Many businesses today are looking for ways to unlock greater efficiencies, and funeral homes are no different. Funeral management software can offer a whole host of benefits, but it is important to make sure you choose a solution with care. Read on to discover more.
What is funeral home software?
Funeral home software has been designed to offer operational, marketing and accounting features for the specific needs of funeral homes. Such software gives these businesses the ability to track all funeral records, arrange ceremonies, manage their cash flow, market their services, provide pre-need and at-need care, and much more. It is all about running your business in the most efficient manner.
How modern funeral homes use Funeral Management Software
Funeral home software is constantly evolving and the latest iterations make use of cloud storage and no longer require funeral staff to be present at a desktop computer in the office. Not only can the funeral home say goodbye to endless amounts of paperwork, their employees can communicate and coordinate a professional service with ease.
With funeral management software, funeral homes are able to monitor everything in real-time giving them greater visibility and clarity regarding what is happening in the business. They can also modernise work practices by easily producing professional-looking death notices, quotations, invoices, and more.
How funeral management software saves time and increases business efficiency
One of the main ways funeral software and apps save time is by integrating directly with accounting software such as Xero. Also, many parts of arranging a funeral are repetitive and can be automated to make sure that they are done consistently and rapidly. Having software in place means that reminders, alerts and processes all occur on time thereby avoiding unnecessary follow ups. In addition, third party suppliers such as florists or urn makers can be managed much more efficiently through the use of bespoke software.
How to reinvest time saved to provide higher quality care
Of course, the time that a funeral home saves means it can be reinvested into providing better qualitative care and paying attention to the details that make such a difference to the families of the deceased. In such a sensitive industry the quality of care and attention is often a differentiating factor and a driver of word of mouth referrals.
Software checklist
Could it be time to switch to an all-digital approach or update legacy software to a more modern solution? When looking for the best funeral home software for your business, there is a lot that needs to be considered. Here are some of the key factors that you should be considering:
- Does the company make regular updates to keep it secure? – Security is a huge problem when it comes to the use of technology today, and so you want to make sure that the platform you select is secure and that the company makes regular updates to keep it this way. After all, data breaches do occur, and they can be damaging. Whenever you are prompted to update your software, make sure you do so, as it is likely that any security vulnerability has been patched up. If there hasn’t been an update to your legacy software for some time, it could be time to switch.
- Has the software received good feedback from those who have used it already? – You should also spend some time looking online to see what other people have had to say about the funeral director software you are considering. Have they been happy with the service provided? Would they recommend it? Look on independent review platforms so you can be sure that the comments are genuine.
- Does it integrate with your accountancy software? – Next, you need to take a look and find out whether or not the solution will integrate with the current accountancy software you have at your business. After all, you are going to be faced with a big upheaval if you have to transition from the software you are already using to a new one. Instead, it is much better if everything can work seamlessly together.
- What features are included? – Finally, you should also take a look at the different features that are offered by the software to make sure it incorporates everything that you require and crucially what you might require in the future too. For example, there are some solutions, such as Obit, that will publish digital funeral notices as part of the software whereas others will charge for this separately or not even offer the feature at all. It makes sense to really consider what you are looking for from your provider and the sort of features that you would find useful so you can make sure you end up with the right software for your needs.
Final words on funeral management software
There are many factors that need to be considered when choosing funeral management software for your funeral home. Whilst it is clear you need to take the time and effort to choose the right solution, it is also undoubtedly worth the effort. Adopting a modern approach to funeral management and embracing the advantages technology offers can have a transformative impact on your work/life balance, your employee satisfaction and of course, your bottom line.
