Homesteaders Blog

3 Tips for Smoother Funeral Home Family Business Succession Planning

Last year, I was running a discussion group of funeral directors, and they shared some common frustrations. Jessica*, a third-generation, 40-something funeral director, said something that stopped the group in its tracks:

“My father just won’t give up the reins. He won’t even let me meet with families by myself.”

5 Ways to Help Families Honor a Loved One on Valentine's Day

For those who have lost a loved one, Valentine’s Day can be a very difficult and emotional time. It serves as a heart wrenching landmark on the long path of grief, but that doesn’t mean there aren’t meaningful ways to cherish the love that was once celebrated.

Meaningful Mementos for Funeral Services

The secret to adding meaningful touches to funeral services is to ask families questions about their loved one to get to know their passions, preferences and what brought them joy in life. You might be surprised how a small fact about a person influenced big parts of their life. Using this personalized knowledge, and a little out-of-the-box thinking, you can create a meaningful memory for the grieving family and let them know how much you care.

How to Reap More Benefits from Your Funeral Home’s Online Reviews

If you’re in the mood to try out a new restaurant, where do you begin your search to find the perfect dinner spot? Chances are, you do a quick online search for “best restaurant near me” and start vetting your options based on a restaurant’s number of online reviews, star rating and customer feedback. As you narrow your search, do you weed out restaurants with zero reviews? How about restaurants with less than three stars? Consumers follow this same process when they begin their search for a “funeral home near me.”

Real Stories of Text-Based Aftercare Success

You already know that aftercare is an important part of your funeral home’s marketing plan. If you haven’t already developed an aftercare program or are looking for ways to reach customers in a more personalized and non-intrusive way, consider text messaging.

Harnessing Positive Habits in the Funeral Profession

We’re making our way through January and holding tightly to our new year’s motivations. But it’s a difficult task sometimes! We’re here to help you stick to your goals, resolutions, word of the year or whatever it is you’re hoping to move toward this year. We hope that by discovering and sticking with positive habits, you can make your goals a reality.

The Top 3 Goals for Funeral Professionals in 2023

New year, new you! Each new calendar year comes with a renewed motivation in setting and achieving goals. You might set new year’s resolutions, goals or even a word of the year. We have compiled the top three goals that could apply to any funeral professional—and all of them center around one word: Grow.

How Funeral Professionals Can Connect to the Evolving Consumer

It’s critical to keep up with the latest trends in the funeral profession, to know how each generation responds to these trends and why they decide to prearrange their funerals. With that knowledge, you can better connect with your client families and share the benefits of preneed in meaningful ways.

5 Ways for Funeral Professionals to be Fully Present During the Holidays

Death has no schedule. It doesn’t matter if it’s 3 a.m. or if you’re in the middle of opening birthday presents, funeral professionals must be willing to put everyone and everything before themselves, and this often means missing out on holiday celebrations and events with their own family and friends. So how exactly should you “plan” to celebrate the holidays or special occasions when plans are always tentative? If you keep several important things in mind, you can create meaningful memories with your family during the holidays, even if you're on call.

Using Workplace Rituals to Benefit Funeral Professionals

Funeral professionals know firsthand how rituals and ceremonies can benefit the bereaved. In fact, much of the training provided in mortuary science programs is directly connected to preparing for and facilitating funeral rituals. But did you know that rituals are beneficial for funeral professionals too? I’m not talking about grief-related rituals; I’m referring to rituals that can help funeral professionals by providing motivation, staying grounded, and being mindful. I will provide three examples of funeral professionals using rituals, including an embalmer before preparation of the body, a preplanner before setting appointments, and a funeral director before an arrangement conference.