How to make digital marketing work for your catering company
It’s not enough to rely on word of mouth for business in the catering industry anymore. The business opportunities are vast in London for all the events and occasions that take place. Catering needs are vast with even more emphasis on healthy eating today. People want to know that you are qualified, hygienic, talented, professional and provide the food that they want at their event. Digital marketing, and the help of an SEO agency, can help you convey this to potential clients.
Social media
Delicious looking and appetising pictures of your catering will be needed on your social media pages, especially Instagram and Pinterest. This will attract clients by showing your creativity, talent and the range of foods you are able to prepare. They may even ask you to recreate something they’ve seen on your social media. If you do event management too, post pictures of your events and of people who attended. Social media will also allow customers to leave reviewsand for them to be visible to everyone. Make sure to post, reply and interact with people on social media to appear professional, contactable and current. Take a look at this page for inspiration.
Mobile compatible webpage
This is vital as people begin to use mobile technology more. Accessed from a mobile, the most visible elements on your home page should be your contact number and company name. This allows for better conversion rate from enquiry to sale. Your webpage will need to look as delicious as your food. Your brand is very important as visual appeal is a big part of the food industry. Create a logo and theme colours that suit your cuisine styles, or brand name. Make sure to include prominent contact detail images, menus, venues, prices and locations you travel to.
Your story
People may relate to your personal story of how you founded the company. You may connect well with and attract customers from the same culture as yourself, so emphasise this in your bio. It will be appealing for prospective clients if you can create some of their favourite dishes from your culture.
Connect with bloggers
Connect with food bloggers with many followers in the food and catering industry. Their blogs can specialise in anything from recipes, weddings, international food, gluten-free food to vegan food for example. They have the following and influence to recommend you or link you in their blog, to a large audience that listens to their advice
YouTube Video Content
How to… videos on foods that you specialise in such as cakes, as well as table and dining etiquette, will attract a mass of viewers. Use video content to show where you prepare food, your waiting staff and some footage of your catering events that you’ve catered for. Here’s an example of a video that you can take inspiration from, with great editing and appropriate music, to give the best impression to viewers.
| Keyword (by relevance) | Avg. monthly searches | Competition | Suggested bid |
| catering | 8,100 | Medium | £1.21 |
| wedding catering | 1,300 | High | £1.65 |
| party catering | 720 | High | £1.22 |
| event catering | 480 | Medium | £1.72 |
| funeral catering | 140 | Medium | £1.01 |
| business catering | 50 | Medium | £1.41 |
There are 8,100 searches made every month for catering in London. That’s a huge amount of traffic that cannot be missed.
Optimise for Google local listings
It’s important that local people can find you. They will want to come and sample your cooking and baking. People will make more of an effort to book a visit if the travel is conveniently close. This means your business is more likely to make a sale.
Your blog
Your blog should feature articles about anything relevant to catering and your catering company such as recipes, weddings and parties you’ve catered, TV appearances and venues etc. It will all be informative and create a bigger digital presence for your company. Use this space to present all your events and achievements. Link to high authority sites relating to food such as BBC food or a well-known venue to get better ranks on search engines.
The advantage of digital marketing for your catering company is that it will gain extra exposure and more traffic to your website, social media and blogs. These can all lead to more business opportunities and business expansion. Contact us today to talk about your online goals and plans with an SEO expert.
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- I'm a digitally inspired, e-Business professional. I write about digital marketing, social media and how psychology impacts modern day online buying behaviours and how people do business on the web.
