Please select which of the following applies to you:
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2. Has the death rate in your market area…. ![]()
3. Do you see the current decline in the national death rate as a blip or a trend? ![]()
4. Have you had to lay-off employees? ![]()
5. Has your receivables increased? ![]()
6. Are traditional families choosing cremation or spending down on merchandise and services because of the current economic conditions? ![]()
7. Are Green Burials becoming a part of your service offerings? ![]()
9. Do you see Chinese caskets growing or declining in the USA? ![]()
10. Do you see Costco growing or getting out of the casket business? ![]()
11. Will other Big Box discounts enter the casket business? ![]()
12. Has your preneed sales suffered in this economy? ![]()
13. How do your preneed fulfillments compare to your current at need sales? ![]()
14. Where do you see your revenues in the next 5 years? ![]()
15. Does your firm have a succession plan in place ![]()
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What is the greatest challenge to your business?
Accounts Receivable
- The present economy has made it very difficult to get paid for the service
- Volume is good, receivables are way up
- Need help in training staff to get payment commitment at time of service
Traditional Services/Operations
- Creating new services that have more appeal
- Having to do more with less staff
- Treading away from traditional to cremation
- Families are only looking at costs
- Showing Value for what we do
- People want less calling hours, more chapel viewing and cemetery viewing
- In a traditional market, my cremation could go to 60% this year
- Where and when to start to improve overall operations
- Need to grow or sell
Staff Recruitment and Development
- Motivating the staff to deliver superior services
- Keeping good staff from leaving the industry
- Breaking old and bad habits
- How to recruit good and productive employees
- Paying a competitive wage with benefits
- Dealing with burn out, apathy and bad attitudes
- Hiring a good manager
Marketing
- Looking for new ways to generate revenues
- Staying ahead of competition
- Choosing a funeral solely on price
- Need to increase volume
- How to increase prices and stay competitive
- Pricing alternative services
- Communicating the value of the funeral to the community
- Merchandising services instead of caskets and vaults
- How the community perceives my services
Finances
- Refinancing my loans at today’s rates
- Increasing my profits by being more efficient
- Increasing my cash flow
- Getting financing to expand
Competition
- Hospice
- Low price providers
- Third party casket providers
- Community buildings and churches used for visitation
- Competitors using Chinese caskets
- Former staff opening a new funeral home in the community
Preneed
- Trusting any preneed provider
- Guarantee the future price
- Dealing with large shortfalls
- Generating leads
- Lower preneed sales compared to at need
- Keeping good counselors
What new products or services have you introduced this year that have achieved success?
Products and Services
- Offering more cremation packages
- Put in a viewing room for cremations
- Using cremation pallbearers for burials in cemetery
- Using “Life Stories” to celebrate a life
- Pet burials and cremation
- Green Burial Packages
- Did a market study of my community
- Graphic designed brochures
- In house tributes and slide shows
- On line videos
- Put in a new accounting system
- Kiosk in selection room to show more caskets
- Changed showroom to Chinese caskets
- Webcasting
- Memory portraits
- Aftercare services and using a survey to get feedback on services
- Personalized head panels
- Using a sales tracking system
- Paying incentives to arrangers
- Added a reception center
- Added a new collection program with good results