Editorial Submission Guidelines
World Footprints’s mission: World Footprints is a socially minded travel media company that aims to connect us by bridging (and honoring) our differences, acknowledging the things we have in common, fostering a deeper cultural understanding and inspiring meaningful travel. We share the “stories behind the story” and invite our readers to do a deep dive through history and examine the cultural diasporas. World Footprints believes that we share a common humanity so we seek stories that reflect our diversity and fosters a deeper connection to the world. You are most welcome to share your travel stories and unique experiences. But please go through our editorial submission guidelines first.
Audience: World Footprints speaks to avid travelers of all ages who bring a sophisticated understanding of the world to their trips. Our readers recognize the transformative power of travel so they’re interested in exploring and understanding differences through authentic accounts of a country, city or region, and the people who live there.
Story Topics: Offering more than just travel advice, World Footprints provides written, audio and video accounts of behind-the-scenes experiences and human-interest stories. Ideal content will offer a special insight into a destination that reflects a deep connection with a writer. We want our listeners and readers to have an authentic, vicarious travel experience through our website. Stories need to reflect World Footprints mission of socially minded travel either explicitly or implicitly in its focus.
We welcome story pitches as well as articles written on speculation. We are also open to photo-essays that tell a story. Sorry, but we are only able to respond to queries that interest us. Before pitching a story or story idea, evaluate it against our editorial submission guidelines and check our website to make sure we haven’t already covered the same topic. New content must fit within one of the following four core areas:
- Compass (destination articles that offer unique perspectives)
- Travel by Design (special interest/niche travel)
- Cultural Heritage (the people and things that have influenced the personality of a destination)
- Global Citizenship (stories that give a voice to important global and social issues that are relevant to the travel community)
Note: As travel will evolve post-coronavirus we want to share stories that will continue to inspire so we’ve provided additional guidance on our website that you can see HERE. Remember, if a travel experience is transformative for you, your article will inspire a reader.
What we don’t want:
- No sweeping generalizations or stereotypes.
- No clichés.
- No guidebook summaries.
- No photos that don’t have requisite Royalty-free license (i.e., photos taken from social media or other public site do not carry a license for commercial use on World Footprints.
- No duplicate (identical) article published elsewhere (we will not purchase duplicate content).
Word count: Articles should average between 800–1,000 words. No submission should exceed 1,200 words.
Editorial Process: Please make sure articles are checked for spelling and grammar before submitting. World Footprints has the right to refuse to publish a piece if the quality of the writing is not satisfactory. Articles may be extensively edited. We reserve the right to ask questions for clarification or further information, ask for sources included in an article, or request revisions or review of articles.
For any questions/clarifications about our editorial submission guidelines or to submit an article contact: Editor [at] WorldFootprints [dot] com.
Photos: Please advise if you can provide original images that you own to accompany your story. Photos taken from social media or that aren’t Royalty Free will not be accepted. By submitting images you grant World Footprints a limited right of use with corresponding articles and associated promotions. **Note: Horizontal images not smaller than 840 x 630 pixels work best.
Linking policy: Authors are encouraged to include a link to their article (and podcast if interviewed by World Footprints) on their website and social media platforms. Cross-linking offers a great SEO benefit to both parties.
Press Trips & Payment: While we will accept content that resulted from a hosted press trip we require disclosure of the hosted trip and objectivity. World Footprints will not provide assignments or pay for any travel or expenses.
Payment is issued via PayPal generally at the time of publication or scheduled publication date. However, World Footprints LLC may take up to seven (7) business days to issue payment following publication of writer’s article. Include PayPal address at the time of submission. Payment is $45.