Posted: 11/14/2019 | November 14th, 2019

We’re now a little more than 6 months from TravelCon 2020! (Where does the time go?)

Today, I wanted to give you a little update on what we are doing with the event. As I mentioned last time, we’re making a lot of changes to next year’s conference:

• We’re adding in a second lunch!
• We’re doing a scavenger hunt through the city!
• We’re adding in pre- and post-conference tours of the city and region!
• We’re adding longer breaks between sessions.
• We’re adding longer niche meet-ups so you can hang out with people more!
• And we’re making a whole lot more changes that will be talking about soon

There’s a lot of exciting stuff happening. Moreover, we’re flushing out our speaker list a lot more and, while we still have lots more to add, we’ve confirmed some new speakers for you:

Annemarie Dooling

Wall Street Journal

Nora Dunn

The Professional Hobo

Lawrence Ferber

Writer

Rainer Jenss

Family Travel Association

Christine Kaaloa

GRRRLTRAVELER

Rachelle Lucas

The Travel Bite

Sol Orwell

Examine.com

Charu Suri

Writer

Somto Ugwueze

Somto Seeks

(For a full list of speakers, check out this page!)

Moreover, we’ve worked on our schedule more and I’m happy to announce that some of the talks you’ll find this year will include:

• Ethics in travel writing
• How to succeed as a freelancer
• How to become a travel agent
• How to gain clients as a travel agent
• How to effectively build your network
• How to create A/B tests
• Writing sales pages
• Tax and business issues
• How to protect your IP
• How to hire the right team
• More talks on RV travel
• More talks on LGBTQ travel
• More talks on Instagram, including monetization, community, and photography

We’ve got a lot more talks than that but those are some of the new ones we’re adding this year!

Additionally, while I can’t give specifics in this post (the ink isn’t dry yet), we’ve lined up 20 confirmed sponsors so far, including a lot of new DMOs we haven’t had before! I’m really excited about that as we’re continuing to expand and grow the conference! (If you’re interested in sponsoring, check out this page!).

We’re really excited about next year’s event. Over the next few months, we’ll be nailing down our party details, fam trips, and other plans so I’ll be sharing them in the new year.

If you want to attend the conference, tickets to this year’s TravelCon are $349 until 12/31, when prices will go up to $399.

We’re capping our ticket sales at 800 again this year. We’ve currently sold 300 tickets to next year’s event and expect to sell out again so don’t wait to get a ticket.

That’s it for today’s update! I hope to see you at next year’s event! If you have questions, ask in the comments and I’ll answer them.

– Matt

The post TravelCon: Speakers, Talks, and More News! appeared first on Nomadic Matt's Travel Site.

Posted: 4/29/2019 | April 29th, 2019

TravelCon is now only TWO months away!

We only have 130 tickets left and, when we sell out, that’s it.

This is going to the biggest travel media event of the year and the only one that focuses on all sides of the industry: traditional writing, blogging, YouTube, Instagram, and photography.

If you’ve been thinking of getting into the travel industry, don’t wait much longer! We expect to sell out again.

Here’s a recap of last year’s event:

 
So how will TravelCon help you?

Think of the millions of blogs, Instagram accounts, vlogs, and freelance writers out there.

How do you stand out among them all?

How do you become more than just another email in someone’s inbox?

By becoming a face.

What gets lost in this age of online hyper-connectedness is that old-fashioned face-to-face networking wins. When people know you personally, they are more willing to work with you. When they’ve talked to you and shared a beer with you, they WILL open your email.

Because you are no longer just another random stranger on the Internet.

You’re a cool – and REAL- person.

Someone they want to work with.

For example, last year, one of our attendees struck up a conversation with a rep from Czech Tourism – and ended up producing an ad campaign for them:

(Great video, huh?)

That’s the power of in-person events.

It allows you to talk in a way online pitching and communication can’t.

You’re only as successful as your network — and that network isn’t strongest from real life connections.

And, if you’re worried, you’re too beginner, an attendee came last year knew she wanted to do something in the travel industry. Well, now she is running a successful tour company based on what she learned! All within less than a year.

This event is going to be bigger and better than last year’s, and with only two months left to go, there’s not much time to get your ticket and make your plans. Over the last few weeks, TravelCon preparation has kicked into high gear:

1. We released our initial schedule. (There’s still a few more talks and speakers on their way.)

2. We signed our Friday night band! (I’m going to keep it a secret, but they were featured in an Apple ad!)

3. And, finally, we signed on more sponsors (with more on the way), including:

Adthrive
AdThrive is the leading ad monetization platform for high-quality, mid-sized digital publishers, empowering content creators to make a living doing what they love while the company manages the advertising for them.

