What’s Cookin’? Not Much…
I have spent many a rainy afternoon watching hours upon hours of food network, and absolutely love trying out many of the recipes I watch my favorite chefs make on their shows. Unfortunately, those recipes are about all you can find on the Food Network website.
Of corse, I began my research on the main website for the network, and to my disappointment, there was not one link on the home page to a blog, webcast, or anything of the sort. The closest thing to social media in sight is a poll (asking “What is your favorite food to throw on the grill?” to which I answered chicken.)
After scrutinizing every link on the page, I actually did find one line that linked to “Bob’s Blog.” The blog itself is not bad. It seems to be a weekly recap of a few shows, and includes videos, links, and a place to email Bob himself. The main problem is that there should be more of these.
I next went to some of the individual chefs’ pages on the Food Network site to see if they linked to blogs: they did not. Most chefs had links to their personal websites where they had a FAQ page, or a place to email the chef. For example, the “Ask Bobby” page on Bobby Flay’s website, where he personally answeres viewer questions. Sandra Lee had a press kit on her website, but it just showcases all of her magazine appearances.
One blog that did impress me was Duff Goldman’s, of Ace of Cakes (one of my favorite shows.) On his blog (which is actually written by Mary Alice, one of the decorators in the show,but is featured right in the middle of his show’s website,) includes videos from episodes, links to competitions, and upcoming events. Since Ace of Cakes is such a hip and contemporaty show, I think this is really appropriate.
As a last ditch effort to find some sort of social media usage by Food Network, I googled it. I got a few blogs of Food Network fanatics, but nothing from the network itself. Nothing on SmartBrief either.
Overall, I am a little suprised that Food Network is so behind in social media. To me, recipes are something that require a lot of discussion, and I don’t see the network offering a place for that. I hope in the future I don’t have any comments or suggestions about the shows I watch or the recipes I cook, because I wouldn’t know what to do with them.
ESPN Gets Connected
Earlier in the week, as I sat with my dad watching Sports Center, I told him how I was researching how ESPN used social media to connect with their viewers. “Good luck,” he told me. “ESPN is a man’s network- we don’t use all of that Twitter stuff.”
I was excited to tell my dad that he was absolutely wrong. ESPN has social media down pat. Their understanding of how to use the internet to their advantage definitely impressed me.
You might remember from my preliminary research that several ESPN shows had their own Twitter page, as well as many Facebook fanpages. While ESPN itself doesn’t have a profile, it is good that people from the individual shows want to be connected. It doesn’t end there, however.
I began my research, obviously, on the ESPN website. The first thing that caught my eye was a link to Bill Simmons’s podcast, “The BS Report,” on Sports Guy’s World. “OK,” I told myself, “Podcasts are good.” Besides this podcast updating regularly and providing episode summaries, I found something even more interesting. You can download a widget of the podcast right to your blog, Facebook profile, or dashboard! You can actually download a widget for EIGHT blogs, podcasts, and columns. This is such a good idea! What better way to ensure that people are keeping up to date on your publication than allowing them to put it exactly where they want it!
Simmons’s Podcast is not the only one featured on the ESPN website- they actually have a whole PodCenter! I immediately noticed that they have a Twitter icon for you to follow them, but this was not one of the accounts that came up when I searched ESPN. They might learn something from doing a little research in SEO! Anyway, the PodCenter has an impressive three pages of podcasts, all which discuss something a little different. Podcasts range from Nascar with “Jayski’s Podcast” to well known shows like “Mike and Mike.” You can also find links to a few videos on this page.
SportsNation is also an area of ESPN’s website that embraces social media. This pages, that is like a blog/chat room, features answers from players, writers, and fans to questions, as well as polls and links to numerous other blogs and websites. It is such a hybrid of social media at work that I am having trouble classifying it. It is definietly a huge connection between sports fans and ESPN.
So, as it turns out, ESPN makes a huge showing in the Social Media world. Contrary to my dad’s belief of it being a “man’s network,” ESPN knows how to harness the power of social media and allows sports fans world wide to connect with their favorite sports network.
