Presenter: Jim Cheney, Uncovering PA Title: The Story of UncoveringPA (and What You Can Learn From It)

1. The Story of UncoveringPA
And What You Can Learn From It
Speaker: Jim Cheney
UncoveringPA.com

4. Finding My Niche
• No blog from visitPA
• Only a few blogs from other visitor bureaus
• No bloggers covering all of PA and just PA
• Few print guidebooks for areas outside of Philly

5. Refining the Niche
• Asked what people thought of when I said
“Pennsylvania”
• Travel experience gave me a unique
perspective
• Honesty very important
• Visual content was lacking on other sites

6. What’s Your Niche?

7. Problems I Faced in the Beginning
• Didn’t feel I knew enough to be an expert
on PA travel
• No one else was doing exactly what I was
doing
• Didn’t know anyone in the industry
• SEO issues from established sites

8. SEO Problem

13. When I First Started…
• I thought videos would be very popular
• I thought popular places would be top posts
• I thought site’s signature would be honesty

14. However, I’ve Learned that…
• videos aren’t that popular
• off-beat places do much better
• outdoor attractions tend to be the most
popular
• site is known for finding unknown places
• the more in-depth the better

15. Adjust as You Go
• Always be willing to tweak your blog
• Never be afraid to try something new
• Conduct a survey to ask your readers what
they want
• Targeted marketing is invaluable
• Use Google Analytics, Facebook metrics, etc.
to find out what your audience wants

20. 5 Things I Learned
• Treat your blog like a business from day 1
• Always be thinking about your niche and
audience
• Maximize your strengths and overcome your
weaknesses
• Marketing is important (and will be even more
important in the future)
• Be persistent

21. Have Questions?
Jim@UncoveringPA.com
Twitter: @UncoveringPA