BucketList.Club
BucketList.Club is a startup aiming to help its members accomplish more of their bucket list goals by introducing them to influencers and businesses with relevant experiences and offerings. We developed a business model and features that help Influencers promote their content and identify commercial opportunities, all while they inspire others with their content.

ConvertKit
ConvertKit are creators who help creators earn a living online. They have the best email marketing software on the web. Their features are built by bloggers for bloggers to help online businesses grow their biggest asset: their email list.

Exercore LLC
Our flagship product called the Eustachi is a first to market product designed to help anyone suffering from clogged ears by exercising their Eustachian tubes. The Eustachi helps by INSTANTLY clearing stuffy ears, anytime & anywhere using just a little air. The Eustachi is a must have for the traveler who suffers from ear problems.

Fat Tire Tours
Fat Tire Tours was established in 1999 with the goal of being a bridge between the English-speaking traveler and some of the best cities in Europe. Today, with locations in 12 cities across Europe and the US, the company’s mission is to provide safe, fun, and unforgettable experiences through superior customer service that creates memories and smiles that last a lifetime.

Memphis Tourism
Where in world can you visit the home of the king of rock n’ roll, bike across the Mississippi River and pay your respects at the site of Civil Rights history– only in Memphis. But the home of Blues, Soul and Rock ‘n’ Roll is so much more. Memphis’s unexpected combinations create one-of-a-kind experiences.

Moon Travel Guides
Founded in 1973, Moon was one of the first advocates of independent travel. Our authors are experts who have a passion for their destinations—they are women and men who are politically and culturally minded, informative, adventurous, inspiring, and have great stories to tell. They experience activities and destinations the same way our readers do—firsthand—making it possible for Moon to deliver up-to-date, reliable, and entertaining information.

Providence
Historic and hip, charming and chic, Providence, Rhode Island combines the best of a quaint New England town with the amenities and sophistication of a larger city. The city’s downtown is compact and filled with innovative and eclectic restaurants, a vibrant arts and culture scene, and well-preserved architecture.

Here’s a full list of our current sponsors that will be at the event (with more to come):

We know that going to conferences can be scary. Will you meet people? Will you make friends? Will you learn enough to justify the cost?

That’s why we hold tons of networking events, host in-depth sessions with experts from the travel sphere (and other fields), and have some amazing brands and companies for you to meet and do business with.

The best connections I’ve made – and improvements to my blog – have always been the result of going to in-person events.

So come attend TravelCon in June.

Take your career to the next level — and make friends and connections that will last a lifetime.

Just click here to get your tickets today.

And, if you have any questions, leave them in the comments!

– Nomadic Matt

The post TravelCon Update: Why You Should Be in the Room Where it Happens appeared first on Nomadic Matt's Travel Site.

Posted: 3/5/2019 | March 5th, 2019

With less than four months to go, I wanted to give you another update on our upcoming travel industry conference, TravelCon.

With that in mind, let me tell you about some recent updates:

First, we finalized our speaker list (I mean I may add a few more in but this is as the final big announcement). With over 60 speakers, this event is going to be amazing and we’re going to cover a lot of incredible topics: SEO, monetization, video production, webinars, Instagram, photo editing, writing, livestreaming, FB ads, photography, marketing, self-publishing, time management, and so much more! I mean we have three FULL days of events, talks, panels, and networking!

Since we last spoke, we added the following speakers:

Bani Amor

Decolonizing Travel Culture

Brian Baldrati

Is This Real

Kash Bhattacharya

Budget Traveller

Travis Burke

Travis Burke Photography

Brian Clark

Copyblogger

Joey Coleman

Author, Never Lose a
Customer Again

Tiffany Funk

One Mile at a Time

Pete & Dalene Heck

Hecktic Travels

Dani Heinrich

Globetrotter Girls

Joseph Hernandez

Thrillist

Raimee Iacofano

Nomadic Matt

Benny Lewis

Fluent in 3 Months

Michael Lisovetsky

JUICE

Kaitlin McMichael

Getty Images

Dan & Audrey

Uncornered Market

Kamila Napora

Kami and the Rest
of the World

Troy Osinoff

JUICE

Sherry Ott

Ottsworld

Jadah Sellner

JadahSellner.com

Sher

Sher She Goes

Mary Ann Thomas

Travel Writer

Erica Virvo

Nomadic Matt

Nicole Wears

Traveling Canucks

We only have 200 tickets left! We’re going to sell out this year so be sure to get your ticket soon. (Once we hit our cap, we do not go over it. I like to keep the experience small and intimate. I’m not ready to turn this event in a multi-thousand person expo.)

