Welcome, Opening Remarks, and Introductions

SESSION: It’s Time to Get Personal with Cremation Families

Houston, Texas Cremation continues to be a challenge for funeral professionals. In the face of a growing cremation rate, what steps can funeral director take to grow revenues to ensure their future. While there’s nothing that can be done to change the cremation rate, what can be done is an improvement in the number of urns (and keepsakes) that families buy and the frequency at which these can be customized and personalized. 

In many situations, a loved one’s death occurs unexpectedly and catches the family by surprise. In these cases, the family is confronted with the required decisions related to the final disposition, including the funeral service and necessary paperwork. Optional decisions such a where to create a place of permanent memorialization are often tabled until later and ultimately forgotten. When cremation is chosen, the selection of the urn is often postponed and ultimately forgotten. 

The urn is the blank canvas on which funeral professionals can design for the family what was important in their loved one’s life. This presentation will be on how personalization and customization can be reflections of the life lived. By creating a customized, one-of-a-kind urn, we help turn the family’s grieving into healing. 

Funeral directors will learn the benefits of offering different urn choices and more importantly, personalization and customization options. Thanks to the internet, today’s families have a wide choice of urns online. Many urn styles have now become commodities. Funeral directors need to separate themselves from the products available on the internet – and attendees will learn how personalization and customization are two of the best ways to accomplish this.

Customization and personalization are reflections of the life lived, and something that’s not possible with a plain box. It’s one thing to get a simple wooden box to hold one’s mother – but it’s so much more meaningful to have that box engraved with the mother’s name and her favorite phrase or a cherished photo color texture printed on the urn. That’s something that can be difficult to navigate on the internet. Not to mention, this customized urn is the last gift the family will ever buy for their loved one.

The choice of cremation as the means of final disposition by families will only grow in the future years. Whether your revenues grow with it is up to you.

Session: The Evolution of Talent Recruitment

In "The Evolution of Talent Recruitment," we explore the distinctions between recruitment and talent acquisition, strategies for attracting and retaining top talent, and bridging the generational gap in the funeral services industry. The discussion emphasizes the significance of relationships with mortuary schools, DE&I hiring initiatives, and the role of social media, culminating in a Q&A session to address pressing questions.

• Recruitment vs Talent Acquisition 

• How to attract and retain talent 

• Bridging the Gap (New Funeral Services professional -> Seasoned Funeral Services Professionals)

• Importance of relationships with Mortuary Schools

• DE&I hiring initiatives

• Social Media 

• Q&A 

Future-Ready Funeral Homes: How Technology and Innovation Can Address Key Industry Issues

Algorithms, automations and outsourcing are becoming part of our daily lives. Even if you don’t consider yourself a champion of innovation, you use it every day. The roads you drive on? Those are algorithms designed to make our lives easier. How can we embrace our fast-changing innovative world and apply it to our work as funeral professionals?

Jon Lefrandt, Chief Consumer Experience Officer for Homesteaders Life Company, will workshop typical business challenges for modern funeral homes which could include changes in consumer behavior, increasing competition, or adequate staffing. You will learn the tools you need to navigate these hurdles with innovative strategies designed to modernize your practices and enhance service delivery.

SESSION: Green Light on Green Funerals

Green alternatives provide cemeteries and funeral homes with interesting opportunities to align with current consumer demand and significantly increase revenues. Whether you are a cemetery looking to sell more graves, a funeral home wanting to better serve families or a cremation operator looking to delivery tangible value to increase revenues, greener options can be your path forward. Join Darren Crouch, President and CEO of Passages International and the current President of the Green Burial Council to learn how.

SESSION: Unlocking Consumer Motivations: Insights from the 7th

Edition Preneed Motivators Report

During this presentation, you will get insights from the latest edition of Homesteaders’ exclusive consumer

research report, Preneed Motivators. We’ll explore the demographics and behavior of people who prearrange, share how people progress through the consideration process and discuss what happens

during and after their prearranging experiences. Throughout the session, you’ll learn practical suggestions,

based on data, for how to strengthen relationships with current client families, connect with new families

and leverage tools to grow your business.

