Stop Wasting Time on Low-Potential Event Inquiries Prioritize Leads That Book High-Value Weddings and Corporate Gigs
Imagine your team focusing only on the 20% of leads that drive 80% of your revenue—like scoring a walk-in inquiry for a 500-guest gala versus a casual coffee meetup. Our custom lead scoring turns chaotic email floods into a streamlined pipeline, boosting close rates by 30% without the hassle of generic tools.
Join 150+ businesses with prioritized pipelines
The "Lead Overload" Problem
Sifting Through Vague Event Inquiries Like 'How Much for 50 People?' That Go Nowhere
Missing Peak-Season Opportunities Amid Menu Mismatch Emails, Like Vegan Requests for Your Meat-Heavy BBQ Lineup
Chasing Small-Scale Leads Like Backyard Picnics While Big Catering Contracts for Corporate Galas Slip Away
Dealing with Seasonal Lead Spikes from Holiday Parties That Overwhelm Your Kitchen Schedule and Ingredient Prep
Struggling to Qualify Dietary Restriction Requests, Like Gluten-Free for 100, from Non-Committal Prospects
Losing Track of Repeat Client Referrals for Wedding Buffets in a Flood of One-Off Birthday Party Quotes
Tailored Lead Scoring Built for Your Catering Workflow
We've powered lead systems for over 50 food service teams, turning inquiry chaos into booked events.
Why Choose Us
Let's be honest, off-the-shelf lead scorers treat every business like a cookie-cutter operation—great for generic sales, but a nightmare for catering where one wedding lead can mean $15,000 and a dud barbecue inquiry wastes your afternoon. Here's the thing: we build a custom AI lead scoring system from the ground up, trained on your unique data like past event sizes, client budgets, and even peak-season patterns. You're probably thinking, 'Will this fit my quirky booking process?' Absolutely—it's flexible, integrating directly with your catering software to score leads based on factors like guest count estimates or venue compatibility. No more one-size-fits-all limitations; this is engineered for your exact needs, like a perfectly plated dish.
What Makes Us Different:
Why This Perfect Fit Transforms Your Operations
Skyrocket Close Rates on Premium Events
Skyrocket Close Rates on Premium Events: Focus your team's energy on leads with 70%+ conversion potential, like scoring a corporate retreat inquiry high because it matches your signature buffet setups with confirmed 150-headcount and on-site grilling needs. We've seen catering firms double their booked weddings in six months by ditching low-scorers like casual coffee meetups.
Streamline Your Daily Inquiry Triage
Streamline Your Daily Inquiry Triage: No more manual sorting of emails about vegan options or tent setups for outdoor receptions. Our system flags hot leads instantly based on menu alignment and budget signals, saving your event coordinator 15 hours a week and keeping your kitchen prep on track during busy seasons like wedding rush in spring.
Boost Operational Efficiency Without Extra Staff
Boost Operational Efficiency Without Extra Staff: Integrate scoring with your POS and scheduling tools for a unified view of plated dinners and bar setups, preventing overcommitments on overlapping gigs. One client cut no-shows by 40% after prioritizing leads with confirmed headcounts and allergen details upfront, avoiding last-minute kitchen scrambles.
What Clients Say
"Before AIQ's system, we were buried under 200 inquiries a month for summer events, chasing everything from backyard BBQs to galas with unclear headcounts. Now, it scores leads based on budget hints in emails and matches to our farm-to-table menus, and we've booked three $10k+ weddings in the last quarter that we would've missed. It's like having an extra salesperson who never sleeps."
Maria Gonzalez
Operations Manager, FlavorFusion Catering & Events
"Our team used to waste afternoons qualifying flaky corporate leads that didn't pan out, especially those ignoring our fresh seafood specials. After implementing their custom scorer—tuned to our seafood menu specialties and peak dinner service times—we're hitting 25% higher conversions. Last holiday season, it helped us prioritize a chain of hotel events worth $50k total, including oyster bar setups for 300 guests."
David Chen
Owner, Coastal Events Catering Specialists
"Generic tools couldn't handle our mix of weddings and private parties, especially varying plated vs. buffet needs. AIQ built something that looks at referral sources, guest lists, and dessert preferences, filtering out the noise. In two months, our close rate jumped from 15% to 32%, and we're not overstaffing for ghost inquiries or wasting ingredients on no-shows anymore."
