Home cooks and caterers: how to get found when people ask AI
An office manager needs lunch for 20 people next Wednesday. They want home-style food, not another pizza order, and they ask an AI assistant who can do it.
Some customers now ask an AI assistant to find someone local (how that works). If your menu only lives in WhatsApp statuses and Instagram stories, the assistant has very little to go on.
Questions people might ask
- "Find someone who cooks home-style curry for an office lunch of 20 people."
- "Who does catering for a small birthday party next month, no pork?"
- "Is there a home cook near me who does weekly meal prep?"
Say what you cook, and how you sell it
- Name the dishes and the cuisine. "Home-style curries, rice dishes and pastries" beats "homemade food".
- Say how people can order. Party trays, office lunches, weekly meal prep, cakes to order. Each one is a different request.
- Give a starting price and a minimum. "From 15 per person, minimum 10" answers the two questions every customer asks first. Ivy shows one starting price, so put any others in your services.
- Say how much notice you need. "Order 3 days ahead" stops last-minute requests you can't take. Ivy has no opening hours field yet, so put this in your services too.
Watch out: food claims and home-kitchen rules
- Halal. In many countries, how you can use the word "halal" is regulated. Only say "halal-certified" if you are certified. If you aren't, describe what's true, such as "no pork, no alcohol", and check your local rules.
- Allergies. A home kitchen can rarely promise to be nut-free. Say "can make dishes without nuts" rather than "nut-free kitchen", unless you really can guarantee it.
- Selling from home. Most places have rules for selling food you cook at home, such as food-handler training or registering with your local council. Check yours before you list.
An example
Here's how a page on Ivy might look for a made-up business:
Sunday Pot Kitchen · Home cooking and catering · Hillside
Services: Curries, rice dishes, pastry trays, office lunches, no pork or alcohol, order 3 days ahead
Prices: From 15 per person, minimum 10
Area: Delivers around Hillside and the city centre
Books via: WhatsApp messages
Claim your free Ivy page, made for AI assistants. Nothing is published until you say so.