3 Strategies for 2018Website Traffic Multiplier

3 Funeral Website & Obituary Traffic Strategies - Swipe CopyHere are the exact templates that I have used with many clients to increase their traffic to their websites exponentially.

1. After Arrangement Email - Send Immediately to family once obit is approved

Subject: Obituary for [First Name] [Last Name]

Dear [Family Member],

I have uploaded your [Dad’s] obituary notice to our website athttp://www.YourFuneralChapel.com/john-doe

Feel free to forward this email to friends and family as we have found that it is an easy way to let a lot of people know about service times - especially on such short notice. Let me know if you need help with anything else.

Sincerely,[Funeral Director]

2. Email to Church & Groups - Send Immediately after email is sent to family

Subject: Obituary for [First Name] [Last Name]

Dear [Church / Group Name],

We are sorry to advise you that your member, [Deceased's Name] has passed away (or died) and his / her family has asked us to let you and your membership know of [Mr / Mrs Last Name]'s upcoming funeral service.

The complete obituary and service details can be found on our website at: http://www.YourFuneralChapel.com/john-doe

Feel free to forward this email to your membership as we have found that it is an easy way to let a lot of people know about services times - especially on such short notice. Let me know if you have questions or need help with anything else.

Sincerely, [Funeral Director]

© 2017 Robin Heppell, CFSP. For more resources like this one, become a Member at http://www.FuneralGurus.com/join Page 1 of 9

3 Strategies for 20183. Show Families how to add Obit to Facebook Page - Print the following on letterhead and explain and give to family in arrangement conference.

There are 5 simple steps to add an Obituary Link to Facebook:

1. Go to the page where the obituary is for your loved one or friend2. Copy the web page URL (address) from the Address Bar in the top of the Browser

o Select the address and then Copy it “Ctrl + C”o This is an example of what the Address looks like:o http://www.mccallbros.com/wm-dwight-egan-of-portland/

3. Log into Facebook and press the “Update Status” at the top4. Paste the link into the box5. Select the appropriate picture, add a comment (optional), and click "Post"

Checklist of other items to help drive funeral home website traffic

Email Signature

Social Icons on Obit

TAF (Tell A Friend) - Share Obituary

Automated Posting to Facebook

Automated Posting to Twitter

In the newspaper, "Condolences may be offered for the family at www.YourFuneralChapel.com."

Video tribute on website page with note in memorial folder

QR Codes on individual Obituary pages

© 2017 Robin Heppell, CFSP. For more resources like this one, become a Member at http://www.FuneralGurus.com/join Page 2 of 9

3 Strategies for 2018

Ice-Breaker Email StrategyPre Meeting (Arrangement) Information

If you want to make your client families more at ease for the arrangement conference and to improve your funeral averages, just follow this simple process.

Step 1: Create a page (this page should be a hidden page on your website if possible) called "Information To Review Prior To Our Meeting" (see page contents at the bottom of the post)

Step 2: Send the following email to the family / next of kin / person making arrangement immediately after receiving the First Call. Note: you will need to ask for their email address during the first call process.

===================================================================

Subject: Information to review prior to our meeting

Dear ###,

Thank you for confirming your appointment with us to discuss the services that you want to have for your ###.

We like to let families know ahead of time the various items that will need to be discussed during the arrangements. We have created a web page specifically for client families like yours so that you have some insights into the process of funeral and / or cremation arrangements. You can access that web page here: [LINK TO YOUR PAGE]

Included on this page are a list of information and items that you may need to bring with you, some discussion on some of the various decisions that you will need to make, and a listing of some of the newer service offerings that we have available that you may not be aware of.

Also at anytime - now or during the arrangements or after - we are always available to answer questions that you may have.

Sincerely,

===================================================================

© 2017 Robin Heppell, CFSP. For more resources like this one, become a Member at http://www.FuneralGurus.com/join Page 3 of 9

3 Strategies for 2018Pre Meeting Info Website Page: 

Information To Review Prior To Our Meeting

Thank you for the confidence that you have placed in [Company Name].

We like to let families know ahead of time the various items that will need to be discussed during the arrangements. We have categorized them into four groups:

Information You Need Statistical information Social Security Number Cemetery information Family Contact Information

Also if you haven’t already seen our If A Death Has Occurred checklist, you can review it here (link to page on your website).

