Video: See How SRS Helps This Funeral Professional Serve Families Remotely
March 3, 2021
Hear for yourself from one of your peers how SRS is helping funeral homes be more mobile and stay successful in the ever-changing industry. David Lee Hernandez Jr., the CEO and Founder of Jersey Memorial Group, shared how SRS helps his staff save time and how it empowers them to serve families.
You can watch his video here or read what he had to say below.
SRS As the Central Nervous System
“Hi, my name is David Lee Hernandez, Jr. I’m CEO and Founder of Jersey Memorial Group operating funeral homes and cemeteries in New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and West Virginia. So, SRS we’ve been with for years. In fact, my entire career over 20 years has been with SRS, specifically with Scott and Kim Simons, and it’s been really neat to watch the program grow as we grew, but the relationship that we have with both of them as well as a lot of their developers and their tech team has been paramount in us staying not only with SRS but continuing to grow as well.
So, SRS has been a tremendous asset to my organization. I use the analogy that it’s the central nervous system, so the funeral directors input all of the data in there. The administrators are able to print all the various documents and contracts out of it. Our accounting team goes in there to get all the financial data and export the data into our financial software. I look at it from our reports and as a practicing funeral director, still use it on a day-to-day basis with the case management software, so the program has been a tremendous value and robust in not only be able to save time, but also eliminating duplicitous processes, so it’s single-entry data and then it goes across all of our other platforms, which is tremendous on my side.”
FamilyLink and Social Distancing
“So 2020, there’s really still no words to describe what we went through, but in a relationship business, so much of what we do is in front of the customers and clients where when that was withdrawn, we really had to maintain that personal touch and with SRS and all of their different platforms within the system, we were still able to do that. So, they have a program called FamilyLink where we were able to simply get an email from the next of kin, send them an email, and begin to have this collaborative process with vitals, obtaining the vitals for the death certificate, obituary, providing them up-to-date pricing and quoting.”
Collecting Payments Virtually With E-Pay
“They also have a feature called E-Pay, so where the families were able to come in, typically we have a payment policy of services rendered by the day of the funeral, so that became a big challenge during COVID having families coming in. So, we were simply able to send them an E-Pay link and they were paying via credit card or check or ACH withdrawal, so that was tremendous, and that took a lot of pressure off of me from an ownership standpoint, our managers, because we wanted to obviously maintain the level of service and care for the families, but then the financial component is such a hard part to make sure that that’s all under wraps and taken care of.
One of the other features that they came out with that I was on them for years on was incorporating merchant services into SRS, so we got rid of all of the terminals across all thirteen of our locations. Not only did we have a terminal, but then we had to have a log and we had to have paper and ink and all of the things and there was always issues with reconciliations. And innocently, funeral directors perhaps we’ve run the credit card, so they did their job, but they didn’t go write down how much was taken. So, it was always a hunt and peck and figuring out on a bank rec where once SRS brought the credit card merchant services into the software, it absolutely eliminated all of that.”
Staying Organized with Tasks
“One of my favorite features in SRS is the Tasks. So, when we pick graveside service, we have an automated list of all of the tasks that are generated that are needed specific to a graveside service. It also has tasks that are specific to certain members on the teams. So, for instance, if a check is needed for the cemetery, that task automatically notifies our accounting team, funeral director puts in the cemetery name, perhaps the opening and closing fee or any of the fees goes automatically to accounting, accounting issues the check, and the check miraculously ends up in the file. And that’s one of those things that has not only kept an audit trail but has just simplified our processes within the funeral home, so Tasks have been a tremendous opportunity for us to streamline.
Again, my name is David Lee Herandez Jr., I’m Founder and CEO of Jersey Memorial Group and been a proud client of SRS for over 20 years and looking forward to the continued innovation and opportunity to grow my business through their platform.”
Click here to watch David’s video testimonial!
You can watch his video here or read what he had to say below.
SRS As the Central Nervous System
“Hi, my name is David Lee Hernandez, Jr. I’m CEO and Founder of Jersey Memorial Group operating funeral homes and cemeteries in New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and West Virginia. So, SRS we’ve been with for years. In fact, my entire career over 20 years has been with SRS, specifically with Scott and Kim Simons, and it’s been really neat to watch the program grow as we grew, but the relationship that we have with both of them as well as a lot of their developers and their tech team has been paramount in us staying not only with SRS but continuing to grow as well.
So, SRS has been a tremendous asset to my organization. I use the analogy that it’s the central nervous system, so the funeral directors input all of the data in there. The administrators are able to print all the various documents and contracts out of it. Our accounting team goes in there to get all the financial data and export the data into our financial software. I look at it from our reports and as a practicing funeral director, still use it on a day-to-day basis with the case management software, so the program has been a tremendous value and robust in not only be able to save time, but also eliminating duplicitous processes, so it’s single-entry data and then it goes across all of our other platforms, which is tremendous on my side.”
