How to sell websites to restaurants
By ULeads team · Published
Restaurants in big city centres almost always have a website already, so look in smaller towns and less touristy areas. There, pitch what owners care about: a fast menu page, reservations, and direct online ordering that keeps orders off commission-charging delivery platforms. Lead with photos and the menu, not design.
How do restaurants show up online?
Restaurants were among the first local businesses to get websites, especially in big cities, where many also rely on delivery platforms and reservation services. That makes city-centre restaurants poor targets for a basic website.
Outside the big centres the picture changes: family restaurants, local favourites and places in smaller towns often rely on a Google listing, a social page and a phone. Their customers still want the same things — the menu, the hours, a way to book or order.
What we measured. In our own measurement, twenty restaurants in a London search all had websites; twenty restaurants in a search in Tunisia included nine without one. The same category can be saturated or wide open depending on the market.
What do restaurants care about?
- Full tables and fewer no-shows.
- Orders without paying delivery-platform commission on each one.
- A menu that is easy to read on a phone and always up to date.
- Photos that make the food look as good as it is.
Which listing signals matter when selling to restaurants?
| What the Google Maps listing shows | What it means |
|---|---|
| No website, many reviews | Popular and relying on the listing alone. Strong lead outside big cities. |
| Fewer than 5 photos | Food is visual; few photos lose the comparison click. Easy to show on a call. |
| Rating below 4.0 | Often service or waits; a site cannot fix the kitchen, so be careful how you raise it. |
| Has website, low photos | Possibly an old site or PDF menu. A fast mobile menu page is the pitch. |
What should you offer restaurants?
A fast mobile menu page (not a PDF), opening hours, a reservation link or form, and — where they deliver or do takeaway — direct online ordering. Direct orders are the argument owners respond to, because delivery platforms charge a commission on every order.
Keep the Google listing's menu link, hours and photos in step with the site; for a restaurant the listing is often seen more than the site itself.
What should the first message say?
An example opening — replace the details with what you actually see on the listing:
“Hi, I build websites for restaurants. You've got over a hundred great reviews, but there's no website or menu link on your Google listing, so people deciding where to eat tonight can't see the menu. Could I show you a simple menu page with reservations?”
Common questions
Why can't I find restaurants without a website in my city?
Because in big city centres nearly all of them have one — in our London search, all twenty did. Search smaller towns, suburbs and less touristy areas, or switch to the restaurants' other gaps: photos, menus and direct ordering.
What is the best pitch to a restaurant that uses delivery apps?
Direct ordering from their own site for regulars and takeaway, so those orders are not charged platform commission. Keep the apps for reach; move repeat customers to direct.
ULeads searches a city and a trade on Google Maps, keeps going past the first page until it finds real prospects, and ranks every business by how weak its online presence is.