Our travel blogger partners have been significantly impacted by the recent Google update. Despite the hurdles it brought, we’re inspired by their ability to bounce back.
While we can’t control Google’s algorithms, we can certainly tackle what’s within our power.
Here are five proven strategies, tested by travel bloggers, to boost website traffic in the aftermath of the latest Google update.
1. Use Pinterest As An Additional Search Engine
While many perceive Pinterest as a social media platform, it operates more like a search engine.
With its array of tools, Pinterest offers an excellent opportunity to drive traffic to your website.
How To Get Started With Pinterest
- Unlock the power of Pinterest for your business by creating a new business account or seamlessly converting your personal one. Gain access to essential tools like the Pinterest Business Hub and Pinterest Analytics, empowering you to monitor searches and keywords, and fine-tune your strategy.
- Craft a captivating bio for your profile, incorporating niche keywords used on your website to enhance discoverability and engagement.
- Secure your online presence by claiming your website, enabling you to track shares of your content on Pinterest effortlessly. Plus, enjoy automatic inclusion of your Pinterest profile and a follow button, maximizing your reach and attracting more visitors to your website.
How To Use Pinterest Like A Pro
Pinterest revolves around imagery, making striking visuals essential. To ensure your content shines, consider these tips:
- Capture an abundance of photos while traveling, then curate the best ones later.
- Utilize design platforms like Canva to incorporate text, craft captivating layouts, and infuse branding elements.
- Organize your content into boards, categorizing them by destination or blog post type.
- Conduct thorough keyword research akin to any search engine. Employ business tools such as Pinterest Trends to gauge keyword search volume and popular pins.
- Integrate chosen keywords across your content, spanning pin titles, descriptions, and board descriptions.
Prior to pinning, optimize your blog posts to maximize revenue and ensure every visitor counts. Explore our guide, “Ten Tips for Maximizing Revenue for Travel Bloggers,” for detailed insights.
2. Keep Visitors Engaged With Email Marketing
The significance of email marketing lies in its ownership. While platforms like Instagram may suspend your account and Google could lower your ranking, your email list remains under your control.
Adopt this approach to cultivate stable, dependable traffic rather than solely focusing on acquiring new visitors.
Getting Started with Email Marketing
Choose an email marketing service provider. Many travel bloggers recommend MailerLite and MailChimp for their affordability and user-friendly interfaces.
Begin building your email list. Set up a signup form on your website and incorporate it into your posts to gather your readers’ contact details.
Mastering Email Marketing
Craft a compelling lead magnet to encourage readers to provide their information. Popular options in the travel blogging community include travel guides, ebooks, and itineraries.
The primary aim of email marketing is to drive traffic to your website. Keep your emails concise, featuring captivating visuals and a clear link back to your site. Entice readers to click through for more content.
Before sending emails directing traffic to your pages, ensure those pages are optimized for revenue generation. Learn how to do this in our guide, “Ten Tips for Maximizing Revenue for Travel Bloggers.”
“Though SEO is frequently hailed as the primary driver of traffic, effective email marketing reigns supreme as the absolute queen. Whenever we send emails to our audience, we consistently observe surges in our web analytics, and these spikes aren’t fleeting. They contribute to the formation of user habits. Without nurturing our email list, our business wouldn’t have achieved nearly the level of success it enjoys today.”
Beth Stanos, CEO & Founder of Wanderful
3. Add Your Content To Flipboard To Grab More Website Visits
Flipboard serves as a platform for curated articles, offering users the ability to browse through content from various publications, akin to flipping through a collection of magazines.
Getting Started with Flipboard:
- Begin by downloading the Flipboard app on your mobile device and setting up an account along with a personalized profile.
- Create Flipboard magazines, which function as thematic collections for organizing your content, similar to Pinterest boards.
- Populate your magazines by adding your own blog posts either directly from the Flipboard magazine page or through the Flipit Chrome bookmark.
Maximizing Your Use of Flipboard:
- Share your latest blog posts on Flipboard promptly after publishing to maximize visibility.
