SEO Strategy for Caterer
A data-driven execution plan to capture local search intent. This playbook targets high-value "near me" queries and transactional service keywords.
Execution Roadmap
Caterers don’t serve cities, they serve venues. Identify 50 high-value event spaces (wedding barns, corporate campuses, historic estates) within a 15-minute drive of your kitchen. Use Google Maps’ ‘Nearby’ feature to tag each with: capacity, typical event type, and past caterers (via Instagram hashtags like #VenueNameCatering).
URL Structure for Venue-Specific Pages
https://www.yourcatering.com/menus/[venue-name]-catering
Example: /menus/smithson-estate-weddingsScrape venue websites for their ‘Preferred Vendors’ pages (e.g., ‘Smithson Estate works with these caterers’). Use Screaming Frog to extract this data at scale, it’s your competitor intel goldmine.
- Create a Google My Business listing for EACH venue (e.g., ‘Your Catering Co. at Smithson Estate’)
- Use the ‘Service Area’ feature to define a 3-mile radius around each venue
- Add venue-specific keywords to GMB descriptions (e.g., ‘Smithson Estate wedding catering’)
Your menu isn’t just food, it’s a keyword funnel. Structure it like a sales page: ‘Wedding Catering Packages’ (high-intent) > ‘Corporate Boxed Lunches’ (mid-funnel) > ‘Vegan Tasting Menus’ (niche). Each dish name should include a modifier that matches search behavior (e.g., ‘Gluten-Free Tuscan Chicken Skewers’).
‘Chicken Skewers’ (0 searches/month, $0 CPC)
‘Gluten-Free Tuscan Chicken Skewers for Weddings’ (1,200 searches/month, $3.80 CPC)
Menu Schema Markup (JSON-LD)
{
"@context": "https://schema.org",
"@type": "ProfessionalService",
"name": "Caterer Service",
"image": "https://example.com/caterer-image.jpg",
"url": "https://example.com/caterer-website",
"telephone": "+1 555 1234",
"address": {
"@type": "PostalAddress",
"streetAddress": "123 Main St",
"addressLocality": "Anytown",
"addressRegion": "US",
"postalCode": "12345",
"addressCountry": "United States"
},
"geo": {
"@type": "GeoCoordinates",
"latitude": "37.7749",
"longitude": "-122.4194"
},
"areaServed": {
"@type": "GeoCircle",
"radius": "100",
"address": {
"@type": "PostalAddress",
"streetAddress": "123 Main St",
"addressLocality": "Anytown",
"addressRegion": "US",
"postalCode": "12345",
"addressCountry": "United States"
}
},
"hasOfferCatalog": {
"@type": "OfferCatalog",
"name": "Catering Services",
"itemListElement": [
{
"@type": "Offer",
"itemOffered": {
"@type": "Service",
"name": "Wedding Catering",
"description": "Customized wedding catering services"
}
},
{
"@type": "Offer",
"itemOffered": {
"@type": "Service",
"name": "Corporate Event Catering",
"description": "Catering services for corporate events and meetings"
}
},
{
"@type": "Offer",
"itemOffered": {
"@type": "Service",
"name": "Private Party Catering",
"description": "Catering services for private parties and gatherings"
}
}
]
}
}Caterers are the hub of the event wheel. Partner with 10 complementary vendors (florists, photographers, venues) to create ‘Event Stack’ content: a blog post + infographic titled ‘The Ultimate [City] Wedding Vendor Checklist’. Each vendor contributes a tip and links back to your post, now you have 10 high-DA backlinks from industry peers.
- Target vendors with 50+ DA (use MozBar to check)
- Offer to feature them in your ‘Preferred Vendors’ directory (reciprocal linking)
- Create a ‘Real Weddings’ gallery where vendors can tag themselves (UGC backlinks)
Email venues with: ‘We’d love to feature [Venue Name] in our ‘Top 10 [City] Wedding Venues’ post. Can we get a quote from your events manager?’ 80% will link back to you.
URL Structure for Real Wedding Pages
https://www.yourcatering.com/real-weddings/[venue-name]-[couple-name]
Example: /real-weddings/smithson-estate-johnson-weddingYour tasting room isn’t just a space, it’s a conversion engine. Create a dedicated ‘Book a Tasting’ landing page with: (1) a 360° virtual tour, (2) a ‘Choose Your Menu’ interactive quiz (e.g., ‘Wedding vs. Corporate?’), and (3) a calendar booking widget with scarcity triggers (‘Only 2 tasting slots left this week!’).
