Here’s What You Had to Say – the 2012 Reader Survey Results
I asked and you kindly gave me your opinions. Thank you.
It was fascinating and fantastic!
In all, 218 people responded to my reader survey and I send my sincere thanks to each of you. Your opinions have made it much more clear for whom I’m writing, what you need and where to focus my effort. Below are images from the actual survey results but, before you scroll down to them, I’ll let you know what this means for Solo Traveler.
My Travels will be different in 2013
Clearly many people are interested in tours and packaged holidays. I’ve not taken one before but that is going to change – starting next month. From November 11 to 17 I’ll be taking a river cruise thanks to Uniworld and Premier River Cruises. Next year I will try to build at least two more tours into my plans. I don’t know what they’ll be at the moment but I’ll let you know when I do. And I’ll give you full reports on my experiences.
Most of my travels to date have been international yet your comments point out that you are interested in domestic travel as well. So, I’ll try to cover more of North America in 2013 as well.
My Writing and You
Your responses also told me what type of posts you valued most on Solo Traveler. To get a good picture of this, I added up the first three scores of each option. What you want more of was very clear:
- Travel Alone Tips – 79.3
- Solo Travel Safety – 62.3
- Travel Stories – 63.7
But that isn’t the whole story. Thankfully, I also asked what you want more of on Solo Traveler. This was revealing. I had thought it was enough to write about solo travel. Well, I learned that it’s not. The main reason that you don’t travel more often and the number one theme that you want more of on Solo Traveler is money-saving advice. I raised four sons, while being an entrepreneur. I have always been pretty good with money so I’m going to find and share more innovative ways to make travel more affordable.
For Solo Travel Newbies
Inexperience and safety were low on the reasons for not traveling more – clearly, you are more sophisticated travelers. However, I want to support the newbies so I’m going to create a resource for the beginner solo traveler. It will take time but I’ll get to it.
My Own Goals for 2013
My number one goal for 2013 is deliver more of what you want and need from Solo Traveler. This means:
- More about solo travel tips, safety and money saving tactics.
- Interviews of experts on topics that require more expertise than I have.
- More stories on my experiences including itineraries and costs where possible.
- An expanded Solo Traveler Advisory and Deals page giving you more ways to save. If you don’t already receive the Advisory on the 3rd Monday of the month, sign up for the Solo Traveler Newsletter on the right sidebar and you will.
- A resource section for solo travel newbies.
- More meetups and public speaking.
Fascinating and Fantastic
I mean it when I say that the feedback was fantastic and fascinating. Until now I have been guessing about what is most important to you based on what is read the most. Turns out that was a poor measure. There was so much more information to gather. Thank you for sharing your time and opinions. I hope to make it well worth your while for the next 12 months – when there will be another survey.
