Selene Scinicariello she is the author of blog Travel you eat, Where tells the experiences of a tourist with an eye always turned to the aspects of the gastronomic tradition. During the long months of confinement within the walls of his house he kept alive the dialogue with his readers through the stories and places of "proximity", thus rediscovering the beauties of his region, Liguria, and of his city, Genoa. Today she is convinced that this will be the starting point for the whole tourism and food and wine sector, together with the push towards careful and professional digitization.
How did you deal with this pandemic and the consequent great difficulty in the restaurant sector with your blog? Have you changed your narrative in any way? Have you made any particular initiatives to tell about this period?
«Travel you eat, my blog, is dedicated to travel and the food and wine of the territories for which it has been severely tested in this last year and a half. Both sectors, tourism and catering, have been strongly affected by the crisis and, I do not deny, that, for me too, there have been some periods of particular despair. At first, during the initial lockdown, the contents related to recipes and typical dishes were strong, then summer 2020 brought with it a breath of optimism and readers started returning to the site looking for advice on places to visit and places to taste local products. Unfortunately, the second wave of winter 2021 also brought with it a bit of sadness and resignation and, apart from a few peaks, “Viaggi che mangi” saw the average number of visitors drop again.
I had to search new ideas and new stimuli for my readers and I decided to bet a lot on rediscovery of places, traditions and dishes of my region, Liguria, and in this way I have found a lot of participation also on the social channels where I share my contents.
Focusing on proximity content is paying off right now: if people can't travel, they look for something to do (and enjoy) nearby. Focusing on slightly more niche topics is helping the blog not to sink under the weight of this crisis.
As for social media, however, I decided to tell recipes that I prepare daily: they are all simple and easily replicable dishes and those who follow me are appreciating the idea.
I decided to focus the communication on the idea of do not waste e reuse leftovers (also thinking back to the 2020 Festival and the "Food Bag"): having been closed in the house for a while, it is possible that people accumulate food in the fridge just for the sake and evasion of going to the supermarket. I am trying to raise awareness on this issue by trying to show how also making a more targeted and less impulse shopping you can eat in a healthy and creative way for several days without throwing anything away. In the meantime I have been trying to help restaurateurs friends asking friends and followers to report restaurants and initiatives to me I gave totally free visibility on my social networks to restaurants that wanted to run their take-away menus and their projects. This idea has expanded and has also involved the restaurants of TavoleDoc Liguria. At the moment the initiative is at a standstill, but if there is someone who wants to talk about themselves on the social networks of Viaggi che mangi, they are always welcome ".
From your point of view, how have food companies communicated in this period? Are there any initiatives that particularly impressed you and that you wanted to highlight?
«Not all, in my opinion, have managed to communicate in the right way: unfortunately, I am speaking mainly of small businesses, not everyone has the tools or knows how to use them in the right way.
Digital is a great opportunity, especially right now, but not everyone has been able to fully exploit its potential.
I also noticed that in the last period many are demotivating, also abandoning delivery and take-away initiatives that have started particularly well.
In the same way, however, I noticed several interesting initiatives that struck me: many have been able to reinvent themselves and not stop showing strength and stubbornness.
Speaking of my city, Genoa, for example, the Santamonica Restaurant has started shipments of pesto throughout Italy; the Gradisca Cafè, on the other hand, specializing in cocktails and therefore in an evening activity, has reinvented itself and in the yellow zone has begun to collaborate with nearby restaurants by organizing sweet and savory Sunday brunches.
The ability of many restaurateurs to continue to get involved is truly commendable. "
And how did your readers react? Have you noticed a greater sensitivity to certain issues related to the world of food? Has there been an increase in attention to this sector?
“In part, I would say yes. Personally I realize that the speech of recipes in the stories of Instagram is attracting and liking, but I have also noticed a new desire to experiment in the kitchen. Having more time, you can devote yourself to activities that were once neglected.
However, I also noticed a lot of harmony and desire to help restaurateurs by ordering delivery or takeaway. People have missed the restaurants ”.
After the pandemic, and when we can finally talk about a restart, how do you think communication in the food sector will change? Which channels should be privileged and which ones have had their day?
"The pandemic has shown theimportance of digital channels, Of a well done website that may possibly work as online menu, showed the importance of be there on social networks to be able to communicate in real time with its customers and to create a personal relationship with them.
I believe that all of this will still be crucial tomorrow too. The restaurant, like any food-related activity, can no longer be just a service, but must become a real one experience to which the customer feels connected, perhaps, even in an affective way.
Moreover, perhaps due to professional deformation (I deal with writing for the web, I am Seo copywriter) I am convinced that it is increasingly important to take care of your online presence to always be there at the right time, ready to meet the needs of possible future customers.
It's not just about photos on Instagram, but about continuously answering user questions through articles online (creating a blog section on your site is an idea to think about) and through the building a community on social networks: you have to convince them to choose you and, at that point, offer them the best possible service so as to create a relationship of trust and acquire a loyal customer.
Perhaps it may seem like pure marketing, but in reality there must be behind this process passion and enthusiasm: today the customer is looking for more and more authentic, true and exciting experiences, he no longer wants to just sit at a table to eat, he is looking for something more. "
Do you have any future projects that you want to anticipate?
«For good luck I never say too much about a project not yet finished, but I can tell you that this year I decided to devote myself to an idea that I had in mind for a long time dedicated to my Genoa. I can't say more, but I hope to be able to finish it by the end of 2021 ».
