BITW 049: Ask Alexa

It’s the first Ask Alexa show! On episode 049 of The Break Into Travel Writing podcast: I take your questions and provide the answers.

If you have a question about travel blogging, writing, photography or SEO, Web or Social Media for travel blogging that you would like answered on my Podcast, simply submit your question and I’ll answer it on an upcoming episode.

Hi everyone! Welcome to the first Ask Alexa Q&A. I’ve had some questions coming in via email and my facebook page, The Break into Travel Writing Podcast and following in the footsteps of Pat Flynn and Amy Porterfield – two podcasters I follow and admire, I thought I’d add this as a regular podcast. So, beginning in 2016 I plan to add this as a second weekly podcast that will air on Friday of each week!

Question: from Naomi Figueroa and you can connect with her @naomilizblog on Instagram

What are some of the best tips for getting the most out of a travel show (such as the NY Times Travel Show) as a travel writer? I’d like to go to one, but I’m not sure where to start with making a game plan to get the most out of it.

Her Tip: Photo Tip: Get up early to do some exploring just after sunrise (within 1-2 hours). The 2 hours following sunrise and 2 hours before sunset are known as the “golden hour” because the light is soft and the shadows are long, which brings a lot of texture to your photos. If you’re willing to get up early enough to enjoy the morning golden hour, you’ll not only get great light, but you’ll often be able to get great shots around town or of scenery without all the crowds. You might also find local business owners or markets starting to open, and you can find really interesting moments (coupled with great light) before their customers start showing up.

Q: Megan MacNee from travelingninetofiver.com/ asked

If you could pick one thing that you feel helped you reach the tipping point for your blog to be providing a sustainable income?

Tip: The biggest tipping point I’ve had yet is setting a strict routine. I get up and work for 1.5-2 hours every morning on my blog before heading into work. It’s paying off.

Q: Megan Kennedy from wanderlustmegan.com asked “what are some tips from balancing your career, family and fun? How do you avoid burn out”?
Megan’s tip: Depending on how your travel with tech, remember to back up your phone, memory chips and computer before you leave. While travelling, back up your memory cards frequently in case anything happens while on the road.

Q: Stephanie Karasek Fawcett from the www.thewaytowander.com asked What is the best way to approach PR about press trips, comped trips, etc. when you do not have a huge following yet?

Stephanie’s tip is to just to reach out and ask. You never know!

Q: Rachael Sandon from Everywhere & Back asked “I have recently been having some trouble getting Google to index my sitemap. I have tried everything I can think of. Bing was able to index successfully, but Google just says Pending. I have tried resubmitting and still nothing. Any suggestions”?

A: You have to create a gmail account and then google webmasters account. Then go in to webmaster tools and see if there are issues pending, if nothing you have to submit a ticket to google to review.

Also confirm that your site map is a good file, possibly create new sitemap and resubmit.

Episode Resources

BITW 042: How to Prepare for Tbex and Pinterest Pointers with Amanda Mouttaki
Travel Massive

People Mentioned in this Episode
Pat Flynn
Amy Porterfield
Michael O’Neal
Elaine Masters
Nick Unsworth
Johnny Jet
Todd Meisler

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The Aspiring Travel Writer, the Facebook group

Hope you enjoyed this episode and please join me in thanking Max for sharing such awesome information and actionable tips! And thank you as well for visiting. We’ll see you next time!

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