Our Journey as Travel Bloggers: From Dreams to Reality

Hey, everyone! In this quite different of a post, we’re excited to take you along on our journey as travel bloggers and YouTubers. It’s been a wild ride over the past two years, filled with lessons learned, challenges faced, and countless adventures.

Today, we want to share how we started our blog, The Fabryk, and why you should consider starting your own blog, too!

How We Met

Our story began in Berlin, where we met at a club...a classic Berlin romance! Fabio was living in West Germany in Cologne, and I was in Berlin. From the moment we started dating, we knew we wanted more than our 9-to-5 jobs. They were draining our creativity and joy. We began traveling back and forth to see one another, and soon enough, we decided to give up our apartments in both cities and embrace a life of full-time travel.

One of our very first dates together, in the thick of the Covid-19 era.

The Birth of The Fabryk

It all started back in August 2022 when we decided to launch our blog. We wanted a name that represented us, and thus, The Fabryk was born; a fusion of our names that just felt right. Initially, we faced a lot of fears and challenges. The technical aspects of starting a blog were daunting, but we realized that sometimes you just have to throw yourself into it. We bought a domain and created a YouTube channel, and from there, we began to grow.

Our first blog iteration! We used a template and did not do must customization in the early days.

Defining Our Niches

When we began, our focus was on digital nomadism. We wrote about living as house-sitters and digital nomads in places like Cape Town and Bali. However, as we analyzed our analytics, we noticed a shift in our audience's interests. We decided to pivot toward our identities as a gay couple and started producing content centered around gay travel and off-the-beaten-path destinations. This change resonated well with our readers, validating our new direction.

Our blog posts about LGBTQ+ topics and off-the-beaten-path places tend to do a lot better than our original niches.

Working Together as a Couple

Working together has strengthened our relationship in many ways. We share the same interests and bounce ideas off one another. However, it’s not without its challenges. Sometimes, it feels like we’re in a business relationship rather than a romantic one. To maintain balance, we’ve developed routines that include workouts and personal time, allowing us to recharge and keep our relationship healthy.

One of the many times blowing off blog frustration with a run.

The Early Blog Days

Setting up the blog was no easy feat. As a software developer, I took charge of the technical side, using NextJS to create our site. We started with a basic template and iterated as we went along. Fabio, being a talented video editor, focused on our YouTube content, putting together our first videos and laying the groundwork for our visual storytelling.

Our earliest YouTube vids.

First Wins

Initially, our goals were modest...we simply wanted to replace our unsatisfying job salaries (okay, this is actually a pretty big feat). But small milestones kept us motivated. When one of our videos started gaining traction, or when we made our first few cents through affiliate links, it felt like a huge victory.

It’s all about those little wins that keep the momentum going!

Lessons Learned

One of the biggest lessons we learned is the sheer amount of work blogging requires. It’s often more demanding than a full-time job. You have to be persistent, especially when you hit those low points. We learned that while it’s important to share our stories, it’s crucial to provide value to our audience as well. Balancing personal narratives with helpful content has been key to our growth.

You'll often find yourself putting in hours, even on a random bus, to find the success you dream of...but it's worth it.

How We Started to Monetize

Now, let’s talk about how we started monetizing our blog early on. If you’re looking to make some money right off the bat, consider implementing affiliate marketing, where you recommend products or services through links and earn a bit of commission if a reader makes a purchase through your link.

For affiliate marketing, Stay22 has been the biggest game-changer, which helps travelers find accommodations, and we earn a commission for every booking made through our links.

As traction started to grow a bit, we were able to join our first ad network. Currently, we use Journey by Mediavine for monetizing our content through ads, which had a minimum threshold of 10,000 sessions per month at the time. Over time, we hope to switch to a higher rpm (ad revenue per thousand impressions) network, like Raptive of Mediavine.

Affiliate marketing and early-stage ad networks have allowed us to start earning while we continue to grow.

One of my favorite things is checking the Stay22 stats on the daily.

Final Thoughts

If you’re thinking about starting a blog, just go for it! Don’t wait for the perfect moment or design. Passion and persistence are what matter most. We encourage you to embrace your unique story and start sharing it with the world. We’re excited to continue documenting our journey, and we hope to inspire you to start your own adventure!

Thank you for joining us on this ride! If you have any questions or want to share your own experiences, feel free to comment below. Happy blogging!