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WhatsApp marketing for caterers.

With SmartChat you send your customers every offer from your kitchen on WhatsApp, such as the buffet for the Christmas party, platters for New Year's Eve or the weekly menu for the office lunch service.

Example of a WhatsApp newsletter from a caterer

Main course with vegetables on a white plate, image in the newsletter

image

Show your customers the finished dish before they order. The photo comes from your website or from your own images.

👋 Hello Monika, ❄️ from now on we have our winter menus for celebrations at home and at work. 🥩 New is ox cheek in red wine sauce with mashed potatoes and glazed carrots. 🎃 For guests who don't eat meat we cook pumpkin lasagna with ricotta and sage. 🍷 We are happy to bring matching wines and juices along, including glasses and dishes. 🤝 On request, our service staff serves at the buffet and clears up afterward. 📅 For birthdays and anniversaries in January there are still weekends free.
16:30

Text

SmartChat AI writes it from your website and your menu folder. You read it, change what you like, and send it.

View winter menus

button

One click leads to your winter menus with all prices. Your customer orders without searching for long.

Before every event, SmartChat writes to your customers automatically.

The thank-you after signup, the order confirmation and the schedule the day before delivery: SmartChat sends these messages automatically for your catering. Custom automations are available from Basic.

As soon as a customer confirms
Chef prepares food in a sleek kitchen using a frying pan on an induction cooktop.
🍽️ Thank you, you are now signed up.🥘 We cook fresh every day in our own kitchen, with meat from the local butcher.🎉 You will hear from us when there are new buffets and menus whether for the company party or the birthday.📋 For offices we send on Fridays the weekly menu for lunch.💬 Planning a celebration? Write us here date and number of guests, and we will get back to you with a proposal.15:41
View menu folder

Thank-you after signup

Whoever signs up and confirms gets a thank-you message right away. It says what your kitchen offers and how to inquire about a celebration with you.

As soon as an order comes in
An elegant buffet setup featuring various delicious dishes in stainless steel chafing dishes, perfect for events.
👋 Hello Frank,✅ your catering is firmly booked: Saturday, 19 June, for 60 guests.🍖 You ordered the summer buffet with grilled meat, antipasti and roasted vegetables.🚚 We deliver at 5 pm and set everything up in your rooms.🥜 Is anyone vegan or do they have allergies? Just write it to us here in the chat.11:20

Order confirmed

If your ordering system can report new orders to SmartChat, your customer reads the confirmation in WhatsApp right away.

1 day before delivery
A freshly baked lasagna with golden cheese crust captured from above in a foil tray.
👋 Hello Ute,📅 tomorrow at 11 am we bring the food for your company anniversary party.🚐 Our driver stops at the back entrance, please keep a parking space free there.🔥 The warming containers we set up ourselves, for that we need a power outlet.🍽️ Dishes and cutlery we pick up again on Monday .📲 If the number of guests still changes, just write back briefly.10:00
View schedule

The day before delivery

SmartChat takes the date from your calendar and reminds your customer the day before. They then know when you arrive and what you need on site.

This is how you collect contacts for your catering.

Every event brings you new contacts: whoever has tried your food signs up themselves, via the QR code, your website or your link. They only get your WhatsApp newsletter once they have agreed themselves.

  1. 1

    Your guest scans the QR code

    The QR code sits on a stand next to the food, on the delivery note and on the invoice. SmartChat creates it to match your landing page.

    Our menus on WhatsApp
  2. 2

    Your customer enters first name and phone number

    Anyone who looks for your catering online sees a small window on your website. It needs nothing more than these two details.

    Real website popup of Catering Weidenhof with photo at the top, mobile view: heading Never miss offers and news again, first name Peter and phone number entered, button Sign up
  3. 3

    Your customer agrees in WhatsApp

    SmartChat sends them a short message with the Confirm button. This double opt-in means: every contact confirms their signup themselves in WhatsApp.

    👋 Hello Peter,🍽️ here you get our new buffets, the weekly menu for offices and free dates for your celebration.✅ Do you want to receive these messages? Then click the button below: Confirm.🔒 You can unsubscribe at any time. Just write STOP.15:40
    Confirm
    Confirm15:40
  4. 4

    You have the proof

    For every contact, SmartChat records when and through which route they agreed. You download the proof as a PDF.

    Contact Peter in SmartChat, mobile view: status Confirmed, sign-up history, consent confirmed in WhatsApp and button Download proof

SmartChat AI answers the questions of your customers.

