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Rihanna Slays Social Media Marketing for her Fenty Beauty Line

Fenty Beauty is a make up line founded by the gorgeous, talented Robyn Rihanna Fenty. She was born in Barbados and is now a well known artist and overall amazing human being. She created this brand with the purpose of making sure “Women everywhere would be included”. Her slogan is “Fenty Beauty. The New Generation of Beauty” Often it can be hard for dark skinned women and other women of color to find a foundation and make up products that match their skin tone, thus Rihanna worked hard to find formulas that would work with a lot of hard to match skin tones. Rihanna’s product launch was successful and she is now coming out with new products for the summer. The brand has garnered a lot of followers since its inception. Most people, including myself, loved this line because it included a wide definition of beauty. Fenty Beuaty’s first video on Youtube and ad (see video below), features models with a variety of skin tones and looking at her social media we see a wide variety of people using her products. It is also 100% cruelty free.

Fenty Beauty Ad:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xTOExbLvIJk

FENTY BEAUTY’S SOCIAL MEDIA SITES

The main social media which are linked to the Fenty Beauty website are Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, Youtube, Music.ly, and Google Plus. 

Instagram

https://www.instagram.com/fentybeauty/?hl=en

Instagram is by far their most popular social media site, which makes sense as they are a beauty brand and most beauty bloggers and companies do well on Instagram because it is a photo based site. Rihanna leveraged her own popularity to launch the instagram social media page for Fenty. After four days on Instagram, the Fenty Beauty official account had amassed 1.4 million followers. Although most brands boast a 1% fan engagement on average, Fenty Beauty’s Instagram account achieved a whopping 10.41% engagement rate. Plus, in September and October, the account was averaging 1.6 billion in reach. Here are some metrics of their Instagram: 

3.2 million

30,000 - 100,000 likes per post

50-300 comments, sometimes 1,000-12,000 comments if popular post

#fenty and #fentybeauty search come up with 1,000,000 posts

As for the content strategy, they post lots of photos and videos of consumers and influencers who have used their products. In every photo of someone else, they @ them so they get credit, more followers, and they also let users know what products were used. They also have photos of actual product and consumers can click on the product in the photo to lead them to a web page to buy the product. Consumers can also click on someone’s lips for example, to be taken to the page for the lipstick that person used. I like that their models are diverse in size, color, and gender. They feature lots of beauty influencers on their Instagram. On their Instagram story, as well as on their page, Rihanna posts videos of new products that are coming out as well as how to use some of the products. 

Facebook

https://www.facebook.com/fentybeauty/

Their second most followed account is Facebook. Here are the metrics on their Facebook 

378,381 likes

Posts get 15 - 40 shares, popular ones get 3000 shares

Videos get 3-10000 views

15 - 100 comments per post

2,370 reviews 

Their content strategy is similar to Instagram in that they post when new products are launching. In photos that show the product, Fenty Beauty has a link to the product in their description. Facebook differs from Instagram because on Facebook they don’t highlight consumers who use their product. They mostly link to articles about Fenty Beauty, post video how tos mainly from their Youtube channel, and have photos showcasing their products. 

Twitter

https://twitter.com/fentybeauty?lang=en

Their twitter was created in March 2016 and is the third most followed account and here are the twitter metrics: 

244,000 followers

100-2000 likes per tweet

10-600 retweets

1-30 comments unless ask quesiton/competition may get more engagement

Makes good use of hashtags, #fentyfacefriday. #dirtythirtygiveaway

Their Twitter content, like their Facebook and Instagram, share when new products are coming out. Their Twitter is where they interact most with customers. On Twitter they retweet photos of people wearing their products. They also retweet funny, interesting stories that others tweet about Fenty. Fenty uses Twitter to respond to people who have concerns. In one tweet they said they will replace someone's Fenty product because theirs got stolen. They’ll also thank people for using their product on Twitter. On Twitter they have contests and giveaways and make good use of the hashtags. They have one called #fentyfacefriday where they repost someone who used Fenty products. They also have #dirtythirties where they give away some of their products. Twitter is the only account where they post gifs and memes as responses to some people’s tweets. They also use gifs and photos to make funny relatable jokes about how good their brand is. My favorite is this Kermit meme

