Last Saturday, I was lucky enough to spend the day at the Big Feastival. My day was spent tasting food samples, 3 course lunches, wine, copious amounts of cheese and listening to music and cooking demos… dreamy!
In the afternoon, I headed to the Open Table tent to hear Rachel Khoo, British chef, writer and broadcaster, share her ideas on successful food blogging.
Today, more people than ever have started blogging and this trend shows no signs of slowing down. In fact, WordPress, the largest self-hosted blogging tool in the world, reported that as of 2014, tens of thousands of new WordPress sites are created every day.
So it seems like the world loves blogging. Given this new found love for blogging and people’s love for food, it is hardly surprising that food is one of the most popular blog topics.
Here are 8 steps to a successful food blog, inspired by Rachel Khoo.
1. Be Visual
People love to see pictures. This doesn’t necessarily have to be photos, illustrations work well too.
2. Tell a story
When you blog about a new recipe, people want to know why you’re writing about it. Is it a traditional family recipe? Was it an idea you got from a trip abroad? Tell a story to bring you recipes to life.
3. Tried and tested
Don’t blog about a recipe unless you have tested it and it works. If people start making your dishes and they have a bad experience, they won’t come back.
4. Get talking
If people comment on your posts, reply! Do your best to create dialogue so you create an online blogging community.
5. Get ‘sourcey’!
It is great to get inspiration from other places. Lets face it, it’s pretty much impossible to create an original recipe- you normally take a base from someone else.
However, when you get inspiration from other people, or adapt people’s recipes, be sure to cite your sauce. A bit of link love always goes down well, as it helps boost others’ SEO. However, always best to ask first!
6. Find your voice
Be individual and find your own voice online. It is your unique personality that will attract people to your blog.
7. Short & Sweet
Blog posts don’t have to be long, but they do have to be regular. To keep people interested, consistent posting is key.
8. Be inspired
Today, there are millions of recipes online, however try and experience things in real-life instead of from behind a screen. You can draw inspiration for new recipes from so many areas… Google doesn’t always know best!
Click here to see Rachel Khoo’s blog, it’s a great read: http://www.rachelkhoo.com/