Tag: blogging for tourism

How to add SEO sauce to your blog

Genevieve White / March 17, 2024

In my last blog post, I warned against letting perfectionism get the better of you. It’s better to publish than to procrastinate, people! Having said that, you will want people to read what you’ve poured time and effort into writing. And for that reason alone, you should spend a little time adding some SEO sauce to your post. (Note the phrase ‘SEO sauce’. Personally, I like to focus on creating content first, following the steps I’ve outlined previously. I then squeeze on the SEO sauce before serving up my post to the public. Why? If I get too hung up on SEO too early on in the writing process, it takes the fun out of things, making blogging seem like a box-ticking exercise. And it’s supposed to be fun, remember?) You may well have heard of Google’s EEAT Guidelines (yes, they recently added an extra E!). EEAT stands for: These guidelines are one of the ways in which Google assesses whether your content is of value to readers. And doesn’t this seem a logical way of doing things? Who doesn’t want to read reliable content written by someone who knows what they’re talking about? Bear this in mind whenever you write a blog post. Well-researched content should be the bedrock of your blog. Do your keyword research This is the basis of SEO – so don’t skip this step! If you do, you’re building your castle on shaky foundations. Follow these steps to make sure your keyword research is sound. Use your keywords How to use your keywords? You don’t want to smother your post in sauce (if you’ve ever shaken a bottle of ketchup too violently you’ll know that soggy chips are never good!), and you want to make sure there’s a nice even coverage. Remember too, that Google penalises what’s known as ‘keyword stuffing’. Read your post aloud – do your chosen keywords sound natural? Or does your post sound repetitive? If the latter, time to make some edits. Some further tips for using keywords: Include links Your blog post should include external links – as long as they are relevant to your topic and come from trustworthy sources. Why? Because this is another way of showing Google that your content is authoritative and helpful. Include internal links (links to other pages on your own website) too. This helps Google to index your content more efficiently – and gain a better, more holistic understanding of what you and your business are about. Just make sure: Utilise images Images have an important part to play in boosting SEO. Make sure you always include an alt-text description for any images you share on your blog post. Not only does this make your images accessible for people who use screen-readers, it’s also an opportunity to add keywords. For example, the alt-text caption I wrote for the above image is: ‘women conducting keyword research for her tourism blog.’ Make sure your pictures aren’t huge! Large images load more slowly, which hinders user experience. And that won’t exactly work wonders for SEO. There’s useful information about sizing your blog images here. Consider plug-ins And finally – why not get a plug-in to give you feedback on your SEO before you publish? I use Yoast (the free version) but there are others. A word of caution though: plug-ins like Yoast are handy, but they don’t do your keyword research for you and you should always use your own instinct when it comes to deciding how natural your keywords sound within your post. Do you need input personalised to your business? Why not book a Copy Boost session with me? This hour will be laser-focused on your specific needs, giving you the confidence you need to blog with confidence. Interested? DM me on LinkedIn or email me at genevieve@campioncopy.com

