MARCH 7, 2025

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Welcome to The Tilt, the newsletter for content entrepreneurs from Tilt Publishing. Together, we're redefining what it means to be a publisher.

Read about the latest hit from Tilt Publishing’s newest author below.

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How To Drive a Thriving Travel Content Business

Chris Mitchell published a travel blog because he was sick of telling the same stories to his family and friends. Seven years later, he turned it into a full-time content business known as Traveling Mitch.

The booming travel industry may be worth over $800B (yes, billion) by 2028. If you’re a content creator, now is a terrific time to turn your passion for travel into a profitable business like Chris.

You are perfectly situated in a market eager for your honest, experience-driven content. A recent study by McKinsey (registration required) revealed four important themes among a wealth of other information helpful to travel creators):

1. Most people travel domestically or near their homes.
2. Travelers and tourists want custom experiences tailored to their wants/needs.
3. The meaning of “luxury travel” is shifting.
4. Destinations will need to adapt to accommodate more and more tourists.

However, with a large market comes a large interest in becoming a travel content entrepreneur. The increasingly competitive space requires creativity and strategy to stand out and build sustainable revenue streams. Here are five practical revenue streams to turn your adventures into a successful business.

1. Offer premium travel guides: Your travel expertise is invaluable. Whether you’re interested in discovering hidden gems in cities or creating comprehensive itineraries for niche travelers, packaging your insights in printed travel guides or journals is a proven way to generate revenue.

Provide exclusive tips and curated experiences to entice travelers willing to pay for well-researched recommendations before their next trip. The more specific and niche your travel guides, the better.

2. Launch travel-based workshops or courses: As an expert in travel — be it budget planning, photography, solo travel, etc. — you can monetize that knowledge by creating workshops or online courses. Teach others to take stunning adventure photos, plan their dream trips, or travel safely.

Platforms like Teachable or Kajabi make building and selling courses simple, and these offerings establish you as an authority.

Helpful Resource: How To Drive Revenue Through Online Courses​

3. Turn experiences into paid memberships: Loyal fans and followers are often willing to pay for unique content. Membership platforms like Patreon or Buy Me a Coffee allow you to monetize exclusive content, such as behind-the-scenes travel stories, custom itineraries, or travel community groups. A membership model can provide recurring income while building a closer connection with your audience.

Helpful Resource: Memberful Shares 5 Things To Do When Creating Membership Revenue

4. Publish custom travel books: Whether it's a coffee table photo book highlighting breathtaking landscapes, a thoughtfully curated guidebook, or a memoir of your travel experiences, books can build credibility and generate revenue. Having a book establishes your authority by showcasing your knowledge and expertise in a way that sets you apart from others in your field.

Helpful Resource: Wally Koval Turns Instagram Success Into Bestselling Book, Accidentally Wes Anderson​

5. Partner with brands for sponsored content: Collaborating with travel brands for sponsored posts or campaigns is a tried-and-true revenue source. The key is to partner with companies that align with your values and audience. Highlight how their products or services enhance your adventures while maintaining authenticity to retain trust with your followers (and always disclose paid relationships to your audience).

Helpful Resource: What To Know About Adding Sponsorships to Your Content Business​

Relying on a single revenue source makes it harder to sustain your brand long-term. Monetization strategies like physical books, memberships, and courses allow you to sustain the business when a stream slows down or algorithms change. Most importantly, offer products and services your audience wants. That’s the best way to build a long-term, thriving content business.

Learn from these entrepreneurs about how they turned their love for travel into successful content businesses:

• ​Chris Mitchell, Traveling Mitch
• ​Patricia Palacios, Spain tourism guides
• ​Sahara Rose De Vore, The Travel Coach Network
• ​Christina Riley and Carl Hedinger, NC Tripping
• ​Matthew and Carla Bailey, Must Do Canada
• ​Steph and Katie Burlton, Lez See the World
• ​Alex Jimenez, Travel Fashion Girl
• ​Karen and Sylvester Akpan, The Mom Trotter

- Paul Hobday

Just named one of the best 15 events for entrepreneurs by Entrepreneur Magazine!

Congrats to Jim MacLeod for being the newest Tilt Publishing author! This week, he launched The Visual Marketer: The Marketer’s Crash Course for Creating Memorable and Effective Visuals. It’s a crash course for marketers who need to create powerful and effective visuals on their own. Readers will learn how to create visuals that align with brand identity, engage audiences, and drive results, regardless of their design experience.

You can buy the paperback or the hardback directly from his site!

• Hybrid lessons … Writer reveals the changes she made to the book to boost paperback sales. [The MiniHer Author’s Desk]
• DIY to trad … Eight-time book author found self-publishing the first two and marketing them herself led her to the bestseller list. [Miami New Times]
• Place to write … Author and mom finds her go-to environment for writing is the garage (w/ bookshelves and a desk). [LitHub]

• ​Starting or Stopping Anything with the 7-Minute Method (Content, Inc.)
• ​Media Is Dying. Is This an Opportunity for Brands and Creators?​ (This Old Marketing)
• ​Creating a Custom Book Business Using Lulu's Print API (Publish & Prosper)
• We want The Tilt newsletter to be useful and impactful for you, so please take 5 minutes to complete this short poll about the content we send you each week. (And thanks if you already have!)
• ​ICYMI: How To Achieve Work-Work-Life Balance as a Content Entrepreneur​​