FamilyLink and Social Distancing
“So 2020, there’s really still no words to describe what we went through, but in a relationship business, so much of what we do is in front of the customers and clients where when that was withdrawn, we really had to maintain that personal touch and with SRS and all of their different platforms within the system, we were still able to do that. So, they have a program called FamilyLink where we were able to simply get an email from the next of kin, send them an email, and begin to have this collaborative process with vitals, obtaining the vitals for the death certificate, obituary, providing them up-to-date pricing and quoting.”
Collecting Payments Virtually With E-Pay
“They also have a feature called E-Pay, so where the families were able to come in, typically we have a payment policy of services rendered by the day of the funeral, so that became a big challenge during COVID having families coming in. So, we were simply able to send them an E-Pay link and they were paying via credit card or check or ACH withdrawal, so that was tremendous, and that took a lot of pressure off of me from an ownership standpoint, our managers, because we wanted to obviously maintain the level of service and care for the families, but then the financial component is such a hard part to make sure that that’s all under wraps and taken care of.
One of the other features that they came out with that I was on them for years on was incorporating merchant services into SRS, so we got rid of all of the terminals across all thirteen of our locations. Not only did we have a terminal, but then we had to have a log and we had to have paper and ink and all of the things and there was always issues with reconciliations. And innocently, funeral directors perhaps we’ve run the credit card, so they did their job, but they didn’t go write down how much was taken. So, it was always a hunt and peck and figuring out on a bank rec where once SRS brought the credit card merchant services into the software, it absolutely eliminated all of that.”
Staying Organized with Tasks
“One of my favorite features in SRS is the Tasks. So, when we pick graveside service, we have an automated list of all of the tasks that are generated that are needed specific to a graveside service. It also has tasks that are specific to certain members on the teams. So, for instance, if a check is needed for the cemetery, that task automatically notifies our accounting team, funeral director puts in the cemetery name, perhaps the opening and closing fee or any of the fees goes automatically to accounting, accounting issues the check, and the check miraculously ends up in the file. And that’s one of those things that has not only kept an audit trail but has just simplified our processes within the funeral home, so Tasks have been a tremendous opportunity for us to streamline.
Again, my name is David Lee Herandez Jr., I’m Founder and CEO of Jersey Memorial Group and been a proud client of SRS for over 20 years and looking forward to the continued innovation and opportunity to grow my business through their platform.”
Click here to watch David’s video testimonial!
It’s 2022. If you haven’t realized it already, it’s time to understand the importance of your funeral home website for your firm and community. From making funeral plans and paying the expenses to expressing condolences and learning about coping with grief, your website can do it all and so much more. Want to learn how? See how you can take your funeral home website to the next level in 2022 with these 22 must-have features. Create the Ultimate Interactive Obituary Experience . Give your families a space to grieve their loss, show their support, and honor their loved one with interactive memorial walls. With features for expressing condolences, posting photos, and sharing memories, everyone can heal and remember their loved one. Make Ordering Funeral and Sympathy Flowers Easy with an Online Store. By having an online store built directly onto your website, families can conveniently order funeral and sympathy flowers while visiting their loved one’s memorial page. Spread the Word About a Loved One’s Passing Through Social Sharing. With easy social sharing, you can let your families share their loved one’s obituary and condolences on social media to spread the word about their passing. Support Families Through Crowdfunding Campaigns. Another way to let families show their support is to have the option to donate to a funeral crowdfunding campaign directly on their loved one’s memorial wall. Include Your General Price List (GPL) on Your Funeral Home Website. Along with a breakdown of your products and services, you should include your GPL to be transparent with your families and build trusting relationships with them. Let Families Pay Directly on Your Website with an Online Payment Center. Many families want the convenience of online payments, so you can give them this with an online payment center for credit card payments and more . Give Your Families an Easy-to-Navigate Design on Any Device. No one wants to waste time finding what information they need, especially while at-need planning, so make sure your website is easy to navigate of any device. Have Forms for Families to Easily Enter Their Information. Instead of families calling your firm for everything they need, have forms that families can submit for preplanning, downloading resources, and more. Put Your Contact Information in an Easy-to-Locate Spot. If families want to call or visit your firm, don’t make it difficult for them to locate this information. Along with a Contact Us page, you should also include this information on your homepage. Provide Your Community with Grief and Funeral Planning Resources. Your website can be like an online library for families to learn about funeral planning and grief. For example, create a Resources page for your content and link to any other educational resources. Help Families Grieve and Stay Informed Through Email Subscriptions. Without any work required from your employees, let your families sign up for email subscriptions directly on your website, such as for grief support and obituary notifications. Share Frequently Asked Questions with Your Community. Many times, your employees repeatedly answer the same questions from families. To eliminate some of these repetitive questions, have a FAQ section on your website. Post Useful Information on Your Website’s Blog. Your firm’s website should have a blog for regularly sharing content about preplanning, at-need planning, personalizing a funeral, grieving, memorialization, and more. Secure Your Website with a Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) Certificate. Giving your families a secure connection when entering sensitive information on your website is a must-have. To do this, your website should have an SSL Certificate. Eliminate Spam Through Sophisticated Spam Filters. Eliminate spam comments and messages with sophisticated spam filters. This way, grieving families don’t have the added pain of rude comments. Develop an SEO Strategy to Get Found by More Families Online. Make sure your website gets found by more families online by including things like meta descriptions for your webpages and keywords. Design a Logo that Represents Your Firm’s Brand. Your logo should be visually appealing and reflect your firm’s brand. If it’s been a while since you’ve revisited your logo design, it’s probably time to explore some new ideas. Tell Your Families About Your Firm’s History, Employees, and Mission. Your families want to know the people behind your firm and what you stand for , so make sure to include things like your firm’s mission to serve families, history in your community, and employee bios to help them better understand your goals. Take Professional Pictures of Your Firm and Merchandise. If your website photos are low quality, this can reflect negatively on your business. To prevent this, draw families to your firm by taking professional photos of your facility and merchandise. Showcase Testimonials from Your Firm’s Client Families. Give your community real-life examples of positive experiences families had working with your firm, whether they’re text or video-based testimonials. Route Families to the Funeral Location Through Text Directions. One way to make things easier for families is to have a tool directly on your website for sending directions to the funeral or graveside service right to their phones. Integrate with Your Other Favorite Funeral Technology Solutions. Lastly, your funeral home website should integrate with your other funeral technology solutions to save you time, such as your case management software and marketing automation software. Take your firm to the next level in 2022 by upgrading to an SRS Website. Click h ere to book a free demo .
