The Joy of Cyber-Cooking

(page 2 of 2)

Other sites have plans for similar tools. Allrecipes.com, a user-generated recipe site acquired by ~ last year for $66 million, began letting users add photos to their profiles about a year ago. In January it intends to add features that alert users when someone comments on their culinary creations or when other members add content. Such features are reminiscent of those social news site Digg (BusinessWeek.com, 9/19/07), a Web 2.0 favorite, introduced in September.

Advertisers Taking Notice

The new social capabilities are spurring additional growth. Sites such as Allrecipes.com and Epicurious.com saw 20%-plus increases in unique users this November over the prior year, despite their having been around for more than a decade. "Every year we have these really huge traffic numbers…and it doesn't slow down," says Esmee Williams, Allrecipes' vice-president for marketing. "It has just been incredible."

Advertisers are taking notice. In addition to the grocery-story brands one might expect to see on food sites, such as Kraft Foods (KFT), marketers in other sectors are aggressively buying ads on food sites. In November the top four advertisers across the food category were General Motors (GM), Delta Air Lines (DAL), PNC Bank, and T-Mobile, according to a November survey by the Media Trust Co.

Rather than just buy ads that run in fixed places on Web pages, such as those all-too-common interactive banner ads, many advertisers are latching on to the social Web bandwagon, sponsoring contests and creating user-generated tools such as widgets to grab the attention of customers. Allrecipes recently held a food photo contest, sponsored by Kellogg's (K) Rice Krispies. Next year, food network stars and advertising sponsors could team up to offer users new ways to interact with the celebrity chefs, says Steel. "What you will start to see is much more interactivity around some of our advertisers, associated with the social Web," says Scripps' Brown.

Its Own Reward

It's difficult to ascertain just how much money such social ad campaigns generated. The leading food sites are all owned by private companies that do not disclose financials or are part of much larger companies that don't break out just how much of their advertising dollars come from food sites. But the online advertising pie is expected to reach nearly $27.5 billion next year, according to research firm eMarketer, and executives say their food sites are already grabbing a significant slice. "The brands started out a bit nervous, and many have been pleasantly surprised…so they have come to see social media in a really favorable light," says Allrecipe's Williams. "This year has been huge."

One may wonder whether all those home cooks helping fuel these sites' success will ever reap some of the financial benefits. Aside from contest prizes, there are no plans to spread the wealth. But users aren't in it for the money—at least not yet.

What many want is a little recognition from fellow gourmands. Others simply want the food sharing to continue. This year, Bonnie Bucqueroux is looking for a few good vegetarian, gluten-free holiday recipes—though she may not videotape herself cooking them. "It's kind of hard to outdo a turducken," says Bucqueroux, adding that she might make a tofu-turkey lookalike this year. "I don't think a tofurkey will cut it."

Holahan is a writer for BusinessWeek.com in New York .