Advanced Content Strategy: Power in the Creative Mix
Every travel agency owner, travel management software manager, and tour company CEO has to decide what their blog content theme will be.
Because a company blog creates the lion’s share (up to 90%) of web traffic. Which means content choices will decide how much traffic, rankings, impact and engagement, and leads are generated.
When blog managers assemble content willy nilly on poor topic choices, the blog is less successful. And great topics are easier to promote for better SEO results. The creative mix is a big part of SEO/Content Strategy.
I’ve got some important strategy concepts to discuss with you and some ideas as well for your travel company below.
Because success is one part strategy and one part using money and promotion to execute.
Decisions, Decisions
You can achieve a lot with your blog for sure, but which content themes, topics, approaches and messaging should you actually use? And will everything else erode your blog’s success and compromise your travel brand?
Straight to the point, is that your brand/UVP and your ideal target customer should guide your blog content strategy hitting that rich vein of impact.
But hold on, it’s never that easy really.
The fact is, to penetrate the market, draw big traffic, and get more leads and followers, we’ll need to go outside that tight focus. Travel influencers and bloggers might not really care about your product but might care about some other topics you discuss.
And your target traveler is looking at a lot of things during their long trip-consideration phase.
The thing is, you can cast a wide SEO net, generate demand, please travel influencers, and still make an impact. Not easy, but doable.
Hire an Advanced Content Strategist and Win the Market
When you hire me to develop your Advanced SEO/Content Strategy, I’ll figure out the best approach. And it’s best to give me full creative breadth to get the job done. You’re getting the work at a really good price thus saving dollars for the vital job of promotion.
Save money so you can promote stronger!
A Travel Blog That’s Nicely Done
A winning blog you should visit is the Blonde Abroad Blog dedicated to the rising solo female travel market niche. She proves that we’re all selling the joy of travel. It’s considered a top travel blog even though it’s only receiving less than 2,000 visitors a day. It ranks 3rd for keywords “travel blog.” but has lots of nicely categorized posts which draw traffic (BTW, its not effective to rely on menu links for SEO).
The content is sliced and diced in a siloed kind of way so it serve her ideal reader’s general interests. And the content has SEO elements to help with very nichey topics.
Style does matter. The blog is beautifully designed and she makes solo travel glamorous. It’s easy for women to like and promote. She’s got great visuals and focuses on women who want to travel, and maybe create a lifestyle out of traveling. You can sell things to that audience. There’s big potential in this site.
Her blog needs more advanced SEO, and more transactional content because Google knows bookings are the ultimate goal. She may not have reached out aggressively to powerful, authority travel industry sites for backlinks which is why her DA rating is 35, which is low. There’s lots more that could be done.
The point here is that this is a pure blog for the sake of the adventure travel experience and ad revenue. Imagine the brand lift you could get from something like this for your travel or tour company.
Competition is an Issue at the Beginning
Yes, our content strategy competes with competitors and big corporations for the audience. Big companies (e.g., Expedia, TripAdvisor, Travelocity, Kayak, InsightVacations, Viator, Gadventures) have moved in flexing their big budgets, not relevance, and we must contend with this threat. Google favors these companies. And there are tens of thousands of sites using copycat Generative AI and muddying the environment. Can you imagine The Blonde Abroad using generative AI?
You’ll want well-conceived, unique content with a warm, authentic human voice that ranks on Google for that massive, broad travel consumer market out there. And that requires general travel information — the stuff they’re all looking for. Without that material you may struggle to build a Google-reputation as an important well-respected travel site.
You’ll be all alone with your impressive siloed content with few readers unless you pay for ppc ads. Your budget will run out quick.
“The key to sophisticated content strategy is to orchestrate the topics, themes, content types, and messaging and placement so it doesn’t distract your high quality customers and visitors. In a sense, they should get personalized, significant content when they want it, and not be distracted by something getting in the way.”
One amazing travel agency I know of, (I’ll cover later) has a charismatic owner, someone who can’t be replicated by AI. Her voice and experiences are unique, based on real life travels, thoughts, and imagery. The perfect pillar of marketing strength. However, her blogs content has a narrow angle and is limited to a few travel/tour experiences which doesn’t access global destinations and tours. And improved blog could add tremendously to her content and help her reach new audiences.
