Step by step
- Share tasting samplesGive small free samples to neighbours, friends and colleagues with a card showing your shop link and phone number.
- Improve from feedbackAsk for honest feedback and adjust the recipe if many people say the same thing.
- Post a daily menuShare today's menu or a fresh batch photo on WhatsApp Status each morning, and a cooking or packing video in the evening.
- Use society groups wellWith the admin's permission, post one clear image with prices and your shop link once or twice a week.
- Post cooking reelsShare short Instagram reels of clean preparation, such as grinding masala or packing a festive box.
- Build local trustSet up a free Google Business Profile, list on a local marketplace, show your FSSAI number and collect reviews with food photos.
- Take festive pre-ordersOpen pre-orders two to three weeks before Diwali, Raksha Bandhan, Ganesh Chaturthi and other festivals so you can plan.
- Remind regular buyersNote when each customer last ordered, message them before they run out, and offer weekly tiffin or monthly masala plans.
Start with tasting and people nearby
Give small free samples to neighbours, friends, colleagues and your children's friends' parents. Include a card with your shop link and phone number. Ask for honest feedback, then actually adjust the recipe if many people say the same thing.
Offices, PG hostels and working couples nearby are natural tiffin and snack buyers. A short message to a society or office group, with the admin's permission, can bring your first regular orders.
Your daily WhatsApp Status menu
Food buyers decide quickly, so post where they already look every day.
- Morning: today's tiffin menu or a fresh batch photo
- Midday: a close-up of texture, like crispy chakli or oil on fresh pickle
- Evening: a short cooking video or packing video
- Weekly: a pre-order post for weekend snacks or special items
Society groups and Instagram
Apartment and community groups are the best place for local food sales. Ask the admin first, post your menu at most once or twice a week, and never post long walls of text. One clear image with prices and your shop link works best.
On Instagram, short cooking reels perform well: mango cutting for pickle season, grinding masala, frying snacks or packing a festive box. Show clean hands, a clean kitchen and the real food. ShopShare lets you share products straight to WhatsApp Status, Instagram or Facebook, and keeps track of every WhatsApp enquiry with reminders, so pre-orders do not slip.
Local listings and reviews
Many buyers search for homemade food near them. Listing on ShopShare Market lets nearby buyers find you, nearest first, and order on WhatsApp. A free Google Business Profile with photos, your area and delivery times also helps people searching for home food or tiffin near them.
Reviews matter a lot for food because buyers worry about hygiene and taste. Ask happy customers for a short review and a photo of the food. Show your FSSAI registration number on your labels and shop to build trust.
The food festival calendar
Take pre-orders two to three weeks before big festivals so you can plan ingredients and kitchen time.
- Summer: mango and raw mango pickles, aam papad
- Raksha Bandhan: sweet and snack hampers for gifting
- Ganesh Chaturthi: modaks and prasad sweets
- Navratri: fasting snacks and vrat-friendly items
- Diwali: sweet boxes, namkeen and corporate gift hampers
- Christmas and New Year: cakes, cookies and plum cakes
- Winter: til laddoos, gajak, panjiri and healthy laddoos
Photos that sell and repeat buyers
Shoot food in daylight on a simple plate or cloth, close enough to see texture. Avoid heavy filters that change the colour. Show the pack too, so buyers know what arrives at their door.
Food is a repeat business. Note when each customer last ordered pickles or masala and message them when they are likely to run out. For tiffin, offer weekly plans. Remember preferences such as less spicy or no onion-garlic, and customers will feel looked after.