It’s a little over 8 months since I wrote my first post on 501 places, and it has been an experience I’ve enjoyed and learned from in so many ways. I have made friends along the way and even met some of them face to face. I hope I have developed my own writing as a result of my blog and brought benefits into my other writing work. But why do I keep going with it, and more importantly why do so many other people spend so much time on their travel blogs? Here are just three motives; there are undoubtedly many others.
As a business?
As I started 501 Places I probably didn’t give this too much thought. As the number of readers grew I wondered whether I could create some revenue from this site. Surely advertisers will be interested if I’m getting 10,000 hits a day?
The reality is that there are many sites out there that are getting high volumes of traffic. I don’t know what proportion of this is from fellow bloggers, but given that I read a lot of other bloggers’ posts and in turn they are responsible for the vast majority of comments on my blog, it would stand to reason that there is much cross-pollenation. Does that represent an interesting proposition to advertisers? Only if some of these readers are able to scatter our posts beyond the inner circle and out to interested editors, tour operators and ultimately to the potential travellers.
As an increasing number of bloggers enter the fray, SEO knowledge (getting your site to the top of Google regardless of quality) may become as powerful as good writing in attracting advertisers. If I’m an advertiser looking to place my banner on a site, do I pin my hopes on an eloquent, intelligent blog with 5,000 readers or a mediocre one which ranks highly and has 50,000 visitors? That’s not to denigrate good writing in any way. It’s just that advertisers are not in the business of judging for Booker prizes.
Then there’s the issue of market share. As the number of travel blogs continues to rise (a reliable estimate of yearly growth is hard to find and could be anywhere from 20% to upwards of 50%) the share of voice for each blog is harder to maintain. So advertisers will need to spread their efforts across more sites, and/or reduce their spend on any one site.
A couple of bloggers have started ventures recently to find a new business model in the world of travel blogs. Keith Jenkins (Velvet Escape) and Janice Waugh (Solotraveler) created the Global Bloggers Network, while Dave Lee started Travel Blog Success only a few weeks later. From what I see both models aim to raise revenue through subscriptions from bloggers looking for advice and a supportive peer network, with ad revenue clearly a large part of the business model. It will be interesting to see how they develop, and hope they find the secret to tapping a market that is not well known for its open pockets. I wish them both well.
For the love of it
So it’s not for the money that I write. When I do consider why I keep up a daily blog, I always come back to one basic reason: simple enjoyment.
I make a modest income from writing in other areas: copywriting, creating web content for businesses and article writing for corporate clients. In each case my work is subjected to strict editorial control, albeit in very contrasting ways. My corporate work is commissioned by one of a number of editors and I write according to a given brief. The final output is only signed off after clearing not only the usual editorial scrutiny, but also internal political checks.
Website work and copywriting on the other hand passes through even tighter controls. While an editor might be more concerned about getting an article back by the deadline, the business owner will typically pick apart every aspect of my words. After all, my output will be expected to bring in a tangible return when it is printed or uploaded. And suggesting changes to the status quo of an existing business is never easy.
These commissions and projects are varied and usually a welcome mental stimulant. So when I sit in front of my PC with a blank WordPress screen and no rules or brief to follow, it is a great feeling of freedom to be able to write what I want, how I want, and publish it without others’ approval. Often a post will change its message and purpose halfway through (it’s already happened twice with this one) but that’s ok. It’s my post and my blog.
Do I have a responsibility to others to entertain or represent a particular viewpoint? Not at all. I only try to be true to my own beliefs and thoughts. If people like what they read, they’ll be back. It’s getting a bit like having satellite TV with 400+ channels where people channel flick and you have a fleeting moment in which to capture their attention. That lack of inhibition is what I enjoy most about blogging.
Our name in lights
The world of blogging is made for the narcissist. Our post goes on the web, Google picks it up, we see it linked to by others, it gets retweeted, it attracts comments. All our needs for affirmation and self-validation are met without leaving our desks or speaking to anyone. And when we see our daily site stats, rankings or analytics we can again bask in the glory of our online success. It is a lazy man’s fame, but who out of us bloggers has not felt even a slight glow of content when we write a post that is well read, commented or linked?
from the quality of your blog it’s seen that blogging is your passion!! I really enjoy reading your posts!!
