Can AI save travel creators hours of work without removing the personality, experience and human perspective that make people trust them?

At TBEX Eau Claire, Palle Bo and Rick Calvert sat down with content entrepreneur and author Julia McCoy, who had recently made a dramatic transition from outspoken AI sceptic to President of Content at Scale (now BrandWell).

Julia explains what changed her mind. Early AI writing tools produced generic, unreliable content filled with fluff. Then she discovered technology capable of researching, writing and producing content at a speed that forced her to reconsider what the future might look like for professional writers and content creators.

The conversation also explores the risks. AI can confidently invent facts, places and even legal cases, making human judgment and fact-checking essential. For travel bloggers, the bigger question is whether travellers will continue searching for blogs when an AI tool can build an itinerary in seconds.

Julia's answer is that personal experience matters more than ever. AI may provide information, but it cannot replace your stories, your observations or the trust created by a recognisable human voice.

In this episode:

• Why Julia changed her mind about AI almost overnight
• How AI hallucinations make fact-checking non-negotiable
• Where AI can save travel creators significant time
• Why firsthand stories remain a travel blogger's greatest advantage
• Whether ChatGPT and similar tools will take traffic away from travel websites

Update Since Recording

This conversation was recorded in 2023. Content at Scale later became BrandWell, and Julia McCoy has since left the company. She is now the founder of First Movers, which helps businesses implement AI systems, automation and digital-clone technology.

Relevant links:

• First Movers: https://firstmovers.ai
• Content at Scale – now BrandWell: https://brandwell.ai
• Julia McCoy on LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/in/juliaemccoy/
• The Content Writer's Handbook: https://www.audible.com/pd/The-Content-Writers-Handbook-Audiobook/B0CX793N8L
• Transcendent Man documentary: https://transcendentman.com/
• Learn more about TBEX: https://tbexcon.com
• Find more Travel Matters episodes in your podcast app or at: https://tbexcon.com/podcast/
• Podcast produced by RadioGuru: https://radioguru.co.uk

Follow Travel Matters in your podcast app for a new conversation every Friday.

Shelley Marmor turned travel blogging into a multiple-six-figure business within two years. In this episode of Travel Matters, she shares why mindset matters, why SEO comes before monetisation, and how travel creators can use affiliate marketing more strategically instead of simply adding links and hoping for the best.

What separates a travel blog that makes a little side income from one that becomes a serious business?

In this episode of Travel Matters, Palle Bo and Rick Calvert sit down with Shelley Marmor, founder of TravelMexicoSolo.com, TravelBlogging101.com and several other niche travel sites. Shelley started her first blog in April 2020 and was making multiple six figures by her second year of blogging.

Her secret? She says it starts with treating the blog as a business from day one.

Shelley explains why tracking your money changes your mindset, why SEO is the foundation of affiliate income, and why travel bloggers should focus on "buying keywords" that attract readers who are already ready to book.

Instead of simply placing affiliate links into random posts, Shelley breaks down how to create content for "hell yes" buyers – the people searching for things like the best hotels, tours, rental cars and travel services in a destination.

She also shares what she has learned from running five blogs, working with human writers, testing affiliate partners like Booking, Expedia and Stay22, and balancing affiliate income with display ads and her own courses.

The conversation also touches on AI, conference networking, the value of attending TBEX, and why independent creators often need to get out from behind the screen and meet like-minded people in person.

Key Takeaways

• Treat your blog like a business from day one if you want it to become one.
• Tracking your income and expenses is a major mindset shift for creators.
• SEO comes before monetisation – no page views usually means no affiliate sales.
• Affiliate marketing is not the same as simply adding affiliate links to a post.
• Focus on "buying keywords" that attract people ready to make a purchase.
• Travel bloggers should test different affiliate partners, including Booking, Expedia, Stay22 and direct relationships where possible.
• Affiliate income can outperform display ads when it is done strategically.
• Running multiple niche sites can work, but Shelly warns that five blogs may be too many for most people.
• AI may become hard to ignore, even for creators who are not early adopters.
• Conferences like TBEX can create unexpected connections, ideas and opportunities.

