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Ask HN: Advice on how to run a chocolate campaign

1 points by palidanx 14y ago

My friend owns a business in Los Angeles called Choco Vivo (www.chocovivo.com). Her stuff is amazing because the chocolate is actually made from bean to bar from a stone ground milling process with no additional preservatives added. Business wise, she is having an uphill battle trying to persuade more people to adopt her chocolate because inevitably it tastes different than the regular chocolate in the supermarket. Most of that chocolate has soy lechitin which adds this buttery mouthfeel that originally doesn't come from chocolate. She was thinking of starting some grassroots campaign and so far I threw out some ideas of maybe making a video of this process or somehow educating the consumer. She has been making the chocolate for a couple of years and wants to grow a bit more. Any advice from the fellow hn community?

ryduh 14y ago
I would love to see a video about this process. I think I'd be intrigued to buy some chocolate if there was a sample pack to see what it tastes like.
- palidanx 14y ago
  Would you want to see a video about the bean to bar process only or with bean to bar vs what we get in the market?
  - ryduh 14y ago
    I'd love to learn about your bean to bar process AND how it's different than what's out there! :)
andrewem 14y ago
Your friend's business is not the only bean-to-bar stone ground chocolate maker: http://www.google.com/search?client=safari&rls=en&q=stone+ground+chocolate http://www.google.com/search?client=safari&rls=en&q=...
- palidanx 14y ago
  That's true, but at least personally the only two I know of are Dandelion in SF and Choco Vivo. Others with 'bean to bar' have somewhat of a questionable reputation.
tirrellp 14y ago
Here are some observations. 1. When I go to the site, I get the understanding that I am at the site of a chocolatier, but I have no idea what makes this chocolate different/better 2. When I click on 'about us' I get educated on how stone ground chocolate is how the mayans made it, and how the chocolate is not refined through rollers, conched, or tempered. I have no idea what any of those things mean or why I as a consumer should care. It would be much better in this case to educate me with pictures, or maybe an infographic. I went to the page and waded through the text for the express purpose of trying to understand why I should buy/eat this chocolate rather than the stuff I normally buy. Does it taste better? Does it taste different? If so, how? I get the sense that I should prefer this over 'regular chocolate' but I dont know why? So I think the chocolatier should do a better job of convincing my why I want to try and buy this chocolate.
- palidanx 14y ago
  thanks!

1 points by palidanx 14y ago

ryduh 14y ago

I would love to see a video about this process. I think I'd be intrigued to buy some chocolate if there was a sample pack to see what it tastes like.

palidanx 14y ago
Would you want to see a video about the bean to bar process only or with bean to bar vs what we get in the market?
- ryduh 14y ago
  I'd love to learn about your bean to bar process AND how it's different than what's out there! :)

andrewem 14y ago

Your friend's business is not the only bean-to-bar stone ground chocolate maker: http://www.google.com/search?client=safari&rls=en&q=stone+ground+chocolate http://www.google.com/search?client=safari&rls=en&q=...

palidanx 14y ago
That's true, but at least personally the only two I know of are Dandelion in SF and Choco Vivo. Others with 'bean to bar' have somewhat of a questionable reputation.

tirrellp 14y ago

Here are some observations. 1. When I go to the site, I get the understanding that I am at the site of a chocolatier, but I have no idea what makes this chocolate different/better 2. When I click on 'about us' I get educated on how stone ground chocolate is how the mayans made it, and how the chocolate is not refined through rollers, conched, or tempered. I have no idea what any of those things mean or why I as a consumer should care. It would be much better in this case to educate me with pictures, or maybe an infographic. I went to the page and waded through the text for the express purpose of trying to understand why I should buy/eat this chocolate rather than the stuff I normally buy. Does it taste better? Does it taste different? If so, how? I get the sense that I should prefer this over 'regular chocolate' but I dont know why? So I think the chocolatier should do a better job of convincing my why I want to try and buy this chocolate.

palidanx 14y ago
thanks!