Sarah Patel
Event Director, Urban Bites Catering Co.
Simple 3-Step Process
Discovery and Data Mapping
We dive into your catering operations—reviewing past leads, booking patterns, and tools like your event CRM—to map what makes a lead 'hot' for your business.
Custom Model Building
Our engineers craft an AI model tailored to your workflow, training it on specifics like seasonal demand for plated dinners versus buffets, with flexible rules you control.
Integration and Launch
We seamlessly connect it to your systems for real-time scoring, test with live inquiries, and train your team—getting you prioritizing high-value events in weeks, not months.
Why We're Different
What's Included
Common Questions
How does your lead scoring handle seasonal fluctuations in catering inquiries?
You're probably thinking seasonal spikes—like wedding season—could overwhelm any system, but ours is built tough. We train the AI on your historical data, factoring in patterns like summer BBQ surges or holiday corporate events. For instance, it boosts scores for June inquiries mentioning outdoor setups if your past data shows high conversions there. It's flexible too; we adjust weights for things like vendor availability or ingredient costs. One catering client saw a 35% uplift in summer bookings after we tuned it to prioritize leads with confirmed dates. No generic templates here—it's customized to keep your pipeline steady year-round, saving you from staffing guesswork.
What data do you need to build the custom lead scoring model?
Let's be honest, we don't want to disrupt your busy kitchen ops. We start with what you already have: past inquiry emails, booking records from your CRM, and details on successful events like average guest counts or revenue per gig. No need for fancy exports—just access to 6-12 months of data helps us identify patterns, such as high-scoring leads from wedding planners versus walk-ins. We handle the rest securely, building the model to score new leads on traits like budget hints or menu matches. It's all tailored, so if your focus is corporate lunches, that's what it prioritizes. Clients tell us setup takes under a week, with minimal input from their side.
Can this integrate with our existing catering software like CaterZen or Toast?
Absolutely, integration is our sweet spot. Unlike plug-and-play tools that glitch with food service specifics, we create deep, two-way connections. For example, scored leads flow directly into your Toast POS for quick quoting, or update CaterZen calendars with priority flags. We've done this for teams juggling multiple tools, eliminating manual entry that eats into prep time. Here's the thing: it's custom-coded for reliability, so even during a rush of event RFPs, nothing breaks. One client integrated it across three platforms and cut data silos, boosting their efficiency by 25%. If your setup is unique, we map it out first—no assumptions.
How accurate is the lead scoring for predicting high-value catering clients?
Accuracy starts high because it's built for you, not a broad market. We aim for 75-85% precision by training on your data—think scoring a lead high if it mentions 200+ guests and a $5k budget, based on your wedding conversions. It's not magic; we use machine learning to weigh factors like referral sources or response times. Over time, it gets smarter with feedback loops, like marking a closed deal to refine future scores. A food service partner of ours went from 18% to 41% close rates in three months, focusing on corporate events that fit their buffet expertise. We monitor and tweak quarterly to keep it spot-on for your workflow.
What if we need to adjust the scoring criteria after launch?
Flexibility is key in catering—menus change, seasons shift. Our system lets you tweak criteria easily through a simple interface, like upping scores for gluten-free requests if that's your niche. No coding required from you; we guide initial changes and can automate ongoing ones. For example, if a new partnership with a venue boosts those leads, we recalibrate in days. Clients love this because it evolves with their business, unlike rigid templates. One team adjusted for holiday surges and saw 20% more qualified leads without extra effort. It's your tool, built to adapt without downtime.
Is this lead scoring secure for handling sensitive client information?
Security is non-negotiable in food service, where client details like allergy notes matter. We build with enterprise-grade encryption and comply with standards like GDPR and HIPAA if needed for events. Data stays in your controlled environment—no cloud leaks. Access is role-based, so only your sales team sees scored leads. We've audited systems for catering firms dealing with high-profile clients, ensuring nothing compromises trust. Post-launch, we provide ongoing monitoring. A corporate caterer we worked with praised how it protected their VIP inquiry data while streamlining quals—peace of mind in a high-stakes industry.
Ready to Get Started?
Book your free consultation and discover how we can transform your business with AI.