How BFT's New Catering Queue Works

How BFT's Catering Queue Works

In a busy market, a single catering request used to go out to 500+ eligible trucks. Everyone got notified, almost nobody won, and a lot of trucks stopped submitting proposals altogether. The conversion rate was too low to bother.

So we rebuilt how it works.

Batches instead of blasts

Trucks now get notified in groups of 30, with 24 hours between rounds. The first batch goes to the trucks most likely to be a good fit, based on:

• Cuisine match
• Activity level on BFT
• Preferred vendor status
• Popularity rating
• Distance from the event
• A small random multiplier, so newer trucks aren't always at the back

If a customer manually picks your truck, you skip ahead of everything else.

Menu type determines which requests you see

When a customer books multiple trucks for different parts of a meal, the queue only invites trucks that match what each group actually needs. If they want a dessert truck, only trucks with dessert-heavy menus get that request. Same for drink groups. If your profile shows mostly entrees, you won't receive a request that was meant for a dessert slot.

The system reads your main menu categories and your catering menu to figure out where you fit. If your truck is unclaimed or your catering menu is empty, you'll still be included while there's not enough data to classify you.

Timing

For smaller events (under 200 guests) where instant-book trucks are available, the queue starts after a short delay so organizers can review before anything goes out. Larger events go through manual approval first, then the queue kicks off.

After the first 24 hours: if a customer has received 7 or more proposals, they get an email asking whether they want to keep the search open or wrap up. If they don't respond within 48 hours, the request gets tagged as unresponsive and no more trucks are notified. Under 7 proposals, the next batch goes out automatically.

What to expect

If you're getting fewer requests than before, that's the point. The ones that do come through should actually match your truck. A good proposal on a real match beats five longshots.

The two things that matter most for your queue ranking are keeping your catering menu updated and staying active on the platform. Both affect where you land relative to other trucks in your area.

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