ONLINE MARKETING IN THE FUNERAL INDUSTRY
Over the past 20 years, we have all seen drastic changes in how we live our lives and conduct business. Many of these changes can be attributed to the ever-changing and ever-advancing world of technology that pervades nearly every aspect of life. Did anyone honestly think back then that we would be able to carry a little object around with us that is not only a telephone, but also a phone book, mail service, television, music player, personal video game console, date book, alarm clock and much, much more? The answer is, Of Course Not! Yet, cell phones, laptop computers, iPods, and the refinement of the Internet and web presence as a business tool have become a part of our everyday lives.
The question now becomes... How do I use this technology to my advantage and why do I need it in the funeral and casket industry? The answers are as numerous as the stars in the sky, as visitors to your website, and as different as each of your clients and client families. However, the answers to many of the questions can be revealed by asking yourself the same basic marketing-related questions you always ask yourself.
In Kim Stacey’s recent article in the August Issue of American Funeral Director Magazine titled ‘Marketing in Cyberspace; www.geibfuneral.com, a web site success’ she addresses some of the questions and possible answers as she goes through the case study of a web site that is working.
As Stacey reviews the basics of the funeral home website, she and the owner of the funeral home strike upon the most important aspect of design. That is "finding the best way we could explain who we are and what we do." This very crucial point in not only the funeral, memorial, casket and vault industry, but all business. What makes us special? What do we do best, that our competitors do not do? How do we do it that makes the difference? Do you have the finest embroidery people in the business and can turnaround beautiful panel inserts overnight? If so, make it known that THIS IS WHAT WE DO; IT IS NOT THE ONLY THING WE DO...BUT WE ARE THE BEST AT IT! Highlight your expertise in wooden caskets, make it known that your vaults will stand the test of time, let people know that your service levels are highest rated in the tri-state area. By answering that question, you can narrow the focus of your site and optimize the features that will create value for your customers.
Another highlight of the article is answering the question of what the site is supposed to do. Are people ordering products off of the internet site, are they gathering information, are they looking for pricing, or are you trying to drive traffic to your experienced sales team answering the phones? Whatever the answer to whichever question, design the site around your desired end. Incorporate those features that will achieve that end. If your customer is a funeral director looking to purchase caskets from you, make it clear to him or her that, If you would like to purchase or receive more information, our representatives are waiting by the phone...or even better are on the other end of the live chat session and can process your order or answer your question immediately. But the key is providing fresh and relevant content that insures they will come visit to get the latest news or to read your blog, or find a price or order a display model of your new casket line time and time again. As you answer these questions, you will find that the internet is a tool you can leverage in operating your business. The website and your actual location need to partner to reach customers and convert them into buyers and frequent visitors.
of the article that can be used to help casket manufacturers, vault makers, memorial product distributors and all other businesses was a section entitled ‘Company History Means Little To Your Site Visitors’. It makes sense, but we sometimes do not want it to make sense. We are proud that in 1893 our direct descendant stopped making wagon wheels and began handcrafting caskets out of his garage and that the original garage is now preserved in the corner of our new ultra-modern manufacturing facility. That is value, it tells the story, but this article is posing the question to you... Do you really care where the first K-Mart was and how they were able to build a second or do you just want to come buy something? The overarching message tied to this notion is that you should only make relevant information readily available and either omit or bury ancillary information.
The keys are finding what you do and how you do it, what you want the website to do, populating the site with relevant information that works toward the desired end and pulling any information that may be extra and distract from the mission at hand: selling your unique funeral service, caskets, urns, memorial products, vaults, or other products.