Youtube

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC0HVR9T6oFS3veefhGCGEsw

The fourth social media they use is Youtube which the joined on Dec 1 2016 

141,571 subscribers

Total Views 10,680,073 views

Views on each video range from 6,000 - 5.8 million on one video (but most videos have a couple hundred thousand views)

100-900 comments per video

Every video has more likes than dislikes

Content wise, they used Youtube to post their video ad, and they post lots of make up tutorial videos illustrating how to use their products They have helpful playlists such as tips and tricks from Rihanna and a tutorials playlist. I like that they have one called the Fenty Family where they gather videos of other Youtube bloggers showing how to use Fenty Beauty products or reviewing it. By looking at the comments we can see that people were very excited and happy by her diverse line, they got positive feedback right away.

It’s clear that their content strategy differs a little from each of their four most popular social media platforms, but the message of inclusivity and using make up for fun is still the same which I like.

There are two other social media platforms mentioned on their website, but they are nowhere near as popular as their other platforms. Here are some quick facts about  the other social media mentioned and for the website.

Music.ly

https://www.musical.ly/h5/share/usr/218606766895595520.html

12 posts that consist mostly of someone doing their make up using Fenty Beauty to music. When I first checked their following three days ago, they had only 1.9 thousand fans, then yesterday they had only 2,000 fans, today I see they have 2.4 thousand fans. It looks like their fan base is quickly growing on Music.ly which I did not expect. Music.ly is used mostly by teens so I think they may be targeted the teen demographic with this platform. (For those that don’t know what Music.ly is, it’s a place where people record themselves lip syncing or dancing - or doing anything really - to music for a few seconds) 

Google Plus

https://plus.google.com/u/0/101582926428465885452

Fenty Beauty has not posted anything on their Google Plus, but they do have 198 followers. I’m not sure why they have a Google Plus linked to their website since no one seems to be using it, including the company. 

Website

https://www.fentybeauty.com/start?gclid=Cj0KCQjw-uzVBRDkARIsALkZAdljZh1t_hIrW5DwCmvWAwgq6CktqM2RNEVS668mPFyUBiLKaXa5fh4aAggHEALw_wcB

I like their website because it’s set up to give off cool, sleek, and fun vibes. Their prices are not outrageous and I like that they make ti possible for people to review all their products. The website has all of its social media linked on it and they have two different sections where people can submit photos of themselves using Fenty Beauty products.The website also has a page that features all of the video how tos that they posted on their Youtube. It was smart of them to have a section where you could pick your skin tone and then it would tell you which recommended products to buy for that skin tone.

HOW FENTY BEAUTY UTILIZES EVAN’S SOCIAL FEEDBACK CYCLE

Social Feed Back Cycle by Evans

The first step in the social feedback cycle is Awareness. Rihanna was able to raise awareness of Fenty Beauty by building on her own social media following, she has 59.2 million followers on Instagram, 85.3 million Twitter followers, 81.2 million Facebook fans and 801,000 Youtube subscribers (and counting) (Content Writers). There were also numerous PR articles written about her products and its launch, which was strategically on September 8 2017 during New York Fashion Week.

The next steps are getting people to consider and then purchase the product. When the brand launched it was clear consumers were already considering the brand as many people on social media talked about how excited they were to buy her product. Many people loved the diversity of models she used, they loved her inclusion of darker skin types, and people’s love of Rihanna probably got them to consider buying the product. It’s clear Rihanna was successful in raising awareness and getting people to consider and then purchase her product as it earned 72 million in earned media value (NewsWeek). People believe it will outsell Kyle’s cosmetics because during its first month of operations it made five times Kylie Cosmetics' in sales (Elle).

The next steps in the process, which are user generated, are use it, form opinions, and talk about the product. A quick Youtube search of “Fenty Beauty review” brings up over 400,000 results with consumers and beauty bloggers using products and then reviewing products form Rihanna’s line. The line was so hyped that bloggers knew their reviews would get views. Posting reviews also helps Rihanna’s brand get more awareness and consideration. There are also numerous articles and blogs written by people who have purchased, used, formed opinions, and talked about the product. Others then comment on these blogs and reviews which generates discussion about the Fenty Beauty line. There are also many reviews of products on the Fenty Beauty website and Sephora.

