Rustic Pathways website

In 2019, the Rustic Pathways homepage needed an update. It didn’t tell the right story for new users, which had increased with a renewed emphasis on SEO. I rewrote the copy, including new differentiator messaging, and worked with the web designer to create site functionality that would accommodate other useful elements like video, testimonials and press mentions. I also rewrote copy to incorporate SEO on interior Inside Rustic pages, which you can access from the mega menu.

Blog post: How to Get a U.S. Passport in 2 Weeks

My most-viewed blog post about how to quickly get or renew a passport turned out to be more relevant for our audience of first-time travelers and their parents than I expected. It continued generating about 400 pageviews each month more than two years after it was published.

Press releases and internal communications

As the Content Manager, I was also responsible for writing and promoting company news in press releases and internal communications announcements to employees. To generate press interest, I communicated regularly with travel and education reporters at regional and national news organizations.

Video copy and script writing

I wrote captions and scripts for videos before eventually taking over management of the creation and promotion of Rustic Pathways video projects. I worked with a third-party video producer to plan and execute videos to promote the company and new travel programs on the web and social and through email.

Series: Growing Pains

I reported a three-part series about Colorado’s then-booming medical marijuana industry for the Steamboat Pilot & Today. The Colorado Press Association and the Colorado Associated Press Editors and Reporters recognized my work among the top features and business stories of the year.

Part 1: An Industry Ignites

Part 2: Green Rush

Part 3: Blazing the Trail

Ongoing coverage: Residents taxed incorrectly by Verizon

My continuing coverage helped resolve the tax issue for county residents.

Part 1: Some Routt County residents wrongly paying Steamboat sales tax

Part 2: Verizon Wireless asks for Routt County customers’ help with tax issue

Part 3: Sales tax issue being resolved in Steamboat

Education feature: 2 high school seniors present energy study to Ski Corp.

I covered education in Steamboat for two years and I loved having the opportunity to tell stories about exceptional students. One of my first feature stories about a couple of high school seniors who conducted a study about the feasibility of wind energy at Steamboat Ski Area was one of my favorites.

Pitched story: Your 6-point checklist for moving abroad

Before moving to Eswatini, I did a lot of research about what I needed to do to leave my stateside life behind and wrote about the experience for Policygenius. Most of it involved getting my finances in order.

Pitched story: What extreme sports junkies need to know when traveling abroad

I wrote about the process I used to evaluate travel medical and evacuation insurance companies before hiking Mt. Kilimanjaro for Policygenius.

Daily story: Correction Officer Indicted on Charges Related to Inmate's Death

In addition to writing this daily story and others for hyperlocal news site DNAinfo, I was on the team that covered the Pope Frances’ visit to New York in 2015.

Daily editing: Freelance blog posts

To appeal to Rustic Pathway’s educator audience, I recruited teachers who had traveled with students to blog about how those experiences impacted their professional and personal lives. I worked with teachers from pitch to publication, refining initial ideas and editing posts. See Traveling with Students: 5 Benefits for Teachers.

Project editing: Long-form SEO

Working with an agency, I led the creation of long-form SEO content. The Ultimate Guide for Students Traveling Abroad for the First Time helped boost enrollments from SEO content by 37%. I helped draft the guide outline and edited the copy and graphics.

Freelance editing: Trove Travels

I edited and contributed copy to the website for Trove Travels, a startup that specializes in impact-driven customized international travel experiences for groups and families.