From the team
Breakdowns, playbooks, and honest takes. New posts when we have something worth saying.
A prospect answered LinkedIn outreach with two logistics questions. The restaurant answered both, added one next step, and a sample drop-off is scheduled.
Read post →An automated LinkedIn message about office lunches drew a same-day holiday party quote request. The outreach never mentioned holidays. The timing did.
Read post →An automated LinkedIn message reached a prospect who buys catering several times a year for office events. A free sample drop-off is being coordinated.
Read post →A cold email asked about team lunches. The reply surfaced a 15 to 20 person event at a different organization, with catering options requested for a board meeting.
Read post →A LinkedIn InMail offered complimentary meals. The prospect replied that her team already holds catered lunch meetings, and a sample drop-off is being coordinated.
Read post →December concentrates a quarter of catering revenue into three weeks. Here is how operators track capacity, staffing, deposits, and confirmations across overlapping events.
Read post →A week-by-week holiday catering timeline for operators, working backward from the event date through headcount locks, deposits, staffing, and delivery windows.
Read post →The outreach did not pitch. It asked who handles catering, shared a menu, and produced a confirmed company lunch order with excellent feedback.
Read post →The sample request never came through and the prospect showed up to nothing. The restaurant followed up anyway, and the conversation survived.
Read post →The first contact was not the buyer. He forwarded the information to his director, and a confirmed first catering order followed, with a larger one anticipated behind it.
Read post →A contact asked whether the restaurant had a food truck. It didn't. Answering with the next best solution turned a mismatch into a confirmed catering booking.
Read post →Removing the minimum order requirement turned a cautious prospect into a sample drop-off, positive team feedback, and an engaged catering decision-maker.
Read post →Companies commonly lock December holiday party caterers in September and October, largest events earliest. Here is the month by month booking timeline.
Read post →Holiday party catering cost is driven by menu, service level, and market. Here is what moves the per person number and how to budget 50 to 200 guests.
Read post →Catering leads come from four places: free and organic, marketplaces, bought lists, and outbound you own. What each costs and what each actually yields.
Read post →ezCater alternatives fall into three groups: commission marketplaces, flat-fee ordering software, and direct systems you own. Nine options compared.
Read post →Catering pricing calculator for corporate orders. Enter food cost, delivery, and service level to get a per-person price, total quote, and gross margin.
Read post →Catering marketplace commission is commonly reported in the mid-teens plus card processing. Here is what it costs at real volumes and how direct compares.
Read post →Catering cold outreach templates for email and LinkedIn, with a line-by-line breakdown of why each one is built the way it is.
Read post →A no-pressure free sample offer led to a team meeting invite from a business looking for office lunch and team-building catering.
Read post →An automated outreach message led to a tasting with a business that orders catering 3 to 4 times per month. The flywheel's front door.
Read post →EzCater commissions cost more than most operators realize. See the annual math at three revenue levels and what the flat-rate alternative looks like.
Read post →An automated LinkedIn message reached a GM who schedules team lunches. A last-minute request for 15 people became a confirmed next-day booking.
Read post →Direct corporate clients support higher prices than marketplace-acquired clients. Here is how to set prices that hold, and why the structure matters.
Read post →Most restaurants market holiday catering in October. The companies booking holiday parties decided in August. Here is how to get on the list early.
Read post →Three copy-paste follow-up templates for catering quotes that go unanswered. Timing, goal, and exact wording for each touch.
Read post →An AI booking agent handles inquiry capture, follow-up drafting, and lead qualification so catering leads do not go cold during service hours.
Read post →Most restaurants never pursue manufacturing and industrial facilities. The logistics sound difficult. That is exactly why the accounts are available.
Read post →The window after a successful first delivery is the highest-leverage moment in the sales cycle. Here is how to use it before it closes.
Read post →A single corporate event is a transaction. A recurring office lunch account is a revenue line. Here is how to build one and what it compounds into.
Read post →An automated outreach system reached a two-shift operation. The instant reply with menu and pricing moved the conversation unusually far, unusually fast.
Read post →Most restaurants try to get corporate catering clients by casting wide. The operators who get their first ten do the opposite.
Read post →Most restaurants stay on ezCater because they have no direct pipeline to replace the volume. Here is how to build one before you leave.
Read post →A cold outreach message reached a four-shift plant needing meals at 11:30 AM and 11:30 PM. Most restaurants had already filtered themselves out.
Read post →One corporate catering order does not behave like a sale. It behaves like the first turn of a flywheel. Here is how the four stages work.
Read post →A Southern California caterer skipped the pitch and offered complimentary samples instead. The prospect loved the food and booked a July luncheon.
Read post →Most catering leads don't go cold because the client lost interest. They go cold because the restaurant had no system to keep them warm.
Read post →Most caterers target the wrong people on LinkedIn. Here are the exact job titles that control catering budgets, and how to find them without wasting hours.
Read post →A Southern BBQ restaurant reached out to a corporate prospect via LinkedIn. Five months and several follow-ups later, the booking was confirmed.
Read post →A BBQ-focused caterer received a 'keep you in mind' reply on LinkedIn. A menu link and one follow-up later, the prospect converted to a confirmed order.
Read post →A Memphis-area restaurant received an inbound catering inquiry on a Sunday. A quick response kept the booking from going to a competitor.
Read post →A mid-South BBQ restaurant used LinkedIn to reach a corporate contact at a global manufacturer operating more than 100 facilities worldwide.
Read post →A regional pit BBQ caterer connected on LinkedIn with a contact at a plant running three shifts. A recurring catering relationship followed.
Read post →A BBQ catering operation reached out on LinkedIn and heard nothing. One follow-up reopened the conversation and converted a corporate administrator.
Read post →A BBQ caterer used LinkedIn to reach a corporate client managing staff meal programs across multiple locations. A recurring relationship followed.
Read post →A pit-style BBQ operation received an inbound catering inquiry and responded before the window closed. The result was a confirmed weekday lunch booking.
Read post →A regional BBQ caterer sent cold email to corporate event contacts before the holidays. One reply became a 75-person Christmas party worth $2,872.75.
Read post →A Columbus-area restaurant used LinkedIn outreach to reach a corporate contact. The result was a confirmed 25-person team lunch booking worth $338.
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