In the Evans social feedback model, all of the opinions, reviews and talk about the product line posted online then becomes used in the consideration stage. People such as myself, who have not yet purchased Fenty Beauty but are considering it, use what people wrote online to decide whether I should buy it.

I’m excited to see how the brand will grow, their customer base base is mostly African Americans, Latinas, and Asians, with whites being the smallest portion (Elle). Other big make up brands have diverse customer bases, but Rihanna’s collection is special because it fills a market niche as it was created to make sure women of color were not forgotten in the beauty industry. Women who are so often neglected by the media now get to buy make up that fits their skin and makes them feel beautiful.

HOW FENTY BEAUTY ENGAGES ITS USERS

Evan’s outlines four levels of engagement. From lowest to highest engagement the steps are Consumption, Curation, Creation, and Collaboration.

Consumption means people are downloading, reading, watching, or listening to your digital content. It’s not the best way to socially interact with consumers, but it is a necessary first stpe to get people aware and interacting with your brand. Fenty Beauty obviously has consumption down. As told by their social media metrics, they have amassed a lot of followers on several different social media sites in a short amount of time. Lots of people are viewing their content.

The next level of engagement is Curation. Curation is the act of sorting, filtering, rating, reviewing, commenting on, tagging, or describing content. It’s important for brands to encourage curation so audience members can participate and make content useful. Fenty Beauty has done an excellent job curating their content. Again, as the metrics earlier show, many people are liking their content on different platforms. It’s harder to get comments and shares on sites like Facebook and Twitter, but they still have a good amount considering the newness of their brand. On Facebook, the Sephora website, as well as their actual website a lot of people have taken the time to rate and review Fenty Beauty’s products which helps other users decide whether to buy a product or not. Many people have made review videos and blog posts of Fenty Beauty on Youtube. On twitter users tweet about their experiences with Fenty Beauty products.

Creation means community members creating content for the site or brand. Fenty Beauty has done a great job and getting people to participate in creating content. On their website they ask people to submit photos of their “#fentyface”. On Twitter they use this same hashtag to encourage people to share photos of their face using the product and then they retweet that content.

On Instagram they encourage people to curate content as their description in Instagram is “Tag your shots with #FENTYBEAUTY”. Most of their Instagram content is created by other people. They have photos of a range of influencers: beauty, health, make up, and models, wearing a Fenty product. This is a good strategy because they can show a wide range of genders and ethnicities on their pages and they don’t have to pay people to make the content. In each photo they @ the person who is featured. They also show real people using their products. This is smart because they can take advantage of influencers’ audiences. Bloggers want to be featured on Fenty Beauty so they can get more followers, Fenty Beauty wants to feature influencers so they can get more followers, and audience members want to see good content from their brand or bloggers,  it’s a win win win situation.

Collaboration is the highest level of engagement and it can occur in several different ways. Collaboration could be audience members helping the brand make a new product, or it could be members of a community coming together to create something. I’m not sure if Fenty Beauty has reached this level yet. As far as I know, Fenty Beauty has not talked to its fans and included them in the design process yet. For the future I think it would be good for FentyBeauty to ask consumers to come up with a name for a lipstick, or to ask consumers what they want to see next or what trouble they have finding makeup that suits them. These acts of collaboration would build brand loyalty and by looking at social media, these fans want to interact and be a part of Rihanna’s inclusive brand. I do like that one member tweeted at Rihanna to have a “trans model” in her marketing of Fenty Beauty which would be kind of like collaboration if she had done it. But she responded with this

While she didn’t do the suggestion, she gave a good reason not to and by responding to this person it’s like she was having dialogue about a possible marketing change which is kind of like collaboration (Refinery 29).

