There’s something timeless about the simple joy of cooking. Whether it’s crafting a meal that your whole family enjoys, experimenting to find the perfect combination of ingredients, or sharing the recipes that make our mouths water, cooking has the power to bring people closer together, with a deeper bond, than perhaps anything on earth.
But we’ve come a long way from the days when your grandmother gave her favorite cookbook to your mom to keep the tradition alive (and don’t get me wrong: those are still the best biscuits on earth – hands down). With the advancement of online sharing platforms, it’s easier than ever to connect with others who love to cook, swap recipes, and discover new dishes that will become your next dinner staple.
To give you some ideas about how you can get the word out about your favorite dishes, while learning some helpful tips and tricks to use in your own kitchen, read ahead to discover three effective ways to get the word out!
Start Your Own YouTube Channel
One of the easiest, most effective ways to learn a new recipe is to watch someone else cook it first. It was true when we were little and watching mom go on a baking bonanza on a Saturday afternoon, and it’s just as true now that we’re grown up. It’s the reason we watch Rachel Ray, Martha Stewart, and our other favorite ladies on Food Network.
You may never get to tackle your own TV show, but if you love to cook, and have some recipes to share, you’re definitely ready to start your own channel.
Setting up your own channel is incredibly simple to do, and offers three unique advantages that you can’t get any other way:
- Instruction at Their Own Pace
Your viewers will be able to follow along with you as you cook, and be able to pause and rewind at their leisure if they missed something crucial. This is especially useful for complex recipes, or when you need to demonstrate an advanced technique.
- A More Intimate Connection
We trust the Rachel Rays of the world because, aside from having amazing dishes, we know what she looks like, know what she sounds like, and can easily see the passion and joy that cooking brings her. In short – we can see that she’s a real, authentic woman, just like us, and your viewers will make the same connection to you through your videos.
- A Visual Guidepost
Words are great, and pictures are worth a thousand words, as the old saying goes, but there’s nothing like be able to actually show people what you’re talking about while you work. We’ve all seen generic photos of a new baking pan or spatula that don’t really show us how they work in practice. With a video, your viewers will never have that problem, and you can even review those utensils as you go. Your viewers will definitely appreciate that extra touch!
Though it might be intimidating to go live for that first time, and wait for the comments to come in, put your passion for cooking on full display, be natural, learn from your mistakes as you go, and your recipes will do the rest!
Start Your Own Blog
There are over 440 million blogs in the world, and there’s a blog out there for every conceivable topic, including food and cooking. If you’ve got a passion for writing, and want to connect to a wide communities of foodies just like you, starting a blog is the perfect choice.
Blogging is a fun, relaxing way to share your favorite recipes that doesn’t require a high degree of technical skill to get started. You first must have a domain, get a basic page template going, and you’re ready to write! Blogging will allow you to not only share your recipes, but also:
- Get As Deep on a Topic as You Want
With a blog, you can say as much or as little about your topic as you want to. If all you want to do is post a recipe you really enjoyed, you can stop there and your regular readers will still come; on the other hand, if you want to discuss why you think French cooking is the most superb technique, you can use 5,000 words or more to explain why! It’s up to you.
- Connect With a Wider Community
Remember that 440 million we mentioned earlier? That’s just the number of blogs – the number of readers is likely much higher! With so many people engaged in the blogosphere, you’re all but guaranteed to find others who share the same tastes you do, are eager to learn what you have to share, and are ready to offer their own tips and tricks to help you in return.
- Draw Others to What Works for You
The opportunities for collaboration in blogging are extensive, and you’ll be able to invite others to contribute their own recipes, offer advice and cooking tips, and lead your readers to other blogs and resources that you find helpful. And the blogging community is very friendly – those same cooks you admire might even invite you to contribute to their blog!
Start Your Own Podcast
You may love to cook, but between work, kids, that thing called marriage (cause, y’know, you want to spend at least some time with the hubbs), and everything thing else going on in our lives, it can be difficult to find the time to sit down and hunt for new recipes. But if you can take that information with you, whether you’re driving to soccer practice or relaxing on the back patio, that would be a fabulous compromise, and a podcast will offer your audience exactly that!
With a podcast, you can enjoy sharing your recipes and cooking tips with others, while enjoying the gift of gab that we all have a knack for! In addition, with a podcast, you can:
- Listen on the Go
Unlike a blog or video, you don’t have to focus your entire attention on a podcast to get something out of it. You can be driving to work or waiting in the parking lot for you kids to get out of school, and still find inspiration!
- Not Worry About Appearances
Unlike with a video, you don’t have to worry about potentially thousands of people seeing exactly how bad your bed head was this morning. You just need a quiet place, and you can create a podcast no matter if your makeup’s on or if you’re still in your PJs.
- Save Time
A video takes time to set up, shoot, and edit, and a blog can take several hours to write, but a podcast grows at the rate you talk – all you have to do is push record, start talking, and you have fresh content for your loyal subscribers!
