BITW 139: How to Build Authority as a Travel Writer with Gary Arndt (Part 1)

Today’s interview is with awarding winning blogger and travel photographer, Gary Arndt. Gary’s blog, Everything Everywhere is considered one of the most popular travel blogs in the world. Gary is also the host of the Global Travel Conspiracy podcast and Co-host of This Week in Travel Podcast. In today’s podcast, you’ll learn about the notion of authority. We talk about how to grow a blog, audience, presence in 2019. Gary also shares why you must think in terms of building authority.

More About Gary Arndt:

In 2006, Gary Arndt started his website and five months later began a journey to explore the world. He has now visited all seven continents, set foot in 200 countries and territories around the world, traveled to all 50 US states and every US territory. He has explored every Canadian province, visited every state in Australia, Germany, and South Africa, to name just a few. He has also traveled to over 375 UNESCO World Heritage Sites.

Awards and honors include Time Magazine naming his blog one of the Top 25 Blogs on the Internet and the website has earned a Gold Medal in the Travel Blog category in the NATJA Awards. He has been named Travel Photographer of the year by both the SATW and NATJA.

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How to Build Authority as a Travel Writer with Gary Arndt

Click here to listen to the full episode to hear how to build your brand and authority and gain traction outside of the blogger bubble. We also chat about everything from the difference between traffic and an audience, and Gary’s top tips for those just starting their blog or website. This is “How to Build Authority as a Travel Writer with Gary Arndt”.

Full episode >> Listen to Episode 139 Now!

Gary’s photo of Meteora, Greece

Top Takeaways:

Why you can blog or you can travel, but you can’t do both.
Why it’s more effective to be wherever you are.
How to build authority.
All good things come from building authority including growing an audience and links back to your site.
That Gary believes we’ve reached the peak with social media.
Gary’s thoughts about why Facebook, Twitter and Instagram and social is dying.
Why brands and PR must re-examine why someone is being followed.
Why brands need to work with travel influencers specifically & why most non-travel influencers can move the needle with people traveling.
Why you shouldn’t have all your eggs in one basket if you want to be successful.
You don’t have control over your social accounts but you do for your website and email list.
Gary’s top tips for those just starting their blog or website.
Why you must write long and in-depth articles on specific subjects.
If you are just starting out, you should spend 80% of your time writing for other sites.
How & why travel sites rank for competitive keywords.
How to gain traction outside of the blogger bubble.
The difference between traffic and an audience.
How to build content silos on your blog.
Why every blogger needs a list (quest).
Why Podcast & Video are more impactful than social media and blogging.
Why Gary thinks email and podcasts are the most impactful things he does.
Why podcasts are so powerful and more influential than Instagram.
Qualitative engagement with in-person events.

Full episode >> Listen to Episode 139 Now!

Connect with Gary Arndt

EverythingEverywhere.com
Gary Arndt on Instagram
Gary Arndt on Facebook
Gary Arndt on Twitter

Connect with Alexa, Break Into Travel Writing & My Travel Blog

Twitter
Facebook
Instagram
Pinterest
52perfectdays.com
The Aspiring Travel Writer, the Facebook group

Tweetable:

Loved this episode about Building Authority as a Travel Writer with Gary Arndt w/ @EverywhereTrip on the @writetotravel podcast! http://bit.ly/2SSjlmv [CLICK TO TWEET]

Hope you enjoyed this episode and are inspired to think about how you can set goals for your blog in 2019! Interested in hearing the full podcast? Click here to listen now!

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