Supermarket giant’s Waitrose are launching their first channel on popular website YouTube according to marketing news.

The channel is being brought unveiled in an effort to increase the company’s digital engagement with customers. The channel will be live from Friday (18 June) and will feature television chefs Delia Smith and Heston Blumenthal, who recently agreed to act as food ambassadors for the Waitrose brand.

The channel will be made up of five sections and will include interactive video content with recipes from Smith and Blumenthal. There will also be culinary tips and a series of short films about the origin of Waitrose food.

The recipes will be organised around meal occasions and will be broken up into sections such as healthy eating, cooking for friends, everyday eating and weekend cooking.

Visitors will be able to link to more than 5,000 recipes, special offers and to the online shopping section of the supermarket’s website via the channel.

In January 2009, Waitrose introduced Waitrose LIVE, its first digital recipe magazine. They say they have had an ‘overwhelming response’ from customers since its launch, which encouraged them to start their YouTube channel.

Paul Hogan, Waitrose manager of direct and local marketing, told Marketing Week: “Our customers are increasingly looking for new ways to engage with our brand. This YouTube channel will play a key role in our marketing strategy – it is the perfect platform to inspire a wider audience with interactive content in relevant and exciting formats.”

The channel was created by integrated agency Kitcatt Nohr Alexander Shaw.

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