Additionally, I want to announce our first round of sponsors! While we have a lot more in the works, here are the first batch of brands you’re going to see at the event. They are going to be doing a lot of great things:

Aweber
AWeber is an easy-to-use email marketing and automation software used by some of the best writers, photographers and content creators around the world, including Ann Handley, Stephen Kamb, and more.

Bluehost
Bluehost is a leading web solutions services provider. They power millions of websites, making them one of the largest and most trusted web hosting services. They are also one of our recommended hosting providers for our course. One of the best value companies out there!

Constant Contact
Constant Contact’s leading email and social media marketing tools personal coaching-help all types of small businesses and organizations create professional-looking email newsletters and social campaigns.

Intrepid Travel

Intrepid Travel is the world’s largest adventure travel company, operating amazing small group experiences in over 120 countries. They specialize in environmental and sustainable tours and are the perferred tour parter of this website!

Mediavine
Mediavine offers full service ad management including display ad optimization, video monetization and sponsored influencer marketing. They’re here to help content creators like yourself build sustainable businesses.

Québec
From lakes to forests and the majestic St. Lawrence River, Québec is a series of jaw-dropping scenery. With breathtaking land and cityscapes, it’s the genuine people and historic culture that really bring Québec to life: year-round festivals, scenic road trips and local flavors are just a few of Québec’s charms.

Singapore Airlines
Singapore Airlines is the flag carrier airline of Singapore. It is ranked as the world’s best airline, since 2018 and is one of my personal favorite carriers. They offer world class service, comfort, food, amazing entertainment, and state of the art seats.

TripAdvisor
TripAdvisor is the world’s largest travel site — helping travelers unleash the full potential of every trip with the latest reviews and the lowest hotel prices.

Unbound Merino
Unbound Merino offers the highest quality merino wool clothing. These clothes are light, tough, and long lasting. Pack light, save money & enjoy the comfort of our merino wool t-shirts, socks & underwear.

Visit Savannah
Savannah, Georgia is a charming Southern escape where art, period architecture, trendy boutiques and ghost stories are all set under a veil of Spanish moss. Savannah is a place where cuisine comes straight from the coast and cocktails are served at every meal.

Walks
Walks offers small group tours in cities around the world. Tours are offered throughout Italy, Paris, New York, and Turkey, where you’ll get exclusive access to behind the scenes areas that no one else gets to see. They are also offering a $200 voucher to all attendees! Take Walks….for free!

***

Tickets are just $399 until the end of March. With this ticket, you’ll have access to all keynotes, sessions, evening parties, networking events, recordings of all the sessions (so don’t worry if you miss anything), any included meals, and the most fun you’ll ever have at an event!

We only have 200 tickets left! We’re going to sell out this year so be sure to get your ticket today. You can get a refund up to 60 days before the event so don’t worry if you aren’t 100% sure of your plans. You can secure your spot without worry today!

This event is going to teach you the practical skills you need to grow your audience and make a career in travel.

So come and attend TravelCon, learn from the best in the industry, and meet other wonderful travel professionals.

See you in Boston!

– Matt

P.S. – If you’re looking to sponsor this year’s event, check out our sponsor page for more information.

The post TravelCon 2019 Update: Final Speakers, First Sponsors appeared first on Nomadic Matt's Travel Site.

Posted: 1/3/2019 | January 3rd, 2019

Are you looking to get into the travel media industry?

Would you like to take your career to the next step?

Well, good!

Because it’s time to talk TravelCon (again).

TravelCon is a conference to help travel creators develop business and professional skills in order to succeed in the travel media space. TravelCon is where you go for hands-on photography and writing lessons, and practical, actionable advice from the best in the industry on marketing, making money, developing long-term partnerships with brands, and so much more.

This year, TravelCon is going to be held in Boston, MA, June 27–29, 2019 at the Westin Copley.

Over the last few months, we’ve been putting the event together more and more and, today, I want to share some of our plans!!!

