Self-styled influencers aren’t hard to find on social media these days. Foodie influencers are particularly commonplace, but the pizza niche is a good bit smaller and more specialized. Now FeedSpot, a database of bloggers and podcasts, has created a list of the Top 70 Pizza Influencers in 2023.
“When ranking these pizza influencers, we’ve considered not just their following, but also engagement, as well as overall influence in the pizza space,” the list’s introduction states.
Topping the list is Monica Wojnilo, a Boston-based influencer better known to her followers as @pizzablonde. On her website, she posts reviews of pizzerias and related products, including sponsored reviews, as well as pizza news. She has more than 33,200 followers on Instagram, which seems to be her primary social media platform (she hasn’t posted on Facebook since January 2021).
Related: Word-of-mouth marketing: Let’s give ’em something to talk about
No. 2 on the list is Albert Grande (@pizzatherapy), founder of the Pizza Therapy website, followed by legendary pizzaiolo Tony Gemignani (@capopizza) at No. 3, with home pizza maker Graham (@dough.the.evolution) and Chris Townsend (@doughballdisco) rounding out the top 5 at No. 4 and No. 5 respectively.
Monica Wojnilo is better known on Instagram as @pizzablonde (Monica Wojnilo / Instagram)
Other notables on the list include John Arena (@johnnypizzaguy), co-founder of Metro Pizza in Las Vegas, at No. 13; food writer Arthur Bovino (@nycbestpizza) at No. 25; and Jim Mirabelli (@nepapizzareview), founder of the NEPA Pizza Review website, at No. 36. Also making the list were pizza pop-up entrepreneurs Kaleigh Ann Gardner (@itsthepizzaslut) at No. 52 and Miriam Weiskind (@thezareport) at No. 53.
Conspicuously absent from the list was nationwide influencer Dave Portnoy of Barstool Sports, whose “One Bite” pizza reviews can transform a pizzeria’s business literally overnight. Portnoy’s “One Bite” videos on YouTube routinely draw hundreds of thousands of views.
The FeedSpot list, released on July 6, is aimed at pizzeria owners seeking influencers for outreach campaigns or for branding/marketing collaborations. However, while most of the content creators on the list are pizza influencers in terms of their fame and reach, they’re not necessarily the types who will visit and review your pizzeria. Many, like Gemignani and Arena, operate their own highly acclaimed restaurants, and others, like Gardner and Weiskind, stay busy running their pop-up operations.
Exceptions include Wojnilo and Mirabelli, both of whom frequent restaurants in their region as pizza fans and post reviews. A visit by Mirabelli, who roams Northeastern Pennsylvania in search of the area’s best pies and creates videos about his experiences, can boost a pizzeria’s business with a single post, thanks to his audience of more than 17,600 followers on Instagram, 22,000-plus followers on Facebook and 3,123 followers on TikTok.
Additionally, most of the content creators on the FeedSpot list are perhaps better described as “micro influencers,” defined as social media accounts with 1,000 to 100,000 followers. Micro influencers are individuals who are well-known in the pizza niche with a highly engaged audience.
As Loren Dalton, co-founder and CEO of WhutsFree, wrote for PMQ in June 2021, “Micro influencers may have smaller audiences, but they often have better engagement. Their content seems more authentic than sponsored content, and, as a result, makes them relatable to consumers. A smaller account is more approachable and able to better interact with followers, leading to genuine connections and relationships.”
