoughts on your favourite travel tomes? Perhaps you’re a Michael Palin fan, or maybe you think Bill Bryson can’t be beaten when it comes to this globetrotting genre? Alternatively, something a little leftfield and philosophical like Invisible Cities by Italo Calvino or Gulliver’s Travels by Jonathan Swift might float your boat.
Books can transport you to bucket list destinations and beyond – to different dimensions, parallel universes and specific times in human history. By exploring inner space, outer space and everything in between, you’ll have a whale of a time online and really expand your blog readership. Struggling to know where to start? Look at this list of the greatest travel books by Conde Nast Traveler.
- Connect on social media
Once you work out how to differentiate your travel blog, connecting with your target audience on social media is the next step. There are plenty of platforms to choose from, therefore while you might want to establish a presence across several, focus your efforts on showing up where your potential readership is. For instance, you might choose TikTok if you’re aiming at a very young audience, Instagram is an excellent space to share vibrant visuals and videos and Facebook still has its place although bear in mind that its audience is getting older. You might even consider sharing content on LinkedIn – if you specialise in business travel for instance, or even if you want to share content with an alternative audience in order to test traction.
To save yourself time, work with a digital agency like Maratopia on your social strategy – time-served social experts like this can help you hit the ground running and advise on everything from the most useful platforms to ideal posting times.
That’s our list! Share your own travel blog tips in the comments section.
