Travel writing
If the shoe fits...
Disclaimer: Views of the author are his. If you share them, you should read my RV industry post https://bigfokkerdog.com/time-for-a-change-in-the-rv-industry/.
ALSO, I write this blog for my entertainment and Posterity as well as being a way to remind me of our adventures.
It seems that every person writes about travel (yes, I realize I’m in this group). I find the current travel industry journalist is in danger of taking the way to the dark side of the mainstream news about everything.
I receive a couple of online magazines per month along with a number of blogs that I subscribe to. I also watch a number of YT videos put out by popular posters. I like many of them and there are some that I watch religiously. There are also many that I can’t or won’t bear to watch ever again.
Here is my question: At what point are you, as a writer, going to get off the fence? I get that you are hoping for, or have, or really want, an endorsement from X company to help out your travel funds. I also get that in todays world, you do not desire to form an actual opinion for fear of offending someone or their ideals. GET OVER IT.
Form an opinion and state what is good or bad about your subject based on your review or experience or the views of persons you know and trust to give a review. If you are talking about the same thing every other writer is talking about, perhaps you could take a new tack and not re-hash the same stuff every writer is hitting on.
I recently read a fresh article in the February 2023 issue of an online magazine published by a large company about the options for internet connectivity while on the road as an RV’er. It might as well have been published 6 years ago with the addition of Starlink to the text. There was no new information on any hardware out there with the exception of the new satellite system and the entire article left me wondering exactly what an experienced or new RV owner would get from it to start or upgrade their systems for gaining internet access while on the road. I literally gleaned the exact sum of zero and was left with no knowledge of how to actually start a system or even get the information to begin. All that was there was the author’s Amazon links to the various hardware along with non-committal text.
Every article I have read in the mainstream RV media has been pretty much the same regurgitated stuff.
I watched a recent YT celebrity couple touting Their new RV that they had purchased, maybe? They “helped” re-design the rig with the design team and took delivery and have not “in my opinion” been forthright about how much they actually influenced the build, what the vehicle cost may have been, nor how bad the final product was. In today’s world I feel that they are either gagged (by corporate tape) from telling the reality of their “inside knowledge” of the industry/manufacturer or unwilling to compromise their situation. I get this, but why wouldn’t you inform the consumers of the manufacturers practices either way? All experienced RV’ers “know” how bad the industry is, Why do we accept it? The time to soft pedal around the issues regarding build quality and warranty work is over. We, the consumers who have a platform (writers/YT celebs) need to step up and make the consumer and the entire industry aware that current practices need to change. FULL disclosure; this couple is now posting their upgrades and fixes and every video tells of how they hope the design and repairs are evolving and what they are submitting to the manufacturer is being implemented.
Questions for brand ambassadors: How much was their discount? How long did it take from design changes to manufacture? How much reimbursement are they getting for being brand ambassadors? Are you being honest with your followers about the product or just shamelessly taking the money? No one needs to know your annual income, but it would be nice to have an idea whether or not it is worth it in my bottom line to hawk a particular company’s product. Recently a shake up occurred in the RV industry concerning internet. At least two of the brand ambassadors for Nomad Internet disclosed that by losing that endorsement contract they are losing half their income. A; That’s a big hit and B; I did the research on this provider and found that they were no better than my current cell provider.
Shameless proposition to all manufacturers of RV/hiking equipment: Send me your stuff and I’ll use and review it. Just don’t expect me to fluff job you. You get a real honest opinion from me with no holds barred.
Just my opinions here. I believe in using equipment to it’s intended purpose and beyond. Kinda like MythBusters for the end user.
Let’s write about new stuff. Let’s entice old and new adventurers to get out and explore with us on a global nature. I want to see the new, young hikers out amongst the trees or the sage enjoying the wonderful nature we have. I want to see the old jaded hiker out on new or old trails, looking for the new in the world.
OOPS, sorry readers, I had to go outside. Where was I, oh yea…
Let’s invite folks outside, let’s go for the hike, let’s get the old timer out on a trail again. Write exciting stuff. Tell a story to go along with those fancy britches you are reviewing, maybe include the scuff marks on them where you slipped on that boulder scramble.
Let’s put a load on that new battery and see if it works as described in the company propaganda. Can you really chain two generators together and get the A/C to start? How about that tote, is it really that much easier than hooking up your rig to go to the dump station? Show us, we all know what sewage looks like, we are all adults here.
Anyway… My author rant is over. Let’s write articles that make people want to get outside and stay there. Maybe they want to hike with you or me (I am always open to new wandering friends) or they want to experience what our life has to offer to them if they choose.
Let’s go outside,
BFD
