Day: May 30, 2017

Take 1: In 2015, lifestyle, food and travel vblogger Doug Armstrong went to McDonald’s beef farm, meat-processing factory and kitchen in the UK. He took the viewers on an invigorating journey on how McDonald produces its burgers. It was a paid marketing campaign. Today, the reach of the video is more than 3.9 million. Take 2: Atreya Paul, Public Relations Consultant of The Irish House, a popular restro-pub in Kolkata, relied on social media platforms to promote the outlet’s special offerings on St Patrick’s Day (March 17). He looped in Kolkata-based influencers, who shared food-related content on their social media channels. “The outreach was huge and we were very happy with the response,” says Paul. Blogging has emerged as a robust online content marketing and branding tool. Blogs have been rated as the 5th most trusted source for accurate online information. Study demonstrates that 77% of Internet users read blogs and 346 million people read blogs across the world. Today, blogs are one of the foremost online media platforms, impact individuals in their buying and eating choices. Among all other industries, it’s the lifestyle, travel and food sectors which have taken the bloggers’ opinion seriously. According to a study, 92 % of consumers trust recommendations from others, even individuals they don’t know, over branded content. As food bloggers are becoming the new influencers of the industry, numerous eatery administrations are taking advantage of their online presence and are welcoming bloggers to review their restaurant. Army of influencers is rapidly changing the way F&B industry functions. Hence, food blogging, which many started off as a mere hobby, have now become a full-time profession. Kolkata-based food bloggers and influencers — Rukshana Kapadia (The Culinary Commentator) and Poorna Banerjee (Presented By P) — have a strong following and their opinions matter. Hence top restaurant management invites them and other influencers such as Astha Modi and Payel Rakshit to review their properties and write on culinary activities. So, when a food blogger become an influencer  Not all bloggers are or can be influencers. In the era of fake news and information-saturation, it’s important to identify bloggers who have depth insight on the subject because blogs are meant to be trusted source of information for the consumers. According to a study, 70% inform that online reviews are their second-most-trusted source. Also, 47 % of US readers consult blogs to keep tabs on trends and ideas. Supreeta Singh, who runs her own PR, events and communication agency in Kolkata, and regularly holds “bloggers meet” at various restaurants such as The Astor, The Grid and The Palms, informs that not all influencers are required to write blogs. She/he should be a socially active person. “A blogger can be a “very good writer” but an influencer moulds opinions. In Kolkata, there are a few important bloggers and influencers and their attendance is very crucial in every food event that I do,” she says. Food critic and influencer Rukshana Kapadia of The Culinary Commentator loves anything remotely related to food. A renowned influencer in Kolkata’s F&B industry, Rukshana clearly mentions that everyone who owns a blog “is not an influencer.” “Once you have a certain number of followers across various social media formats then your opinion does carry weight. Your reputation is built on the quality of your content,” says Rukshana, whose food blog is ranked 18 by Zomato. Rana Basu Thakur, who’s the PR consultants for reputed food properties such as Yauatcha, Club Boudoir, Keventers, and Gokuls, echoes similar sentiments and informs that an influencers’ qualitative depth resonate with a wider audience. “Influencer marketing is the fastest growing channel of marketing spends today. The more people talk about your brand or product experience, the more the virtual chatter will aid in your SEO ranking ramp ups,” he says. S Ramani, managing partner, 6 Ballygunge Place, one of the most-sought after food destinations in Kolkata, also admits that food bloggers are gaining momentum and helping in attracting business. However, he is quick to mention that not every blogger is to be trusted. “I agree blogging is changing the food industry, but one needs to look out for bloggers with integrity,” he says. How an influencer help a food brand  Planning to take out your close ones for dinner? Well, we don’t search for the newest restaurant on Google but instantly check out the reviews and the rating of the restaurant on Zomato. Reviews on other social media channels such as Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest and Facebook also influence the decisions of the hardcore foodies. F&B businesses across the world are turning to influential bloggers to reach out to the target audience and for better customer engagement. Also, the food influencers with their creativity and thought leadership bring in the new audience too. Dineout, a popular table reservation platform, organised India’s first ever nationwide restaurant festival, The Great Indian Restaurant Festival 2017 in February. And interestingly, food influencers and bloggers played a key role in the widespread awareness of the culinary event. Sweety Dutta, Assistant Marketing Manager – Dineout, Chennai, who is an influencer herself, admits that a brand cannot always reach everyone but an influencer plays a vital part in digital marketing space to spread the word. “Our GIRF was the biggest restaurant festival in India that ran for 10 days. Influential bloggers played a very important role in making GIRF a big hit. They spread the word on a large scale with their posts on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter and of course their blogs,” she says. Rana, who handles Yauatcha, a Michelin star Chinese eatery providing city’s best dim sums, has pioneered the concept of ‘Evening of Eminence’, where Kolkata’s eminent people and top influencers (read food bloggers such as Rukshana, Poorna, Payel Rakshit who blogs for Dine Dazzle Dive and Astha Modi of blabbercat.com) meet and discuss various topics including food. “In most cases, food influencers are genuinely helpful and resourceful in finding any lacunae in service quality. Their degree of virtual proliferation is good and the