1. Tell us about your background and journey.
I was born and brought up in the Maximum City – Mumbai and did my Engineering in Pune. But they say “Engineers often end up doing something else in life”. And I guess I took it way too seriously and then Engineering was followed by MBA, a career as an Investment Banker, certification in Mountaineering, certification in Personal Training, etc. But all this while, one thing remained constant – my love for travelling and adventure activities.
Up until 2016, I used to travel across Maharashtra state only and had even trekked to more than 50 forts in the Sahyadri mountain range. But then I started exploring beyond Maharashtra and ended up visiting two countries, ten states and four UT's. Apart from this, I even got to do adventure activities - Parasailing, Paragliding, Snorkeling, Scuba Diving, Giant Swing, Bungee Jumping, River Rafting and Caving to name a few. To add to it, I proposed to my now-wife for a marriage, in a Hot Air Balloon last December.
2. What led you to start this journey and your page on Instagram and what is it about?
Earlier I used to just post my travel photos on social media platforms with nothing that could actually help other travelers. Later I realized that my travel experiences should add value to the travelling fraternity and make things easier for travelers, be it planning their itineraries, places to visit or to avoid, local transport options, budget tips, etc.
So I started documenting my trips and established the identity The Travelizer through my blog (https://therealtravelizer.
Through these platforms, I intend to showcase the offbeat places and make people realize that travelling is really not an expensive affair. People have reasons to avoid travelling and I just want to give them reasons to travel.
When it comes to my Instagram page, I generally pick a place and make a series of posts on it with important information/ facts about the place and some travel tips. I believe that makes my audience familiar with the place and also gives them an idea about what to expect once they reach that place.
3. How would you distinguish the term blogger from an influencer?
A blogger is someone who aims to offer original and valuable content in the form of articles and images, generally on his/ her own website. An influencer on the other hand, has a presence majorly on the social media platforms and has the ability to influence the buying decisions of the massive audience (followers) he/ she has. And yes, every blogger can be an influencer to a certain extent but not every influencer is a blogger.
4. What are the hurdles of this journey?
The biggest hurdle in travel blogging is to convince your family to let you travel...and that too quite often J Unfortunately, someone who loves travelling is looked down upon by Indian families. But thankfully things are changing gradually.
Also, you are on your own in this journey, meaning you have to handle too many tasks simultaneously on your own. At one point you are making itinerary for your next trip and after some time you are deciding the flow of your blog post or editing your travel photos. Writing original and SEO friendly content, editing the images and videos, managing the cross-platform publishing, making changes to the content according to the social media platform, taking care of the website design, troubleshooting and the list of tasks just doesn’t end but the journey is enjoyable if you love what you do.
5. Is it financially sustainable to be a travel blogger today? How can someone make money out of it?
It is very much financially sustainable to be a travel blogger, provided you have the patience and willingness to put in the efforts in the initial years. Yes, you read it right. You have to consistently create quality content to establish your presence over Internet and build a loyal audience base which takes years of hard work. I am not trying to dissuade the budding travel bloggers but just making them aware that success is not an overnight thing.
You won’t be making money right away but some of the income streams for travel bloggers include affiliate marketing (Amazon, Skyscanner, etc.), sponsored posts for travel companies, advertisements on your own website (Google Adsense, Media.net), selling your travel photos on stock photography websites (Shutterstock, Dreamstime), selling your own Travel e-Books, brand campaigns/ ambassadorship, etc.
6. What is your idea of success or your mantra in life?
For me, success is being happy about what you have in life and never regret any of your decisions. I have tried my hands at many things in life and even failed at them. But I don’t have any regrets, because “I tried”. Failure is always better than not trying at all.
7. How can someone become a successful travel blogger?
First and foremost, invest in yourself, because you are the whole and sole of your travel blog. Read travel magazines and blogs to know how to present a travel story, learn basics of photography and image/ video editing/ SEO optimization, improve on your writing skills (for blogs) and your language/ interaction skills (for vlogs) and so on.
I would say perseverance, consistency and quality are essential to becoming a successful travel blogger. And trust me, more than earning a lot of money, it’s earning the trust of your audience which is more satisfying.
8. Which is your favorite book and why?
That would be “Rich Dad Poor Dad” by Robert Kiyosaki. It educates you about personal finance from a different perspective and in a very simple manner. It actually helped me set my priorities with respect to my expenses and investments and that in turn helped me save on a lot of money which I could utilize for some more travelling
- Yogesh Raut
Interviewed by- Rupali Rawat
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