Relevant Links

• Travel Mexico Solo: https://travelmexicosolo.com
• Travel to Merida: https://traveltomerida.com
• Travel to Oaxaca: https://traveltooaxaca.com
• Tulum Travel Secrets: https://tulumtravelsecrets.com
• Travel Blogging 101: https://travelblogging101.com
• Start With Why by Simon Sinek https://simonsinek.com/
• TBEX: https://tbexcon.com

Should travel creators ever work for free? And is a free trip fair compensation – or simply unpaid labour with a nicer view?

Travel Matters is back, and our first conversation of the new season brings together two longtime members of the TBEX community: Jen Ruiz, the travel writer, author and entrepreneur behind Jen on a Jet Plane, and Melvin Boecher, founder of Travel Dudes.

Jen believes that when a creator is brought in to produce work for a campaign, money should always be part of the agreement. Melvin agrees that professional creators need to be paid – but argues that collaborations, barter and other exchanges can still make business sense when both sides receive genuine value.

The result is a lively and occasionally heated debate about what creators are worth, when exposure or experience may have value, and how travel bloggers can build businesses that are less vulnerable to changing algorithms and declining revenue streams.

In this episode:

• When a complimentary trip becomes unpaid work
• Why follower count does not determine the value of your content
• Getting paid for creative assets as well as audience reach
• Negotiating better affiliate partnerships directly with businesses
• Why every creator should consider developing a product of their own

Relevant links:

• Jen on a Jet Plane: https://jenonajetplane.com
• Travel Dudes: https://traveldudes.com
• Learn more about TBEX: https://tbexcon.com
• Find more Travel Matters episodes in your podcast app or on https://tbexcon.com/podcast/
• Podcast produced by RadioGuru: https://radioguru.co.uk

Follow Travel Matters in your podcast app for a new conversation every Friday.

In this electrifying episode of Travel Matters, Palle Bo and Rick Calvert sit down with Christine Lozada, famously known as the Drone Queen. Dive into the world of drone photography and videography as Christine shares her journey from a newbie to a renowned drone expert. Discover the secrets behind capturing breathtaking aerial shots, navigating legalities, and utilizing drones to land incredible travel partnerships. Whether you're a seasoned traveler or just curious about drone technology, this episode is packed with insights and tips that will elevate your travel content creation to new heights.

Three Key Points

1. Drone Photography and Videography Essentials: Christine Lozada reveals her top tips for capturing stunning aerial shots, including the importance of smooth, cinematic movements and understanding safety settings to prevent crashes.
2. Strategic Use of Drones for Content Creation: Learn how Christine uses drones not only to enhance her travel videos but also to differentiate her content, land partnerships, and monetize her work. She emphasizes the accessibility and affordability of drones as powerful tools for storytellers.
3. Memorable Drone Experiences and Safety Insights: Christine shares captivating stories from her drone adventures, including an encounter with a black tip shark migration and a daring drone retrieval from a cliff in Ethiopia. She also discusses the evolving ease of flying drones and how they have become essential tools for modern travel creatives.

In this episode of Travel Matters, join hosts Palle Bo and Rick Calvert as they sit down with travel blogger Mike Shubic from Mike's Road Trip at TBEX North America 2023 in Eau Claire, Wisconsin. They dive into Mike's journey from early tech adoption to exploring the latest in AI tools, sharing invaluable insights for content creators. Tune in to hear about Mike's adventures, the transformative power of AI in the travel industry, and how technology is shaping the future of content creation.

Key Points

1. AI Tools for Content Creation: Mike Shubic discusses various AI tools like ChatGPT, Luminar AI, and others, highlighting how they can enhance content creation, marketing, and video production, offering new revenue opportunities and audience engagement for travel creators.
2. The Evolution of Travel Blogging: Mike shares his journey from starting Mike's Road Trip in 2009 to becoming a travel influencer, discussing how early adoption of video and new technologies like AI have transformed his career and the travel blogging landscape.

