In this article, I share with you 10+ alternative ways that travel bloggers can make money online especially during this Covid-19 era economy when they are unable to travel and create travel content.
COVID-19 has hit many travel bloggers hard.
Especially those who had been engaged in travel blogging full time and for whom travel had been a huge part of their lives and sole source of income.
Because of social distancing restrictions times have really changed.
For here in Kenya both local and international travel is off the agenda until God knows when.
Although we’re on the third phase of our 21-day curfew period, and nobody knows for sure what lies ahead and whether it will be lifted or not.
Personally, I’ve been putting my self-quarantine downtime hours into what I do best – researching travel hacks and tips for future travel possibilities and making plans for travel post-coronavirus.
However, with how most travel bloggers have been badly hit by the covid pandemic, here are my recommendations for alternative ways to earn money as a travel blogger during Corona virus covid pandemic.
What's Covered in This Article
Get paid posting videos on YouTube
With COVID-19 having pushed up internet use 70% and streaming more than 12% according to First Figures, people are spending so much time online creating a perfect opportunity to make money online.
Most travel bloggers have tonnes of video footage from past travels but have never found time to edit them.
There’s no better time than now to organize that footage into content that people would be happy to binge on as they find for ways to fill the extra time lock down has handed over to them.
Aside from travel videos, you can also consider other non-travel specific content for example how to make travel money, remote working, affiliate marketing, making money as an influencer, making money online, how to approach brands, how to get brand ambassadorships, life in quarantine, apartment / house tours, etc.
If all else fails, ask your existing fans what alternative content they’d like to see you produce for them.
As much as there’s not much travel currently taking place, there are several businesses in the travel industry who are taking advantage of this down time to plan for post-corona travel.
They are therefore looking for experienced, travel content writers to write a variety of travel articles for their target destinations that captures the inevitable short term spike in interest in post-quarantine travel.
Ideally, the criteria for most would be an avid traveler with some SEO/keyword research knowledge, and experience researching and writing about travel.
In addition to writing new travel content, you could also work with businesses in updating their existing content.
You can also help the businesses with their web content especially to build contextual links from different travel relates sites or blogs that you’re obviously already familiar with.
Use your travel blog as a portfolio.
Social media strategy and marketing
Covid has thrown businesses into a complex environment that many are still struggling to navigate.
As a travel blogger, you can make money by helping these businesses redesign their social media strategy to align with the new ‘normal’.
Use your social media handles as a portfolio.
Write a book (s) in the travel genre
There are two ways to make money as a travel blogger by writing books in the travel genre.
The first option is to write travel books/e-books for others and get paid as a freelance writer.
A good place to look for work is on freelancing platforms such as Fiverr.com, Upwork, and the like.
Use your travel blog as a sample portfolio of your travel writing.
The second option is write and self-publish on platforms such as Lulu.com or Amazon.com
In my opinion, the lowest hanging fruit if you decide to self-publish is a non-fiction e-books that narrates tiny anecdotes of practical things you encountered during your travels over time, along with practical advice on the various challenges and opportunities that came into play during travel.
Some topics you could consider include visa travel, travel on a Kenyan passport, travel with a full-time job, travel on a shoe-string salary, travel on a side hustle income, solo globetrotting as a wife/husband/mother/father, etc.
You could also use your creativity, imagination and experience to make money by writing children’s travel books based on places/countries you’ve been to.
To make the stories more engaging for children, touch on key highlights such as food, famous monuments, traditional costumes, ceremonies, festivals, practices, dances, arts etc.
Travel guides on places you’ve visited documenting things to eat, events, markets, festivals, etc are also an alternative way for travel bloggers to make money during Covid.
To get started, identify the theme of your memoir and how travel challenged your view of it.
Another angle that you could consider is documenting reflections by fellow travel bloggers on the way in which the COVID-19 pandemic has impacted them.
Such a book would seek to answer the question of how we managed the various abrupt and immense shifts put in place to help flatten the curve from the perspective of travel bloggers who among other things had to abandon routine travel when airport shut and travel was banned.
The book would essentially be giving voice to some of the travel bloggers who managed this transition while perhaps dealing with the heartbreaking loss of loved ones and loss of income because of the corona virus. In their own words, they’d talk about who they are, their coping mechanisms, and lessons learned on how to thrive through a global pandemic.
Leverage your existing tribe (fan base) as your first market.
Travel market research
With the onset of Covid so has been the rise on the need for facts and figures on its impact on various industries, travel included.
As a travel blogger, you can make money during Covid period by working with research houses in mining relevant data on: the impact of the Coronavirus pandemic impact on the travel market in various destinations/countries, travel restrictions to different countries as a result of COVID-19, regulations, laws, and restrictions on wearing masks and other PPEs, restrictions on visiting various tour destinations, etc.
Other research work you’re likely to be engaged in include the response from travel companies, independent travelers, various media, government, etc, on matters travel.
You can also conduct research for travel start-ups looking to set up in new countries or regions.
Write Instagram captions for other travel accounts
Almost to social media management, however, your focus is solely to write for others (mostly resorts, hotels, etc.) captions around travel as well as around their travel establishments.
Use your Instagram account as sample portfolio.
Strategic communications writing with COVID-19 response
Basically, as a travel blogger you can make money during this Covid period by working with organizations to draft highly specific “message map” style responses to important questions regarding COVID-19 that conform to risk and crisis communication best practices.
Here is a sample message map to give you an idea of the kind of work you will be engaged in.
Freelancer model for other travel vlogs
Yes.
People actually hire for this.
You may need some experience in making videos online.
There are two main ways to go about this:
The first option is to bid or pitch clients that might be looking for someone to teach a course on Social Media Marketing either to them or their stakeholders.
In this day and age of Covid, it’d most probably a GoToWebinar kind of class offering.
To widen your reach and make your social media training into a passive source of income, consider the second option which is developing an online course.
The advantage of online courses is that they can be accessed by anyone based anywhere and at any time. Giving you an opportunity to make money as you sleep.
Content to consider covering in your training or course would include: best practices on social media, using Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest, YouTube to increase reach, how to utilize Evenbrite for posting events, etc.
Take pictures for various photo/video projects
With the ban on international travel and even domestic travel in most countries, travel bloggers can make money during this Covid 19 pandemic period by taking pictures of locations they’re currently able to access – for people who might need pictures of those places, or for various ongoing photography projects.
Cabapost for instance will pay you US$15 to take and submit 50 photographs of a letter box / mail box in your neighbourhood. To qualify, the letterbox must either be attached on a wall or mounted on a pole.
You can also utilize your video production/drone shooting skills to make money as a travel blogger during Covid by providing video footage of tourist sites for documentary projects that you currently have access to but project owner may not.
Use your YouTube travel channel as a portfolio for the project owners to evaluate your video production skills!
You can also make money by uploading photos from your travels on stock photography websites.
Photo editing and retouching
You can make money online as a travel blogger during this corona virus period by editing and retouching photos for other people or organizations.
The key qualifications necessary to get such work is simply demonstrate good editing techniques.
Use your before and after photos as portfolio samples of your work to demonstrate your experience.
Well, that’s it in terms of alternative ways that travel bloggers can make money online especially during this Covid-19 era economy when they are unable to travel and create travel content.
Which of the following income streams are you currently pursuing or planning to pursue?
Share with us your experience in the comments below.
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