Food Thinkers: Content that Tastes Just Right

Food Thinkers is a content platform we built for Breville a few months ago. As a home for long-tail food content that resonates with Breville’s core audiences, it is growing steadily and has already seen some great successes.

Slow and steady

As a content platform, Food Thinkers isn’t going for the type of big PR hit that an interactive agency might try for with a microsite launch. Nor did we expect it to be driving sales right away. Instead, we expected it to start slowly and pick up steam.

In that respect, it is exactly where we predicted it would be after three months. Here are some of the key growth areas — in six courses.

1. Consistent traffic

Even though it targets different audiences throughout the week, the site is seeing a consistent traffic with steady growth.

2. A broader set of referrers

Food Thinkers has an increasing number and type of referrers. At first it was mostly Twitter. Then, as we integrated the content with BrevilleUSA.com, that became the dominant referrer. Third, bookmarking sites like StumbleUpon and Reddit started having the most impact.

And currently what we are seeing is an increase in organic search with search terms like “carrot pulp cake recipe” and “clam chower in a slow cooker.” We expect this to really take root and grow.

3. Riding the long tail

What we have also seen is proof of the long-tail concept. By seeding quality content of different types, it’s only natural that you resonate. One example of this is a cocktail recipe called the Honeydew Dream, posted a couple months back.

Almost two months after the article went live, StumbleUpon users took a real liking to the post and its beautiful pictures. In one 2-day span, over 1200 people viewed the post. And it continues to be a consistent favorite. We also have seen good results experimenting with different content formats like video and eBooks.

4. Finding contributors

One other successful aspect is the fact that we were able to round up contributors for a platform even in its growing stages. Our strategy wasn’t to go after the big fish of food blogging, but people who are passionate and articulate and know their stuff with room for us to help each other build up our platforms. This is one area we expect will continue to build its own momentum.

5. Making adjustments

We have adjusted the platform and the content in iterations, adapting to usability and audience considerations. You can’t get it perfect right away, and it pays to learn what works and to build on that, rather than put all your eggs into one big launch basket.

6. Fodder for social and traditional media engagement

With this content perpetually published, Breville has been able to leverage it for various other social media platforms. Instead of merely engaging on Facebook and Twitter, they are able to share interesting and captivating content. That puts the engagement back into the hands of the consumers. They engage with the brand, rather than the brand sitting around wondering what it can do to seem interesting in the social media space, as many brands do.

It will be possible to extend this to traditional media and PR efforts moving forward. Instead of a PR agency pushing consumers to an eCommerce site, they can direct them to Food Thinkers and hook them in with interesting ideas and images. This inbound approach empowers the consumer to then make an informed purchase and feel more affinity with the brand.

About the author

Brett Virmalo -

As a creative director at Tippingpoint Labs, Brett leads a team deploying ecommerce and content marketing solutions for global B2B and consumer clients.

Brett has worked with clients including PG&E, Kodak, American Express, TomTom, Putnam Investments, and most recently, Breville. He has been with Tippingpoint Labs since 2003 serving as a designer, developer, art director, and now creative director.