Things You Need To Bring In Clothing (including any special instructions) – Clothing Guidelines Photos for the video collage (Video DVD Tribute) – see sample here Veteran Discharge papers if applicable

Decisions You Will Have To Make Burial or cremation Location of service Choosing a clergy or celebrant Location of reception

Introduction To New Services Complimentary Online Obituary – see current obituaries here Video DVD Tributes – see sample here Catering and Beverage Service – more details here Memorialization & Cremation Jewelry

Note: The content of this page should be edited to fit the offerings of your funeral home. The key thing is to get this page up and running as soon as possible so that you can implement this strategy right away. You can always add to it or edit it in the future.

© 2017 Robin Heppell, CFSP. For more resources like this one, become a Member at http://www.FuneralGurus.com/join Page 4 of 9

3 Strategies for 2018

5 Star Online Review System

SOP: Getting Online Reviews From Surveys & Thank You Letters

At the request of John McQueen, I created a new process for turning positive survey comments and thank you letters into Online Reviews.

Online Reviews are important for two reasons:

1. They are a ranking factor in Google's algorithm - the more, positive, recent reviews you have - the higher you will rank in the Google results.

2. Potential client families will read reviews of businesses before making a final decision. Stay proactive to get more positive reviews - which will help water down any negative reviews that you may get.

VIDEO: SOP: Getting Online Reviews from Surveys & Thank You Cardshttps://funeralfuturist.wistia.com/medias/3pl8vlqd0z

Assign an admin staff member or after care personnel to manage and facilitate this process.

Follow these steps to increase the number of online reviews for your funeral home. Online reviews are important SEO ranking factors.

1. Send out surveys to at-need families:Internal paper surveysInternal web based surveys via emailAssociation surveys like Selected Independent / OGR3rd party surveys like Johnson Consulting / JD Power

NOTE: Use the Post-It Note strategy from Dr. Robert Cialdini - watch video (see below):

2. Review returned surveys

3. Select surveys with positive comments

4. Check for the following information:Do they have a Gmail email address?Do they have a Facebook profile?5. Copy the appropriate Google or Facebook Text.

6. Paste that text in the appropriate Scenario Message

7. Send the email to the client family

8. Check over the next 7 days to see if they have posted the online review, if they haven’t done it yet, send them 1 reminder email to nudge them to do it.

© 2017 Robin Heppell, CFSP. For more resources like this one, become a Member at http://www.FuneralGurus.com/join Page 5 of 9

3 Strategies for 2018==============================================================GOOGLE OR FACEBOOK TEXT==============================================================

Insert The Following Whether It Was A Google Or Facebook Prospect

Google Text:

To leave a review on Google go to: [LINK]You won’t have to create a Google account because you have a Gmail address.

Facebook Text:

To leave a review on Facebook go to: [LINK]

==============================================================SCENARIO MESSAGES==============================================================

Survey Response

Dear [Client Family Member],

Thank you so much for completing our satisfaction survey and more importantly your kind words about how we helped you. It was an honor to serve your family during this difficult time.

If you don’t mind, I would like to ask you a small favor. So that we can help serve more families like yours, we humbly ask people like you to share your thoughts on the Internet where there are reviews for our funeral home.

[INSERT GOOGLE OR FACEBOOK TEXT]

For your convenience, I have typed out the message you sent to me, so that if you wish you can just copy and paste that message. It would mean a lot to me. Thank you.

Sincerely,

[Funeral Director]

[PASTE POSITIVE COMMENT HERE]

==============================================================

© 2017 Robin Heppell, CFSP. For more resources like this one, become a Member at http://www.FuneralGurus.com/join Page 6 of 9

3 Strategies for 2018Thank You Card

Dear [Client Family Member],

Thank you so much for the beautiful thank you card and more importantly your kind words about how we helped you. It was an honor to serve your family during this difficult time.

If you don’t mind, I would like to ask you a small favor. So that we can help serve more families like yours, we humbly ask people like you to share your thoughts on the Internet where there are reviews for our funeral home.

[INSERT GOOGLE OR FACEBOOK TEXT]

For your convenience, I have typed out the message you sent to me, so that if you wish you can just copy and paste that message. It would mean a lot to me. Thank you.

Sincerely,[Funeral Director]

[PASTE POSITIVE COMMENT HERE]

==============================================================

Live Aftercare Appoint When Receiving Compliment

Note: Before meeting with an client family member in the after care setting, make sure to check to see if the person has a Gmail account or Facebook profile, prior to your meeting. You always want to be thinking about getting positive reviews.

