We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Betsi Hill a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Betsi, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. Let’s jump right into how you came up with the idea?

For four years, my husband Jim and I lived on a 47′ sailing catamaran and spent our time exploring the United States’ east coast and the islands of the Bahamas. Everyone wanted to hear our stories, the people we met, the places we went, and the food…always the food!

Seeing the potential stories I found about the people, the places, and the culture, I wanted to share those experiences with others.

I began my first blog, BetsiWorld, to share our stories and keep in touch with friends and family. It was scary and intimidating, but I jumped into travel writing in 2013. As a travel writer, I was able to share all the stories and got paid to write those stories.

The tech side is my weakness and the terrifying part of being a digital creator! The transition was challenging for a type A, perfect planner personality.

It was scary, leaping into the unknown with no safety net to catch me and having to learn all the tech skills of blogging.

Betsi, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

I am a travel blogger, influencer, and traveling storyteller who loves to promote destinations and businesses and tell the stories of the faces behind the places.

Sitting down and chatting with business owners and writing their stories is an honor. And our readers love to know more about the people behind the businesses we write about.

I am expanding this segment of my business, so if any of your readers are looking for this type of publicity, I would love to talk with them and work together to tell their stories.

My stories have appeared in publications including Travel Awaits, International Living, She Buys Travel, and FYI 50+.

I’ve had the privilege of appearing on television and podcasts, sharing travel tips, vacation destination ideas, and more.

In addition to travel writing, I am creating products for travelers, including the Ultimate Vacation Planner, 2023 Yearly Planner + Party Planning Pages, and the newest product, The Ultimate Florida Vacation Planning Guide.

Can you share a story from your journey that illustrates your resilience?

In 2013 I began the writing journey, doing freelance travel writing, which is working with various publications interested in a particular topic you cover or write. During this time, I was also working on the first website, BetsiWorld.

The freelance travel writing soared, while the blogging journey did not. However, I did not give up on the idea of travel blogging. Instead, I doubled down, worked hard, and now that site produces some income.

I continued to freelance, pitching stories to publications, and have been successful in this endeavor. The more I pitched, the more my stories got accepted. And now, I regularly write for several publications.

I am still blogging as well. I have two websites – BetsiWorld.com and FloridaTravelDestination.com.

I have a lot of fortitude and tenacity, which keep me focused on my path.

I knew we had a story that would resonate with readers, but it is still intimidating, taking a leap of faith and leaving the corporate world of comfort and trading it in for the unknown.

We’d love to hear the story of how you built up your social media audience?

Social media plays a massive role in the writing world, but this is especially true in the travel writing world. Social media is imperative whether you are a freelance writer, blogger, author, influencer, destination, or business.

People want to see a glimpse into your world. And that is what a social media presence does for you and your business.

Growing a social media presence takes consistency. Whether you post once a week or four times daily, you must post consistently so your audience knows you will be showing up.

Contact Info:

• Website: betsiworld.com AND floridatraveldestination.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/betsiworld AND https://www.instagram.com/floridatraveldestination/
• Facebook: facebook.com/betsisworld AND facebook.com/floridatraveldestination
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/betsihill/

Image Credits
Jim Hill