To keep up on travel news and trends, Margie Lenau reads travel blogs and travel reports. "It's so I know what is current," said Lenau, travel consultant and owner of Wonderland Family Vacations. "I can get ideas for travel groups or family destinations from new resorts as well as their value, and hints and tips about a destination or resort."
Working with travel writers and bloggers is also a great way to promote your travel business. For example, if a travel blogger specializes in visiting Caribbean destinations and that's the focus of your business, getting your name mentioned on their site can help to draw customers to your website. "At times, they ask me for information for their articles and publications," said Lenau.
Greg Antonelle, managing director of MickeyTravels, LLC said that his company works with several travel writers and bloggers by sponsoring to help the business. "We developed relationships with these writers prior to partnering with them," he said. "Chip & Co., DisneyFanatic and Kenny the Pirate are three sites in particular that we work with and we are their exclusive sponsors. Working with them gives us credibility as they are three of the largest Disney-related fan sites on the web. It also increases our visibility with all their readers."
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Marianne DeIulio found the opportunity to work with a travel writer and get quoted in an article like this one while part of a Facebook media group.
"I found a few topics that I could weigh in on and have been quoted in at least three articles," she said. "You never know if your comments will be chosen, so I have a Google alert set up for Just Travelin', so I am notified anytime my business name is mentioned. When my words have been used, I post the link on my personal and business Facebook page for everyone to see. This makes me quite proud that someone would use my thoughts in an article and my friends and clients sometimes even share the Facebook posting, so this is great exposure for my business."
Renee Tsang of Centre Holidays said that working with travel bloggers is great for promoting a destination from a unique perceptive that does not feel promotional and intentionally sales-oriented.
"Travel bloggers tend to look for authentic and off-the-beaten-path experiences to share with their readers," she said. "Many aim to be as informative and enlightening as possible to share their personal experiences to fuel interest for readers to aspire to visit and experience. I enjoy connecting with travel bloggers to hear their exclusive, personal and authentic experiences and live vicariously through their stories."
She explained that travel bloggers provide personal recommendations and tips that help prospective travelers ease their concerns about the unknown and feel confident with their travel choices as a traveler to a foreign destination. "It is through their own stories that inspire me to share their adventures with my clients to provide a personal experience and gain valuable tips from a firsthand experience," said Tsang.
You can find travel bloggers that have large audiences and specialize in the same niche that you do by simply doing a google search. For example, if you specialize in Disney travel, you can search "Disney travel blogs." Do you specialize in family travel? Then just search "family travel blogs." It's that easy. Once you find a blog with a decent-sized following, contact the blogger and say hello. See if they need travel agent advice or would like an article posted on their site.
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