Running a catering business can be an extremely profitable and rewarding venture, provided you can get consistent bookings and make a good impression when you do cater to an event. No catering business finds success by chance, though.
Whether you focus on catering for weddings, corporate events, parties, or a combination of different events, the places where you choose to cook and serve your food will largely dictate your next moves as a caterer, so you’ll want to carefully decide what you would like that to look like. Taking kitchen space for lease would be beneficial because many states simply do not allow caterers to use their home kitchen. If yours does, you’ll be required to spend lots of time and money upgrading your kitchen to professional, commercial standards.
#1 – Reliability Is key In the Catering Industry
More often than not an event is a one-off occasion. It could be a special birthday, wedding, graduation party and so on. It doesn’t really matter what the event is, what’s important is that you and your team are reliable.
If a catering company shows up late or isn’t organized with streamlined processes, this could not only disrupt the flow and timing of the event, it could potentially make that occasion a total failure rather than one that’s memorable. You will also want to make sure that all of your equipment is performing at the optimum level so you can rely on it whenever it is needed. If you spot a fault then you should quickly call on an expert commercial fridge repair team to see to the problem before it’s sent on another job.
Whether your company is reliable or unreliable, word will spread quickly, so you want that gossip to be positive and not negative.
#2 – Offer Your Clients Something Unique
If you can differentiate yourself from your competitors by offering something unique with your catering, your company will definitely stand out and be more memorable.
Coming up with unique and memorable elements for your business shouldn’t prove to be difficult. Just study what your competitors are doing and offer something they’re not. This could be as simple as a few unusual food choices for your menu, becoming a specialist at catering to certain events (e.g. wedding catering specialist), combining live entertainment with your catering package, unique table decorating ideas, and more.
Just put your imagination to work or even search for some cool ideas online to make your business stand out from the crowd.
#3 – Can People Easily Find You Online?
Without an online presence, you’ll really be shooting yourself in the foot. Just about everyone goes online to search and research these days, so your catering business has to have a website. You’ll also want a listing in things like Google My Business, which is a fantastic way to promote upcoming events and special deals.
If you’re unsure about how to gain more exposure for your catering business online, enlist the help of industry experts; such as web designers and SEO companies.
The more prominent your website is online, the more business you’ll attract, and the more money you’ll make.
#4 – Are You Offering Fair Prices?
Because their event or special occasion is being catered, people generally expect to have to pay a little more per head. You also need to be able to cover your overheads and make a tidy profit in the process so it’s worthwhile.
Having said that, if you go overboard on your prices, chances are you won’t be getting any repeat business or positive recommendations. In other words, charge enough to make a decent profit, but refrain from being greedy with your prices.
#5 – Quality Will Be Remembered
If everything about your catering exudes quality, this will stand out to your customers. They’ll remember it and so will each and every one of their guests.
Obviously one of the most important things will be the quality of the food. This doesn’t just mean what it tastes like, but also a variety of options and presentation as well.
The quality, experience, and friendliness of your staff are just as vital, so be sure to employ individuals who are good at their job but also deal well with people.
#6 – Don’t Leave a Mess Behind – Us a Hospitality and Catering Cleaning Machine
As the caterer, it’s like running a temporary restaurant for the duration of the event. Therefore, you won’t want to be leaving a mess behind. Hospitality cleaning equipment can really help out and make clean up a breeze.
With a hospitality cleaning machine or hospitality sweeper, you’ll have any residual mess from the meal sorted in quick time, which will also save your business money on staff wages.
With efficient staff and the right equipment, the place will be left as clean as when you arrived.