There are multiple lessons here that are relevant to your cooking channel.
Be Relevant and Timely
When there's something that's dominating the news cycle and it falls within your area of expertise, you have an opportunity to create a video that will get much more visibility than what you normally get.
We have a foodborne illness outbreak that is making people really sick.
You run a cooking channel.
Do you think it might be a good idea for you to offer people some guidance?
The easiest way to get people's attention is to address things that are important to them.
You can post your regularly scheduled recipe…or you can create a video that provides some guidance for the home cook who is really concerned right now about feeding themselves and their family safely.
Which video do you think has the better chance of getting the most views?
Pay attention to what's going on in the world and make videos that are relevant.
It's not hard to do. It just requires you to consider what's important to your audience, as opposed to just thinking about what videos YOU want to make.
Your channel will only be successful if you're making videos that deliver enough value to people that it's worth their time to watch them.
Who Grows Your Food?
Restaurant owners, caterers, food truck owners…I’m talking to you!
You feed people for a living and I'm certain you have no desire to make your customers sick.
Where are you getting your ingredients from?
Do you have relationships with local farmers?
Do you build your menus to use seasonal, local ingredients?
Did you know that local farmers would love to work with you and grow exactly what you need them to grow, if you tell them in advance?
Right now is the time to be having conversations with local farmers about what you need them to grow next season so they can plan their crops and you can plan your menu.
Building those relationships with your local food community is how you can protect your business from ever having to worry about foodborne illnesses from lettuce that was grown who knows where?
There are farmers growing lettuce within 50 miles of you that you'll never have to worry about being part of a national recall because they eat the food that they grow before they sell it to you.
Build Something That Benefits Someone Besides You
Your cooking channel can be a platform for showcasing other businesses in your local community.
With every dish you prepare, you have the opportunity to use ingredients that you sourced from a local farmer.
One of the most reliable ways to get what you want is to help enough other people get what they want.
Who does your cooking channel benefit besides you?
If you need to work on that, then work on it.
Start with building some relationships in your local farming community because those farmers would love to see you cooking with their food and would absolutely help you spread the word about your channel.
Everything is easier when you're not trying to win all by yourself.
Figure out how to create wins for others, too, and you'll end up with a team of people who are trying to help you win.
