This article originally appeared in the April 2018 issue of American Funeral Director, published by Kates-Boylston Publications,and is being shared with permission. Visit www.americanfuneraldirector.com to subscribe.

Tips From The Top[advice from experts]

As a licensed funeral directorwith more than 35 years of experi-ence in every aspect of death care,including ownership and manage-ment of funeral homes and ceme-teries, I (Bil l) , understand thepressures of operating a businessday-to-day, meeting sales goals andalso keeping long-term sustainabili-ty in sight. When I transitioned mycareer to recordkeeping and admin-istration at Funeral Services Inc.,one of my primary goals was assur-ing funeral directors and cemeteri-ans that their sales programs werein good hands because I know the

specific challenges they face. Sometimes, you may not even

know the questions you should beasking about your sales program.Thankfully, there are professionals– including this article’s co-authorand my business colleague, WendyWiener – in the death-care industrywho do know the questions to ask,and they should have theanswers, too. The first place tostart is with your sales program ad-ministrator or record keeper. Askthe following questions to seekpeace of mind that your sales pro-gram is safe and operating at maxi-

mum efficiency.

Is my sensitive financial datasafe?We live in a digital world where,

unfortunately, cyberattacks occurdaily and thousands watch theirpersonal information get stolen ona regular basis. In fact, the recentEquifax breaches exposed the dataof more than 145 million people,which amounts to nearly one per-son per U.S. household. The worstmistake you can make is saying,“That won’t happen to me.” It can,and it will, if you do not take the

QUESTIONSTO ASK ABOUT

YOUR DEATH-CARESALES PROGRAM

Bill Williams, president and CEO, Funeral Services Inc., and Wendy RussellWiener, partner, Broad and Cassel LLP, explain how the performance of yoursales program is one of the primary determining factors for the success ofyour business. If you are not making it a priority, you are putting at risk theshort- and long-term sustainability of your funeral home and/or cemetery.

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This article originally appeared in the April 2018 issue of American Funeral Director, published by Kates-Boylston Publications,and is being shared with permission. Visit www.americanfuneraldirector.com to subscribe.

proper precautions to secure yourfunds and data.

State-of-the art technology existsthat protects your sensitive finan-cial data, minimizes the likelihoodof a data breach, monitors irregularactivity and issues alerts to youwhen a potential hack has oc-curred. Ask your sales program ad-ministrator or record keeper aboutthese safeguards for your sales pro-gram, as they should have resourcesavailable to protect your informa-tion. You simply cannot take anyrisks when your reputation and thefuture of your business are on theline.

How quickly are mytransactions, such as contractpayments, processed?

With the constant threat of hack-ers attempting to steal your fundsand sensitive information, you mayassume utilizing any technology foryour business is only a negative –but that is far from the truth. Intoday’s tech-driven society, youhave the incredible opportunity toenjoy lightning-fast response timesand receive information at thetouch of a button. Are you takingfull advantage of it for your sales

program?Simply put, you should expect

that once your team makes a sale,technology platforms and other re-sources will take care of the rest.Deposits, withdrawals and otherbusiness transactions can often beprocessed within one business day,enabling you to move forward asquickly as possible. If you are wait-ing longer than that, you are fallingbehind your competitors morerapidly than you think.

If I need to review details ofmy sales program afterbusiness hours, can I?

At this point, you may be pickingup on a trend: technology, accessi-bility and speed are paramount. Forbusiness owners, the clock does notstop at 5 p.m., and neither shouldthe work of your sales program ad-ministrator or record keeper.

But, having that 24/7 access isn’tall you should expect. Technologyexists that enables you to view acomplete picture of your sales pro-gram online at any time. Whetheryou must review your trust de-posits, earnings, the status of yourcontracts or even the amounts allo-cated to each contract line item,

there are mechanisms that allowyou to see the information at yourconvenience.

Your business depends on thesuccess of your sales program. Youdeserve constant access to its de-tails, status and overall perfor-mance; and if you feel thattransparency and efficiency can beenhanced, bring it up with yoursales program administrator orrecord keeper. They should be ableto offer opportunities to improve it.

Is my sales program incompliance with state lawsand industry regulations?

Funeral directors and cemeteriansare no different than other businessowners: each must address a largenumber of daily tasks – and thereare not enough hours to completethem. While you are working tire-lessly for your business, you maythink you are adhering to all of thelaws you are required to follow,but in reality there are hundreds ofrules and regulations governing ourprofession. It is inevitable that,every now and then, you may over-look a few.

Violating certain laws and regula-tions can result in serious discipli-nary penalties, including a fine,suspension or even revocation ofyour preneed license. A companysuch as FSI – which specializes inthe complete administration ofsales programs for preneed and per-petual care trusts – should offer athorough understanding of statelaws and regulations so that yourtrust maintains compliance with allof them. It is crucial that you askyour sales program administratoror record keeper about these legalguidelines to ensure you have aprofessional on your trust teamprotecting your business from sig-nif icant violations and conse-quences. •

Bill Williams Wendy Russell Wiener

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