It feels like a bubble when bloggers with sites that are clearly in need of attention in terms of content and design are preaching at you about how to be a blogger and Facebook groups are full of claims of how much traffic people get.
There’s a trend of bloggers wearing shirts, smart trousers in an attempt to professionalise something that has no barrier to entry.
Travel bloggers are more knowledgeable?
This wouldn’t be so bad if PR’s or tourist boards really knew how to differentiate. Unfortunately they don’t, because as of writing travel bloggers are more knowledgeable about the subject than those that are engaging with them. This is a dangerous thing.
Not only for those who promote destinations, but for those that are producing great websites and superb content. After all why should those who shout the loudest yet not put the hard work into their website be seen as something that can bring value? Ultimately they won’t.
Unfortunately this could undermine those who have put in the hard work over a number of years as the industry figures out that their investment wasn’t actually worthwhile after all.
Content will always be king
There are those riding the crest of the wave without the substance, yet making it seem like they have a valuable product. Promoting yourself in this manner will mean that sooner or later you are going to need to balance the level of promotion with the quality of your product.
As time passes, PR’s and companies will become more savvy and the act of smoke and mirrors won’t quite cut it. Those that have worked so hard for so long will be left doing what they’ve always done, producing great things, being passionate and keeping a level head when surrounded by hype.
After all, it’s the shallow streams that make the most noise.
Wow. Well-said and thought-provoking. I’ve been trying to find that balance between how much time to spend promoting without getting away from the real focus – producing quality content.
Hi Pete, Good to hear from you!
You’d be surprised how far marketing and branding can get you… for example there are individuals on twitter that seem to have a big presence, but you wouldn’t even know if they had website or not. Maybe it’s testament to Twitter’s success?
Hi Jeff,
I think you’ve hit the nail on the head… there are those that have amazing websites, but no one has ever seen them. Definitely a balance to be had it terms of promoting and actually building something of real quality!
Thanks for your comment!
Paul, I think you might have put the cat amongst the pigeons there!
I’m not sure I completely agree with your conclusions however – surely even the most undiscerning PR person can tell the difference between a long-standing site with quality content and something that’s been thrown together overnight? If they can’t, I hate to think how much of their clients’ money they’re squandering for no discernable benefit…
Thought-provoking and interesting, Paul. I hope I’m not part of the ‘bragging’ ones with poor content 🙂 If so, I’d love too know. Seriously.
Apart from that, I think that Jeff is right by saying that one issue is finding the right balance between producing good content and promoting it. However, I’m afraid that the bigger problem is – as you point out – the lack of professionalism which, in the end, hurst the ones blogging seriously and putting a lot of hard work in it.
Still, over time PR companies and Tourism Boards will increasingly see the difference and hopefully that’s when the best ones will be able to really emerge.
I think the great thing about blogging is having a niche (for me, it has been looking at travel from a social and political point of view). Yes, every travel blog will also have ways to save money and travel “smarter” (whatever that means), but the real worker bees are the ones with unique content, and PR folks can’t keep up with that.
Hello Simon!
You’re far from a bragging travel blogger and I wasn’t talking about certain people more of an overall feeling that some are concentrating on one aspect rather than having a good balance.
I think it’s also easily to get carried away with.
Travelllll.com’s latest article suggests having a role for someone who is knowledgeable about the blogging community. I think Alastair has a point:
http://travelllll.com/2012/03/19/digital-press-officers-needed/
Thought provoking post Paul, I see exactly where you are coming from.
I rather naively thought that PR firms and tourist boards would have a firm grasp of online developments in the tourist industry but experiences so far have shown that it is a very hit and miss affair.
We’ve worked with some who totally understand social media but we’ve worked with others who haven’t much of a clue. We recently communicated with one tourist board that couldn’t answer simple questions about the destination and a PR company representing a destination who didn’t have an online social presence. More than one tourist board has asked us how they identify quality blogs and bloggers (remember English isn’t the first language for many). One tourist board even sent us a link to a survey which suggested social media wasn’t an effective tool in tourism promotion (carried out by a trad print and TV PR company surprise, surprise).