In conclusion I believe Fenty Beauty is a great example of social media marketing. Rihanna saw a problem in the beauty industry, created a product to fix that problem, created hype surrounding the product, chose the timing of the launch well, and fostered inclusivity. Rihanna created a quality product that delivered as fans rave about her product on different social media. Fenty Beauty’s marketing team uses each social media a little bit differently, but keeps their overall messages the same. I want to buy Fenty Beauty now that I have done this research project on it and learned more about the products and what people said about them. Before this project, I heard a little bit about Fenty Beauty, but didn’t think I would ever buy from them because they are worth more than drugstore make up. However, after doing research on them, I now want to purchase their products. Their engagement strategy was smart. bloggers and consumers alike can submit photos of them using Fenty Beauty and get featured on their social media. Anyone who buys Fenty also becomes part of the #fentyfamily. One of my favorite bloggers Jenn Im used a Fenty Product in her video and got posted on their Instagram. I trust Jenn Im’s opinion and now I want to use Fenty. I also love the message Fenty Beauty sends about inclusivity and about not forgetting women of color in the makeup industry. I hope in the future they grow to become more inclusive and use models with diverse body types, but I love what they’ve done so far. I have learned a lot from Fenty Beauty’s marketing and I can’t wait to see how Fenty Beauty evolves as a brand.

[chamakerr]

Do Reaction Videos on Youtube Infringe on Copyright Law?

In today’s digital age it’s very easy to create your own user generated content protected by copyright law. One of the biggest platforms for user generated videos is Youtube. It is the most popular video sharing site and you can find almost anything on it. Since Youtube became popular there have been many cases of copyright infringement. For example, many videos have been taken down because it uses music or video clips that were copyrighted. In one of my animated music videos, I had to replace the music on my video because it was copyrighted. As Lawrence Lessig states, remixing is a way to create new things and is a way for this generation to communicate (Lessig). I agree with Lessig and do not think my music should have been switched out. However, that’s a whole other debate. The copyright infringement case I want to examine today is the case of popular youtube channel h3h3productions versus the channel MattHossZone.

As with any social media site, there is great content, and there is some not so great content. Some Youtubers use some questionably unethical methods in creating their videos. Other Youtubers have some unethical messages to viewers. A lot of the popular Youtube content today enforce racist and sexist ideas. Questionable videos include pranks in the hood videos, kissing prank videos, most of the Paul family videos, and videos that scam kids. As a result, many Youtube channels create reaction videos. In these reaction videos, the person shows clips from the original video they are reacting to, and then they give their commentary on the video. H3h3productions is being sued over a reaction video they created to one of MattHossZone’s video.

H3h3productions is a channel created by Ethan and Hila Klein. They became popular for reacting to weird, funny, stupid, and harmful Youtube videos. They have two channels, their main one is h3h3productions and they have a less popular channel known as ethanandhila. Their main channel has around 5.5 million subscribers and the lesser one has almost 2 million subscribers. On their lesser known channel they reacted to MattHossZone’s video “Bold Guy versus Parkour Girl”. In the video, Matt Hoss encounters a lady stretching on the street. She says if he catches her in a parkour race then she will let him do anything he wants to her. It is pretty cringeworthy in my opinion. The video is scripted, but kids watching do not know that. MattHossZone has 170,000 subscribers and he typically posts videos where he walks up to a hot girl in the street and she wants to have sex with him.

Here is the reaction video h3h3productions created. (The video was re-uploaded because the first one was taken down due to the copyright claim)

Here is the original video MattHossZone uploaded 

On April 26, 2016, Matt Hossenzaideh, the plaintiff and owner of the channel MattHossZone, sued Ethan and Hila Klein of h3h3productions, the defendants, on these three claims: copyright infringement, DMCA misrepresentation, and defamation (TubeFilter). Judge Katherine B Forrest, of the United States District Court Southern District of New York, released her judgement on August 23, 2017. Click here to read the full opinion.

The first claim is one of copyright infringement and deals with whether h3h3productions use of MattHossZone’s video constituted fair use. Fair use of copyright material includes criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching, scholarship, and research. On the claim of fair use, the Judge looked at each of the four factors used to determine fair use.

The first factor examined in the fair use of copyrighted material is purpose of the use. The Judge stated that this first factor is one of the most important to judge fair use and stated that this factor “’weighs heavily in the defendants’ favor”. She says h3h3productions’ video is clearly for criticism and comment which falls under fair use of copyrighted material. 

