[At BAKER, we’re passionate about branding – not just the brands we have the privilege of working on – but all sorts of brands that we engage with on a daily basis. In ‘Brands We Love’ one of our infatuated brand stewards takes a deeper look at one of the brands they are passionate about; examining what the brand means to them and why.]
WHY I LOVE THE COOKING CHANNEL
I love the Cooking Channel. Don’t get me wrong – it’s not that I love to cook, I mean I do enjoy the art of cooking, on occasion, but that’s not why I love the Cooking Channel. No, what I love about the Cooking Channel is that they ‘get it.’ They get that in order to keep me coming back for more of their delicious programming they need to offer more than just a product, they need to offer a distinct viewpoint – a philosophy – a weltanschauung – and in terms of a cooking network, theirs is both well done and rare.
I LOVE THE PHILOSOPHY
It’s so simple: “Stay Hungry.” That’s it. The entirety of a channel paired down to just 2 words. And yet it’s profound. It’s about so much more than just cooking, it’s about an attitude for life, an appetite for adventure. It’s the kind of idea you can continuously expand upon, or build a point of view around, and that’s exactly what the Cooking Channel has managed to do.
In a series of commercials introducing the young channel to it’s burgeoning audience, the on-air personalities explain that the channel was created “for food people, by food people” – another phrase I am particularly fond of. By identifying themselves as ‘Food People’ the network is clearly distancing themselves from the elitism of their former selves (the Fine Living network) while at the same time creating a community of inclusion, ready and willing to accept anyone that might consider themselves to be a ‘food person’. It may seem like semantics, but it’s important – it says that the Cooking Channel wasn’t created just for foodies and accomplished chefs or inexperienced amateurs looking to expand their horizons – it’s for enthusiasts, all food enthusiasts, and I am one.
I LOVE THE GRAPHICS
Ok, so admittedly, as a designer at heart I’m a sucker for good looking graphics, especially type, but these are more than just good looking – the Cooking Channel’s graphics make you “eat with your eyes”… they’re just, well, appetizing. They’re juicy, vibrant, bold, clean cut, tastefully done and trimmed of all unnecessary fat. These are graphics that have been reduced perfectly for my tastes, and more importantly, they don’t get in the way of the content. The Cooking Channel manages to use their screen graphics like a master chef uses salt – not too little, never too much, but just enough to enhance the dish. They’re delicious.
I LOVE THE CONTENT
Last, it may seem strange that of all the factors that go into my love for the Cooking Channel brand the actual programming would fall to third on the list, but that doesn’t mean it’s not a factor – it is, and in a big way. The content is actually wonderful. On the weekends especially, when it seems like nothing else is on, I often find myself devouring the Cooking Channel’s content for a couple hours at a time. The reason it falls to third, however, is this: if you think of this particular brand like a restaurant… the shows are just the items on the menu, they may change from season to season, but what makes the place great is what doesn’t change – the experience as a whole, and it’s an experience worth savoring.
That’s why, right now, I love the Cooking Channel.
– Trent
