Exceptional Aftercare: It’s Not Just About Grief

When asked what distinguishes us from other funeral services, the answer is often “our service.” But that response is very vague. It’s essential that funeral homes find a definable difference that sets them apart from their competitors. The answer could be a unique and entirely exceptional aftercare service.

Funeral homes today offer full-service deathcare assistance. A thoughtful aftercare program can offer resources to families following the funeral itself. And not necessarily just grief support. Consider providing the families with resources following the death that can help them in any way they may need assistance in the next week, month, or longer.

What kind of resources can you provide? It’s wise to include checklists of things that will be helpful in the next 30 days or so. You can provide information on acquiring a monument or marker. Resources on settling estates can also be helpful to families. Consider including life insurance processing help. A lot of people don’t know what they’re going to do with the ashes. Walk them through their options. It’s going to be different for everyone.

In Michigan, we have a Designated Funeral Representative statute that allows an individual to choose someone over the age of 18 to represent them at the time of death. So, someone may want their daughter, not their son, to manage the funeral and other pertinent duties. We include information on the statute and how to pick a point person for a death.

It’s also a good idea to introduce representatives for various aftercare services in the resources provided. Identify individuals and include their picture, information about them, and how to contact them. Include a letter from the owner or manager of your funeral home. Let people see your face and say that you care about them.

An aftercare resource packet like this should be a simple guide to give to people either digitally or in print form. But make it nice. Make it classy. But above all, make it helpful.

An aftercare resource could be pre-need minded, but its sole purpose should not be to produce pre-need leads. Instead, it should be done because it’s the right thing to do. Everyone should be checking in with families following a service. The timeline depends on your comfort level. I make the CEO call after 30 days to check in with the family of the deceased. We’re checking in with every family.

You need to lead with your heart. An aftercare service call is possible for a 50 funeral firm or with a 10,000 funeral firm. It could be a five-minute call or a twenty-minute call. Whatever you feel comfortable with and whatever the individual seems comfortable with. You need to hear what people are saying – from true clients directly to the owner’s ear. Your funeral home’s reputation is not just based on faceless Google reviews.

Be prepared to hear negative responses. While we may want and expect to hear how well things went, there may be complaints or concerns. But there is value in constructive criticism. It may be an issue directly with your funeral home or with the hospital or another touchpoint, but it gives you the opportunity to make changes or reach out and discuss problems that you may not have known existed otherwise. Speaking directly with the family equips us with the options and abilities to apologize and fix things. You’ll feel more proud after solving an issue and ending up with a happy family than had things just gone smoothly in a traditional funeral. Take the time to turn an issue into a solution. That is the purpose of the call.

Oftentimes, funeral home directors assume that a family is coming back for future deaths, but that assumption is wrong. A second death occurs and they may go somewhere else. But if during an aftercare phone call, you take the time to say, “Hey, we haven’t started a file on you,” you may begin the process of ensuring a future with the family. Taking the time to make a service call – whether it’s by the owner, manager, or funeral representative – is the mark of a high-quality funeral home. Families are typically floored that a high-level person within the organization is checking in with them.

Aftercare is ambiguous. So many firms are doing so many different things. There is not a set standard for you to know what you can do. Instead, try contacting a marketer to see how you can use your aftercare resources to reflect the community and the specific needs they have following a death. It’s different for every community and every funeral home. So, make it yours