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New Orleans food company Zatarain’s is raising its profile during this year’s runup to Mardi Gras through a series of online initiatives designed to connect consumers with its products and brand personality.

For instance, the company is tapping into the aspirational and visual nature of blogs to share unique and authentic perspectives to build engagement and reach. To start, Zatarain’s is unmasking a Mardi Gras “Krewe” of Influencers, much like a Mardi Gras krewe that holds parades and balls during Carnival season. The Zatarain’s Krewe is a team of five bloggers (with backgrounds ranging from foodie to stay-at-home mom) across the United States. This varied Krewe will be steeped in the brand’s history and take part in exclusive, insider opportunities to become online advocates and content creators for Zatarain’s.

The company will also host a suite of social media offerings on its Facebook page, giving fans the opportunity to enjoy Big Easy food, flavor and fun in their own homes. The new online offerings include a “Create Your Krewe” interactive app with a sharable coupon, a Pandora station with classic New Orleans-Style music, “Zat’s Cams” showing live video parade footage straight from New Orleans’ streets, and new recipes. Zatarain’s will also hold 2,000 organized house parties in a partnership with HouseParty.com across the country in the days before Fat Tuesday (the literal translation of “Mardi Gras’), which falls this year on Feb. 21.

“Mardi Gras is a true celebration of both food and family,” explained John Besh, a New Orleans native and executive chef of Crescent City-based Besh Restaurant Group, which includes Restaurant August, Domenica and Luke. “With Zatarain’s, it’s easy to create delicious dishes that are unique to each family’s favorite tastes and special traditions. Celebrating Fat Tuesday at home lets you put your own personal stamp on the holiday and get the whole group involved in the food, fun decorations and merriment for a get-together they’re sure to remember.”

Zatarain’s manufactures more than 200 food products, including rice dinner mixes, frozen entrees, pasta dinner mixes, breadings, seasonings, spices, seafood boils and Creole mustard.