Written by Josh McQueen, VP of Marketing and Product at Passare

Have you ever done a DIY project?

Let’s say you finally decide you want to build that deck in the backyard you’ve been talking about.

You consider yourself to be a problem solver, so you quickly turn to YouTube for tutorial videos and the internet for how-to articles. These resources suggest you need more powerful tools, but you’re not about to make a trip to the local hardware store to buy a cordless nail gun and circular hand saw when your hammer and saw work just fine. You gather your materials and set a goal to complete the deck in a weekend.

Once you start the project, you realize a glaring problem. Though you were prepared with materials, it’s taking you longer to complete than your research suggested. Your trusty hammer and saw aren’t effective enough to wrap up this project quickly.

If only you had had the right tools to begin with…

Funeral home owners face a similar dilemma when they evaluate case management software for their businesses.

To manage your funeral home efficiently, you need the right tools.

A simple, web-based software solution is a good start, but it isn’t enough to help you increase efficiency on everyday tasks, from case management to paperwork.

1. Mobile case management

The first way to increase efficiency is by managing cases on the go.

Think about this:

Can your filing cabinet or computer fit in your pocket? While that would be impressive, the answer is likely not.

Can you answer an urgent case question while at the grocery store, lying in bed, or watching the big game? Unless you have your cases in front of you, not exactly.

However, web-based case management software with a mobile app allows you to take your cases wherever you take your phone and start new cases from anywhere. A mobile app gives you access to case information and the ability to answer questions quickly when you're on a removal, away from the funeral home, or just on the go. Instead of waiting to work on cases at the funeral home, you can be more efficient by making updates right from your phone.

2. Multi-view dashboards

Finding software that can create dashboards specific to you and your staff is helpful in more ways than one. You can view case listings, manage incoming documents, and see notifications and reminders all in one place to improve employee productivity and team communication.

Here are a few things to look for in a great dashboard tool:

• User-friendly layout and settings

• The ability to add multiple reports to dashboards

• The option to create custom dashboards for each staff member

Instead of taking time out of your day to write everything out on a whiteboard, multi-view dashboards can help you improve efficiency and communication for each member of your team.

3. eSignatures

As a funeral director, you realize how important it is to take care of paperwork quickly and securely. But hunting down signatures manually is a huge waste of time.

Think of all the families your funeral home serves every month. Multiply that by how many forms each family needs to sign. Now, that's a lot of paperwork to keep up with! You're lucky if you aren't waking up at night worrying about that one form that still needs a signature.

The good news is there is a much better way to keep up with your paperwork. You can simplify the signing process and eliminate stress by using a digital signature tool in software you use every day to manage your cases.

Look for software with a built-in eSignature solution so you can see all your forms at a glance and track the status of each form in real time without digging through paper files or emails.

4. Barcode Tracking

So many items enter your funeral home each week, including jewelry, clothing, belongings, and other personal effects. Maintaining a chain of custody is crucial, but keeping up with items on a clipboard simply isn’t efficient.

Digital barcode or QR code tracking simplifies this process by allowing you to assign physical, scannable barcodes to items and tie those barcodes to certain cases.

With this tool, you can maintain better accuracy when keeping up with all the items that enter your prep room, which includes keeping up with the bodies of loved ones.

As you search for the right software, make sure to inquire about the platform's digital tracking features and capabilities. This feature is a must-have that will save you time and decrease the likelihood of errors.

5. AI Obituary Writer

Manually writing obituaries can take up a lot of your time. Once you've written your first draft, received edits from the family, and revised a second draft, you've likely spent hours crafting a unique obituary.

With AI, you can generate a first draft quickly, so you can spend more time making it personal and unique.

But it doesn't end there. Many times, families want things deleted, changed, or added. With this tool, you can also quickly make revisions, generate an alternative draft, or add more sections to the obituary to meet a family's request. 

While free AI tools exist, the best ones integrate with your case management software. That way, AI can pull case information you've already entered for the obituary and save you from entering information more than once.

With funeral home software, investing in the right tools is the right call. 

Purchasing new software is a big decision for your business. While it may be easier to go with a cheap, basic option, investing in additional features will increase efficiency, enhance your processes, and improve communication with your team. In short, they’ll be well worth the money. 

Get all these tools and more in one platform when you get Passare. Submit the form below to see a live demo of the software. 👇