The Impact of Tasty: How Videos are Worth More Than a Thousand Words
- vpianiri
- Feb 25, 2019
- 3 min read
Do you ever scroll down your Facebook or Twitter page and see a video related to food? The chances of that being a Tasty video are pretty high. In the past few years I have been a victim to spending hours watching food-based videos that appear on my Facebook page. Each day I am presented with new recipes and ideas on what I can create from home. Buzzfeed launched Tasty in July 2016. Tasty crates a series of videos targeted to food lovers, and educates viewers on how to make fun and quick recipes. As of Feb. 11, 2019 Tasty has had close to 13 million subscribers and over 2 billion viewers.
So why are Tasty videos so popular? Well for one, Tasty uses a huge tool on social media: video. The book “Social Media: How to Engage, Share, and Connect,” by Regina Luttrell, states that “A video is worth 1.8 million words.” The use of video allows users, like myself, to become engaged and absorb information faster than words. People enjoy to sit back, relax, and absorb content that they find entertaining. Additionally, “76% of the online population is consistently viewing video online” (Luttrell). People like myself are constantly looking for content to watch that is entertaining or intriguing. Food for example, is a universal necessity. Tasty is able to supply content universally, for people all over the world with different preferences.
Tasty has created a whole new media strategy for video. For one, asty videos last for 30 seconds to two minutes. This is the perfect time frame to gather an viewer’s attention, and keep them watching without getting bored. Tasty creates all different types of recipes and plays them in fast-motion, so they can be kept within the time frame. This keeps viewers interested because each moment in the video is different.
Second, Tasty videos are placed on social media platforms where they are able to be shared easily. Facebook allows videos to be shared from a viewer to their friends. People are able to scroll through their Facebook page and “share” a Tasty video which will then pop up on their “friends” feed. Similarly, Twitter allows people to share videos with the people that follow them. The simplicity of each video allows for the video to be easily shared with others through media.
Additionally, Tasty offers a variety of recipes, so the content is not targeted to one specific audience. Some videos focus around holiday meals, healthy snacks, best entertainment meals, and many more. Tasty can “tap” into people’s identity and connect with them through food. Vegetarians and vegans for example, will be able to watch videos that offer them recipes that they can use. Also, Tasty content changes from location in the world. Tasty gathers data from people's social media profiles, and supplies content that would be relevant to that user. For example, if my Facebook was linked to Italy, and data showed that I am an Italian citizen, then the content that pops up on my feed from tasty would most likely be Italian based recipes.
The success of Tasty has allowed Buzzfeed and other companies to use video as a tool for PR and advertising. Just like a commercial, Tasty videos draw a viewer in and allow them to connect with the information presented. Video has evolved throughout the years between movies, TV, and now it is hitting social media. Videos can explain and entertain people more than words being read can.
Categories: Food, Entertainment, Health, Social Media
Sources:
Social Media: How to Engage, Share, and Connect, 3rdedition, Regina Luttrell
I think this analysis hits a lot of really relevant and timely subjects. Just like you said, people are far less likely to stay engaged in a video if it is longer than a minute or two, and Tasty solves this problem by showing their dishes being prepared in high speed.
The success of Tasty also highlights the social media trends of today as well. People are attracted to simple, clean looking content that is easily consumable. Tasty videos are always captioned, catering to the viewer who watches their videos on the go or in public spaces. Their videos are also very aesthetically pleasing. The recipes are perfectly crafted, seemingly at the first attempt, and always prepared in front of…
After reading The Impact of Tasty: How Videos are Worth More Than a Thousand Words, I couldn’t help but think about my most recent blog post. While Tasty is one of my favorite food accounts to follow, my favorite, which I discussed in my blog post, is Foody Fetish. I can remember watching Tasty videos on Facebook in high school and being caught by my history almost every class. When you click on the Tasty page, you can’t just watch one, you become hooked and end up scrolling through at least 10 videos. Like you stated in your article, they keep the videos short so that the viewer is always engaged. This strategy is smart because my generation becomes impatient…
I definitely agree with everything in this post. I have also been a victim to the vortex of Tasty videos that live on social media. I think the receive their videos are so great is, like you said, the fact that they are short and easily consumable. Personally, I love watching the videos when I am on the bus going to and from campus or walking from class to class. With captions that tell you the ingredients, you don’t need headphones to feel included in the video. Tasty has made such an impact that Snapchat has dedicated an entire story section to them. This just goes to show that Tasty has become innovative with the times and understands its audience…