So I am going to need some help with some ideas here. I’ve been thinking a lot lately about how to continue this cooking, documenting, and hopefully becoming a successful something journey. Let me explain in a little more detail
You see, I am very passionate about cooking, which you can probably assume from this blog. However, I am not able to just willfully make food and expect it to A) Disappear unless I just give it to all of my coworkers and anyone else who just happens to cross my path at the right time, and B) Be able to continue cooking for long without making at least enough money to cover my ingredient cost because it isn’t the smartest thing for me to just buy ingredients, cook, blog, and then give it away, as nice as that is to everyone else.
So, I am trying to figure out the most efficient solution to be able to cook at a decent enough pace to keep a vibrant blog and feed my cooking addiction. Right now, I am pretty much getting away with selling my baked goods to my coworkers in order to cover ingredient costs for future cooking, and making food for potlucks, dinner, and anything else that I can get away with in order for it not to seem like I am just cooking for no good reason other than to cook (I would if I could though, trust me).
I have thought of a few ideas like making some business type cards that can raise awareness to my blog, and hopefully word of mouth can help to get more exposure. My wife thinks it might be wise to create a page on this blog to try and sell food, but I am not sure how to structure that or exactly what to market.
I am hoping that you guys can maybe help me out with some brainstorming and creative ideas, hopefully without me having to go door-to-door to try and sell cheesecakes. I really just want to cook and talk about it, but I have to be realistic at some point. Let me know what you think, or whether I am just crazy and too ambitious. I am not much of a businessman yet, but I have to get there someday.
P.S. – I have a wonderful treat in the oven right now, I’ll definitely be posting about it tomorrow, so check back in. Thanks.
If you get a lot of followers, doesn’t your blog end up with enough “street cred” to warrant advertisers? I’m really not sure how all of that works, though.
I do know that word of mouth is the best advertising out there. I wouldn’t waste too much money on business cards, unless you’re including them with your baked goods. Go to lots of potlucks and make sure people know you’re for hire (that’s when the business cards come in handy!).
Or you could do some advertising on Craigslist? You could have a date set on when your goodies would be available. First come, first served? And when it’s gone, it’s gone? Small at first until you build a clientele?
If you wouldn’t mind throwing a couple dollars at Na Kamalei, I’d happily host a “bake-sale fundraiser” to help spread the word.
How about selling pre-made “pre-baby freezer meals” in sets to expecting families in Hawaii? Really great food for Moms who are feeding the freezer pre-baby out here?
I like these ideas, didn’t know that you could sell food on Craigslist. I agree with the word of mouth. I am not sure what a pre-baby freezer meal is, could you explain a little more? Do you mean food for the pregnant mother who doesn’t feel like cooking every night, or for the expecting mother who is craving food?