Comments on: The skillset of the on-line travel writer http://www.travelblather.com/2010/03/travel-writer-blogging-skills.html Banter between travel writers, travel PRs and travel social media people Mon, 06 Feb 2012 08:59:53 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.1 By: Adam http://www.travelblather.com/2010/03/travel-writer-blogging-skills.html/comment-page-1#comment-849 Adam Mon, 12 Apr 2010 04:23:03 +0000 http://www.travelblather.com/2010/03/the-skillset-of-the-on-line-travel-writer.html#comment-849 The fact that travel writers today need to "get" the web, and let the web "get" them makes perfect sense. As technology evolves, everything is becoming more and more social. I'm sure a lot of people would argue that too many people screaming in a room is a bad thing, but that's why you have to work at interacting--on both sides. I'm optimistic that all the social networking tools at our fingertips are going to make travel writing & travel blogging more interesting & more exciting in the very near future! The fact that travel writers today need to "get" the web, and let the web "get" them makes perfect sense. As technology evolves, everything is becoming more and more social.

I'm sure a lot of people would argue that too many people screaming in a room is a bad thing, but that's why you have to work at interacting--on both sides. I'm optimistic that all the social networking tools at our fingertips are going to make travel writing & travel blogging more interesting & more exciting in the very near future!

]]> By: Jeremy Head http://www.travelblather.com/2010/03/travel-writer-blogging-skills.html/comment-page-1#comment-688 Jeremy Head Fri, 12 Mar 2010 12:08:55 +0000 http://www.travelblather.com/2010/03/the-skillset-of-the-on-line-travel-writer.html#comment-688 This is a test comment This is a test comment

]]> By: Jeremy Head http://www.travelblather.com/2010/03/travel-writer-blogging-skills.html/comment-page-1#comment-24 Jeremy Head Tue, 09 Mar 2010 09:55:25 +0000 http://www.travelblather.com/2010/03/the-skillset-of-the-on-line-travel-writer.html#comment-24 Hi all I think the SEO/toolbar debate might make an interesting post of its own. Despite the reservations I find the Page Rank score is at least something that someone who knows little about SEO can at least use to get some idea. Sure there are better more complex ways of analysing the relative SEO value of a website. I know little about this debate, but the page Alistair links to doesn't dismiss it out of hand - far from it. It just points out that it's not particularly exact and quite correctly points out that page rank of itself doesn't equate to profit. (I'm going to ask someone from the SEO team at iCrossing to comment or maybe guest post sometime. Interestingly no one at iCrossing has ever said to me 'Do not use it, it's rubbish.') I certainly never suggested writers should write for SEO or for humans - completely agree with Mark's points. What I meant by Search Influence wasn't 'can the writer write copy with search terms cleverly inserted into it... I meant 'does the writer have an existing piece of web real estate (ie a blog or website) that has good authority from an SEO perspective.' If so, that makes them interesting to me as a commissioning editor for a number of reasons, 1) They could maybe link to my sites from theirs and pass on useful link equity 2) They clearly 'get' web if Google ranks them well... Cheers and thanks for continuing interesting debate! Fab stuff J Hi all
I think the SEO/toolbar debate might make an interesting post of its own. Despite the reservations I find the Page Rank score is at least something that someone who knows little about SEO can at least use to get some idea. Sure there are better more complex ways of analysing the relative SEO value of a website. I know little about this debate, but the page Alistair links to doesn't dismiss it out of hand - far from it. It just points out that it's not particularly exact and quite correctly points out that page rank of itself doesn't equate to profit. (I'm going to ask someone from the SEO team at iCrossing to comment or maybe guest post sometime. Interestingly no one at iCrossing has ever said to me 'Do not use it, it's rubbish.')
I certainly never suggested writers should write for SEO or for humans - completely agree with Mark's points. What I meant by Search Influence wasn't 'can the writer write copy with search terms cleverly inserted into it... I meant 'does the writer have an existing piece of web real estate (ie a blog or website) that has good authority from an SEO perspective.' If so, that makes them interesting to me as a commissioning editor for a number of reasons,
1) They could maybe link to my sites from theirs and pass on useful link equity
2) They clearly 'get' web if Google ranks them well...
Cheers and thanks for continuing interesting debate! Fab stuff
J

]]> By: Mark Hodson http://www.travelblather.com/2010/03/travel-writer-blogging-skills.html/comment-page-1#comment-23 Mark Hodson Sat, 06 Mar 2010 09:43:35 +0000 http://www.travelblather.com/2010/03/the-skillset-of-the-on-line-travel-writer.html#comment-23 This a really interesting debate, with some valuable insights. However, there's one myth about SEO that should not continue to go unchallenged. I refer to the idea that writers can choose to write either for humans or for search engines. If that was ever the case, it isn't any more. From a SEO point of view, you are better off writing something genuinely interesting (for humans). Then those humans are more likely to add comments (as we all have) and - most importantly - link to the article from our own sites (as Matthew has done, above). Incidentally, some in the SEO community argue that Google should stop displaying toolbar PageRank (because it's pretty meaningless. See Alastair's comment and link, above). Others actually like it, because it distracts the ignorant hordes from the important factors. Not being rude, I'm just saying. This a really interesting debate, with some valuable insights. However, there's one myth about SEO that should not continue to go unchallenged.

I refer to the idea that writers can choose to write either for humans or for search engines. If that was ever the case, it isn't any more. From a SEO point of view, you are better off writing something genuinely interesting (for humans). Then those humans are more likely to add comments (as we all have) and - most importantly - link to the article from our own sites (as Matthew has done, above).

Incidentally, some in the SEO community argue that Google should stop displaying toolbar PageRank (because it's pretty meaningless. See Alastair's comment and link, above). Others actually like it, because it distracts the ignorant hordes from the important factors. Not being rude, I'm just saying.

]]> By: Mike Gerrard http://www.travelblather.com/2010/03/travel-writer-blogging-skills.html/comment-page-1#comment-22 Mike Gerrard Fri, 05 Mar 2010 22:27:45 +0000 http://www.travelblather.com/2010/03/the-skillset-of-the-on-line-travel-writer.html#comment-22 To bring this down to a more mundane practical level, Jeremy, you might want to give your own home page a going-over. Of your first four 'Recent Features', one link takes you only to the Mail's travel home page, and the next three recent features were published in 2005, 2004, and 2003. I know myself how easy it is to let websites get out of date, believe me. To bring this down to a more mundane practical level, Jeremy, you might want to give your own home page a going-over. Of your first four 'Recent Features', one link takes you only to the Mail's travel home page, and the next three recent features were published in 2005, 2004, and 2003. I know myself how easy it is to let websites get out of date, believe me.

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