1. Build Traffic to Your Website
with a Hostel Blog
(Practical Tips)
Josh Cohen
HostelManagement.com

2. HostelManagement.com
● Started in 2004
● Over 5000 pages of free information
● Over 6000 users worldwide
● Online and offline events
● Free monthly newletter
● New features coming soon...

3. Hostel Blogs
● Twitter.com/hostelblogs
● HostelBlogs.com

4. Why blog?
● Travelers use search engines to find travel
information.

6. Why blog?
● If your content is interesting, people will share it
with their friends.

7. Why blog?
● The point isn't to get direct bookings--it's to
have people share your website and link to it.

8. Why blog?

9. Put your blog on your
hostel's own website
● myhostelwebsite.com →
myhostelwebsite.com/blog
● Don't put your blog on a separate website, or it
won't help with your own site getting more
traffic.

10. How to build a hostel blog cheaply

11. Creativity is more important than the
amount of money you spend on your
website.

12. The Formula
● Write in very simple language -- almost like a
children's book

13. Lots of Photos
© http://www.flickr.com/photos/kwl/3102355428/

14. Topics that almost always work
Think about what your visitors want to
read, not what you want to tell them.

15. Food, especially unusual or cheap

16. Adventure
© http://www.flickr.com/photos/orcaman/4318034861/

17. Outdoors
© http://www.flickr.com/photos/der_knut/4478542659/

18. Flowers → think botanical gardens

19. History and archaeological finds

20. Cute Animals → local zoo
© http://www.flickr.com/photos/aussiegall/608279033/

21. Colorful art in your city
© http://www.flickr.com/photos/tiswango/115663046/

22. Examples from travel blogs

23. Winter Photos: Cold can be Beautiful
http://theplanetd.com/winter-photos-cold-can-be-beautiful/

24. Bike Sharing, Ride Sharing
http://bit.ly/vimaE9

25. Rotorua – Something Special About This Evil Smelly Place
http://www.ytravelblog.com/rotorua-something-special-about-this-evil-smelly-place/

26. Podcasting
● Basic phrases

27. Motivating your staff to blog
● Call it “Travel Writing”

28. More Information
● www.HostelManagement.com
● Ask questions in the forum – over 20,000 posts
● josh@hostelmanagement.com
● Skype: j_hostels
● +1 (413) 306-4433