Experienced personnel
Before setting up iCook, Hsiao worked for a computer games company, also becoming involved with NHN Japan, which produced the popular social networking app LINE.
Another iCook co-founder, Lawrence Lin, studied in the Graduate Institute of Information Management Systems at National Chengchi University, and later worked as an engineer for smartphone maker HTC. Although iCook’s co-founders were all newbies to the kitchen, they are all in fact veterans of Internet technology.
When starting iCook, Hsiao didn’t go with the traditional strategy of creating a product, then selling it. Prior to the website’s launch, he set up a Facebook fan page and reproduced recipes and articles on food by other bloggers to establish his brand image.
In short order the site began attracting large numbers of visitors, but iCook wasn’t making any money. The firm had to push online marketing to increase their exposure before receiving their first income four months later.
Running a Facebook page, a blog, and a website, iCook has finally seen a sharp rise in the number of visits: in July of 2012 it had over 7 million hits for the month. For even a simple dish like fried rice, iCook can provide 1100 different recipes.
Culinary blogger Amy points out that Taiwanese love to experience foreign cultures by cooking exotic dishes at home, while for those living or studying abroad, being able to knock up Taiwanese snacks or hometown dishes is an important way to assuage homesickness. Trying out recipes isn’t just about food; it offers a cultural experience and a sense of accomplishment.
Hsiao, also founder of Inside Forum, was initially thinking of setting up a financial website or a news channel. But with his many years of IT experience, he knew there was more to Internet success than high technology: fulfilling users’ needs is in fact the key to survival online.
His insights came from experience and keen observation. He knew that recipe sharing was common in Taiwan, but lacked the proper channel. The recipe sharing and search functions provided by iCook seem to have hit the spot in terms of market response.