2021 was a revolutionary year for the funeral industry, but in 2022, it’s time to take it to the NEXT LEVEL. If you haven’t already, now is the time more than ever to embrace the mobile revolution . With a little help from your technology solutions, you can meet your families’ needs anytime, anywhere while creating a faster and simpler process for your firm. For the sake of time, we’ll focus on three important aspects of your firm: Funeral Options Business Management Aftercare 2022 is already here , so there’s no time to waste. Let’s start with funeral options. Take Your Funeral Options to the Next Level: Give Families Online Choices Families want online options. It’s as simple as that. They’re used to it now, so they won’t settle for anything less. The pandemic showed them that a lot of their in-person tasks can be accomplished online in less time, such as: Using an app to place your grocery order ahead of time instead of wandering the store. Scanning your check with your mobile device and depositing it without ever leaving your couch. Or simply entering your credit card number online and pressing submit. Having virtual appointments with your doctor, accountant, and other professionals instead of meeting in person. You can apply these same concepts to the funeral industry. Instead of meeting with families in person for every task, some things can be done virtually, such as selecting their funeral options on your website through a pre-planning form, signing forms, collecting files, making the payment virtually , and meeting through video chat. Of course, this doesn’t replace in-person meetings. The purpose of these features is to take tedious tasks like filling out paperwork and swiping credit cards to a virtual environment. This way, you can save in-person meetings for building more meaningful connections with your families. So going back to the question, how can you take your funeral options to the next level in 2022? Give families more online choices. Instead of driving to your firm to pay for the expenses, sign a form, or give you documents, let them do it virtually in a matter of seconds. Not to mention that this is more secure than documenting things on paper. Take Your Business Management to the Next Level: Say Hello to Case Management Software Do you want to way to offer your families everything we’ve just covered and more all in one place? Say hello to funeral home case management software. As the popular saying goes, behind every successful funeral director is a turnkey case management system. Okay, maybe people don’t go around saying that, but they should because it’s true. Without an organized and easy-to-access system, your firm couldn’t function. But you can’t use just any system. Meet 9Online , the funeral industry’s elite management software. Instead of using third-party integrations that cost you more time and money, it has built-in features for signing forms electronically, collecting the payment virtually, communicating with families in a safe, virtual environment, and so much more . Take Your Aftercare to the Next Level: Focus on Your Marketing and Website Lastly, we can’t forget about aftercare. As you know, a family’s journey with grief is long from over once the funeral takes place. It’s something that they’ll carry with them for the rest of their lives. Though this may sound daunting, you can make things much easier for them by focusing on how your website and marketing efforts can help them. By building up your aftercare resources, it could even be the reason someone chooses to work with your firm over another one. For example, these are a few ways your website and marketing can improve your aftercare efforts in 2022 and beyond: Share blog posts, guides, and other resources on your firm’s website . Engage with families on social media through posts and ads. Use email nurturing to further engage with them and provide them with grief resources. We know this sounds like a lot, so that’s why we partnered with Growth Engine. It’s the first marketing automation software designed specifically for the funeral industry and you and your families’ needs. How cool is that? Click here to learn more about this platform. Book a free SRS demo to learn even more ways to boost your business performance and better serve your families.
We want to give a shout out to our incredible clients and their brand-new SRS Websites! Thank you for trusting SRS with your funeral home's website . We’re proud of every design and make sure they accurately represent your firm and provide you with the tools you need for success. Below are just a few of our favorite SRS Website designs from this fall. Lighthouse Funeral & Cremation Owner and Manager Tate C. Goodwin opened Lighthouse Funeral & Cremation in 2013. Today, they have several Michigan locations. On their new SRS Website, families can use E-Pay to make an online payment for their loved one’s funeral service expenses.