Sarmad Zargar, chief business officer, White Page International, gives us the ingredients needed to blog on all things food related and deal with feedback.

The surge in popularity of social media platforms has brought about several new online trends, one of which is a rise in blogging and review-making. These have inevitably found themselves subject to further feedback and criticism, just like any other content shared on social media.

Food blogging has increased exponentially over the past decade across a variety of social media platforms and remains in vogue today. A rewarding way to share your love for a variety of cuisine and outlets with others, it also helps to establish a healthy relationship between food businesses and customers.

Find and develop your passion
In order to kickstart a food blog, it’s imperative for the writer to be interested in the activities underlying the entire process and then choose a particular niche to focus on –the type of food or place. This could be vegan recipes, for example, food presentation or photography, restaurant ambience or quality checks. Having made a decision, you need to create a blog on a platform that has a good outreach, like WordPress, Food Press or Squarespace.
Choose a domain name that is captivating to your audience but also reflects your niche. Once the blog is created, you need to invest time in developing the content by writing engaging, informative and useful blog posts.

Broaden your reach
Diversity of themes is key to creating successful content since it caters to the interests of broader audiences. It’s essential to remain proactive, promoting your blog on other social media platforms, such as Instagram, Twitter and Facebook, using hashtags to help reach your targeted audience. Networking is another key way to extend your reach, such as by attending food blogging events and conferences. Once you’ve developed a substantial following, opportunities will emerge to monetize the blog through promotions, sponsorships, affiliate marketing and advertising.
Food-blogging is competitive, so it’s important to stand out in the field and build a reputation for trustworthiness among followers, putting personal biases to one side. You’ll also need to be open to new ideas and flexible, recognizing that blogging is a mutual learning experience – something that reinforces the notion that food is meant to be shared and a great way of connecting with people.

Reviews and redressals
As your blog gathers momentum, it will garner reviews, including criticism, so you’ll need to steel yourself for these
and deal with them efficiently. The key is to be sincere when blogging. Monitor your reviews regularly and reflect on them objectively. Then address them — positive and negative — in a prompt and professional manner. Dealing with negative reviews requires additional skill and caution. Take the time to read them carefully and respond constructively and professionally after acknowledging the reviewer’s concerns. Redressal mechanisms are essential, enabling a business to improve, but you should always stick to the facts and never compromise on quality. Online reviews should always be regarded as feedback and an assessment of your strengths and weaknesses, rather than criticism. Reviews and reviewers are essential for bloggers to develop and become more influential, as is the right approach and persona. Food is fun and diverse, and food blogging should be
too, relayed with authenticity and in an entertaining, lively fashion.

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