Travel Case Study
Directing a Travel Agency on the SEO Map with Strategic Link Building
A well-known and reputable independent travel agency offering culturally immersive and personalized travel experiences faced a massive digital roadblock: online invisibility. While the brand offered carefully curated personal travel itineraries and had a devoted clientele, their website was buried beneath online travel agencies and big-scale platforms. The company lacked authority in Google’s eyes, and an absence of a strong digital footprint became a barrier to its growth.
The first few pages of Google were dominated by mass-market travel blogs and aggregator sites, their website was not ranking for any relevant high-intent search terms. They had low domain authority and a weak backlink profile, which made competing with big travel blogs and aggregator sites impossible. It was evident that they required a smarter approach to content positioning and link building strategies that would enable search engines to identify their authority and reliability in their field.
Strategic Vision
Rather than attempting to compete with large booking platforms using general travel keywords, the focus shifted towards building expertise in specific travel niches. The strategy was aimed at positioning the agency as more than merely just a travel service, but as a reliable source for experience-led travel content.
This meant coming up with an outreach plan and going beyond the typical “Top 10” lists, to not only help with domain authority but also open new pathways to indirect traffic. The solution lay in building a comprehensive approach that would strengthen rankings for both niche destination keywords and broader intent-driven phrases like “cultural travel experiences” or “guided tours in Central Asia.”
Our Course of Action
We understood that a solid foundation wouldn’t suffice – it needed to be paired with scalable and strategic execution. With a definitive direction established we executed a comprehensive plan that addressed the site’s authority, shortfalls, and enhanced critical landing pages while establishing the site as a reliable voice in its niche. Every action was taken in sync with long-term search value and brand credibility.
- Audited and Consolidated Content: We started with a comprehensive SEO content evaluation. Articles that were underperforming were revamped, outdated parts were updated, and well-performing pages were enhanced for both search relevance and user interaction.
- Location based visibility: We focused on location based-visibility by pinpointing relevant travel directories, regional tourism websites, and cultural organisations that could list the company and offer relevant backlinks. These placements helped contribute to an increase in both domain authority and referral traffic from targeted travel audiences.
- Deep dive into link opportunities: An in-depth exploration of link opportunities within the niche allowed us to create a targeted list of blogs, online magazines, and travel publications that were open to featuring our client’s content. We prioritised publishers that specialised in slow, immersive travel experiences and ethical tourism. We employed our most effective outreach methods to contact them for backlinks.
- An outreach initiative was launched to finalise the plan. After a brief period, we began to receive backlinks from reputable websites, significantly enhancing traffic and visibility on the client’s website.
The Result
Due to the multi-faceted strategies that we used, our client experiences a steady increase in search visibility. Their website started to rank for both narrow and travel-related keywords. Organic traffic grew, and the brand started attracting potential travellers through content instead of advertisements. At the beginning of our consultation, the website had organic traffic of just 41, but by the end of January 2025, the traffic was at 214, which is a major increase by 421.95%! Simultaneously, brand impressions in search results surged, the number of keywords ranking in positions 1–3 grew from 29 to 76, representing a 1300% increase. Similarly, keywords ranking in positions 4–10 rose from 8 to 31, marking a 287.5% increase. Even in positions 11–50, we saw a significant jump from 32 to 79 keywords, another 1300% increase. By focusing on outreach, story-telling, and in-depth topics, our clients were able to establish a lasting digital footprint customised to their niche in the travel industry.
442%
Traffic Increase
1300%
Visibility Increase
Number of Keywords Ranking on Google SERPs
| Google Position | February, 2023 | January, 2024 | Percent Increase |
| 1-3 | 28 | 76 | 1300% |
| 4-10 | 8 | 31 | 287.5% |
| 11-50 | 32 | 79 | 1300% |
- More Traffic
- More Impressions
- More Clicks
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