Blogging Tip #3: 4 ways to stand out from everyone else

Hey {NAME}, It's Matt again! In the last email, I gave you some basic tips on creating and growing your website. Those tips were designed to help you get into the "blogger mindset" and lay the [foundation for running a successful website](. Now, I want to move on to some specific tips — practical, tactical advice that will earn you money and grow your audience. These are four things you must do if you want to have a successful blog. They will allow you to monetize your blog, stand apart from the crowd, and be an expert to the wider world. 1. Create products Businesses sell something — and so should you. Whether it’s a course, a book, T-shirts, tours, or just other people’s products via affiliate marketing, give your audience an opportunity to support your website. Offering products allows you to be independent of sponsors and brand deals and not compete for spots on press trips (see below). [It allows you to scale your website and your revenue.]( Products offer value to your readers by going more in-depth and in detail than a blog post usually allows. There are few travel bloggers that produce products. Most of the time, travel bloggers end up making money by creating sponsored content and getting paid to go on trips. That’s cool if that is something you want to do, but that is time-consuming and requires you to be constantly working (and it’s soul-sucking). It’s not a hamster wheel you want to be tied to. Your audience wants to support you. Creating products with more detail and advanced information gives them a way to do so. 2. Be Real Why do people still buy guidebooks? Because they want an independent opinion on destinations. If everything you write is sponsored by a brand or company, you’ll hit a limit to your number of readers. Sure, some people won’t care and will follow your adventures no matter what, but a larger majority will feel that you can’t relate to their experience and will go elsewhere to find information. Consumers want relatable and independent travel content because they want to know that they can make it happen too. If you’re in fashion, you can showcase all the makeup you want, because a reader can look at that and think, “Yeah, I can do that too! To the mall I go!” But when you’re talking travel, people can’t look at your free, multi-thousand-dollar trip to the Maldives and say, “Yeah, that’s realistic for me too! To Expedia I go!” The most successful bloggers in any niche avoid one-off partnerships and sponsored content because it dilutes their authenticity. (On the other hand, long-term partnerships are wonderful, as they allow you to create unique experiences and value for your readers.) Avoid one-off trips paid by someone else, featuring products that someone paid you to advertise — instead, write about relatable experiences and grow larger! Trust me on this. People see through it all. They LOVE you for being authentic and real. 3. Network outside your industry Networking with other travel bloggers can help you become better known in the industry (which is a good thing), but by reaching outside of the industry, you can be the travel person everyone else turns to for quotes, interviews, and advice. And that is going to pay more dividends than just sticking to travel conferences will. Yes, attend industry events (you’d be stupid not to!), but don’t attend only industry events. Then you can find people who know nothing about travel and be their travel expert on their websites. It’s how I’ve connected with so many finance, entrepreneurship, and tech experts. Here are some good conferences to attend: - [SxSW]() (tech) - [FinCon]() (finance) - [VidCon]( (YouTube) - [WDS](=) (entrepreneurship) - [ConvertKit](=) (online entrepreneurship) - [BlogHer](=) (women’s blogging conference) Part of the reason I have had the success I've had is because I've built a large network of non-travel connections. 4. Remember to focus on your reader While running a blog means you are going to say “I” a lot more than in magazine or newspaper writing, that doesn’t mean you should write only about yourself. If your blog is solely a journal or trip down memory lane, write about anything you want. But if you’re looking to run a professional blog that creates a sustainable business, remember that it’s not all about you. It's about your reader. No matter the subject you write about, good storytelling puts your readers in that place. It allows them to picture themselves there, doing what you are doing. They can connect on an emotional and relatable level. No one really cares about you — they care about themselves and how you make them feel. Whether that is by providing practical advice, telling them a good story, or making them laugh, remember that it’s all about your readers and how you can be of service to them. Be reader-centric. *** By following these tips you'll give yourself an edge over everyone else, because you'll be known outside your niche; have a trusted, reader-centric website; and sell products people want to buy! That's all for today. Next time, I'm going to give you specific tips for growing your traffic! Best, Nomadic Matt P.S. - If you're looking for more tips on how to stand out in the blogging world, [I've created a full-blown blogging class to not only help you find what makes you unique but also teach you the business side of blogging](). Remember, the most successful bloggers are the ones who are both passionate about their work and think about it like a business. Let me help you succeed the way I've helped others. P.P.S. - If you haven't downloaded my free PDF on how to start your blog in 20 minutes, [just click here](. If you have any trouble, let me know. I'm here to help. Really. [Unsubscribe]( | [Update your profile]( | 407 W University Ave, Georgetown, Texas 78626