Static page with a phone number and PDF menu (2% conversion)
Interactive page with quiz, virtual tour, and live calendar (18% conversion)
Calendly Embed for Tasting Bookings
<div class="calendly-inline-widget"
data-url="https://calendly.com/yourcatering/tasting"
style="min-width:320px;height:630px;"></div>
<script type="text/javascript" src="https://assets.calendly.com/assets/external/widget.js"></script>Corporate clients search differently: they want ‘boxed lunches for 50’ or ‘breakfast catering for tech startups’. Create a ‘Corporate Catering’ hub with: (1) a ‘Build Your Own Box Lunch’ calculator, (2) a ‘Tech Startup Catering’ case study, and (3) a ‘Download Our Corporate Menu’ lead magnet (gated behind an email form).
- Target keywords like ‘[City] corporate catering for [industry]’ (e.g., ‘San Francisco catering for law firms’)
- Create a ‘Corporate Catering’ Google My Business listing (separate from your main GMB)
- Run LinkedIn ads targeting ‘Office Managers’ and ‘HR Directors’ with a ‘Free Lunch Tasting’ offer
Partner with local co-working spaces (WeWork, The Wing) to offer ‘Member Discounts’. They’ll link to you from their ‘Perks’ page, high-DA backlinks + direct leads.
URL Structure for Industry-Specific Pages
https://www.yourcatering.com/corporate/[industry]-catering
Example: /corporate/tech-startup-cateringCaterers live and die by reviews. Implement a 3-touch ‘Review Velocity’ system: (1) Post-event: Send a thank-you email with a ‘Share Your Experience’ link (Google Review), (2) 3 days later: Follow up with a ‘How was the food?’ SMS (Yotpo), (3) 1 week later: Mail a handwritten note with a QR code to your GMB listing.
Ask clients to upload photos to their Google Review. Google prioritizes reviews with images, your listing will rank higher in the local pack.
Review Schema Markup (JSON-LD)
<script type="application/ld+json">
{
"@context": "https://schema.org",
"@type": "Review",
"itemReviewed": {
"@type": "LocalBusiness",
"name": "Your Catering Co."
},
"reviewRating": {
"@type": "Rating",
"ratingValue": "5",
"bestRating": "5"
},
"author": {
"@type": "Person",
"name": "Jane Doe"
},
"datePublished": "2023-10-15"
}
</script>Caterers have 4 ‘golden windows’: (1) Wedding Season (April, October), (2) Holiday Parties (November, December), (3) Corporate Retreats (January, March), (4) Graduation Season (May, June). Create a ‘Seasonal Catering Calendar’ with: (1) a countdown timer to the next surge, (2) a ‘Book Now’ CTA with urgency (e.g., ‘Only 3 dates left for June weddings!’), and (3) a ‘Seasonal Menu Preview’ (gated behind an email form).
- Publish a ‘[Season] Catering Guide’ blog post 3 months before each surge (e.g., ‘2024 Wedding Catering Trends’)
- Run Facebook ads targeting ‘Engaged’ users with a ‘Wedding Catering Checklist’ lead magnet
- Update your Google My Business ‘Posts’ weekly with seasonal offers (e.g., ‘Mother’s Day Brunch Catering’)
Add a ‘Days Until [Next Season]’ counter to your homepage. Use a tool like Tockify to create a live countdown, it boosts conversions by 22%.
URL Structure for Seasonal Pages
https://www.yourcatering.com/seasonal/[season-name]-catering
Example: /seasonal/holiday-party-cateringYour menu should evolve with search trends. Use Google Search Console to identify: (1) which dishes get the most impressions (e.g., ‘vegan wedding catering’), (2) which have the highest CTR (e.g., ‘gluten-free boxed lunches’), and (3) which convert the best (e.g., ‘corporate breakfast platters’). Double down on winners, create dedicated pages for them.
Use Ahrefs to find keywords your competitors rank for but you don’t (e.g., ‘kosher catering [city]’). Create a page targeting that keyword, you’ll rank faster because you’re filling a gap.
URL Structure for Dish-Specific Pages
https://www.yourcatering.com/menu/[dish-name]-catering
Example: /menu/greek-mezze-board-cateringGrowth Model
This model assumes consistent content generation and basic backlink acquisition. ROI typically stabilizes within 90 days of full indexation.
