After Google introduced a new update in March, Stay 22 The travel technology company, which provides affiliate revenue generation opportunities for travel bloggers and media, reported that some travel bloggers saw an immediate drop in organic traffic of up to 75%. The company uses artificial intelligence and machine learning technology to connect online travel content creators, such as bloggers and media publications, with travel sellers' affiliate marketing programs.
Meanwhile, the entire travel industry is being affected, with many sites that rely on organic search, such as hotels and smaller OTAs, seeing significant drops in traffic.
Google has never publicly detailed how its search algorithm works, and has always said that new updates are in the best interest of search users and are not intended to disrupt or harm websites themselves, even ironically calling one of its updates the “Helpful Content Update” (HCU). Google has been criticized for being “opaque” in this regard, as the company has only issued high-level guidance on how websites should respond. Digitaloft Survey Since the first HCU was introduced in August 2022, 78% of the 671 travel websites analyzed have shown a loss of traffic.
Additionally, a recently leaked internal Google document revealed that: SEO Expert Erfan Azimi and, Google APIs Content Warehouse – Not only did it reveal details about how the algorithm worked (which was unfair according to those who saw it), but it also revealed that in some cases Google may have been misleading by providing websites with information that was probably not true.
Rami Nuseir, Head of Marketing at Stay22, said: “The recent leaks show that Google is not only not transparent with website owners, but often misleads us. This should be the final straw for Stay22 and the wider travel media and blogger community. Some of Google's changes seem a bit unfair to me as they are not valuing quality websites. Why should we trust Google if we cannot be sure they are not helping us and misleading us? How do we know they are not just trying to force us to buy Google ads? Personally I feel that is what Google is about.”
“Until now, many people who rely on web traffic from Google have simply shrugged their shoulders and said, 'Oh no, I need Google.' But we don't agree with that approach. We strongly encourage travel bloggers, or anyone in the travel industry who relies on organic traffic, to diversify away from Google and find other sources of traffic for their website. It won't be easy, and it won't happen overnight, but little by little, you can become independent of Google.”“
To achieve this, Stay22, which works with over 2,500 travel bloggers and travel media websites, suggests five actions that travel content creators (or any travel professional who relies on website traffic) should consider taking immediately to diversify.
- Leverage PinterestAlthough many consider it a social media platform, It works better as a search enginewhich has become a high traffic source for many bloggers.
- Develop a Bing strategy: Bing's share of the global search market fluctuates between 3% and 4%, but remember that in some markets it's much higher (notably the US). That's a huge number of users. Unlike Google, Bing is very transparent about its ranking factors and has a URL analyzer that recommends how to improve your content for Bing SEO.
- Don’t underestimate the importance of your email marketing campaigns. No matter what happens, this channel is yours to own.
- Add content FlipboardThis can be automated through RSS feeds. Article curation websites allow users to browse articles from various publications such as magazines.
- Create short videos for social media to help people discover your website.
- Start publishing guest posts on other websites to attract new readers.