I ate 12 desserts at one sitting yesterday. It was a recipe tasting for a client whose products are in the baking category.
People are envious when I tell them I get paid to eat desserts. It’s hard work, but somebody has to do it!
Actually, it is work. A tasting isn’t a time to pig out on food and just say whether you like it or not. This is serious business because the recipes are a critical marketing tool. Whether they are used on packaging, on a Web site, in a brochure, or for press releases to the media, recipes from food manufacturers should be designed to stimulate product purchase and usage, and ultimately, provide a positive result to motivate repurchase.
Before recipes are developed, some thought is required:
Who is the target audience? If they are experienced cooks, instructions don’t have to be overly detailed and the recipe can be more complicated, although in today’s busy world, even experienced cooks rarely want to spend an inordinate amount of time to make something.
How will the recipes be used? On packaging, a recipe must be very short; online, detailed how-to techniques can be offered as a link. Before concepting, the copy length of the recipe might determine what type of recipe is required.
Will the recipe be photographed? Sometimes, a recipe that’s delicious to the taste buds may be unappealing to the eye. Yesterday we had a pudding-type dessert that wasn’t very attractive cut into squares. But it became so much more appealing when scooped out like a pudding and dolloped with whipped cream. With experience, just by reading a recipe, you can anticipate how it will look and know in advance if you will have trouble shooting it later in the photo studio.
How much of the client’s product must be used? For example, for a soy sauce client, a teaspoon would be a negligible product use . You don’t make the recipe more salty, you just look for categories that require more flavoring for a bigger volume, such as a stew or marinade.
You should also see if the client has other internal criteria. Maybe there is a nutrition component that must be met. Or the brand manager absolutely hates casserole dishes. Or the client knows that their product never performs well in certain applications that you should avoid.
Are there any maximum number of ingredients or time preparation restrictions? The usual requirements are 8 to 10 ingredients and a half hour of prep/cook time.
I must confess that I do enjoy tastings and count myself lucky that I get paid to do it. I love the collaborative process, where, together with the client and recipe developer, we can produce motivational tools to help a food manufacturer promote a product successfully. In turn, we are introducing consumers to exciting new culinary ideas that can help them achieve success with the food product.
Undaunted after 12 desserts, I went on to a wine tasting of Rias Baixas Albarino from Spain featuring 17 producers. But that’s another story.
Friday, May 16th, 2008 | 9:07 am | Niche Marketing, Recipes
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