Do you ever stop and appreciate how much effort goes into making food look and sound appealing in advertising? In class today, we watched videos of professionals who’s entire job is to prep food products for commercial shoots. We saw food as diverse as fast food burgers and salads poked, prodded, pinned, painted and coated with oil to achieve the perfect look.
The careful staging and preparation of fast food photography often lead to a striking disconnect when the actual food is contrasted with advertising:
Large companies in the restaurant and fast food business are now seeking to improve perception and capitalize on the army of Instagram food photographers: the parent company of Chili’s restaurants launched an initiative to improve the look of its food in amateur photos posted online, changing the way food is prepared and presented at an estimated cost of $750,000 USD per year. Starbucks developed a limited time drink – the Unicorn Frappucino – that experts suggest was created specifically to drive Instagram posts. (Roy, 2017) That sounds like a lot of money and effort catering to social media behavior, but by doing so, companies are reaping valuable advertising and engagement from the most coveted consumers: 18 to 34-year-olds with disposable income who spend time on social media sites.
So the next time you go to post your brunch on Instagram or use a corporate sanctioned hashtag, ask yourself: do you really want to become a part of a meta-advertisement?
References
Roy, Jessica. “Unicorn Frappuccinos Are Just the Latest Food Designed with Instagram in Mind.” Los Angeles Times. Los Angeles Times, 28 Apr. 2017. Web. 30 June 2017. <http://www.latimes.com/food/dailydish/la-dd-unicorn-frappuccino-instagram-food-trends-20170427-htmlstory.html>.
Featured Image
“Tachos in the Boise Airport” by Ben Kahn