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One of the best ways to make sure your travel blog is on track is to take the time to conceptualize and plan, or at least decide which direction you want it to go. While some people prefer the comfort of planning every detail, others may like the freedom of adapting content on the fly.
Fortunately, there is room for both approaches when it comes to travel blogging. When you first get off the ground, however, it’s important to make a few decisions to guide your future adventure.
Choose a blog style
Do you want to focus on domestic or international travel? Are you interested in every continent, or is there a specific region you want to become an expert in? Do you prefer to post “guide-like” content, or do you want to share experiences, memories, and mistakes instead? Does documenting the practical logistics of travel appeal to you, or are you the type who likes to travel the world as a free spirit and take your readers on a spontaneous trip?
Although your blog’s subject matter may change over time as you find a tone, voice, and style that works for you, consider allowing the inspiration and passion to start your blog to help you build the backbone of your blog’s initial branding. What is it about blogging that appeals to you? What do you love most about traveling?
You should consider which initial needs you want to invest in. While successful travel blogs combine a variety of skills, there’s nothing wrong with starting out with photography while developing your writing skills or vice versa. Similarly, a travel blog focused on food and sampling looks very different from a travel blog devoted to months-long backpacking trips in the world’s most remote areas.
Knowing these things can have positive effects beyond your blog content: it can help you decide what gear to buy, what training (if any) you want to invest in, or what experiences you want. The more excited and passionate you are about your writing topic, the better your content will be.
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The audience
Although much of your blog’s identity comes down to generating answers to questions about content, finding your audience is important enough to warrant independent thought and research. For better or worse, social media plays a key role in promoting travel bloggers – and when it comes to social media, you’ll want to know why they write, take photos and edit videos.
A general rule of thumb is to appeal to any audience you can reach. Are you very much at home as a solo traveler or do you always travel as part of a group or with your family? If you’re an adult or student traveler, you can write to people like you, not pensioners. Budget travelers may have different content priorities than luxury travelers.
The variation in travel needs and priorities can be huge from demographic to demographic. Generally, the more you have in common with your audience, the more engaging your content will be to them. A good audience has the potential to grow with you. Age is perhaps the most obvious example, but consider hobbies: the audience of a photography travel blog may support a shift to videography over time, but a blog focused on nature and wildlife may lose an audience if its content suddenly veers into urban forests and streets. Food.
Decide on a name
Once you’ve decided on an initial approach for your blog, it’s time to choose a name. Although your content may change over time, your name doesn’t – and if you’re a successful travel blogger, your name is one of the most important parts of your brand.
Choose something creative, memorable and not overdone (“nomadic” comes to mind as an overused word). Avoid anything that won’t age well or that limits you to a certain type of content: “21 and Travel” or “American Adventures” are cute, but can be hard to navigate after you’ve grown up or moved away from America. Importantly, the name should be easy to share with others; Numbers and symbols may look cool at first, but they mean less when you’re writing your blog URL over a hostel breakfast where no one knows your native language.
Once you find a good name, Google it to make sure no one else is using it. If there’s nothing there, you’re probably in the clear. If you find something similar, go back to the drawing board – even if it’s a design. A new name is better than getting into any lawsuits down the road.
Leave room for growth
Very few travel blogs (or any blogs or media project, for that matter) end up as planned. Ideas evolve over time—and often for good reason. An exchange student in your 20s will have different interests, ideas, priorities, and skills than an adult in your 30s. It may seem like you are making big decisions now, but don’t make hard and fast rules. “Only” or “never” includes: This blog is your boarding pass, not your baggage claim receipt.
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