{"id":125237,"date":"2018-04-02T09:00:18","date_gmt":"2018-04-02T13:00:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.nomadicmatt.com\/?p=125237"},"modified":"2025-12-23T10:37:00","modified_gmt":"2025-12-23T15:37:00","slug":"10-years-blogging","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.nomadicmatt.com\/travel-blogs\/10-years-blogging\/","title":{"rendered":"20 Things I Learned From 12 Years Blogging"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Matt<\/p>\n

Back in January 2008, I’d just returned from my trip around the world. I was broke and got a temp job at a hospital. My job was to sit there, answer phones, open the mail, and just generally not break anything while the full-time assistant was on maternity leave. <\/p>\n

Within a few days, I said to myself \u201cThis is not for me.\u201d Being back in a cubicle felt like I was back to the same spot I left. Like the last 18 months on the road hadn’t happened. It was dispiriting. I wanted to be \u201cout there\u201d \u2014 that mythical place that was anywhere<\/em> but home.<\/p>\n

Sitting in that cubicle, I wondered, \u201cWhat could I do to keep me traveling?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cTravel writer\u201d seemed like a good idea.<\/p>\n

So I started a blog<\/a> to showcase my work, get freelance writing gigs, maybe write some guidebooks, and hopefully make a living from this all. I imagined myself a cross between Bill Bryson and Indiana Jones.<\/p>\n

I bugged my design friends for help, learned HTML, wrote blog post after blog post, connected with other bloggers, pitched stories to online publications, and figured out SEO and social media.<\/p>\n

Today is the anniversary of my first post. I can’t believe I am still at it ten<\/del>twelve years later. What started as an online resume has morphed into a business that includes this website, a charity<\/a>, conference<\/a>, blogging course<\/a>, community meet-ups<\/a>, tours, ebooks<\/a>, and a NYT best selling book<\/a> and a memoir.<\/p>\n

So, on today\u2019s ten<\/del>twelve-year anniversary, I want to share some of the business\/blogging lessons I learned (often the hard way) in the past decade:
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1. Being first helps, but it\u2019s not a prerequisite.<\/h3>\n

When I started, travel blogging was in its infancy. Starting before it became mainstream certainly helped contribute to the success that I have today. It would be foolish to deny that.<\/p>\n

But it\u2019s not the most important thing. After all, Netscape was first \u2014 but how many of you still use that today?<\/p>\n

And I can name dozens and dozens of blogs that went under despite having started early.<\/p>\n

But more importantly, I can name dozens and dozens of blogs that have started in the last few years that have done extremely well.<\/p>\n

What matters more than being first is being persistent and innovative, creating quality content, offering something that solves your readers\u2019 problems, networking, and many other things. \u201cBeing first\u201d would be low on my list of \u201cthings you need for success.\u201d
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2. You\u2019re going to change \u2014 and so will your content. That\u2019s OK.<\/h3>\n

Your life is going to change \u2014 and so is your content. At first, I wanted to travel a lot and just blog. Now, I want to stay in place more.<\/a> Build a routine. Go to the gym. Write more books. Maybe start a podcast. Mentor more. Do more community events.<\/p>\n

Basically, not be nomadic anymore.<\/p>\n

For a long time, I resisted that change. I tried to still be the person I was when I started this whole thing. What would I be if not Nomadic Matt? How would this website continue?<\/a><\/p>\n

Then I said, \u201cWho cares? So long as this website is helping people travel, it\u2019s not really important if I am always on the road. The content matters more than anything else.\u201d<\/p>\n

People will either love it…or they won\u2019t, being on (or off) the road won’t change that.<\/p>\n

Moreover, the lives of your readers will also change. They will get older too. They will have new desires. Maybe people stop reading your blog because they find it boring. Or they grow out of your advice, or they simply stop traveling. It doesn’t matter. That\u2019s just how it is.<\/p>\n

Life changes for you and your readers.<\/p>\n

Don\u2019t fear change.
\n <\/p>\n

3. Don\u2019t do this for you<\/em>. Do it for your readers.<\/h3>\n

\"Matt's
\nDo you know who the most successful people are? The ones who wake up and think about how they make someone\u2019s life better. The people who do whatever it is they do for a reason beyond themselves. If your goal is to get free travel and how to do cool stuff for yourself, the Internet will quickly tire of you. No one wants to read the story of someone doing things they can never do. \u201cInspiration porn\u201d only goes so far. <\/p>\n

We all want people \u2013 and businesses – that solve a problem we have in our life. That can be anything from the mundane \u201cI need to know how to dress better\u201d to the esoteric \u201cwhat do I do with my life?\u201d<\/p>\n

No matter what you do, do it for your readers. Think about how to solve their problems.<\/p>\n

Do something that makes your audience go, \u201cBecause I came here, my life is better.\u201d<\/p>\n

For me, that\u2019s helping people travel cheaper<\/a>. Figure out what it is for you. Your mission should never be “How can I make my life better?” People will see through that. Being a personality on the Internet only lasts so long as your schtick is in vogue.<\/p>\n