- Enhance your magazines by incorporating relevant content from other sources. Engaging with content from fellow bloggers not only enriches your collection but also broadens your audience reach.
- Optimize your magazine descriptions, post captions, and profile by integrating target keywords to improve discoverability.
A testimonial from Amanda O’Brien, Founder of theboutiqueadventurer.com:
“Flipboard has emerged as a significant traffic driver for all three of my websites. Their suite of creator tools, including storyboards, scheduling features, and RSS feeds for magazines, simplifies the process of crafting and sharing compelling content.”
4. Get Discovered With Short-Form Videos On Social Media
Did you know that a staggering 77% of travelers utilize social media while planning their trips? Capture their attention by leveraging short-form videos on popular platforms such as TikTok, Instagram, and YouTube shorts.
These platforms employ sophisticated algorithms designed to showcase your content to individuals who may not even be following you, presenting an excellent opportunity for potential readers to discover your content.
Getting Started with Video Creation:
- Begin by creating accounts on YouTube, Instagram, and TikTok to establish your presence on these key platforms.
- Utilize Capcut, a free mobile app for video editing, which surpasses the in-app editing functionalities. Capcut offers pre-installed templates and effects, enabling you to create professional-quality videos effortlessly.
- Consider setting up a Linktree account or a similar alternative. Given that these platforms often make it challenging for users to navigate away from the app and visit external sites, having a centralized location where users can access all your relevant links is crucial for driving traffic to your content.
How To Make Short Video Content Like A Pro
While on your travels, keep the idea of creating captivating videos in mind. When you encounter stunning scenery or intriguing environments, be prepared to capture them on video. The “wow” factor of your footage is what sets apart a mediocre video from a truly fantastic one.
For platforms like Instagram, craft detailed captions to accompany your videos. On YouTube and TikTok, aim for concise captions.
Utilize voice-overs, on-screen text, and music to enhance viewer engagement. Apps like Capcut offer easy ways to incorporate these elements into your videos.
Choose your video thumbnails thoughtfully to ensure they catch the eye amidst a grid of other content.
And remember, keep your short videos brief. Aim for around seven to eleven seconds for Reels, 21 to 34 seconds for TikToks, and 25 to 35 seconds for YouTube Shorts.
“TikTok has been instrumental in boosting our blog’s visibility on Mediavine. By sharing detailed ‘how-to’ videos and always including a call to action, we directed viewers to our blog for further information. Our viral videos, combined with prompts to visit our bio link, have generated thousands of clicks to our websites.”
Natasha Alden, Co-Founder of theworldpursuit.com
5. Expose Yourself To New Audiences With Guest Posting
Getting your content featured on another website opens up doors to reach a fresh audience, presenting a great opportunity to engage new readers.
Getting Started with Guest Posting:
- Discover platforms that welcome guest contributions. Numerous publications offer open submission policies where you can share your content.
- If you stumble upon a site that features guest posts but lacks open submissions, track down their contact details and reach out via email to express your interest.
- Craft a compelling pitch highlighting your travel expertise and include samples of your writing to showcase your skills.
Mastering the Art of Guest Posting:
- Tailor your pitch to meet the specific needs of the target site. Identify content gaps and direct your pitch accordingly.
- Build organic guest posting opportunities by networking with fellow travel bloggers. Cultivating relationships with them can facilitate audience sharing. Engage via social media or attend events like TBEX, TravelCon, and Traverse.
- Ensure a clear link back to your blog, accompanied by an enticing description to lure readers into exploring more of your content.
- Employ strategic monitoring of potential sites’ traffic using tools like SEMRush, allowing you to select the most promising options.
“Crafting content for external publications provides a platform to showcase new expertise in a particular niche. Whether through the article itself or subsequent social shares, it exposes you as a writer to a fresh audience.”
William Tang, Founder of goingawesomeplaces.com
Discover how William Tang transformed travel blogging into a full-time career with the aid of Stay22’s revenue-boosting solutions.
Original news from SearchEngineJournal