For years a few of my friends had been persuading me to join Instagram. For ages, I was reluctant but in October 2018 I decided that I wanted to show people my travel photos. At first, I wasn't bothered about getting followers or likes but more and more people were telling me that my photos were very good. Then it got me thinking, would people be interested in my travel experiences. I started looking at blogs/websites and I got inspired to create my own. From a young age, I was creative and liked the idea of designing something from nothing. I was never good at writing however, I focused myself to write more essays and eventually got better over time. After doing further research I came across the website Squarespace. Squarespace provides software as a service for website building and hosting. There are dozens of builder websites like Wix and Wordpress but I chose Squarespace because the tools and the layout were easy to use. Plus there were guided videos to help me create my vision. After a few months of designing and creating content, I was finally happy and ready to show people my work.
So if you are planning on starting a travel blog/website then you should do it for yourself. When I started I had many thoughts about whether people will like my content. Then I realized it didn't matter as only my family and friends would be looking at it first. For me, creating a travel blog became a hobby in my spare time which meant I didn't take it too seriously. If you are thinking of just making money out of it then think again. Yes, many people do make money from blogging and vlogging. However, it does require a lot of time and effect. You're not going to make a ton of cash overnight, it takes years to make a living out of blogging and vlogging. To give you some idea I subscribe to Karl Watson (travel documentaries) on YouTube. He has almost 100,000 subscribers but he only makes £150 a month. So you would need multiple sources of income. Freelance writing, freelance photography, and creating an online course are just some of the things which can increase your income. Over the past year, I learned that you have to spend money to make money.
The first thing to do when starting a blog is to brainstorm some ideas. Think about what your niche could be and be original. Maybe you are a photographer and your blog could be focused on how to take great photos in different landscapes. Or you are a big foodie and want to showcase your favourite places to eat out. Whatever your niche is make sure you have enough stuff to talk about. But remember it's not all about quantity is about quality. Also, if you can go deeper into your niche the better you can differentiate yourself and finding that one thing that hasn't been covered yet. This will help you stand out from the crowd. Give yourself time to come up with ideas. You can't force creation, it has to come naturally. Over time you will develop more ideas and that's when your creative side will start flowing. Find your media platform and focus on it. Don't feel you have to do everything at the same time e.g. have a website, a YouTube channel, or a podcast. If you try and do everything at once then you are just going to be able to give only a little bit of attention to that one platform. Everything takes time so don't feel the need to rush things.
Blogging is not only a great way to enhance your skills, whether it would be writing or marketing etc. it is also a great way to communicate with people who have the same passion as you. There are many reasons why I do my travel blog but enjoyment is the main one. If you are just in it to make some money then you won't enjoy the journey. Like I said before, do it for yourself. If it makes you happy then it doesn't matter what people think. The travel lifestyle where you make money online whilst you are traveling requires a full-time commitment to your blog. There are loads of YouTube videos with top tips on starting a travel blog but the best advice I can give you is just focus on yourself. Don't worry what other people are doing, just be unique. Despite all of this, it is hard to believe that there are still people traveling who have fantastic stories to tell but don't have the means to share it online or probably the desire.