When a customer writes but nobody in the kitchen or office is available, SmartChat AI replies fully automatically for you. It replies with the knowledge it has learned from your website and your documents. If it has no source, it hands over to you.

Inbox in SmartChat: SmartChat AI answers the WhatsApp question of a customer of Catering Weidenhof

  • Even in the evening

    Your customers often plan their event after work. SmartChat AI replies right away, even when your office has long been closed.

  • In every language

    SmartChat AI replies in the language your customer writes in. Even international business customers understand the message right away.

  • Your team makes the quote

    Prices for a specific event are calculated by your team. SmartChat AI passes such questions on to you in the inbox.

Frequently asked questions about WhatsApp marketing for caterers.

Can I just message my catering customers on WhatsApp?

Only with their consent. Your customer signs up themselves, for example via the QR code, your website or a link, and then confirms once in WhatsApp. SmartChat keeps this consent as proof and so supports you with consent that complies with data protection rules.

How do the guests at an event get onto my WhatsApp list?

Put a stand with a QR code next to the buffet. Anyone who has tried your food and wants to hear more from you scans the code and signs up. Ask your client beforehand whether the stand is allowed there. SmartChat creates the code for your landing page.

Can I message business customers and private customers separately?

Yes. In SmartChat you give your contacts tags, for example “Company” or “Private”. The weekly menu for the office then goes only to companies, the festive menu for a confirmation only to families.

Does SmartChat take orders and bookings for my catering?

No, SmartChat is not an ordering system and does not write quotes. If a customer asks for a buffet on WhatsApp, SmartChat collects the message in the inbox. Your team clarifies date, quantity and price directly in the chat.

Can I schedule the weekly menu for the lunch service in advance?

Yes. You create the newsletter and choose day and time, and SmartChat sends it exactly then, for example on Friday morning. The dishes change every week, so you create each menu anew.

Can SmartChat AI answer questions about allergens?

SmartChat AI answers with what is in your documents, for example in your allergen list. With allergies, every detail counts. So have your team confirm the details for a specific event themselves.

How does SmartChat AI know my buffets, prices and delivery areas?

SmartChat AI analyzes your website and everything you upload, for example your menu folder as a PDF. When a new season brings new dishes, you upload the new folder. From then on, SmartChat AI mentions the new dishes.

Do I have to write the texts for my catering myself?

No. You tell SmartChat AI what it is about, for example your New Year's Eve platters. SmartChat AI writes the newsletter for your catering from that. You read it through and approve it with one click.

What happens if SmartChat AI doesn't know the answer to an inquiry?

Then SmartChat AI passes the question on to your team, and you reply yourselves in the inbox. If someone on your team has replied in a conversation, SmartChat AI adds nothing to that message.

Can the kitchen and the office reply on WhatsApp together?

Yes. All WhatsApp conversations come together in one inbox, and everyone on your team replies. Free has 1 team seat, Starter 3, Basic 6 and Pro 12.

Do I need a second phone number for my catering?

No. You connect your existing number with SmartChat and confirm it with a code from Meta, the company behind WhatsApp. You connect one number per account.

What does WhatsApp marketing cost for a caterer?

With Free you pay 0 €, with no time limit and no credit card, and you get 100 messages once. Starter costs 299 € per month and includes 3,000 messages, Basic 499 € with 6,000 messages, Pro 999 € with no limit on messages. Sending costs no credits. All prices plus VAT, more under Pricing.

What does Meta charge for the WhatsApp messages of my catering?

Meta bills the WhatsApp fees directly to you, through a payment method in your Meta account. You pay SmartChat for your plan, and the Meta fees are billed separately. You can find the exact prices here.

How many automations are included for my catering?

Free and Starter include only the fixed automation for new contacts (confirmation and thank-you). Custom automations are available from Basic: Basic has 3, 1 of them fixed, Pro has unlimited. A custom automation is, for example, the message the day before delivery with time and schedule.

How does a customer from my catering list unsubscribe?

Anyone who has confirmed your newsletter writes STOP in the chat with your catering. From then on, SmartChat sends them nothing more and marks them as unsubscribed in your contacts.

WhatsApp marketing for your catering in 60 seconds.

SmartChat AI analyzes your catering's website and builds your landing page and QR code in 60 seconds. Free costs 0 € and runs without a credit card.

Start for free