Session: Immersive Technologies and the Funeral Industry

Are families choosing direct cremation because they no longer care about funerals?  Rainbox VR believes that people still care but their needs have evolved, and we have struggled to find the right tools and solutions.  Rainbox VR will demonstrate how new immersive technologies can meet the needs of today’s and tomorrow’s families.  Learn about the opportunity to guide and shape the future of death care so it remains in the hands of funeral directors and not in the hands of silicon valley.  

SESSION: Turning Challenges into Opportunities: Digital Marketing for Funeral Homes Amid Low Death Rates

In a world where the death rate is declining due to the pull-forward effect, how can funeral homes not just sustain, but grow their market share? The answer lies in strategic digital marketing. As businesses across industries, face the pressure of changing trends, funeral homes too must adapt to safeguard their future. This talk explores how to effectively utilize your marketing spending to gain a competitive edge, ensuring your funeral home is not merely surviving, but thriving. We will delve into strategies designed to maximize your at-need and preneed calls, and how to best position your business to capture the impending wave of Baby Boomer passings. It is not about waiting for the market to shift; it's about making bold moves now to secure your place at the forefront when it does. Attendees will walk away with actionable insights and tactics to apply immediately, positioning their funeral homes as the leaders in their local markets. The future of the funeral industry may be unpredictable, but with the right digital marketing strategies, you can beat the odds and capture a greater market share. The time to act is now.

SESSION: Always Build Value: How to Serve More of the Future’s Families

How do you stay relevant with an ever-changing consumer? By consistently creating value. Research shows that the more impactful a consumer experience is, the more value a consumer places in a product or service—and in the brand that delivers it. Join Tyler Anderson as he shares the latest advancements in preneed that will keep you top of mind so that you can grow your brand and serve more families. With 90% of consumers already expecting consistent interactions across all channels, the quality of the omnichannel experience will only become more important over the next decade. This means higher demand for increased flexibility, cohesion, and convenience. You will need to be capable of seamlessly switching between channels so that families can build their relationships with your funeral home wherever and whenever they desire, whether that is through your website, social, mobile, or face-to-face. Discover how to not only leverage these omnichannel strategies, but also how to effectively incorporate the latest technology in ways that families find memorable and helpful. Then, identify specific points to improve the preneed journey for the full range of families in your community. Using analytics and tactics drawn from over 20 years of preneed data, Tyler will share how to craft a system that results in more personalized and effective touchpoints. Every family is at a different stage in their journey, with some simply curious to learn more and others ready to act now. By delivering the resources and education people need when they need it, you invite them into your story and start building value from the outset. Finally, learn how to continue providing value for years after a policy has been purchased. By nurturing families and providing resources that they find meaningful and useful, you will stand to gain immensely.  

1.  Leverage omnichannel strategies and the latest technology to make the preneed experience even more engaging and valuable to consumers.

2.  Identify specific points in the consumer journey where you can improve and increase funeral home brand awareness and loyalty.

3.  Implement tactics to continue nurturing families so that their post-appointment experience is impactful.

SESSION: Culture: Your Business's Ultimate Superpower

Products and services are in constant competition. To sustain business, you keep watch for the shiniest new offerings for the people you serve. “Innovation” seems to lie beyond while one intangible secret that can’t be cloned or “one-upped” actually lies within: your business culture.  Defined by attitudes and behaviors, Culture defines why families decide to use your funeral home again, or switch to one whose greater employee engagement results in better customer engagement. Attend this session to assess your innate opportunities to renew your brand, making your business the place to be for team members and community families alike.

SESSION: Your Vehicle Partner

Vehicle purchase price - understanding the true lifecycle costs: OEM chassis, coachbuilder conversion, options and special accessories, dealer fees Innovations - being first on the block comes with a price tag: fiberglass body, urn carrier, extended tray table, reverse-hinge casket loading door, lifetime no-rust guarantees. After-sale coverage: what is covered by OEM, what is covered by the coachbuilder, what is not covered

1.  Attendees will understand what questions to ask when purchasing a vehicle

2.  Attendees will understand the true life cycle cost of a new vehicle

3.  Attendees will preview the new 2024 models offered by Legacy Coach Sales and which one might be the best choice for their funeral home

On-site Vehicle Previews and Demos

Join us for an engaging panel discussion and Q&A session featuring all session presenters.  Our panelists bring a wealth of experience and insight to the table.  Our speakers will share their expertise, innovative strategies and practical solutions.  This dynamic dialogue promises to offer valuable perspectives and foster collaboration.