Future of AI in Travel and Content Creation: The conversation explores the potential and challenges of AI, including its impact on white-collar jobs, the importance of maintaining human creativity and artistry in content, and how AI can be a valuable tool without replacing the authenticity of personal experiences.

In this final episode from TBEX Europe 2023 Kalamata, you can meet two guests.

First, Rick talks to Elena Sergeeva. With a decade-long career in Sales & Marketing, she co-founded Travel Bloggers Greece in 2015 with the purpose to unite like-minded individuals and to educate the Greek market on how to work with bloggers. She is the founder of several travel blogs. She also works with JayWay Travel, one of the sponsors of TBEX.

She did a session at this TBEX called "Destination Blogging Community and DMO Partnerships: Value and Opportunities" where she talked about how working with blogging communities provides new marketing opportunities and continued growth for Andros Island. The session covered the needs of a DMO from the local travel industry – Projects to empower the island's footprint in the global tourism market.

And our last interview from TBEX Europe 2023 is with Ivan Bengeri from Croatia. In 2013 he quit his 9-to-5 job to travel around the world. In November 2014, www.bengeri.com travel blog happened, and since then, Ivan has been blogging and traveling full-time.

So far, he's been to 60+ countries, walked a Camino de Santiago (800 km) in September 2018, represented Southeastern Europe (SEE) as a travel influencer on Kerala Blog Express 2019, and in 2020 he launched Bengeri.travel agency to share his love for traveling.

In this episode, you can meet travel blogger Eric Stoen from the family travel blog Travel Babbo. He used to work in healthcare but was addicted to travel. So, in 2014 he quit his job and started the travel blog to inspire more people.

So far, he's been to 101 countries and seven continents. Hear how he got started and how he grew his blog. You can also hear him talk about the time he took his kids to Antarctica.

Rick has tried to get Eric to be a speaker, but he keeps saying no. Will this interview make him change his mind?

In this episode, we have two guests. Cazzy Magennis and Bradley Williams are the travel blogging duo behind Dream Big, Travel Far.

Using captivating content and an intelligent approach to sharing their stories on mainstream media, their website reaches as many as 350,000 page views a month.

In their session, they shared the step-by-step details of how they have landed a large number of high-profile mainstream media features in the last 18 months – which has, in turn, helped them to 3-4x their blog's monthly traffic.

This is their first TBEX, their first time as a speaker, and their first time as guests on a podcast. Have a listen and hear how they did.

In this episode, we have two interviews. First, we meet Brennen Bliss, a US Search Award-winning SEO consultant and principal at the US-based travel and tourism-focused SEO agency, Propellic. The agency forms successful and creative SEO campaigns for its clients. Brennen is passionate about travel; sending more people to incredible places is part of his lifelong mission. Brennan did a double session called "Advanced SEO: Hidden Strategies to Compete in Search."

Then we have a conversation with Anna Kalogeropoulou, Deputy Governor of Tourism for the Region of Peloponnese, a destination for all seasons. Kalamata is one of the fastest-developing cities in Greece. This modern city has been re-introduced to the world as a tourism destination.

In this episode, we meet Caroline Makepeace (Caz) from yTravelBlog and This is Raleigh about Raleigh, North Carolina.

Together with her husband, Craig, she's been traveling the world since 1997 and since 2007 with their two daughters.

The White House invited them to attend a travel summit as one of the top digital travel influencers in the world in 2014, and in 2020 they were granted a green card for their "extraordinary ability in the art of travel blogging."

Caz and Craig are from the Central Coast of Australia and now live in North Carolina – but they like to call the world our home.

She was the Opening Keynote Speaker for TBEX North America in Billings, Montana, 2019. We planned to have her on Travel Matters back then, but it wasn't possible to make it happen. So, better late than never… Enjoy this conversation with an extraordinary travel blogger.