The second factor to determine fair use is the nature of the copyrighted work. Judge Forrest says this is the only factor which weighs in favor of the plaintiff,  as the original video is a creative work protected under copyright law. It became copyrighted as soon as he completed the work, as defined in the 1976 Copyright Act. He could prove it was his work by showing a file of his video. Motion pictures and other audio-visual works count as copyright, so clearly this is a copyrighted work. Furthermore, this video is fiction, and not based in fact, so that weighs this factor in favor of the plaintiff as well.

The third factor to decide fair use is substantiality of the use. H3h3productions utilized 3 min and 15 sec of Hoss’s 5 min 24 sec video (TubeFilter). However, the quantity is not the only factor used to determine substantiality. We must also look at whether the use of the copyrighted work helped provide commentary and critique without losing context. Forrest states that the “‘extent’ and ‘quality and importance’ of the video clips were reasonable to accomplish transformative purpose of critical commentary”. Thus this factor was also weighted in the defendants’ favor.

The fourth factor is the effects on the natural market, in other words, was there lost revenue. Forrest says “it is clear that video does not serve as market substitute for MattHossZone’s video”. H3h3productions’ video was clearly created for a different purpose than the MattHossZone video and does not serve to replace the MattHossZone video, but to critique it.

Thus, three out of the four factors to determine fair use weigh in favor of the defendants. Furthermore, the most important factor weighs in favor of the defendants. So it was decided that h3h3productions’ video constituted fair use and so the video did not violate copyright law.

Hoss also claimed that the Kleins did not file their DMCA counter notifications appropriately and thus were at fault for DMCA misrepresentation. Judge Forrest dismissed the claim in favor of h3h3productions because the Kleins had a good faith belief that their video was not infringing on copyright law and therefore there was no DMCA misrepresentation (TubeFilter).

Finally on the third claim of defamation, Judge Forrest ruled in favor of h3h3productions. Hoss argues that he was “lambasted” in a video called “We’re Being Sued” (TubeFilter) that h3h3productions posted after the lawsuit was filed. In the video h3h3productions explains their side of the lawsuit and criticizes Hoss for initiating it. 

You can watch the “We’re Being Sued” video here 

The Judge dismissed these claims of defamation as h3h3productions did not say anything that was not true, and only stated non actionable opinions.

Thus, the defendants, Ethan and Hila Klein, won the case on all three claims. However, the Judge notes that this ruling does not mean all reaction videos constitute fair use. Furthermore, this is only a decision out of one court, it is not binding across the United States. But this case can be cited in future cases arguing a fair use defense to a copyright infringement claim.

I agree with the Judge’s decision of this court case. I believe Ethan and Hila Klein fairly used parts of Matt Hoss’s copyrighted video. Reaction videos are an acceptable practice and not an ethical violation. However, I personally think it was unethical for Matt Hoss to sue them because clearly it was not a copyright violation and it costs the Kleins over $50,000 to pay for the legal fees. It also cost them lots of time and stress. Luckily, they got support from the Youtube community as one youtuber created a Gofundme page and raised over $100,000 for the Kleins. 

I am biased in that I love Ethan and Hila Klein videos. I also hate Youtubers like Matt Hoss who create fake videos that are supposed to make boys believe girls are sex objects who are ready to have sex whenever. Furthermore, if social commentary like Ethan and Hila’s were not allowed, then many Youtubers’ harmful messages would not be exposed. It is important to allow people to freely criticize and engage with other people’s content so we can discuss whether the content is ethical. If the h3h3productions video had been ruled a copyright violation, then it could eventually lead to satirists like John Oliver and Trevor Noah not being able to show copyrighted material either. 

