By Lindsey Kin
The food-filled day began with an interactive cooking demonstration by celebrity South African chef, Reuben Riffel, on how to turn ordinary dishes into extraordinary home-cooked meals. The cooking demo included interesting cooking tips on how to cook-up the perfect steak, chicken breast and hearty mashed potatoes, as well as a how-to visual guide using Robertson’s Spices more imaginatively. Riffel’s demonstration brought the Robertson's TV ad, currently running on M-Net, to life right in front of us.
Following the cooking demonstration, Robertson’s public affairs manager, Ethne Whitley, provided insight into the newly launched Robertson’s Spices campaign. Through its research - and what inspired the campaign - it was found that women are afraid of cooking, in that they believe that recipes are complicated and there is “a lot of stuff” involved, such as finding various ingredients, therefore it’s easiest to stick to something that they know. With the latest campaign, the FMCG product hopes to change this perception. Whitley said that it’s about inspiring the everyday at-home chef to look at these spices and think up inventive, wonderful ways that will work in their own kitchen. “It’s about taking dishes that we already cook, such as steak and making the cooking experience more interesting,” said Whitley.
She went on to explain that the campaign has been designed to help consumers to use things that are simple and “un-fussy” in today’s time-poor society. It’s about the small changes that make a hugely surprising result at the end of the day, such as the techniques that were demonstrated on the day of the launch as well as those seen on the Robertson’s TV ads, which are very simple. The campaign showcases a way of preparing that makes it really different and persuades the consumer to rely on the information that they receive in that it comes from a trusted source like Robertson’s, as well as understanding the various spices and tips that come from an expert in the market.
Through its TV advertising campaign, Robertson’s aims to create awareness demonstrating simple techniques in which M-Net viewers, specifically watching
Masterchef Australia season two, will be able to create. Whitley further explained that the journey that Robertson’s wants to take its consumers on is a simple but special one – radio and print will also be used for the campaign.
When asked about its sponsorship, Whitley commented, "The series is a brilliant fit to our Robertson’s campaign and we are proud to bring viewers enjoyment though a food experience. Our aim is to inspire our consumers to experiment with spices in their cooking by trying and combining their delicious aromas and flavours."
For M-Net and its partnership with
Masterchef Australia, the fact is, the series is not just a cooking show, it is a reality show dubbed as ‘drama with an edge’. This is the first time that M-Net is partnering with Robertson’s.
Following the informative media briefing it was then time for fun with a challenge. Guests were treated to a surprise – we were to cook our own lunch. I felt that I had triumphed as I had finally made my way into the
Masterchef kitchen –not the real one; rather, it was a mini-
Masterchef challenge that Robertson’s had organised to further create the hype around the new reality series. All were given a key ingredient - potatoes, and had to create a dish inspired by two of Robertson’s Spices.
After all was ‘cooked’ and done, the launch was all about the winning combination, combining flavours and expert techniques, providing the viewers with simple ways in which to spice up chicken, beef – or in our case… potatoes.
Catch
Masterchef Australia season two, Mondays to Thursdays on M-Net at 18:30.