If your mission is reader-centric, you’ll stand the test of time.
\n <\/p>\n

4. Because your readers want you to succeed.<\/h3>\n

Your audience wants to support you. They read you for a reason. Give them a way to support you. Don\u2019t think, \u201cOh, people just like free stuff. I\u2019m gonna need to throw up ads and do brand deals or I’ll be broke.\u201d People want to support artists and creative people they love. Don\u2019t be afraid to sell them a product you created. <\/p>\n

Or start a Patreon page. <\/p>\n

Or do tours. <\/p>\n

Or create a subscription service for added content. Mark Manson does that for $5 USD a month<\/a>. You know what? A lot of people pay that.<\/p>\n

Give people a way to support you and they will surprise you. Because when you create something that helps people and improves their lives, they want<\/em> to support you. They will go out of their way to do so. Because everyone wants to help those that help them.
\n <\/p>\n

5. How you monetize will change greatly.<\/h3>\n

There have always been easy ways to make money online. First, it was Google\u2019s ad network, AdSense. You\u2019d slap up a few ads that looked like normal links and people would click away. <\/p>\n

Then it was banner ads. (Those both still exist, but how many of us click on banner ads?) Then it was selling text links to companies trying to game SEO. Then sponsored posts that did the same thing but were supposedly harder for Google to detect.<\/p>\n

Each was a fad that people said would last forever. (Now, it\u2019s \u201cinfluencer\u201d marketing, where everyone with a following gets free stuff, and people are still saying the same thing about that.)<\/p>\n

But everything changes.<\/p>\n

If you\u2019re only doing the most popular thing to make money online, you are going to fail. When the tides shift, you\u2019ll be left holding the bag and having to start over again.<\/p>\n

Never rely on a fad for your income. EVER.<\/p>\n

For example, you used to be able to sell e-books for like $50 USD. Now, thanks to Amazon and people used to $1.99 Kindle books, that’s changed. No one buys expensive ebooks anymore. Ebooks are a cheap product. We sell a lot of ebooks and had to adapt our model…but it also forced us to figure out other ways to monetize. <\/p>\n

We used to rely on one page for a lot of our affiliate income but then it dropped in Google and we had to scramble to figure out what to do.<\/p>\n

Always assume whatever it is you’re doing is not going to last. It will keep you innovating.
\n <\/p>\n

6. Create your own products.<\/h3>\n

\"Matt
\nContinuing on that idea, own your income stream as much as possible: e-books, tours, T-shirts, whatever.<\/p>\n

When I started out, I sold a lot of text links (see #5). Then one day it all went to zero after Google changed its algorithm. It didn\u2019t bother me, though, because by then I had already moved on. I had e-books. Then tours. Then courses. A hostel. A conference. Events. I had diversified my income and created my own products.<\/p>\n

Having your own thing \u2014 no matter what it is \u2014 means you don\u2019t rely on others for your income because you never know what could happen. Amazon could kick you out of its program or cut its payout in half (we got kicked out for a few months and lost thousands. Luckily, we’re back in but that money is gone), influencer marketing could change, brands might not want to work with you, or someone could cut their affiliate rate or stop offering their program altogether.<\/p>\n

When 100% of your income is from other people, you are 100% at the mercy of other people. Creating your own products allows you to be independent.<\/p>\n

Always<\/em> own your income.
\n <\/p>\n

7. Your first stuff will suck.<\/h3>\n

\"Early
\nYears from now, you\u2019ll look back at your first articles and go, \u201cWho the hell wanted to read this? This is horrible!\u201d <\/p>\n

Or you’ll look at the first version of your website (see above) and go “What the F was I thinking!!!” It\u2019s only natural. It means you\u2019ve grown as a writer (and a blogger).<\/a> It\u2019s about progress, not perfection. <\/p>\n

In the beginning, don\u2019t obsess about your work (whether writing or design). Just put it out there and go back later and fix it.<\/p>\n

Why? You only get better by doing. Never wait for perfection. And if you wait for perfection you’ll never start your blog. There’s no cost to putting up a website. <\/p>\n

Just get it up there and fix the problems later!
\n <\/p>\n

8. SEO is not a dirty word.<\/h3>\n

A lot of bloggers think SEO is this dirty thing, that optimizing for Google takes away from the \u201chumanness\u201d of their website. But every day, billions of people search for answers to their questions. Optimizing your website for search engines means that your website can be the one that answers their question. It\u2019s a source of unlimited free traffic!<\/p>\n

Over the last decade, focusing on SEO has given me a huge advantage and has helped me reach millions of people, earn a living, and get media mentions (I once got a big feature on CNN because the journalist found me on Google).<\/p>\n

Learn SEO. It will pay dividends in the long run.
\n <\/p>\n

9. Write for humans.<\/h3>\n

But still, write for humans. Don\u2019t put in overly optimized content, because, at the end of the day, you want people to connect with your website. No one is loyal to WikiHow or another generic information website. People read blogs because they connect with the voice behind them. Optimize for Google, but write for humans.<\/p>\n

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Want to take your blog to the next level?<\/h5>\r\n

Sign up for my FREE blogging mini-course and I'll send you my best tips and tricks on how to grow and make money from your blog!<\/p>\r\n<\/div>\r\n\r\n

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