Women conducting keyword research for her tourism blog

Blogging, Copywriting, Visibility

10 places to find blogging inspiration

Genevieve White / March 5, 2024

So, you’ve decided to blog about your tourism business. Congratulations! It’s going to be fun – and, if you’re committed, it will pay dividends. There’s just one tiny issue. What on earth are you going to blog about? You’ve maybe got an idea for your first couple of posts – but what then? Fear not, I have good news for you. Posting inspiration is all around! And I’m here to show you 10 places where your next great blog post idea might be lurking… 1. Your own brain The process I am about to describe may sound a little retro. Stick with me, ok? Yes, I know there are loads of online places you can go for inspiration (we’ll be covering these in a moment!) but nothing beats sitting down with a big (I’m talking A2) piece of paper, some coloured sharpies and just letting your mind generate as many ideas as possible. Some of these ideas will not be worth pursuing, others will be pure gold. And keep a pen and notebook beside your bed. How many times have I woken up in the small hours with a brilliant idea, thinking ‘my next post is in the bag!’ only to wake up the next morning to find it has disappeared? (Answer: a lot). Good ideas are flighty little critters – don’t let them slip away. 2. Your DMs Think of your DMs as a repository for FAQS. Then mine these DMS for potential blog posts. For example, visitors to Shetland (where I live) might ask questions like: Any one of these questions could be the basis of a great blog post. And it’s not just questions you’ll find in your DMS. You’ll also find feedback (both positive and negative) which could spark inspiration. For example, what do your customers particularly like about your tours? What particular tour highlights do they mention, and how could you blog about them? 3. My free resource My free resource (available here) catchily titled 30 social media post ideas for tour guides and tour operators can also be a great leaping-off point for the beginner blogger. Behold – here are just three of its suggestions for social media posts: Just writing these ideas down is getting my creative juices flowing! Download my freebie (if you haven’t already) and get writing. Or filming. Or podcasting. (Remember, blogs don’t have to be written.) 4. Your own social media posts Linking on from my previous point, let’s talk about repurposing. Not every blog post you write for your tourism business needs to be a brand new idea (if you take this approach, you’re going to reach blogger burnout fairly quickly!). Scan your social media posts for posts that could be developed into blog posts (bonus points if you choose ones that have got good engagement – this means they’re likely to appeal to your customers). Then expand upon them. For example: Don’t worry about being repetitive. Bear in mind that a tiny percentage of your followers will have seen your original social media post, and even if they have, they’ve probably forgotten it by now. 5. Other tour bloggers’ work Other people’s blogs are always a great source of inspiration. It’s not going to hurt a tour guide on the other side of the world (or even the country) if you copy the style and format of one of their blog posts, is it? For example, if you’re a tour guide in Paris reading a blog post on ‘5 family-friendly days-out in New York’ why not do the same for your city? Here’s a blog post I wrote, where I interviewed a local birder about Shetland’s top ten summer birds and their dialect names. Could you write a similar post about your local wildlife? 6. Outside of tourism Once you’ve got into the habit of blogging, you’ll find ideas everywhere you go. Sometimes we get so immersed in our little tourism bubble, that we forget to look further afield. Next time you’re checking out a blog on one of your other interests (come on, I’m sure you have at least one!) stay alert to format, style and content. Whether it’s a blog on miniature modelling, health and wellness or DIY, you’re likely to find content ideas you can adapt for your own tourism blog. 7. Your own backyard Okay – you may need to go slightly further than this. But get up, go for a walk. See your destination with fresh eyes. If you were visiting for the first time, what would you want to know? Remember – people love to feel they are discovering a city’s secrets. Are there any off-the-beaten-track places you could share? A retro clothes shop? A community garden? A cake fridge?* *In Shetland, cake fridges are a thing! Imagine being out for a walk in the middle of nowhere and stumbling across a box full of homemade goodies! 8. Google I’ll be covering SEO tips later on in this blogging mini-series, as this is vital stuff to know when you’re blogging. Writing content that answers frequently asked questions is one easy way of making sure your content gets read – and it’s also a valuable source of posting inspiration. In the meantime, playing around with Google Search can be a great way of finding out the topics that people have been searching for. And if people have been searching for these topics, you can bet they’re going to want to read about them. This article is a handy step-by-step guide to help you generate blog ideas on Google. 9. Your customers Why not ask your customers directly what they’d like you to blog about? Social media polls are a great way of doing this. Your customers will feel you care, and you’ll get some great content ideas! Win win. 10. Your life Hope you haven’t thrown away the sharpies and paper we were using in number 1. You’ll need them for this bit. Although last on the list, this item is

Genevieve White writing some ideas for her blog about travel and tourism copywriting.

Copywriting, Visibility

Why blog for your tourism business?

Gen White / February 26, 2024

Is blogging for you? (Spoiler alert – it probably is!) Imagine you’re researching a family holiday in Budapest, Hungary and you want to take a tour of the city. You narrow your search down to two tour companies. Both are similar in terms of the experiences they offer, their pricing, and the quality of their websites. But there is one significant difference. The first tour company you come across has a static website with tour descriptions, itineraries and reviews. The second has these things too, but in addition publishes regular blog posts sharing hidden parts of Budapest, the best places to find Hungarian gulyás, top souvenir suggestions etc. Reading these blog posts, you get a strong sense of the tour company’s personality, values and the kind of experience you can expect. Now, which of the two tour operators are you going to choose? Assuming the blog content is of high quality, I’d bet good money on you opting for the second tour company. You see, blogging really can make the difference between winning, or losing, a sale. If you’re not already blogging for your tourism business, then I’d strongly suggest you start! If you’re not convinced, these statistics might change your mind. Still on the fence? Well, here’s something else to add to the mix. If you want your tourism business to be more visible (and who doesn’t want to be seen?) blogging is great for SEO. We all know that Google loves fresh content. And each time you publish a blog post there are lots of little tweaks you can make to push your content higher up these rankings (I’ll go into this in a later post so stay tuned.) And, last but not least, blogging can be a lot of fun! Blog posts can be a great place to share stories from your tours, show your personality and hone your writing skills. Getting started on your blog Okay, let’s say I’ve convinced about the value of blogging. But where to start? It’s probably a good idea to start thinking about your goals. Next week, I’ll post about where to find blogging inspiration and I’ll discuss the importance of planning ahead. In the meantime, think about the questions above. Once you’ve worked through them, you’ll be one step nearer to smashing your blogging goals. If you need additional help in getting started, you might benefit from a 1-1 coaching session with me. Find out more about how I can help you.