Thanks! Enjoyed reading your story about Colon, Panama too. I’ve long been fascinated since I read many years back that it was the most likely place in the world to get mugged. You paint a rich picture, if a sad one too.
Rightly put, Andy! I guess Travel, Photography and Blogging make a great trio.
I blog on my Treks/Rides[Bicycling] primarily to get more people into the activity and secondly to aid as a ready reckoner just in case I plan to head back to the same place some other day.
Came across your site through a cross tweet and thoroughly enjoyed reading your articles.Do buzz if you happen to visit India!
Hi Srikanth and glad to hear you’re enjoying the articles. Thanks for posting. We will return to India sometime I’m sure; we’ve only seen a little of the north after all. Agree that travel and photography can combine perfectly to make a great blog, and like you say all those memories written down are safe (providing WordPress doesn’t vanish without warning!)
Fabulous reasons. I think that the only way you can keep a travel blog going is for the love of it. You have an amazing blog and people will keep coming back because of your solid content. Congrats on 8 months! You’ve come a long way in a short time.
Congrats on the 10,000 hits, that is great! Very few make any money from blogging, but if it is something you find fun to do then it is all good. Keep having fun and here is to the next 8 months!
Appreciate your frankness in pondering this. I agree with your observation that sometimes it seems like there’s this insular world of bloggers reading/commenting on each others’ blogs yet we fail to reach the “outside world.” I’ve started using my blog to write the kinds of things I wish I were being paid to write for publication, but which for whatever reason don’t seem to inspire my editors as much as they inspire me. An example is a recent post I wrote about hiking the Maligne Canyon Ice Hike in Jasper National Park, an experience I found profoundly exciting but which was met by most editors with the comment “western Canada in winter? Don’t think we’d cover that.” Well why not? It’s incredible. So it’s empowering to me to go ahead and attempt to spread the word because I think it’s worth spreading.
@Dave and Deb thanks, and hope you guys are relaxing in Sri Lanka. It’s been great following your highs and lows in India, and glad you decided to take a break from its intensity for a while.
@John thanks. Very few do make money from it, and that might be why there are so many abandoned blogs out there.
@Melanie yes, I agree one of the benefits of not being edited is that you can chose the subjects that you are passionate about and just write, regardless of commercial perceptions. Your story and pictures from Maligne Canyon look amazing by the way.
Thank god you blog!
I look forward to reading it every day as it makes me think, wonder and inspires me as well.
Its refereshing to read your first hand accounts and even better when you introduce us to fellow bloggers and their work.
Keep up the great work.Andy..and when you come to India(whenever you do) you would have had quite a following here in India.:))
I appreciate the thoughtful piece, and mention of my new venture, Travel Blog Success. While I do have affiliate links within the site for products I use and recommend, it’s not ad-supported, nor do I have plans to head in that direction. The last thing I want to do is bombard a new member with advertising. So far, it has gone really well, and I’m excited to be working with other travel bloggers on a larger scale.
3 years ago when I started my first travel blog, it was to keep myself motivated for my RTW trip, while sharing my experiences with others. I quickly became enamored with WordPress and the empowerment it offered people to publish content quickly and easily on the Internet. Once I started traveling, it was always a priority of mine to keep readers updated and entertained. So when I got home last year, I decided to switch my mindset and see if I could turn it into a business. As the saying goes, do what you love, right?
Thanks for the lovely words Smita
Can’t argue with ‘do with you love’ Dave. Glad to hear you’ve had a good start, and thanks for the clarification on the ads (or lack of). Hope business keeps blossoming for you.
Well said and very well written – not too common in this little network of travel bloggers…
Great post with interesting stats and links. Thanks for writing it!
Thoughtful post, thanks. Giving me yet more ideas as I consider making some changes to my own blog…which I write for the possible business aspect, sheer enjoyment, and to sometimes see my name in lights.
Simply loved your post!
Doing what you like is a thousand times better than getting rich from an awful job. I plead for it!
Regards,
Miruna