How to Make Money With Your Travel Blog: E-Book Review
By theprofessionalhobo ~ September 10th, 2009. Filed under: book reviews.
Having run many of the hard yards in creating a travel blog and then trying to monetize it – all without much Web 
development experience or knowledge – I have made more than my fair share of mistakes along the way. That is what Matt Kepnes wants you to avoid by having written the e-book: How to Make Money With Your Travel Blog.
Matt was there. He too made some of the mistakes that I made, and learned by trial and error how to eke out a living in an industry that is still being defined by its users. He now makes $3,000USD/month with his Travel Blogs and Web Sites, thus funding his perpetual traveling lifestyle in relative comfort.
Matt is not an IT genius. He simply wanted to find a way to fulfill his dream of being Nomadic Matt, and he discovered that although it is possible to make money with your travel blog, it requires a specific strategy to get you there. This e-book delves into that specific strategy, from the infancy stages of conceptually developing your travel Web Site, to the long-term plan of monetization and maintenance.
A random selection the interesting things I read about in the book include:
- Specific Wordpress themes and plugins that are suggested to maximize SEO
- Various techniques for attracting new traffic, along with an evaluation of the efficiency and effectiveness of each technique
- The finer nuances of Stumble Upon (although I have been a Stumbler in days past, I only now realize I haven’t even begun to maximize its potential)
- How to find advertisers of all shapes and sizes
- A huge number of services and systems that you can use to get links to your Site (henceforth: pagerank, henceforth: popularity, henceforth: advertisers, henceforth: money!)
What is the biggest determining factor in how Google ranks your Site? For the answer, read the substantial SEO section of the e-book, and you will learn everything you need to know (but not so much that it is overwhelming) to get on your feet and running towards your next travel destination.
Matt even offers a few deals to his e-book readers (leveraging on both his clout and existing monthly memberships) that can be very valuable for people serious about making money with their Web Sites. He will even hook you up with instant access to paying advertisers.
Although this e-book speaks to making money with your Travel Blog, the material is not limited to the Travel genre alone. The principles enclosed extend to just about any Web Site topic you might be interested in developing. Matt also shares how he makes money from his Web Sites and is quite frank about how much he makes, what works, and what doesn’t.
If you are hoping to turn the corner with your own Web Site or Travel Blog, then check out How to Make Money With Your Travel Blog here for all the pointers you need to do it yourself – from start to finish.
Editor’s note: There are affiliate links in this post
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September 11th, 2009 at 11:13 am
[...] is, until a prominent travel blogger in the industry kicks out an e-book about how to make money with your travel blog. This is a specific product (an e-book) that answers a specific request (make my website better!) [...]
September 11th, 2009 at 5:45 pm
I think you hit the nail on the head Nora — no magic formula in Matt’s ebook. But if you are relatively new to the travel blog niche, his book will certainly turn you on to some tried and true methods, and help you avoid making mistakes and wasting time through trial and error.
September 12th, 2009 at 8:58 am
[...] Read More | How To Make Money by Review [...]
September 12th, 2009 at 4:56 pm
@Daniel – You got it! It certainly could have helped me navigate the learning curve a little more gracefully, that’s for sure!
September 13th, 2009 at 5:33 am
Matt’s book did a lot for us. We feel that we are at least 6 months ahead of the game because we bought his book when we were first learning. I wish I had read it before we cycled Africa. We could’ve been making money with our blog a year ago with the amount of hits we were getting while doing the Tour d’Afrique.
At least we found it and feel like we are well on our way thanks to a lot of his advice. Even now, I go back and reference it.
Cheers!
September 13th, 2009 at 9:45 am
I feel like the last blogger to try and use Stumble Upon. When I saw how many reviews Matt had on there…I realized how much work it takes just to make use of that one resource alone.
Great review.
September 14th, 2009 at 8:09 am
@Dave – I’ll admit although I understand that I have thoroughly underused StumbleUpon, I haven’t yet thrown myself in there and gone for gold. Even for us travelers, I guess there’s something about a fear of the unknown that encourages procrastination! (Then again, maybe it’s just the constant juggle between writing, social media, and actually traveling). Good luck – let me know how your stumbling works out!
September 14th, 2009 at 8:10 am
@Dave & Deb – Brilliant! I’m so glad for your excellent endorsement. You two have done amazing things with your Site lately too….good for you!
October 10th, 2009 at 11:08 pm
Super ! Great site !!
November 18th, 2009 at 4:48 am
I’m such a newbie when it comes to all this, thanks for taking the time to write this up, keep them coming!
November 20th, 2009 at 9:08 am
,[...] theprofessionalhobo.com is one another must read source of tips on this subject,[...]
November 21st, 2009 at 9:18 am
@Calais – Cheers!
@Brandon – I’m glad you found this review useful. I enjoyed the book myself, and gleaned a few great tips.
February 26th, 2010 at 8:23 pm
Found this article interesting.I have to look forward to read more from your site in the future..
March 1st, 2010 at 3:40 pm
@Smart blogger – Cheers!