译者注：旅游网站的成功离不开用户的认同，也离不开搜索引擎的收录。本文是SEO基础知识在旅游网站的应用，Tim Hughes与Alex提供的15条速成规则，围绕“内容”这一网站根本，从内容的来源，到内容的选择，以及内容的组织形式等方面进行了详细的阐述。
Tim Hughes在The Boot（一个在线旅游博客）上提出了旅游内容网站的4条速成规则：
1、内容——大量内容。网站流量主要来源于搜索引擎。为了让搜索引擎信任你，为了得到充足的长尾流量，你要跟搜索引擎搞好关系。没有什么能比优质的内容更好建立关系了。这并不意味着规模大就好，而是需要质量和数量的结合。有时候你会需要消费者的帮助（即用户信息内容）来达到数量。
2、收录——显著的Google友好收录以及专长搜索优化。如果搜索引擎不能读取或者找不到，大量的内容也是没什么用的。Hotelscombined.com的Yury Shar认为要同时为Google和消费者做网站。收录可同时反应二者情况，为此你需要精通用户体验和精通搜索引擎的人来共同工作。
3、访问方式——消费者访问内容的不同方法和手段。消费者选择不同的方式访问和使用内容：旧式网站、RSS、电子邮件订阅、泡博客、widgets、社会网络等等。你不能从第一天开始就向所有人提供所有的东西，但你的系统要能提供不同的访问和共享方式，否则，你就会失去消费者。
4、耐心——用于等待流量建设的时间（和金钱）。搜索引擎信任你、消费者注意你是需要时间的。从反复无常的消费者行为带来的高峰期和低谷期熬过来是需要勇气的。流量的暴涨会莫名其妙地到来，又走掉。（未加入Google adsence的）广告客户在做报酬丰厚的CPM广告之前，希望看到成功的历史记录。
这些都是很棒的规则。我想补充一些：
5、营造合适的环境，让人们愿意通过你的网站发布自己的内容。不是去雇用10个作家（或摄影师），而是（通过社区的力量）让人们相信，把他们的内容发布在你网站，其好处超出他们所花费的时间（比如，如果你是一个旅游摄影网站，那么你需要为用户提供更多的好处，让他们将度假的照片放在你的网站，而不是别人的，也不是仅仅将照片刻入CD，邮寄给家庭成员）。
6、分配给其他网站——一旦你有内容，让它自由地在网络传播……可以是完整内容，或“点评”，它们会将人们带回到你的中央网站。
7、保持更新——内容很快就会陈旧。你必须不断重访旧的内容，看它是否仍是正确的。更好的是，让你的用户来提醒你旧的或不新鲜的内容。
8、不要只迷信CPM广告——而是有“别的方式”。尝试卖东西。如果它是很棒的内容（并且别的地方找不到），试试用订阅的方式。
9、让别人操作你网站的内容——人们是否来你网站的原因之一可能是他们能够如何根据所需调整内容。如果你有大量关于人们可以在某个目的地度过的不同假期的数据可以在朋友间共享，让人们使用这数据创造旅游线路。
10、做好一件事，而不是所有事。比如在令人惊奇的细节上做一个目的地，而不是整个国家（或全球）。或者说你应该创造一个锤子，螺丝刀等，而不是制造一整个工具箱，但要做最好的锤，最好的螺丝刀……让别人制造锯和卷尺。
11、跟踪人们在你的网站上用你的内容做什么——你可以通过这些了解趋势，而且这些趋势可能会对旅游公司有商业价值。如果你开始让很多人在你的网站上研究一种新的旅行，这个数据可能会令旅游公司感兴趣。
12、确定你是要成为“专家主导”还是“用户主导”（然后坚持下去）。如果你是某一话题的专家，则展示这一专长，但不要使得不是很专业（但有见识）的人可以来“借用”你的想法和信息。如果你是用户主导（社区），则坚持这一点。如果你能将两者结合起来，你就可能会形成强有力的联合。
13、尽量“全年无休”创建内容——例如，人们在研究他们的旅程、或者购物、或者就是在出游之前、或者正在旅行，他们想提醒自己的时候寻找内容。许多旅游网站侧重于旅行的研究方面，往往忽略了一切其他的机会。你可能觉得这与第10条：做好一件事矛盾。除非你全年无休，否则你的收入流过去一年可能是在变化的，这可导致要么相信你正做得漂亮，要么你的网站从来没工作过。
14、我喜欢基于需要，而不是基于愿望的内容（或任何商务）——旅行（作为度假），通常是基于愿望的（不过一旦你已经决定去度假，你会需要了解一些资料）。但商务旅行常常以需要为基础。你需要去某一特定城市的特定会议。基于需要原则，往往更容易打造出商业模式。
15、整理著作权——如果你聘请作家，让协议到位。如果用户正在为你创建内容，你有怎样的重新使用的权利？如果在2年内你要出版一本书，或做视频，你能使用内容吗？如果你接受提议，将你的内容放到另一个网站上会发生什么？你是否已经涵盖了这些？或者你是否需要重新与你的用户/作家谈判？
还有什么规则？
作者：Alex
原文链接：http://www.tourcms.com/blog/2008/01/04/travel-content-start-ups-11-more-rules-for-success/
Travel content start ups…… 11 more rules for success
Tim Hughes over on The BOOT (a blog about the online travel business) has come up with 4 quick rules for success for a travel content focussed website:
1: Content - lots of it. The main source of traffic you are going to receive is from search engines. For a search engine to trust you and for the scale of long tail traffic to be sufficient you are going to need to be adjudged "relevant" by search engines. Nothing establishes relevance better that a constant stream of good quality content. Does not mean that size is better but need a mix of quality and quantity. Chances are you will need the help of consumers to get you to the quantity threshold (ie user gen content);
2: Index - a fantastic Google friendly index and expertise in search optimisation. It is no good to have great content if the search engines can't read it or find it. Yury Shar of Hotelscombined.com said design the site for both Google and consumers. You need smart consumer/UI people and smart search engine people to work together for the index that speaks to both;
3: Access methods-varying ways and means for consumers to access the content. Consumers are choosing very different ways to access and use content - old fashion websites, RSS, email subscription, embedding in blogs, widgets, social networks etc. You cannot provide all things to all people from day one but your system needs to be able to support different access and sharing methods or you will cut off customers; and
4: Patience -time (and money) to wait for the traffic to build. It takes time for the search engines to trust you and the consumers to care. It takes intestinal fortitude to survive the peaks and troughs of the whims of consumer behaviour. Bursts of traffic will come and then go away - inexplicably. Advertisers (outside of Google adsense) will want to see a history of success before committing to big juicy CPM campaigns.
These are great rules. I would add a few more:
