How TikTok Changed My Food Styling Business
Inspiration + Bravery = The Perfect Recipe.
Where I once felt apathy for TikTok, I later uncovered a treasure trove of inspiration and an entirely new world of creative possibilities. Marketing my food styling and recipe development work on TikTok changed my business for the better - and it all started with a couple of good old fashioned books.
FOR THE LONGEST TIME I WAS VERY HESITANT TO START A TIKTOK FOR MY FOOD STYLING AND RECIPE DEVELOPMENT BUSINESS.
While (seemingly) every account around me continued to transition from still imagery and posts to stop motions and short-form videos, I still loved and lived by ye olden days of sharing artistically-excellent, carefully-curated photos via Instagram and Pinterest.
But then one fateful day, after looking through my food styling books, I got inspired to share. Because the norm in the food styling industry is to not share. In fact, most food stylists are taught and told to keep their secrets, hacks and tips private, because most food stylists fear that sharing their knowledge will result in losing business. Sadly, because there is no form of formal education for food styling, everyone just… figures things out on their own.
Today, I’m sharing the story of how my food styling business went viral (and changed for the better) thanks to TikTok + 4 tips to help you market your work through video content.
Why I joined TikTok
I’VE ALWAYS WANTED TO SHARE MY KNOWLEDGE WITH BUDDING FOOD STYLISTS AND RECIPE DEVELOPERS, BUT I’VE BEEN TOLD IT WOULD HURT MY BUSINESS.
However, after looking through the two food styling books that I own (the only two on the market), I thought, “if these women are brave enough to share what they know, why can’t I?” Thus began my adventure with TikTok, and the fake ice cream video that changed everything for my business.
How things blew up.
I rode the wave of my inspiration over to TikTok, and made an account. After creating 8 well-received food styling videos, I uploaded my tutorial on how to make fake ice cream. The views went from the hundreds, to the thousands, to the hundred thousands.
Gif by @Fran Borzea
Before I knew it, my fake ice cream video had 1.2 million views and counting. All because I decided to share snippets of the knowledge and skills I’ve learned and honed over the course of my food styling career.
Those views turned into an engaged audience, and now with 36k followers and counting (that’s actually more people than the town I grew up in!) I’ve realized that I want to share more educational and helpful content with those in the food, restaurant and recipe-building industry.
Why TikTok changed my business.
TIKTOK INSPIRED ME TO SHARE
That inspiration turned into a passion for education. Because of the success of my TikTok food styling content, I’ve realized that I want Culina Creative to become the go-to brand and educational platform for all things food styling and recipe development. I’ve also realized that I want to not only share the things I’ve already figured out, but the things I’m currently figuring out - because I’m always learning something new.
In the future, I plan on continuing to offer free and valuable food styling and recipe development education via my blog and TikTok. To top that off, I’ve decided to offer the 1:1 education and creative support that I never could find myself through online food styling courses. All because I decided to try out a new platform, and share what I know. Crazy, right?
And then came the Huffington Post article.
You know those moments of absolute clarity and simultaneous confusion, the ones where you find yourself asking, “is this really happening?” Well, it turns out that I had a couple of those.
Shortly after my fake ice cream video went viral, Huffington Post approached me about featuring my business in an article. The irony is that the writer of the article actually found me via Google - she was completely unaware that I had a TikTok because I had created my account under my new business name.
Written by Emily Laurence, Photos by Kate Grewal, Food Styling by Culina Creative
Being featured in that Huffington Post article was huge for me - it solidified my burgeoning passion for educating and sharing with others.
I don’t know what will come of it, but it felt incredible to share my story. I can only hope that it (and this blog) inspires others, just like me, to do and create more!
4 Tips to help you market your food styling or recipe development business on TikTok.
1. JUST BE YOURSELF. SERIOUSLY.
It’s our nature to want to make everything *just* right. But, I’ve found through short-form video content that people just want to see you and whatever it is you’re working on. The good news? No need to be super scripted - just be your conversational self.
2. AUDIO QUALITY = EVERYTHING.
Audio can make or break the success of your short-form video content. So, I recommend grabbing an inexpensive iPhone mic. There are a ton of options to choose from on Amazon, so I’ve linked my favorites below!
*This post contains affiliate links, which means that I receive a small commission for any purchases made through the links I share. Thank you!3. OKAY, I LIED: GOOD LIGHTING IS, TOO.
As a food stylist/recipe developer/creative extraordinaire, it’s so important that your subjects are properly lit. You already know that lighting changes everything about the outcome of a photo, so the same rules apply to video, too. Invest in good lighting, and you’ll never look back.
4. SHARE CONTENT THAT OTHERS CAN LEARN FROM.
In everything you do, I recommend asking yourself, “will this video teach others, or share a bit of the magic behind the things I create?” As an example, I’ve found that the videos that simply show “what the camera sees vs. reality” don’t perform that well.
People are more interested in the how; don’t forget to show your audience how things are done.
Whether you leave this blog feeling excited to try out a new platform or with a craving for a sweet treat, I hope it inspires you in all of your pursuits (and then some).
Follow my TikTok for food styling + recipe development education