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One of the most common questions that I am asked is “How do you make money as a travel blogger?” I spend a lot of time assuring people that yes, it is possible to make a full time income while traveling the world.
What does it mean to be a travel blogger? A travel blogger is simply someone who shares their travels on a blog for others to read. You can have a full time job and still have a travel blog as a hobby. Only a few create their blog in the hopes to turn it into their full time income.
Before I talk about the different ways bloggers earn money, I want to first clear up some misconceptions about travel bloggers. I can’t tell you how many of my friends romanticize blogging as a dream job, telling me how lucky I am that I get paid to travel the world. While I do get paid and there are MANY perks to my job, there is a lot more that goes on behind the scenes. I have worked harder at this job than I have any other job in my entire life.
Believe it or not, not all of my trips are “free”. I often pay for my own flights and my hotel accommodations, especially if it is some place that I really want to go. I find that when I pay for my own travels, I am able to spend more time enjoying the destination and give an honest review to my followers.
So if I am not constantly traveling the world for “free”, how exactly do I make money?
How To Earn Money as a Travel Blogger
Sponsored Posts
A sponsored post is when a brand pays you to promote their products. Brands typically love travel bloggers because they can take their products to photograph in remote destinations. Bloggers will often reach out to brands to collaborate before a big trip. This helps the blogger pay for any costs (flights, taxis, hotels, food, etc) they have while traveling.
Related: How to Successfully Pitch Yourself to Work With Your Favorite Brands
Affiliate Links
Another way for a brand to pay a blogger is through affiliate marketing. The company will give the blogger a specific link to share with their followers. The link is then tracked and the blogger will make a commission off of any purchases made through their link.
Many companies have affiliate programs. To find ones that fit your niche, I would check out CJ Affiliates and Shareasale.
Advertising
Another way for a blogger to make money is through placing ads on their website. They sign up with an agency who will carefully place ads through your website. Each click earns you money. For those just starting out, I recommend Infolinks but once you grow your traffic to the minimum amount, I would recommend companies such as MediaVine or Adthrive since they have a bigger commission.
Products
Bloggers make money by selling their own products. This could be anything from an ebook, an online course, presets, or even a physical product.
Travel Blogger “Freebies”
Press Trips
A press trip, also known as a familiarization or a FAM trip, is free trip organized by a hotel, airline, tourism board, or any private company in exchange for social media exposure. The company organizing the trip has something that they want to promote, either a new hotel, product, or vacation destination, and has invited bloggers, influencers, or writers who can document their experience and share it with their followers.
While not all press trips are paid, they are a great way for bloggers to explore a destination at minimal cost.
Hotel Stays
When travel bloggers are planning a trip, they will often reach out to different hotels in the area to collaborate. As long as you are willing to do the work and produce the deliverables, this is a great way for bloggers to save money on their travels.
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