How Food Trucks Use Preorder Minimums to Confirm a Shift Before They Commit

A preorder minimum lets a food truck post a shift that only happens if customers at that location preorder enough food ahead of time. The truck sets a dollar amount, customers order ahead on the BFT website, and if the total hasn't been met 48 hours before the shift, the truck can cancel and everyone gets refunded. It is the cleanest answer I know to the client who wants a truck but won't commit to a minimum guarantee.

I've been in the food truck business going on 17 years, and this conversation has not changed once in that time. Someone from an office park, an apartment building, or a church calls and says they want a truck on Thursday. You ask how many people will show up. They say "a lot." You ask if they'll guarantee a minimum. They say they can't, it's not in the budget, they'd have to run it by someone. So you either take the gamble, drive out, pay a cook for the day and sell $180 worth of food, or you pass on a booking that might have been great.

We built a third option into the BFT app years ago. Some of our oldest trucks built entire recurring routes on it. Then everyone sort of forgot it existed, and most trucks that joined in the last couple of years have never seen it. So this is a reintroduction.

What is a preorder minimum for a food truck?

A preorder minimum (we call it a Minimum Guarantee in the app) is a dollar threshold a truck attaches to a scheduled shift. Customers can order ahead from the truck's menu up to 60 days before the shift. Every order counts toward the threshold, and the menu page shows a progress ring with the percentage still needed. If the threshold is met, the shift is confirmed. If it isn't met 48 hours before start time, the truck can cancel the shift and all preorders are refunded automatically.

The mechanics in one line: the truck names the number, the customers fill it, the app keeps score.

It is different from a catering minimum. With catering, one client signs a contract and pays the guarantee themselves. With a preorder minimum, nobody signs anything. The crowd either shows up with their wallets ahead of time or it doesn't.

Why it works when a client won't agree to a minimum

It moves the risk off the truck without putting it on the client. That's the whole trick. The person who called you doesn't have to sign anything or get budget approval. Their coworkers or neighbors just have to decide, individually, whether they want lunch badly enough to order it ahead of time.

If the office really has 80 hungry employees, they'll clear $500 in preorders without much effort. If the "big crowd" was wishful thinking, you find that out two days early instead of at 1:30 pm with a cooler full of unsold chicken.

There's a second thing that happens that I didn't expect when we built it. The client becomes your marketer. Once they've told their team "the truck only comes if we hit the number," they start forwarding the link, nagging people in Slack, putting it in the building newsletter. You don't have to do any of that. The scarcity does it for you.

Here's roughly what I'd say on the phone:

"No problem on the guarantee. I'll post the shift with a $500 preorder goal. Send the link to your team. If they order ahead and hit it, I'm confirmed and I'll be there. If not, no harm done, everyone gets refunded and we try another date."

Most clients say yes to that, because the answer costs them nothing. The ones who say no were never going to bring a crowd anyway, and you just saved yourself a Thursday.

How to set a minimum guarantee on a shift in the BFT app

Setting one up takes about two minutes. You do it from the truck side of the BFT app (version 7.6 or later).

1. Open the side menu and tap Schedule Custom Shift.

2. Type the address where you'll be serving. The app shows every existing BFT lot near that address with its distance. If another truck has already served that spot, choose the existing lot instead of creating a new one. Everyone who follows that lot gets notified about your shift, which is free reach you'd otherwise have to earn.

3. Pick your date, start time, and end time.

4. Choose the menu you'll serve. A la carte is the default.

5. Leave Online Orders checked. If you uncheck it, nobody can preorder and nobody gets notified, which defeats the purpose.

6. Check the Minimum Guarantee box. A field appears labeled "Min amount for the shift to take place." Enter your number.

7. Tap Schedule Shift.

Then grab the menu link for that shift and send it to the client. That link is the whole campaign. They forward it, people order, the ring fills.

You'll see preorders come in on the home screen of the app as they're placed. If the number isn't met 48 hours before the shift, the app gives you the option to cancel and refund. If it is met, you're confirmed, and at that point people are counting on you, so show up.

What customers see on the menu page

When a customer opens your menu on bestfoodtrucks.com, the shift details sit at the top: truck name, location, date, and hours. Right below that is a progress ring with a percentage inside it and a line that reads something like "100% left to order to meet the minimum before 04/26/2027, 4:00 AM." That date and time is the 48 hour cutoff.

As orders come in, the ring fills and the percentage drops. Everyone looking at the page sees the same number, so the office knows exactly how far they are from locking in their lunch. In my experience that visible countdown does more to drive orders than any email the truck could send. People hate watching a thing they want sit at 60%.

The ordering itself works like any other BFT preorder. Customers pick items, pay, and get a confirmation. Their card is charged at checkout, and if the shift gets canceled for not hitting the minimum, the refund goes back to the same card without anyone having to request it.

How much should the minimum be?

Set it at the number that makes the day worth doing, not the number you're hoping for. For most lunch shifts that lands somewhere between $400 and $600. Cover your food cost, your labor, your gas, and enough margin that you'd rather be there than at home. A $1,200 minimum at a 40 person office is a shift that will never happen, and the client will read it as you not wanting the gig.

A few other things I'd pass along:

• Tell the client plainly that the shift only happens if the number is hit, and give them a date to check in. Vague optimism on both sides is how this goes wrong.

• Post the shift as early as you can. The 60 day preorder window exists so there's time for word to travel around a building.

• Choose an existing lot when one is offered. A lot that already has followers from previous trucks gives you a head start on day one.

• Once the minimum clears, treat the shift as locked. Canceling a confirmed minimum guarantee shift hurts your reliability rating and, worse, it teaches that whole office not to preorder from anyone again.

• If you hit the minimum early, keep the link circulating. The ring doesn't stop at 100%, and walk up sales on the day are usually a multiple of what was preordered.

Frequently asked questions

Does the truck have to cancel if the minimum isn't met?

No. The app gives you the option. If you're at 85% two days out and you'd rather go anyway, you can. The feature protects you from a bad day; it doesn't force you to skip a decent one.

What happens to customers' money if the shift is canceled?

Every preorder is refunded to the original card automatically. Customers don't have to contact anyone.

Can a shift have a minimum guarantee and still be private?

Yes. Check both Private and Minimum Guarantee. The shift won't appear on the public map or your schedule, but anyone with the link can order and see the progress ring. This is the right setup for a closed office or a gated community.

Can I use this for a recurring weekly spot?

Yes, and it's one of the best uses. Set up each week's shift with the same minimum. After a few weeks the building knows the drill, and the regulars start ordering the morning the shift posts.

How far in advance can customers preorder?

Up to 60 days before the shift.

What counts toward the minimum, food sales or total with tax and tip?

Food sales. Tax and tip are not counted toward the threshold.

Is there any cost to the truck for using it?

No. It's part of the standard BFT truck app. Normal BFT order fees apply to the preorders that go through, same as any online order.

About the author

Matt Geller is the CEO and co founder of Best Food Trucks (bestfoodtrucks.com), which books food trucks for offices, apartment communities, and events across the US. He founded the Southern California Mobile Food Vendors Association in 2010 and was the founding president of the National Food Truck Association. He has a JD from UCLA School of Law and has spent the last 17 years arguing with cities, health departments, and the occasional parking enforcement officer on behalf of food trucks.

Questions about minimum guarantee shifts? Message us on the chat at bestfoodtrucks.com and the team will walk you through it.