It means that there are PR companies and tourist boards out there who are susceptible to anyone who is talented in marketing/selling themselves irrespective of the quality of the content on their website.
Content might be king but in the kingdom of the blind, there’s a danger the king may be exiled for a while.
It’s a bandwagon in my opinion. And it has a long way to go yet too. It’s actually pretty hard to be a really good writer, a tech dude, a PR person and more. The skillset required to be a fully rounded, financially successful travel blogger is a really rare and unique thing. Lots of people out there don’t have all the elements/experience. It will be interesting to see which people with which skills come to the fore and show long term success.
Hi Jack,
Great comment and I agree with everything you’ve said. Obviously it’s easy to make sweeping statements and some PR’s or tourist boards will be better than others but there is a general lack of knowledge right now.
Love the last sentence too!
Hi Jeremy,
Yeh I do think the bandwagon will continue to roll for a while until the wheels fall off!
Bloggers deserve credit as I’ve spoken about before, for having that multi-skill set (or attempting to). I guess there are always going to be some people who find it difficult to find the balance across the skills.
Hi Gary,
Good points… I think we agree that those that produce that quality niche/resource with the right balance of promotion and marketing will be in a good position in the future. Companies, PR’s and tourist boards will eventually become more savvy… but it may take some time.
I’d like to see a role for those savvy people who understand the digital landscape within PR companies and tourist boards.
Great and thought provoking posting.
I think that, as you say, as companies and brands start to explore adding “non traditional” media into the mix there will be some confusion and chaos. Ultimately this will settle down as they get more data savvy, and understand how to ensure they reach their target in the best way.
I am a greta believer that it is key that if bloggers focus on what their angle/ niche/ proposition is, and they focus on getting distinctive and compelling content they will rise to the top eventually. As someone said above, brands will seek eventually blogs that deliver the right audience. They may not be the loudest shouting, or the biggest blogs – but it is all about ensuring brands are seen in the right context to the right people….
I loved this article. I’m new to the blogging world and I’ve been overwhelmed with the promotion side of travel writing. I’m finding it hard to sort through the noise and decide what is necessary and what isn’t when it comes to self promotion (which I loathe). The content should be what’s most important, but when I poke around Twitter too long I sometimes wonder if the content matters at all (present company excluded, of course). Anyway, it’s encouraging to read an article like this one and find my bearings again.
It’s definitely got to be about more than just churning out it out and spamming the web. If you don’t spend a little time trying to improve your writing – and take the time to proofread and spellcheck – then you are just cluttering up the web. I feel strongly that errors distract from content and quickie “no-point” posts seriously dilute your overall message. If someone takes the time to click, don’t disappoint them! Great article.
Hi Marina,
It’s really good to get a comment from another perspective. It must be pretty overwhelming at the start looking in on the crazy online travel scene… I think you do have to get the balance, self promotion…unfortunately has to be part of it. You definitely need to concentrate on producing something special but at the same time people do need to know about it. It’s a fine balance really.
I’m glad the article helped a little, I often think there is a lack of discussion and opinion about the travel blogging community because no one dares offend anyone. This never used to be the case, travel blogging for me when I started was mostly about opinion and I think it was healthy (this sounds like another blog post topic!)
It’s a shame because it’s this reflective opinion that can help people to keep focus on what is important.
Hi Lesley,
I think sometimes it may be down to the speed and frequency of how often some bloggers post. Some focus on producing content less often and ensuring quality in their writing, those that publish more often probably find it hard to check everything due to producing such “quickie” posts.
I definitely agree that you shouldn’t disappoint your readers once they land on your website. We do a lot of work to help readers find interesting and inspiring information and attempt to keep them on the site and returning. Thanks for the comment.
I wrote about the dilemma of being a full time travel blogger last year:
http://www.europealacarte.co.uk/blog/2011/03/29/blogging-business/
Hi Karen,
Funny you should mention that… I had just been reading it! I think Jeremy tweeted it!
