She is an Advertising and Public Relations graduate, a world she decided to leave behind after a year working in an agency. "I saw that it was a very complicated environment and I didn't like it at all. And even though I wanted to communicate, I was not ready for such a competitive sector," she tells VIA Empresa. Yet, she didn't even know she had a passion for cookery, which was something of "a discovery": "Without imagining it, I learned I loved cookery and saw that I could get my vision across with the support of social networks, which is what really gives value to the blog and the channel through which I get followers." Creativity, a good eye for a photograph and Instagram are her allies.
There are cookery blogs going back 10 years, but we haven't seen a boom in gastronomy until now. Is it all due to Instagram?
Yes, because it is where dishes can shine best. Food is not only to be tasted, it is also for the eyes and with a photograph you can visually express a dish. People want easiness, not to have to read and with a glance be able to see if they like a recipe and want to prepare it. Twitter, for example, is more of a news network and with only 140 characters you can't explain in words what an image can say. I have also recently entered the world of Youtube, where I show step-by-step how the dishes are made. I am self-taught, I learnt through trial and error; and for people to see through videos and photos that they can do the same is important..
So, the social networks help to spread content, but also better show your profile.
Yes, for them to see that you listen and that you are not doing anything out of the norm is an added value. I am a normal person who communicates closely, I am not an influencer, which is just a label. Perhaps chefs with Michelin stars can claim to be from another sphere, but I have nothing to do with them. I communicate, people ask me things and I answer, because we are on the same level, not in different worlds.
Is the foodie movement a passing phase like any other?
Gastronomy is fashionable and at a high level. Perhaps it will fall off somewhat, but it has always been able to reinvent itself and I think that is what keeps it alive. It is not like the fashion of wearing trousers that are lower or wider, it is a passion for cookery and I doubt it will go away. On the other hand, I think that we will increasingly need to be more involved in the whole process.
And what is the current socialisation of food due to?
The fact we want to look after ourselves, to see that it is not difficult to make a good, healthy dish. What's more, we increasingly know about more ingredients and food from abroad through the Internet and sharing images. And it is not only a case of learning about new things, but also enjoying them. Little by little we have found that we can have a good time cooking and eating, and we spend more time on it. Everything has become an experience that begins with doing the shopping and ends enjoying the result at the table.
Apart from showing recipes, you also rate restaurants. Are foodbloggers the critics of the future?
It is true we have people around us who follow us because they like our style. We guide them in their journey around restaurants, we are claiming part of the territory and we could end up becoming critics of a sort. Yet, I want to make it clear that we are not doing any harm and we don't want to bring anything down. We work in an objective way, without earning anything because it is our passion. We do not want to express our opinions, merely share them. We have credibility and people follow us, so little by little we are increasingly making an impression.
What do you offer that food critics do not?
We were born and are growing on social networks, while the traditional food journalist is not so immersed in the 2.0 world. And perhaps we are closer to people. Someone who is not a digital native could find it difficult to generate content on the Internet and to make it attractive. But I insist in saying that bloggers and critics are profiles that can coexist. Foodies follow us, those looking for a restaurant or a set menu for 10 euros. And they do not always get that from expert critics.
Catalonia is a point of reference in the world of gastronomy. Is that also the case in the world of foodblogging?
Yes, of course. There are a lot of blogs and a lot of people who earn a living from it. And the interaction between users allowed by social networks has nourished it, so that it has grown a lot.
How are brands and the restaurant sector adapting to these new trends?
There are a lot companies that are still reticent and do not want social networks. That is a mistake, you can gain something back from your followers. If you are not on social networks it is as if you do not exist because any customer can find you there at any moment. I find it hard to understand a restaurant that does not have Instagram. I think that it is very important to make the effort to adapt to the 2.0 world because if not you will be left behind and it will be more difficult to take the plunge.
But some brands have made the effort and have turned foodbloggers into ambassadors for their products. Which ones have you worked with?
I have just ended cooperating with Vichy Catalan, I am doing the same with Barilla, and I will possibly soon start with Lavazza, Seven Up... To be an ambassador I have to like the brand. I won't stick up for a brand that does nothing for me. Some say we charge to go to restaurants, to take photographs and post them, but it is not true, I won't post any photographs of a restaurant I didn't like. It works against me, to the detriment of the Delicious Martha brand and my followers, it would cause me to lose credibility. I want transparency, so I will only post the image if I liked the restaurant or brand. I have got where I am thanks to my followers, and I cannot cheat them. We have to get to the point at which this new model of publicity is understood.
In March you won the Cactus prize for the Best Personal Branding. What does that mean for your career?
It is a prize that meant a lot to me and that shows I am doing things right, and that this world is gaining ground. It is very gratifying, as was being nominated as Jove de Mèrit by the Confraria del Cava de Sant Sadurní and being chosen as the Bloguera d'Or by the Canal Cocina. All of them are gratifying, but the Cactus prize really meant a lot because it was thanks to people voting for me.