Custom Search
How To Build A Travel Website
Are you wondering how to build a travel website? Is this something you'd love to do but not sure where to get started?
This was one of my own questions not so many years ago as I made my first bumblings around in the online world. Thankfully, after a lot of research, I found the solution that's got me to where I am today.
Site Build It, or SBI for short, is the website building brains that's enabled me to build and grow my own travel website TokyoTopia.com.
How To Build A Travel Website - My Top 3 Tips To Get You Started
Regardless of the platform you use to build your travel website there are some things I've found which really helped me along the way. Here they are with links to the tools I used:
1. The CTPM Process
The first thing I would say to anyone considering how to build a travel website is to think about the process or planning you will go through to make sure your effort is rewarded. With SBI this is called the CTPM Process - Content, Traffic, Presell and then Monetize.
One of the biggest mistakes people make is to think they can slap up a few web pages and Bob's your uncle. Nope! It doesn't work like that.
Being successful online for most of us takes effort and time. Money is the last bit that comes but when it does, it's a fantastic feeling knowing it's because of your effort and your success.
What's my point? Without a system or some kind of guide to help you build a travel website you'll probably end up getting fed up and deciding this online stuff doesn't work.
Well I'm living proof that it does. For me the CTPM Process was the one that worked.
2. Make Sure You've Got The Right Tools!
For most jobs we need tools of some kind. A teacher needs resources, a clown needs his magic box, and a pilot needs an altimeter! Without the right tools you can't do a good job. Well the same goes if you want to build a travel website.
So what do I mean by tools? There are a few things I think should be in your toolbox if you really want to build a website that works. They're available through SBI or you can purchase them through other vendors as individual packages if you're using a different platform.
The nice thing about SBI is you have access to all of them for one fixed price. That's important to me as I've been caught out in the past with having to buy necessary "extra" add ons that no-one told me about at the time of purchasing. It's frustrating and thankfully not an issue for me anymore.
Here's a list of my favorite tools that I use on an almost daily basis:
- I've been developing my site since 2008 and the first and most important tool I used was the SBI! Action Guide. I still refer to this on a regular basis and remind myself of key concepts and methods. It's also updated regularly as new features are added (at no extra cost) so you keep on top of any changes on the net.
- Second, and available to anyone whether you've purchased SBI or not, are a whole range of free books to help you develop your writing skills for the web. There's a range of topics and I've read them all but Make Your Content Pre-Sell is the one I personally keep returning to. It made me think about how to write good content that people are looking for without doing the horrible hard sell that you so often see online.
- Content 2.0 - I love this tool! This is how you can build a site and build a community similar to that of a blog at the same time. Content 2.0 gives your readers a direct way to communicate with you and you can use it in a whole load of different ways. One example on my site is my Tokyo Japan Q&A page.
- In this Tools 2.0 section you'll find information about brainstorming and keyword resources that I use for every page on my site. They're integral to everything I do and I can't imagine trying to build a travel website without them!
3. Passion, Brains And Motivation
Number 3 on my build a travel website tips list is a set of tools that come entirely from inside you. It may sound obvious but you're going to need these if you're serious about building your website. Why?
It takes time to plan and organize the structure of your site. It takes time to research your keywords that compliment the content you know you should write. It takes time to take pictures, write your pages, and analize what's working on your site.
TokyoTopia.com would not be where it is today without my input. Keeping that motivation going and keeping focused on building my site has needed my continued drive and passion. Personally I've loved every minute so far and find myself constantly thinking of new ways and new things I can add to the site. It's exciting! It's not work - at least not to me.
If you've got the passion and a destination you love I say go for it.
If you're interested in more of my story with SBI head on over to my About TokyoTopia page.