5: Create the right environment where people want to publish their own content via your site. Instead of hiring 10 writers (or photographers), convince people (through the power of community) that the benefits of putting their content on your site outweigh the time it will take them (For example, if you are a travel photo website - then you need to create more benefit for a user to post their holiday photos on your website than on someone else’s, or versus just chucking photos on a CD and putting them in the post to family members)
6: Distribution to other websites - Once you have content - let it free to travel around the web…… this may either be full content - or a “taster”, bringing people back to your central website.
7: Keep it fresh - content goes stale quickly. You need to be constantly revisiting old content to check it is still correct. Even better, get your users to alert you to old or stale content.
8: Don’t monetise through CPM advertising - but “something else”. Try selling things. If its great content (and can’t be found anywhere else), then try a subscription model.
9: Let people manipulate content on your site - One reason people may want to come to your site is how they can alter the content around what they want to do. If you have lots of data about different holidays that people can take in a certain destination - let people create travel itineraries using this data - which can be shared between friends etc.
10: Do one thing well - rather than everything at a top level. For example do one destination at an amazing level of detail - rather than an entire country (or the globe). Perhaps instead of creating an entire tool box, you should create a hammer, a screwdriver etc….. but make the best hammers, the best screwdrivers….. let someone else create the saw and the tape measure.
11: Track what people are doing on your website with your content - you may be able to understand trends from this - and these trends may have commercial value to travel companies. If you start getting lots of people researching a new kind of travel via your site - this data may be interesting to a travel company.
12: Decide if you are going to be “expert lead” or “user lead” (and then stick to it). If you are an expert on a topic - then somehow expose this expertise - but without doing so in such a way that a less expert (but knowledgeable) person could come and “borrow” your ideas and information. If you are user lead (by community) then stick with that. If you can join both together you could have a powerful combination.
13: Try to create content that is “all year round” - For example will people just be looking for content when they are thinking of researching their trip - or when buying - or just before travel - or post travel when they want to remind themselves what it was like. Many travel websites focus on the research side of travel….. but tend to forget about all the other opportunities. You may think this conflicts with rule 10 - do one thing well - but unless you are all year round - your revenue stream may not be constant over the year - which can lead either to believe you are doing wonderfully - or that your website is never going to work.
14: I prefer content (or any business) that is based around need rather than around desire - Travel (as a holiday) is normally desire based (but once you have decided to go on holiday, you may need to know certain information). However business travel is often need based. You need to go to a particular meeting in a particular city. Its often easier to create a commercial model based around the principle of need.
15: Get your copyrights sorted out - If you are employing writers, get agreements in place. If users are creating the content for you - what reuse rights do you have? If in 2 years time you want to publish a book - or make a video - can you use the content? What happens if you receive an offer to put your content on another website? Are you covered for that or would you have to renegotiate with your users / writers?
Any more rules?
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