Interesting article, raises some good points… David Whitely’s comment whilst bringING up some valid points doesn’t consider that actually the online publishing model is broken and needs to adapt – comparing it to that of old print publishing world is backwards thinking.
Yes it’s almost one year since I wrote that post. I’d say the travel blogging bubble has become even larger since then. With more pressure on the perimeter of the bubble, how long before it bursts?
Hmmm I think we’ve got a while to go yet! Interesting to read older articles talking about such subjects. Maybe I should dig into my really old articles see if there’s anything there.
Great and relevant post. When we started blogging only 6 months ago we didn’t even know that there were in fact other bloggers out there. Then I started getting into the Social Media side of it and realised that loads of bloggers do make money. This was a revelation and immediately changed the way I was looking at blogging and unfortunately I think this has taken a toll on why I started blogging.
I started it to write about my own trips and if people read my posts then so be it. Now I am caught up in trying to make this into a career going as far as looking to get out of Environmental Planning which I have done for the last 4 years and go full time as a SEO consultant/social media exec (not getting caught up in the titles) etc etc.
Trying to find the balance to afford to travel, blog, promote and make some money on the side is something that we have not achieved at all. Hopefully when the bubble does burst (still at least a year or 2 away in my opinion) we will be outside the bubble and producing excellent noticeable content.
Hi Cole,
I always feel uneasy about any claims of making money travel blogging because it attracts people to blog and drives people to start for the wrong reasons.
Many people who make money (probably not a lot of money) will be doing so with a poor long term strategy. It’s all very well thinking like a business but if your source of making money is fixed in poor long term prospects then there no business at all.
If you wanted to make money from the web or blogging, travel blogging wouldn’t be the best choice, as I said in the article… there are little to no barriers to entry.
I may write a blog post about this as this comment will end up being huge!
Thanks for your comment, good luck blogging and make sure you’re doing it for the right reasons.
Paul, I think the last point you make, Content will be kind, is the most important part of all. Maybe PR companies don’t get this but it should be our focus and the model for which we build our sites around. Doing some recent site redesigns has made me look at my blog from the top level down and helped me realize what matters. I do agree with Karen and others about looking at this from a business perspective.
Admittedly, I liked the idea of free trips a while back. Now I don’t see as much value in it. Like others, I want to partner with a PR company to produce content that is mutually beneficial but also provides me with flexibility and opportunities.
For me personally, I need to do less of the social media stuff (or more focused in my social media time) and focus on a quality brand with content people enjoy. I think the right model with great content will attract the right people in the long term (but maybe not in the short term).
I’m in complete agreement with what you say in your post.
I’ve spent a large amount of time in my first year of blogging trying to improve my writing and trying to balance that with building a easy to read website, both of which im still not content with myself.
Yet when I see bloggers with thousands of followers or claims of traffic ten times greater than my own I’m intrigued. When I visit their site all I see is a poorly thrown together blog that I cant find my way around and can’t be bothered reading further than the first line.
But because they are great at selling themselves, unlike myself, they get heard the most.
Hopefully you’re right and that Companies will eventually see through the clutter.
Hi Jeremy,
Thanks for the comment!
It sounds like you’re going in the right direction focusing on content and design. I do think marketing does matter though, but having the right balance will be key long term.
Hi Paul,
I agree with regards to traffic claims, would actually be interesting to see bounce rates, no. of page view and time on site.
It would probably be a better test of those sites.
I think the great thing about blogging is having a niche (for me, it has been looking at travel from a social and political point of view). Yes, every travel blog will also have ways to save money and travel “smarter” (whatever that means), but the real worker bees are the ones with unique content, and PR folks can’t keep up with that.
So refreshing to hear a travel blogger talking about metrics that count!
Thanks Kirstie,
I’m a big believer in using engagement stats rather than random number of followers, likes etc that can all be bought or gamed!