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Table of Contents
Creating a Travel Site
If you’re passionate about travelling, then you won’t just be content to keep your passion all to yourself. You’ll want to share the joy! After all, travelling is all about connection. And that’s a mindset we can keep even when we’re not on the road. While it’s all good and well to regale tales about your travels in the pub, those with higher ambitions will want to share their adventures and tips with a larger audience.
One of the best ways to do this is to create a travel website. They’re highly popular at the best of times, but especially when travelling is all but impossible thanks to the coronavirus pandemic. Of course, there’s plenty of competition when it comes to travel sites. As such, it’s important that the quality of your site is high, in all aspects. In this blog, we’re going to run through some of the best tips that’ll lead to a great website that your visitors will love.
A Pro Design
Looks count for a lot on the internet. This is true for all websites, but especially true when it’s a travel site, in large part because it’s so visual. As such, you’ll want to spend more time than usual making sure that the aesthetics of the site are just right. If you’re planning to run your travel site as a business, then it’s recommended that you hire a web agency. If it’s just a fun side project, then you can probably make do with a WordPress template. But just remember that travelling is glamorous and cool, so the look of your site should reflect that!
Useful Content
As we said at the beginning of the article, there’s no shortage of competition when it comes to travel websites. Indeed, it’s one of the most popular sites to run, in large part because everyone loves travelling. Because there are so many competitors, it’s important that the content you’re sharing with the world is of real value. People want to read tips and travel stories that are going to have a positive impact on their future travels. They’re not looking to waste their time! Stories should be well-constructed and edited. Tips should be of the variety that you don’t generally hear about, or hyper-specific. If you can offer extremely useful tips about, say, how to stay for free in hotels, then you can expect a lot of hits.
Regular Updates
The world is always changing, and that means that your travel site must too. You can rest on the laurels of your existing content for a while, but sooner or later, it’ll become a little outdated. This is especially true for those destinations that are always in flux, such as London and New York. You may have written a great article about those cities a few years ago, but given that they’re always moving forward, it’s possible that the content you published then is no longer relevant.
It’s not just about the relevancy of the content, however. It also connects to the impression of the site. Website audiences are built on repeat visitors, not one-time visitors. If a visitor sees that the site hasn’t been updated in a year or more, then they’re not going to return, because they won’t expect to find any new content (so why would they?). Regularly publishing excellent content will show your audience that your site is alive and kicking.
High Quality Photographs
The text of your travel site is important. But just as important are the photographs that you use. A website is a perfect platform with which to show off the world in all its glory, so make the most of it! However, there’s an important distinction to be made. You should use high-quality photographs. They really do make a massive difference to the overall look and feel of the website. Poor photographs make the site look amateur. Great photographs make the site feel like a magazine. Also, remember that you don’t necessarily need to use your own photographs for your site (though this is recommended). There are plenty of royalty-free sites that’ll have high-quality photographs, especially of popular destinations.
Find Your Angle
There are a couple of different approaches you can take regarding the content of your travel site. You can focus on one particular destination, or you can make it a more general website that focuses on the whole world. Of course, if you’re going to get specific, then it’ll be best to choose a place about which many people have an interest. In most cases, it’s best to choose a more general approach. It’s a big world, after all, and that means that you’ll never run out of places to write about!
Another option is to pick a theme. You could make this the basis for your entire site, or just a small subsection that sets you apart from other travel blogs. Ideas include writing about destinations through the lens of food, literature, music, or sports.
Off the Beaten Path
The world’s most visited destinations are, of course, popular for a reason. And they should most definitely have a place on your website. However, if you’re going to establish yourself as an excellent travel website, then it’s important that you include some destinations that are a little less well known. These are the ‘off the beaten path’ destinations that will establish you as a travel expert. You may have an interesting take on New York, but people read about The Big Apple everywhere. Every now and again, give them the scoop on a destination that not only have they not visited but that they’ve never heard of. One word of advice, however: if you’re going to describe a destination as ‘off the beaten path.’ then make sure it really is. All too often, travel bloggers label a destination as “underground” when it has, in fact, been a bona fide travel juggernaut for years.
Communicate With Visitors
As we said earlier: travel is about connection. As such, it’s important that you don’t view your website as simply a megaphone with which you shout your opinions to the world. It should be a conversation. If people are visiting your website, then they’ll have an interest in travel. Wouldn’t you like to know what they have to say? There’s no shortage of methods for letting them communicate with you. You could add a comments section to your blog posts. You could learn how to add live chat software to your website, and let them get in touch with you in real-time. You may also include your email address and a web contact form, as well as links to your social media channels.
Of course, it’s not only important to allow your visitors to contact you, you must also reply!
Guest Posts
You might be reasonable for writing the vast majority of the content on your website. But do you need to be responsible for all of it? Perhaps not! Guests posts are an excellent method for getting more content, having more diversity, and building a larger audience. The process is simple: you simply ask for guest posts from other people. So long as it’s well-written and related to travelling, it’ll be useful for your site. And especially so if the guest blogger has their own travel site. In that case, you may consider writing a guest post in return for their site. It’ll expose your writing to a whole new audience, which will help you to grow your visitor numbers.
Get Personal
It’s not easy being a small website. However, there are advantages that you’ll have over other sites. You’ll be able to get personal and share your story. People like to see the people behind websites, so make sure that you’re posting a photograph of yourself somewhere beautiful. In your ‘about me’ section you can write about your history of travelling and the motivation behind the site.
And Finally: Make it Inspiring!
If you’re someone who loves travelling, then you’ll know just how inspiring it can be. It’s capable of elevating our thoughts and spirits as nothing else can. So make sure that your website has touches of these elements running throughout. You won’t be able to replicate the travel experience entirely (obviously), but you can at least bring some of the magic of exploring to your site. The aim is to make people feel inspired and excited about their next travel adventure.
Conclusion
There’s a lot of value in running your own travel site. You’ll have a place to record memories, offer your opinion, and make the most of your passion even when you’re not on the road. And then there’s also the matter of bringing joy into the world. In an age when the internet has become something of a less joyful place, the world needs a few more inspiring and happy websites! If you can tap into the wonder of travelling even a little bit, then you’ll have had a positive impact on the world wide web.
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