Ultimately, as I said at the beginning of this blog, I am more on the side of not being so stringent on copyrighting material. As long as someone gives credit where it is due, I believe it is okay to remix and use other people’s copyrighted material to say something new. I think copyright laws often choke creativity as Lessig says (Lessig). I believe what Kirby Ferguson says is also true, that there is a bit of remixing and sharing in everything we create (Ferguson). I have been on Youtube since I was ten and I have watched it change and grow to accommodate copyright laws. I have watched Youtube become a place where people will do anything just to get views and revenue, rather than a place for sharing. I have seen a lot of horrible Youtubers come about, who just want money, and I am thankful that people like h3h3productions work to make people laugh while pointing out how unethical some Youtubers are.

h3h3productions made a video about winning the lawsuit here

[chamakerr]

Anova Sous Vide Precision Cooker: Smart Product

A smart product as defined by Hepplemann and Porter is one where “Smart components amplify the capabilities and value of the physical components, while connectivity amplifies the capabilities and value of the smart components and enables some of them to exist outside the physical product itself.” Smart products have been created in all aspects of our life. One area that has a growing number of smart products is kitchen appliances. A popular new smart product used in the cooking world is the Anova Sous Vide Precision Cooker.

What is sous vide? Sous vide is a cooking technique that utilizes precise temperature control to deliver consistent, restaurant-quality results. In the past only restaurant chefs used it because it was so expensive. But recently Anova created a sous vide precision cooker that was affordable for consumers at $159 (Anova)

Here is a short video from their website which illustrates how the Anova Precision Cooker works. 

https://anovaculinary.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/Experticity-Short-Logo-on-Black-LowRes.mp4?_=1

Here are some photos of the product in use and photos of the meals some customers made.

As you can see in the video and photos the Anova Precision Cooker allows consumers to make restaurant quality food. You can make a variety of meat, fish, egg, and even dessert dishes using this product. If you love cooking, or if you’re like me and love eating, but are not that great at cooking (the coolest thing I can make is baked chicken and noodles), then the Anova Sous Vide Precision cooker is for you as it is easy to use and can create scrumptious meals.

The three components that make the Anova Precision Cooker a smart product are physical components, smart components, and connectivity components (Hepplemann and Porter). 

Physical Components: 

Polycarbonate electronics encasement, a stainless steel skirt, and a polycarbonate bottom cap

Max. temperature: 210 degree Fahrenheit/99 degrees Celcius 

Min. temperature of 77 degrees Farenheit/25 degrees Celcius

Temperature variance +/- .01

Weighs 2.5 kg

The top half contains an LED display and a timer that can be set to 99 hours

On the screen you can set the time and temperature manually without connecting to any devices  

The top half is a thermometer while the bottom silver part acts as a circulator. The circulator heats water and circulates water in the pot to maintain precise temperature throughout the pot of water

Circulator can pump 8 liters of water per minute

Comes with a clamp which allows you to clamp the precision cooker to a pot

Sensors that indicate when the water level is too low or too high

Smart Components: As the name of the product suggests, the smart component of this product is that it can sense the precise temperature of the water and then change the circulation of the water to keep all of the water in the pot at the same temperature throughout the cooking time. This ensures the food doesn’t cook unevenly.

Connectivity Components: The Anova Precision Cooker has bluetooth capabilities and can connect to Wi-Fi. There is a downloadable Sous Vide Anova app for IOS and Android. Within the app you can set the temperature and time for your meal. This app lets you start, stop, change temperature, set timer, and monitor your cooking status from anywhere. The app also works with Alexa and Google home devices so you can use voice control to start cooking or check on the status of the food (Anova Website). The app sends you push notifications that tell you things like when the water is preheating and when it’s set to the precise temperature. You will also receive notifications for low water level and food safety. The app includes different recipes, guided cooking, and video tutorials (I-tunes Store). The three forms connectivity can take are one to one, one to many, and many to many (Hepplemann and Porter). This product takes the one to one connectivity form, which is where an individual product, the Anova Precision Cooker, connects to the user, in this case through the Anova app installed on the user’s phone. 

The Anova Precision Cooker has gained enough popularity that it has reshaped some industry forces. The forces it affects the most are the ones dealing with competition. These forces are “rivalry among competitors” and “threat of new entrants” (Hepplemann and Porter).

Anova Applied Electronics Inc. created their version of a Sous Vide Precision Cooker which lead to rivalry among existing competitors. By looking at Amazon I saw that many other companies have Sous Vide Precision Cookers such as Kitchen Gizmo, Chefman, and Avalon Bay (Amazon). Anova has a higher price point than its competitors, but is considered the best seller and has the most reviews on Amazon. Overall it has 4/5 stars. Thus, Anova successfully entered the Sous Vide Precision Cooker market and now other companies will need to compete to improve their value.

