When it comes to serving your families, you want to provide the easiest, most seamless experience for them. So, whether they're planning a simple memorial service or an open casket visitation followed by a graveside service and reception, how do you make at-need planning with your funeral home accessible and easy?

Some funeral homes wait to start planning at the in-person arrangement conference, while others offer resources or online forms to help families get started.

But there's one technology that makes planning easy for families and can help you stay connected throughout the entire process: online at-need planning software.

And before you object and say, "We're too small and don't need technology to connect with families," or "We serve thousands of families each year, our current process works just fine…"

Let us let you in on a secret:

The size of your business doesn't matter when it comes to experiencing the benefits of online planning software.

In this article, discover 3 ways online planning software will make the planning process easier for you and your families, whether you're under 100 calls or over 1000 calls.

3 ways online planning software will make your planning process easier

#1: Provide ultimate convenience for everyone.

For the smaller firms

A lot of times, smaller funeral homes have more opportunities to connect with families in their tight-knit communities. And while families appreciate a personal connection, they'll also appreciate you going the extra mile to make things more convenient for them.

With online at-need planning technology, you can work together with families before, during, and after the in-person arrangement conference. That way, families get an easy way to complete paperwork, write the obituary, or just ask you a quick question when they need help.

Bonus? Giving families the chance to work ahead online creates more time during in-person meetings for meaningful conversations.

For the larger firms

At a larger firm, your staff meets with so many families in a week. With the right online planning tool, your families can easily collaborate with you no matter how many calls are coming in. Plus, all the important details and discussions will be in a central location for you and the family to easily access at any time.

#2: Build better connections with every family.

For the smaller firms

In a smaller community, it can be easier to build connections with families. But, what about families who don't live locally? More and more people are moving away from their hometowns. In fact, a recent report from 2023 showed that 34% of families don't live in the same town as the decedent.

Online planning software opens the door for better connections with every family, whether they're a few doors down or states away. Families can work on collecting vital information, completing paperwork, or uploading photos online from wherever they are. That way, when they do meet with you in person, your conversations are more meaningful.

For the larger firms

Between all your meetings to attend, data to enter, and paperwork to complete, it can be difficult to stay laser-focused on each individual families' needs.

Online planning software can help!

Easily keep up with each families wants, needs, and preferences when you have a central place to collaborate. Families can upload personal details, information, photos, and even browse your merchandise ahead of time. That way you can ensure that keep up with what every family needs, regardless of how busy things get.

#3: Rise above the rest with cutting-edge technology.

For the smaller firms

As a smaller firm, you might have a good idea of how your families want to engage with your funeral home.

However, as technology advances, families' expectations of businesses and their use of it will also change. Without the right tools, your business could get left in the dust.

Get ahead of the curve by meeting families with the option to plan online and in person. By making different options available to them, you'll show families that you care most about what's best for them.

For the larger firms

Every business has competition. But with a big firm, you probably have some big competitors, too. And your competitors aren't always traditional funeral homes - they may be an online direct cremation solution.

If you continue to provide the same options you always have, families may find other funeral homes that offer more convenient digital solutions.

Meet families where they're at by offering them an easy, online way to work with your funeral home using online at-need software.

When it comes to innovating with great technology, size just doesn't matter. Here's why:

As you likely noticed, we broke this article down based on funeral home size. But guess what? Each benefit we mentioned applies to every funeral home, regardless of size.

Big or small, online at-need planning software will help you:

• Offer families a convenient way to plan

• Improve communication with centralized information

• Build great connections with each family no matter where they are

• Rise above your competition with innovative technology

Passare's Planning Center is for you. 

Passare's Planning Center is a platform designed to help you engage with families in a way that's simple and convenient. From writing obituaries and creating memorial videos to uploading vitals and communicating with your funeral home, you can collaborate with families on any level using the Planning Center.

Ready to elevate your at-need planning process? Explore the Planning Center in a virtual tour here.

Or, if you're ready to achieve success in every area of your business, get a demo of Passare to see the full platform (and yes, that includes the Planning Center 😎).