Lead of the Week: A College's No Turned Into a Referral

Most restaurants treat a "no" as the end of a lead. A polite thanks, and the name comes off the list.

This week's lead said no in his first sentence. His next sentence offered the restaurant another way in.

Catering Funnels is a done-for-you lead generation and automation platform built for restaurants with active catering operations.

Situation

The client is a Buffalo restaurant group with a corporate catering program. Its LinkedIn outreach reaches local people who may be involved with office lunches or events.

The connection note was short: local, manages catering, would love to connect. On October 29, after connecting, the restaurant followed up. It introduced its corporate catering program, scratch-made Italian classics packaged for office delivery or setup, and offered to send the catering menu.

Restaurant: I'm local here in Buffalo and noticed you may be involved with office lunches or events. I manage catering for [restaurant]. Would love to connect.

Restaurant: Thanks for connecting! I'm with [restaurant], the Buffalo family restaurant group.

We have expanded our corporate catering program for companies that want team lunches people actually look forward to.

We do fresh, scratch-made Italian classics: chicken parmesan, pasta, sausage and peppers, specialty salads, and rotating seasonal options, packaged for easy office delivery or setup.

I would love to send you our catering menu. Mind if I drop it over?

What Happened

He replied with a no and an opening in the same message.

His college does not allow outside vendors to cater events. It has to use its dining services vendor. Then he added that his wife's company may be interested, and that he could share the menu with her.

What the Restaurant Did

It accepted the no and followed the opening.

The next morning it replied with "I understand." No attempt to argue with the college's rule. Then two questions: what is a good email, and what company does she work for?

He sent both. The restaurant sent its event and catering menus, told him the email was sent, and wished him a good weekend.

Buyer: Unfortunately our college does not allow for outside vendors to cater events we need to use our dining services vendor. However my wife's company may be interested if you would like to send me the menu I can share it with her

Restaurant: I understand. What is a good email for you, I can send over our event and catering menus for your wife. What company does she work for?

Buyer: [email]. She works for [company].

Restaurant: Thanks [name]! Email sent. Have a great weekend

Result

A referral to a second company, with the menus sent.

This post covers the lead. The order is the next step, and no revenue figure is claimed here.

Why Should a Restaurant Answer a "No"?

Because the person who cannot buy may know someone who can.

In our outreach data from 29,000 corporate catering buyers, about 1 in 8 positive replies passes you to someone else. The first person you reach is often not the buyer. An earlier Lead of the Week started the same way, with a contact who forwarded the message to his director.

A referral only works if you are still in the conversation when it is offered.

What Made the Reply Work?

It respected the rule, then made the offer specific.

"I can share it with her" is an open-ended offer. Asking for an email and a company gave the menus somewhere to go, and told the restaurant who they were for. Then it followed through and said so.

No pitch. One short message at each step. For more replies like this, see the catering follow-up email templates.

What This Means for Other Operators

Read the whole reply before you close the lead.

Stay professional. Ask where to send the menus. Follow through. It costs a few short messages, and it keeps a conversation going that a closed door would have ended.

For every source of leads and what each costs, see how to get catering leads for your restaurant.

See the plans on the pricing page, and follow Catering Funnels on LinkedIn for weekly wins from real catering operations.

Common questions

What should a restaurant do when a prospect cannot use outside caterers? Accept it and do not argue with the rule. Then look for another path. Here, the contact offered to share the menu with his wife's company, and the restaurant asked where to send it.

How often do catering outreach replies turn into referrals? In our outreach data, about 1 in 8 positive replies passes you to someone else. That is a reason to read every reply closely, including the ones that open with a no.

What should you ask when a contact offers to share your menu? Ask where to send it and who it is for. Here, the restaurant asked for an email and the company name, sent its event and catering menus, and confirmed the email was sent.