KELLY SENYEI of Just a Taste on Turning a Hobby into a Business (Restaurant Influencers - RI027)

With confidence, drive, and time, Just a Taste blog founder Kelly Senyei was able to turn her hobby into a business. Listen to this interview to learn about Food Blogging for Dummies, writing a cookbook, and generating revenue from online content.

WHAT DID YOU LEARN on this episode of the Restaurant Influencers podcast, sponsored by the Toast point of sale and restaurant management company? Let us know by leaving a YouTube comment below!

• Improve Your Restaurant with Toast: https://bit.ly/3vpeVsc

CHAPTERS:
[03:15] - Kelly Senyei 2-Minute Drill
[05:37] - Food Blog Hobby Into Business
[17:53] - Social Media Journey
[20:56] - Building Online Community
[27:09] - New Social Media Strategies

Kelly Senyei is a Restaurant Influencer —

A self-proclaimed “grandma” in the food blogging space, Kelly Senyei began the Just a Taste blog in 2008 while in journalism grad school at Columbia University in New York. But chasing the hard-hitting stories began to take an emotional toll on her. She longed for work that was more meaningful. The simplified, unifying power of food was a natural draw for her.

“I wanted to start reporting on things that had a much better feel good element to them.” And that's what ultimately led me to food,” Kelly Senyei said on the Restaurant Influencers podcast hosted by Shawn Walchef of https://calibbq.media. “It’s because anybody can talk about food. Anybody can cook. Anybody can, you know, enjoy a meal together. You don't even have to speak the same language.”

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The product of a mother who was a self-taught cook and a entrepreneurial father, Senyei’s “aha moment” came while doing Just a Taste as a hobby.

While studying the metrics of other food accounts in relation to her new blog, the numbers compared favorably and provided the foundation of confidence for her to make the decision to turn Just a Taste into a business.

“Everything is so calculated and strategic and it has to be that way when you turn this from a hobby into a business.” Kelly Senyei says.

NOMINATE A RESTAURANT INFLUENCER — Do you know someone or a restaurant who is great on social media? Let us know by emailing [email protected] or sending the @calibbqmedia team a DM on social media.

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EPISODE LINKS:
• Just a Taste Website - https://www.justataste.com/
• The Secret Ingredient Cookbook - https://www.amazon.com/Secret-Ingredient-Cookbook-Family-Friendly-Surprisingly/dp/0358353971/
• Kelly Senyei Sizzle Reel - https://youtu.be/AILKFFCIuEs
• Just a Taste Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/justataste/

SIGN-UP FOR SHOW UPDATES – https://restaurantinfluencers.media
SUBSCRIBE TO RESTAURANT INFLUENCERS PODCAST – https://link.chtbl.com/RIpodcast

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ABOUT KELLY SENYEI (@justataste):
Kelly Senyei is the founder of Just a Taste, a food site visited by millions of people around the world each month. She is also a professionally trained chef and author of The Secret Ingredient Cookbook and Food Blogging For Dummies.
The San Diego resident received her undergraduate degree from Northwestern University, her master's degree from The Columbia Journalism School and her culinary arts diploma with highest honors from The Institute of Culinary Education. She completed her culinary apprenticeship in the Food Network Kitchens and previously worked at Condé Nast, where she launched the Gourmet Live app and was an editor and on-air talent at Gourmet and Epicurious.
Kelly has been featured in magazines such as Bon Appétit, PEOPLE, Better Homes and Gardens, and O, The Oprah Magazine, as well as on camera on E!, Food Network Kitchen, The TODAY Show and the Hallmark Channel.
• Kelly Senyei on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kellysenyei/

ABOUT RESTAURANT INFLUENCERS:
Welcome to the Restaurant Influencers podcast series. Every week host and restaurant owner Shawn P. Walchef (@shawnpwalchef) talks with leaders in restaurant and hospitality about their secrets to Smartphone Storytelling and how to show up and engage where customers are spending time online.

• Entrepreneur Media - https://entreprenuer.com
• Yelp - https://yelp.com
• Cali BBQ Media - https://calibbq.media

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RESTAURANT INFLUENCERS IS PRESENTED BY TOAST:

Restaurant Influencers is brought to you by Toast, the powerful restaurant point of sale and management system that helps restaurants improve operations, increase sales and create a better guest experience.

Toast — Powering Successful Restaurants

• Learn more about Toast at https://bit.ly/3vpeVsc