Free holiday pre-order form template

Holiday orders go wrong in the same few ways: the wrong day, a missed time slot, a turkey that's too small, or an allergy nobody wrote down. A short form that the customer checks and signs stops most of them. Here's what ours includes.

1. 1

   Pick a preset

   Under What are you taking pre-orders for? choose Thanksgiving, Christmas, Diwali, Easter, Eid or Any holiday. The preset fills the title, suggested items with sizes, an order-by date and sample terms. You can also open a preset straight from a link, such as /tools/holiday-order-form?preset=thanksgiving.

2. 2

   Add your business

   Type your business name and phone. Add your website or ordering link and the form prints a QR code customers can scan. Add a logo, and pick A4 or US Letter and your currency.

3. 3

   Set your items, dates and slots

   Rename the items, change the sizes, add your prices or leave them blank to write in, and choose how many blank rows to add. Set the Order by date and your collection Time slots.

4. 4

   Print blank forms, or fill in one order

   Press Download PDF to print for blank forms to keep at the counter. To confirm a phone order, fill in 4. Fill in one order: the form works out each line total, the order total and the balance due. Save it as a PDF or share it, then press Clear this order.

Not sure what to charge? Work out your prices first with the menu price calculator. Taking a big order for a party or an office? Send a catering quote instead. For celebration cakes, use the cake order form.

Open pre-orders early enough that customers can plan, and close them early enough that you can order stock, plan oven space and staff the day. A good starting point is to open 3 to 4 weeks before the holiday and close 2 to 5 days before, depending on the item. Adjust these to your suppliers and your kitchen.

Use time slots: Holiday pickups bunch up the day before. Print two-hour Time slots on the form and cap how many orders you take in each, so the queue stays short and every order is ready when the customer arrives.

Keep terms short and put them on the form, so customers see them before they pay. Adapt these to your business:

• Cut-off: "Orders close on the order-by date above, or earlier if we sell out."
• Deposit: "A deposit secures your order. The balance is due when you collect, or before delivery."
• Collection: "Please collect in your time slot. Tell us as soon as you can if you need to change it."
• Changes and cancellations: "Changes and cancellations are possible up to 3 days before collection."
• Weights: "Meat weights are approximate. The final price follows the weight of your joint."
• Storage: "Keep chilled items in the fridge and follow the storage and reheating notes we give you."
• Allergens: "Our kitchen handles the 14 major allergens. We take care, but can't promise any item is free from traces."

Write down allergies on every order, not just the ones customers mention first. The form lists the 14 major allergens as tick boxes, with a line for anything else, so the customer can check them before they sign.

To go online, press Make my online pre-order page. We open a free pre-order page with your business name and the items on your form. Customers pick their items and the day they want them, and the order arrives on your WhatsApp.

Take these orders online with Menuthere: pre-orders with a pickup date and time slot, and dishes that need notice, are on the Lite plan (US$17 a month); the Free plan takes orders for now with 0% commission. Create your free ordering page.