Finding Great Travel Content Ideas
One of the benefits of working in really tough, competitive industries with startups is you must try harder and be smarter. I’ve had to think harder, do more research, and use my imagination to discover what the sales problem is and how to allure visitors with great content ideas — without advertising and promotional budgets.
As an agency owner, you have this challenge too given competition is increasing and big companies are able to impinge on your territory using software, efficiency and marketing. You can fight back with better ideas.
The problem of low engagement on your site is complex. It could be our brand, poor presentation, weak images, ugly design, a weak UVP, missed pain points, unfocused or weak non-persuasive copy, lack of familiarity or trust, weak insincere promotion, or just the wrong voice.
With respect to your travel company blog, it might be that your current content is not excellent and today, it has to be. If it’s just a collection of experiences or solutions, it might not be very satisfying.
For instance, let’s take a travel management software company as an example. If their blog delves into the nitty gritty of user software tasks, and details how the software can solve those many micro-detailed problems, readers get pushed into minutia, instead of the big picture value, which real travel company decision makers decide on.
Literally, you get the kind of visitors your blog speaks to. So right now, what content themes do you think would be best for you?
Once you set course down a content path to capture certain readers/demographic, you may alienate a lot of the high quality leads you’re looking for. So, your content should adhere to a mix of the conceptual themes discussed below. And as a group, they engage your ideal traveler.
“The real objective is content that resonates with the message about how your travel company is the most significant one on the market and they will find no better.”
Your Travel Content Theme or Categories
Okay, here we go, big picture view. For your travel industry company, what might be the best basic content themes?
Destination Exploration: This theme would focus on specific travel destinations, continents, countries, and cities and could include destination guides, travel itineraries, and recommendations for activities, attractions and accommodations.
Travel Planning and Tips: This basic info category offers the nitty gritty travel information assistance to help travelers plan and prepare for their trips effectively, offering tips, advice, and resources for everything from trip planning to packing and budgeting to booking accommodations and transportation. It’s eminently practical and necessary for first time travelers, and can be angle to establish your brand for a specific destination.
Experiential Travel: This category emphasizes the experiential aspect of travel, highlighting personal travel stories, cultural experiences, immersive activities, and off-the-beaten-path adventures that offer a deeper connection to a destination.
Travel Lifestyle, Transformation and Inspiration: This category encompasses content that inspires and motivates travelers, showcasing travel photography, sharing inspirational travel quotes, and exploring the transformative power of travel on personal growth and self-discovery.
Ecotourism: This category focuses on educating travelers and promoting sustainable and responsible travel practices to allow travelers to feel like they are contributing to a better world and minimizing the negative impacts of overpopulation, pollution and the destruction of destinations and communities.
Adventure and Outdoor Exploration: This category caters to adventure enthusiasts and outdoor lovers who love the thrill and excitement of adventure sports, outdoor activities, hiking trails, camping destinations, and wilderness experiences.
Culinary and Food Tourism: This theme covers the culinary diversity of different destinations, showcasing local cuisine, food tours, cooking classes, and food-related experiences that allow foodie travelers to immerse themselves in the gastronomic delights of a region.
Family and Group Travel: This theme appeals to families and other groups, for safe, fun, family-friendly and kid-friendly activities that bring inclusiveness and social opportunities to bring them together.
Cultural Immersion and Heritage Tourism: This category explores the history, cultural heritage and traditions of various destinations, highlighting cultural events, festivals, historical sites, museums, cuisine, and other unique cultural experiences that offer another view of humanity and our world.
Travel Technology and Innovation: Featuring content about travel apps, digital nomadism, live streaming/Zoom/Facetiming, virtual reality travel experiences and online booking and customer services builds relevance to buying decisions.
Our the next challenge to decide which type of content, tone of voice, storytelling, images, promises and hints, advertising budget, and then brainstorm creative ideas to fill in our strategy. A savvy blogger isn’t a complete solution, but we’re a powerful part!
Forget the competition and become customer’s only choice for travel packages, services and tours. When your blog content resonates to travelers, they will book with you. Your blog is the most fun, intimate and engaging part of your marketing and sends prospects to your product pages with more velocity, intent and desire.
Call me, Gord, at 416 998 6246 to discuss how we can turn your blog into a demand generator.