Electrolux is a multinational home appliance manufacturer based in Sweden. They acquired Anova Applied Electronics company for $250 million (Reuters). Anova was considered a competitor to Electrolux so Electrolux decided to buy Anova so that it could work on expanding into the growing smart kitchen products market.

Anova was a threat to Electrolux because of its entry into the kitchen appliance and specifically smart kitchen appliance market. Since Anova’s Precision Cooker came out there have been other new competitors that have entered the marketplace such as Sansaire, which was funded as a Kickstarter, and Nomiku. All three of these brands have a popular Sous Vide Precision Cooker. One blogger reviewed these three products and found that all three worked about the same (Serious Eats). Thus, what sets each apart is how they look, user interface, and connectivity. In the future, with the popularity of Sous Vide cooking, more brands are likely to enter the marketplace. Anova will need to set itself apart and create better value by giving buyers more power such as customization or by building strong relationships.

Anova must be very careful of product substitutes. Their business model of direct to consumer is great and many other competitors have similar business models. However, there have been complaints on the Anova app and competitors may make better Precision Cookers than the one Anova has now. One Anova user said they used the Anova Precision Cooker, but decided to use a competitor’s app with their Anova Precision Cooker because the Anova app was so bad (I-tunes App Store Review).

The Anova Precision Cooker Bluetooth + wifi costs $159. This is expensive for a college student like me, however I believe it is reasonable for a long lasting kitchen product. If you cook often then I believe this product would save you money in the long run. The reviews indicate that it works most of the time and is reliable in cooking good food that is restaurant quality (Anova). Ideally, one could stop going out and cook a lot more meals at home. It could also save one time, as there is not as much prep and people can do other things while the Anova app monitors the food. According to the website, using the Anova Precision Cooker will lead to waste reduction as steak loses 40% volume due to drying out whereas a steak cooked sous vide style loses no volume. Another blogger (Tasting Table) says food, and thus money, is saved because a lot of food gets wasted because it gets burnt in the pan (I can attest to this as I’ve burned my meat on the stove several times).  

After looking at reviews on their website and online, there were a few common problems with the Anova product and company. Several people did not receive their product in the mail and some received defective products (Anova). There are also a lot of problems with the app. In the IOS store it has 2.5 / 5.0 star rating. Some people said the app was not the most attractive or modern looking, and many people had connectivity issues with the timer and temperature sync between the device and the app. There were also some glitches with the app and its notifications (I-tunes App Store Review).

Despite these negative reviews, it has received lots of praise from magazines such as Gizmodo, Serious Eats, the New York Times, and Forbes.  Many customers love and are satisfied with the food the precision cooker makes. Many consumers have posted photos online showing how successful the Anova Precision Cooker is at cooking (Anova). Many bloggers have also raved about the food the Anova makes as well as how quiet it is, its reliability, and its affordability.

To improve this device I would work on the app’s user interface, features, and fix the connectivity problems. One negative review was posted in November 2017 and one on January 15, 2018 which suggests that the connectivity problems have not been fixed yet. In the future, Anova may be able to set themselves apart by adding customization features like choosing different colors or sizes. There is really only one smart capability which is making sure the temperature stays the same. If Anova can acquire more technology and money they could take the smart features even further so that maybe it could take photos of the food while cooking, or somehow sense when the food was done. As always, if possible, a lower price could help them enter into other segments like the college student markets. 

Overall I think the Anova Precision Cooker is a great addition to the kitchen and clearly delivers good food. As a college student I can’t afford this device right now, but I would love to own it eventually. I want to improve my cooking and I think the Anova Precision Cooker would help me make big delicious meals for myself. With the precision cooker I could save money on food, make a delicious meal without the hassle of going to a restaurant, and I can binge watch Netflix while I wait for my delicious steak and while I eat it!

For more information on the Anova Precision Cooker check out their website 

https://anovaculinary.com/anova-precision-cooker/