A Corny Idea

If you had the man considered the world's first popcorn chef in your employ, what would you do? Dale and Thomas knew the answer was obvious — make him a “pop star” in online video.

The popcorn purveyor began running the videos showcasing their products and Ed Doyle — a graduate of the Culinary Institute of America — in September. Paul Goodman, senior vice president of e-commerce and marketing, says the idea came about after the company saw how good “Chef Ed” was on camera in a series of Dale and Thomas commercials.

The TV spots offer viewers two bags of popcorn for only $5.95 to cover the shipping and handling. “It's a way to get people to try the popcorn and then hopefully place an order,” notes Goodman. “We've given away hundreds of thousands of bags of popcorn.”

Traffic is building slowly for the videos, which are featured both on YouTube and DaleandThomas.com product pages, where the company hopes the clips will increase the length of site visits.

Goodman says Dale and Thomas may delve into other social media options like blogs and podcasts if it makes sense for the brand. “There has to be a relevance to it,” he says. “We sleep, eat and drink popcorn, but not everyone else does. If people form a connection [with us], then we probably will.”