How to Edit Travel Content Like a Pro

Writers get the glory and the byline. Editors rarely get a mention. Yet their role in creating great content is vital.

For some, the process of writing seems to be effortless, a natural gift. Their prose is engaging, witty, evocative and always clear. But the chances are you are reading their end product. What if you were to see their first draft?

It might come as a surprise to learn that even the most talented of writers don’t always get it right first time round. First drafts are frequently lacking finesse, and it takes significant refinement to make them absolutely perfect.

Most top publications and blogs have professional editors to tweak and fine-tune their content — to give it a little nip and tuck where needed. Other writers and bloggers have to edit themselves, which can prove a lot more difficult. Editing is not an easy feat — it’s time-consuming and draining — but it is a necessary one. Not editing your travel content is like bypassing quality checks. Without doing it, the results can be embarrassing or, even worse, damaging to your brand. Fortunately, there are techniques and tips that can help you with the process.

So whether you’re a travel writer looking to improve your own editing skills, or a travel brand trying to ensure that the content you receive from writers is the best it can be, here’s our eight-point checklist for editing travel content.

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Five Tips for Effective Content Editing

In content, editing is everything. The writers may have the ideas and put them down on the page, often with great panache, spot-on metaphors and a killer turn of phrase, but even the best can benefit from an editor. Editors will translate writers’ shrewd observations and wandering thoughts into the best and most readable version possible.

The best travel content inspires its readers. For travel publications, that means keeping the reader captivated with a compelling narrative, while for travel companies it’s about inspiring readers to the point of purchase. In every case, editing is an essential way to ensure your content does its job as well as it possibly can.

Hot on the heels of our previous blog, a checklist for editing travel content, we’ve come up with five more pieces of advice to ensure the effectiveness of your editing process. So scroll down to read our expert editing advice…

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Still Life in the Old Blog: Why Travel Companies Should Keep On Blogging

Blogs have been around a long time. In fact, with a history stretching back into the dark days of the 1990s, in web terms they’re positively ancient. Yet there’s still life in the old blog – in fact, it has never been more essential for travel brands to have their own blog platforms. Research firms like PhoCusWright conclude that just shy of half of all travel sales in America and Europe now take place on the internet, while the number of people researching about travel online is likely to be even higher than that. The percentages are consistently growing year-on-year.

Yet despite the ever-increasing number of customers online, too many travel brands still steadfastly stick to old-fashioned marketing methods, failing to make the most of those exciting digital tools available, such as blogging.

Holidaygoers doing their research on the web are looking for up-to-date, candid and compelling information – so whether you are a hotel or a cruise company, a travel agent or a tourist board, you’re doing yourself a disservice by not having an active, relevant and regular travel blog. Below are five more reasons why blogging still matters.

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Avoiding Writer’s Block: How To Keep Your Travel Content Flowing Freely

Content, content, content. Quality travel content is in hot demand. Google is constantly on the hunt for it and so too are social media users. But how can you generate quality content day after day, week after week, month after month? When faced with a blank screen and — even worse — a blank mind, the prospect can be a little daunting.

What will I write about now? What will resonate with readers? As professional travel writers, these are questions we ask ourselves regularly. Letting the idea bank run dry is simply not an option. Nor is waiting for creativity to strike because, as any writer will attest, inspiration is nothing if not tardy.

Fortunately, there are ways and means of keeping content flowing and combating the dreaded content drought. Drawing on the broad experiences of our expert travel writers at World Words, we’ve come up with six tried-and-tested techniques that will help you generate fresh and engaging content ideas. Wave writer’s block goodbye…

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