First, let’s talk about our speakers. This year we have an incredible lineup of keynoters, panelists, and workshop leaders to help you develop your career in the industry. Check out this awesome crew:

Keynote Speakers

Tony Wheeler

Founder, Lonely Planet

Mark Manson

Author, The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck

Cheryl Strayed

Author, Wild

Tahir Shah

Author, The Caliph’s House

Kiersten Rich

The Blonde Abroad

Breakout Session Speakers

Kristin Addis

Be My Travel Muse

Faith Adiele

Author, Meeting Faith

Kirsten Alana

Photographer

Gary Arndt

Everything Everywhere

Gloria Atanmo

The Blog Abroad

Derek Baron

Wandering Earl

Michael Booth

Author, The Almost Nearly
Perfect People

Carol Cain

Girl Gone Travel

Edin Chavez

Shut Your Aperture

Jason Cochran

Frommers

Mike Corey

Fearless & Far

Heather Davis

Globetrotting Mama

Jessica Festa

Jessie on a Journey

Rachel Friedman

The Good Girls Guide to
Getting Lost

Don George

Author, The Way of Wanderlust

Catharine Hamm

Los Angeles Times

Evelyn Hannon

Journey Woman

Clay Hebert

Branding Expert

Jordan Harbinger

The Jordan Harbinger Show

Andrew Hickey

Scott’s Cheap Flights

Spud Hilton

Travel Writer

Mike & Anne Howard

Honey Trek

Rainer Jenss

Family Travel Association

Johnny Jet

Johnny Jet

Matthew Karsten

Expert Vagabond

Stefan Krasowski

Rapid Travel Chai

Gary Leff

View From The Wing

Lebawit Lily Girma

Sunshine and Stilettos

Kent Johnson

Black & Abroad

Jeremy Jones

Living the Dream

Silvia Lawrence

Heart My Backpack

Kristin Luna

Camels & Chocolate

Eric Martin

Black & Abroad

Brian Massey

Conversion Scientist

Laurence Norah

Finding the Universe

Sean Ogle

Location Rebel

Sol Orwell

Examine.com

Annette Richmond

From Annette

Sam McRoberts

VUDU Marketing

Erick Prince

Minority Nomad

Kristen Sarah

Hopscotch the Globe

Patricia Serrano

Fresh Traveler

Thomas Swick

Writer, Unquiet Days

Nadine Sykora

Hey Nadine

Brent Underwood

Brass Check

Siya Zarrabi

Hopscotch the Globe

Ricky Zhang

Prince of Travel

Pretty awesome list, right?

These speakers are experts in their fields and are going to share their successes — and failures — so you can start making money doing what you love. I brought in people from inside and outside of the travel sphere because both have valuable things they can teach us!

And we’re not done yet. We’ll be announcing our final batch of speakers sometime in February. There are still a few more talks and speakers to confirm regarding LGBT travel, sustainability, luxury travel, family travel, and more. Stay tuned!

Second, this year we’re making lots of improvements to the event!

I don’t want to give away too many of our secrets (because that would ruin the surprises we have planned) but some of the improvements we have made over last year include:

• An opening night “round the world” happy hour bingo
• Appointments with sponsors throughout the event (not just the last day)
• Spreading our meetups over two days
• Scheduled book signings with our speakers
• A musical guest
• Longer lunch and coffee breaks
• Some trip giveaways

That’s just the start! As the months go by, we’ll be announcing more speakers, workshops, and brands that will be attending.

To meet demand for the event (we sold out last year), we’re also increasing the number of available tickets to 800.

Ticket are currently $399. With your ticket, you’ll get:

• All the keynotes and sessions
• Workshop registration
• Networking events
• Marketplace appointments
• Expo hall access
• A virtual pass (Can’t make a talk? Don’t worry. You get all the recordings for free!)
• Evening parties
• Any included lunches

Additionally, we have a 60-day refund policy and 30-day transfer policy. I hate conferences that don’t let you get a refund because I know how fluid things are in travel. Life gets in the way sometimes.

So don’t worry if something changes. You’ll be able to get a refund or transfer your ticket without any worry!

We’ve currently sold over 400, so if you’re interested, get them while they last, as we will definitely sell out again! Prices also go up at the end of the month.

So click here to join us in Boston for the best and biggest travel media event of the year!

Can’t wait to see you there!

– Matt

The post TravelCon 2019: New Speakers and Info! appeared first on Nomadic Matt's Travel Site.

Posted: 1/3/2019 | January 3rd, 2019

Are you looking to get into the travel media industry?

Would you like to take your career to the next step?

Well, good!

Because it’s time to talk TravelCon (again).

TravelCon is a conference to help travel creators develop business and professional skills in order to succeed in the travel media space. TravelCon is where you go for hands-on photography and writing lessons, and practical, actionable advice from the best in the industry on marketing, making money, developing long-term partnerships with brands, and so much more.

This year, TravelCon is going to be held in Boston, MA, June 27–29, 2019 at the Westin Copley.