After receiving a positive comment / compliment...

What a nice compliment! We really treasure positive comments like that. Would you mind doing us a small favor by posting your comment online on one of the review sites?

Have you ever left an online review for anyone else before? If so what review site was it? I will send you a short email with the links to those pages – we would really appreciate it. It should only take you a few minutes.

If you want, you can do it now on your phone by going to this

Google link [LINK](OR)Facebook link [LINK]

(If they would rather to submit it later…)

If it would be easier, I will send you a short email with the instructions.

© 2017 Robin Heppell, CFSP. For more resources like this one, become a Member at http://www.FuneralGurus.com/join Page 7 of 9

3 Strategies for 2018EMAIL:

Dear [Client Family Member],

Thank you so much for the nice comments during our meeting. It was an honor to serve your family during this difficult time.

If you don’t mind, I would like to ask you a small favor. So that we can help serve more families like yours, we humbly ask people like you to share your thoughts on the Internet where there are reviews for our funeral home.

[INSERT GOOGLE OR FACEBOOK TEXT]

For your convenience, I have typed out your words that you shared with me, so that if you wish you can just copy and paste that message - or feel free to edit it to your liking. It would mean a lot to me. Thank you.

Sincerely,

[Funeral Director]

[TYPE POSITIVE COMMENT HERE]

==============================================================

VIDEO: Why Dr. Cialdini recommends using Photos in Emails and Post-It Notes on surveyshttps://funeralfuturist.wistia.com/medias/uoz36n640e

==============================================================

Bonus: Leave & Receive Online Reviews from other Funeral Homes

1. Make a list of funeral homes that you that you have transacted business with for ship ins / ship outs or for out of town cremations.

2. From the scripts below select the appropriate script and edit it to fit the situation3. Add the edited review on the other company’s Google My Business page or on their Facebook page.4. If you haven’t heard back from them after 10 days, reach out to them and let them know that you left

them a 5 Star review. Then ask them to return the favor if they feel comfortable to do so.“Hi [FD Full Name], I just wanted to follow up with you regarding [Deceased’s Name]. Everything ended up well here on our end and the client family was very pleased. I was impressed with how you and your firm assisted us. So much so, I left you a 5 Star Online Review on Facebook / Google. If you felt the same with dealing with us, please consider leaving us a review as well. Positive online reviews help us serve for client families. I have included a couple of scripts to make the review process easier. Thanks again for helping us with [Deceased’s Name].”

See the sample scripts on the following page…

© 2017 Robin Heppell, CFSP. For more resources like this one, become a Member at http://www.FuneralGurus.com/join Page 8 of 9

3 Strategies for 2018 Body Repatriation From Receiving Funeral Home… We had the need to request the services of a Funeral home in [City] and we selected ABC Funeral Home. We are glad we did – [FD Full Name] funeral director was very attentive to our needs. Someone from our community passed away in [City] and we needed them repatriated back home. [FD First Name] and the staff at ABC Funeral Home displayed a high level of professionalism and attention to detail. They are an asset to the [City] community. From Shipping Funeral Home… We had the opportunity to work with [FD Full Name] from the XYZ Funeral Home when one of their community members passed away in our city. These types of arrangements can be quite difficult but [FD First Name] and her team were excellent. They are very organized and displayed a high level of professionalism. The community of [City] is lucky to have a funeral home like XYZ to serve them at their time of need. ============================================================== Out Of Town Cremation From Receiving Cremation Provider… When a member of our community passed away in [City] we needed to arrange a cremation on behalf of one of our client families. We chose to use ABC Funeral and Cremation Services to look after the pertinent documentation and to facilitate the Cremation in [City]. They made our job easier by looking after all of the necessary details. The service we received was excellent and the cost for the cremation was very reasonable. From Shipping Cremation Provider… We were contacted by XYZ Funeral & Cremation Services to look after a Cremation for a person who had passed away in our city. Situations like these can be very trying on the client families but Jane and the rest of the XYZ team were very organized and did everything they could to make this situation easier for their client and family. It was our pleasure to assist them.

© 2017 Robin Heppell, CFSP. For more resources like this one, become a Member at http://www.FuneralGurus.com/join Page 9 of 9