Sometimes all you have to do is go online to find excellent market research that can be used to create a marketing strategy for funeral homes. Johnson Consulting Group published a research paper at the end of 2017. They provide statistics it gleaned from 71,950 surveys they analyzed in 2014, 2015 and 2016 regarding at need services.

There are many important takeaways in the study. (BTW – I have listed the URL for the complete study below). This particular article will focus on creating a marketing strategy for funeral homes based on one set of questions from that study. This question having to do with the reasons why a family chose a particular funeral home.

Four Top Reasons for Choice

• Previously served family
• Convenient location
• Pre-arranged
• Reputation

If these are the most important reasons why someone chose a funeral home, then the funeral home’s marketing strategy needs to address those points.

1. Served Family

I don’t know how you maintain your records, but nowadays there are many easy techniques to keep your database cleaned and up-to-date. This includes processes such as NCOA (national change of address) and data hygiene services that keep phone numbers or email addresses current. There are software products that help you arrange your data and make it easy to have your data cleaned and updated. Dataman Group in Boca Raton FL works with many companies on data hygiene. They also append email addresses or cell phone numbers to their file.

Make sure that your intake paperwork includes extractable fields for expanded next of kin information. This way you can keep in touch with them using multiple marketing channels.

A family who was happy with the services you provided for their parents are excellent prospects for future business. By keeping your data current, you will be able to stay in touch with them. Otherwise, they may forget about you.

2. Convenient location

Geo-targeting has always been important in the Death Care Industry. A geo-targeted marketing strategy allows the marketer to literally draw a circle around their location. This way they can focus on particular user groups to better target their efforts. Targeting is one of the reasons why direct marketing has always been so cost-effective for marketers. There is no reason to ever waste precious marketing dollars advertising to people outside of your trading area.

Remember to segment within geography and offer messaging and offer geared to the specific groups. While we always think of these as direct mail strategies, the same thought process applies to email and social media marketing.

3. Pre-arranged

If they’ve already paid for it, absolutely they will come to your establishment. But companies need to do their due diligence and keep that paperwork up-to-date! You also want to have updated contact information on your existing contracts. By keeping in touch with them, you continue to strengthen the relationship, which is wonderful for referrals.

4. Reputation

Today, a reputation is one of the most valuable marketing assets a brand or business can have. The JCG study confirmed again that firms with higher satisfaction have higher sales.

That’s great when we look at people who are already familiar with your Funeral Home. However, the majority of people in your trading area may not have personal experience with you. They are replying on your Funeral Home’s reputation or on-line reviews to decide whether they want to do business with you.

Reputation marketing is not about responding to crises or “managing” your reputation. It’s about being proactive and amplifying your reputation to people who don’t know about you.

Make sure all your marketing includes information about your glowing reviews. Put them on your direct mailers and brochures. Include them on your website and make sure there is a link to them if you use email or social media to reach out to your prospects.

One of the key factors of marketing strategies for funeral homes is to constantly review campaigns and response rates to make sure everything stays current.

Johnson Consulting Group (JCG) continues to collect data through their Performance Tracker program. They intend to continue to share it with the profession. Click here for more information about them and this study. Dataman Group Direct (DGD) in Boca Raton FL provides direct mail, telemarketing & email lists to the Death Care Industry. Click here to read more.