Over the last few months, we’ve been putting the event together more and more and, today, I want to share some of our plans!!!

First, let’s talk about our speakers. This year we have an incredible lineup of keynoters, panelists, and workshop leaders to help you develop your career in the industry. Check out this awesome crew:

Keynote Speakers

Tony Wheeler

Founder, Lonely Planet

Mark Manson

Author, The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck

Cheryl Strayed

Author, Wild

Tahir Shah

Author, The Caliph’s House

Kiersten Rich

The Blonde Abroad

Breakout Session Speakers

Kristin Addis

Be My Travel Muse

Faith Adiele

Author, Meeting Faith

Kirsten Alana

Photographer

Gary Arndt

Everything Everywhere

Gloria Atanmo

The Blog Abroad

Derek Baron

Wandering Earl

Michael Booth

Author, The Almost Nearly
Perfect People

Carol Cain

Girl Gone Travel

Edin Chavez

Shut Your Aperture

Jason Cochran

Frommers

Mike Corey

Fearless & Far

Heather Davis

Globetrotting Mama

Jessica Festa

Jessie on a Journey

Rachel Friedman

The Good Girls Guide to
Getting Lost

Don George

Author, The Way of Wanderlust

Catharine Hamm

Los Angeles Times

Evelyn Hannon

Journey Woman

Clay Hebert

Branding Expert

Jordan Harbinger

The Jordan Harbinger Show

Andrew Hickey

Scott’s Cheap Flights

Spud Hilton

Travel Writer

Mike & Anne Howard

Honey Trek

Rainer Jenss

Family Travel Association

Johnny Jet

Johnny Jet

Matthew Karsten

Expert Vagabond

Stefan Krasowski

Rapid Travel Chai

Gary Leff

View From The Wing

Lebawit Lily Girma

Sunshine and Stilettos

Kent Johnson

Black & Abroad

Jeremy Jones

Living the Dream

Silvia Lawrence

Heart My Backpack

Kristin Luna

Camels & Chocolate

Eric Martin

Black & Abroad

Brian Massey

Conversion Scientist

Laurence Norah

Finding the Universe

Sean Ogle

Location Rebel

Sol Orwell

Examine.com

Annette Richmond

From Annette

Sam McRoberts

VUDU Marketing

Erick Prince

Minority Nomad

Kristen Sarah

Hopscotch the Globe

Patricia Serrano

Fresh Traveler

Thomas Swick

Writer, Unquiet Days

Nadine Sykora

Hey Nadine

Brent Underwood

Brass Check

Siya Zarrabi

Hopscotch the Globe

Ricky Zhang

Prince of Travel

Pretty awesome list, right?

These speakers are experts in their fields and are going to share their successes — and failures — so you can start making money doing what you love. I brought in people from inside and outside of the travel sphere because both have valuable things they can teach us!

And we’re not done yet. We’ll be announcing our final batch of speakers sometime in February. There are still a few more talks and speakers to confirm regarding LGBT travel, sustainability, luxury travel, family travel, and more. Stay tuned!

Second, this year we’re making lots of improvements to the event!

I don’t want to give away too many of our secrets (because that would ruin the surprises we have planned) but some of the improvements we have made over last year include:

• An opening night “round the world” happy hour bingo
• Appointments with sponsors throughout the event (not just the last day)
• Spreading our meetups over two days
• Scheduled book signings with our speakers
• A musical guest
• Longer lunch and coffee breaks
• Some trip giveaways

That’s just the start! As the months go by, we’ll be announcing more speakers, workshops, and brands that will be attending.

To meet demand for the event (we sold out last year), we’re also increasing the number of available tickets to 800.

Ticket are currently $399. With your ticket, you’ll get:

• All the keynotes and sessions
• Workshop registration
• Networking events
• Marketplace appointments
• Expo hall access
• A virtual pass (Can’t make a talk? Don’t worry. You get all the recordings for free!)
• Evening parties
• Any included lunches

Additionally, we have a 60-day refund policy and 30-day transfer policy. I hate conferences that don’t let you get a refund because I know how fluid things are in travel. Life gets in the way sometimes.

So don’t worry if something changes. You’ll be able to get a refund or transfer your ticket without any worry!

We’ve currently sold over 400, so if you’re interested, get them while they last, as we will definitely sell out again! Prices also go up at the end of the month.

So click here to join us in Boston for the best and biggest travel media event of the year!

Can’t wait to see you there!

– Matt

The post TravelCon 2019: New Speakers and Info! appeared first on Nomadic Matt's Travel Site.