If we were to list a positive change that COVID has brought on, then the willingness to cook is something that many can agree with – takeout isn’t always for everyone and the same batch of options day in and out can certainly get stale after a while! With enough motivation, we look to cookbooks or the Internet for recipes to try, however, the hunt is often quite troublesome.
While most front page results are usually highly rated, the process of finding said recipes after clicking onto the website is often not as straightforward as you’d hope. Some authors feel the need to tuck their recipe behind a wall of photos and text, others like to include annoying pop-up videos as you scroll through the page… and you get the idea. With reader experience being vital to modern marketing, poorly designed pages are a death sentence for user enjoyment and engagement. To ensure that you don’t make these same critical mistakes, join Wordsmith and let’s examine some common branding and design sins that are all too common in cooking blogs.
Give the people what they want
When someone hops onto Google and enters a query – for example “the best Sunday roast recipe” – they have certain expectations that they want fulfilled. Imagine clicking on the first link and being solicited with a life story and lesson that they didn’t ask for. Only after scrolling down three-quarters of the page do they find the ingredient list and recipe.
No one likes poor content hierarchy like this, which seems to be all the rage amongst cooking bloggers.
If the key selling point of a page is the recipe, shouldn’t it placed somewhere that is easy to find? Why do authors have to make it so difficult for their viewers?
We think this has something to do with SEO. Since there are so many cooking blogs out there, each blog is fighting for a spot on Google’s search results. To stand out, the blog owner can either adjust their recipes to make them more unique (e.g. using unorthodox methods or ingredients), or just include a keyword-loaded story with the recipe… we assume the latter option was more appealing, as recipe experimenting takes more time and resources to do.
Integrating a personal experience with the recipe is a clever idea, as it offers a convenient way for the author to establish their own brand – a story that includes something embarrassing or vulnerable from the author’s past demonstrates the author’s sincerity towards their audience. Such stories offer a great way to develop an emotional connection with audiences… but in the context of a recipe, it selfishly delays the needs of the audience.
We’re not saying you shouldn’t include a story, but you always need to prioritise content accessibility first. In the case of cooking blogs, either by having the recipe on the first screen or with a noticeable “jump-to” button. By addressing the needs of the audience over your own, they are more likely to return to browse the rest of your website!
Don’t skip on user experience
With how convenient smartphones are, most people won’t bother with printed recipes anymore, meaning that mobile devices are now also a core kitchen accessory.
However, many authors neglect this fact and do not have special view settings optimised for mobile devices. How often have you had to scroll back and forth between the ingredient list and the instructions because of the lack of units of measurement in the instructions?
“Add whisked egg whites to mixture.”
How many egg whites again? (scroll up) 2 egg whites.
“Combine mixture with sugar and mix well.”
How much sugar? (scroll up, wait for annoying video ad to be skippable) ¼ cup.
It’s a long and needlessly tedious process that punishes cooks for not having a perfect memory or having all the ingredients prepared beforehand.
The easiest fix would be to offer a tab function that lets users switch back and forth between the ingredients list and instructions… and while we could open two tabs ourselves with the respective sections open, having this functionality integrated into the website shows consideration for the reader. You’d be more receptive to try out other recipes from websites with a streamlined user experience, right?
Putting confidence into your brand voice
When running a cooking blog (or any blog for that matter), it’s important to have a consistent voice. Do you want to appear a persuasive authority figure on the subject? Or do you want to be friendly and humble?
Your voice is a key element that defines your blog’s identity and how you want to be portrayed to your audience. Since there are so many cooking blogs out there, a strong and confident voice will sway audiences significantly more than someone with a timid and unassuming voice.
One such blog of confidence would be Bad Manners (formerly known as Thug Kitchen) – advocates of vegan cooking with a bombastic attitude, plenty of swearing and a disregard for what other people think about them.
While going for the shock route definitely helps to make you stand out, you also risk alienating portions of your audience who are put off by vulgarity and crudeness. Here are several quick and easy ways to establish confidence professionally:
· Use certainty – avoid maybe, could and should if you know for a fact that what you are saying is true
· Cater to emotions – people are innately emotional, so you can leverage this to your advantage by using power words and triggering emotional responses (eg. saying you can prepare a dish for “bargain prices” beats “low cost”, as we perceive a higher value in the word bargain)
· Use the active voice – passive voices are inherently weak because your subject is being acted upon by the verb. Whether you are writing a blog or offering a recipe, the active voice shows that you are confident in what you have to say
When writing a blog, the information you offer to your audience should always be the focus, but also keep in mind that your content should not be offered at the expense of the audience’s viewing experience. Remember, if you dislike seeing something on a website, it’s likely your audience will also dislike seeing it on your website – a bit of consideration can go a long way in attracting and retaining engagement!