For many small funeral home owners, the idea of switching to a case management system can feel like overkill. Kirk Popiolek, Owner of Popiolek Funeral Home in Barrington, New Jersey, felt that same hesitation.
He struggled with an outdated system that didn’t work well, but he worried that a web-based program would be more than he needed and far outside his budget.
Turns out, Passare wasn’t just for the big firms.
In this Q&A article, Kirks walks us through his experience, from his decision-making process to his daily use of Passare.
My old software was just old and wasn't working properly. I almost gave up on finding something else. I was just going to stick it out and deal with it, and then I got the call from Passare.
They walked me through the program, and my initial response was, “I can't afford this.” I thought it would be thousands of dollars a month and wouldn't work with my budget.
The sales team showed me all the features. And when I’d say, “I don’t need that,” they’d say, “Well, we don’t need to build it in.” They kept emphasizing that they were going to build this program for me, almost as if I were hiring a custom software company.
When they told me the actual cost, I thought, “Really? I could definitely do that.” They gave me a test version to play around with, and the team was very reassuring that everything would actually improve over my previous software.
Passare was easy to use and navigate, and it wasn't overly complex.
I really like the dashboard. Since I run things on my own, I can get pulled in several directions at once. If something isn't flashing at me, I might not notice it in time. That dashboard provides really good accountability. Every time I open the program, it’s like, “Oh, did you follow up on this? This still hasn’t been resolved.”
Passare is great for my small funeral home, where I don’t have a secretary or an administrative assistant to give me a task list every day.
The implementation process was so smooth, and everything moved along pretty easily. The sales team really set us up for success by getting our specific forms, like our crematory forms, uploaded prior to implementation. By the time we got to the actual learning part, everything was already there.
After every meeting, I always got notes and a “cheat sheet” for things like how to upload a case into my accounting software. They really emphasize that they are literally a click away. Little small things come up, and they’re like, “Oh yeah, taken care of, done.” It makes me feel good about the software.
The process was really thorough, and I felt a lot of confidence and reassurance that things would go well when we went live.
It’s always a little different when you’re on your own. I could sit on the Zoom calls and watch my implementation manager flip through everything and think, “Oh, that’s easy.” Then, when you go live, you have to remember how they did it.
But really, all it takes is entering fewer than 5 cases, and it becomes pretty simple to use. It is a very intuitive and easy-to-use program.
I agree with Passare’s mindset that families are looking for something to do from the moment they call until we meet. They want to feel a sense of preparation, not anxiety. I’ve only used Planning Center with a handful of families so far, but the feedback has been great.
When I go in, I see everything is already filled out. I know the spelling and accuracy are correct because it’s coming from the source.
Today’s consumers are more hands-on. They want to proofread the obituary or see the death certificate before it’s filed, and this gives them that opportunity.
Pretty quickly. I purposely held off on a couple of cases just to enter them in, get a feel for the accuracy, and make sure the forms were printing correctly.
By the following week, I was opening it up in arrangement meetings and saying, “Here we go, we’re doing it.” It only took a couple of sets of arrangements to get comfortable navigating the fields and knowing what I can put in later versus what I need right now.
So far, I’ve only had to reach out once!
It was just a memorial printing to add, and it was no problem. I don’t have to call, get a ticket, and wait for a callback. They understand when something is impacting my business right now.
At this stage, it’s the library of forms. We’re still a very paperwork-driven industry, and having our state-specific forms in there is a lifesaver. Our statement of goods and services is in there, and it’s perfect; it looks just as if I ordered it from the printer.
I don’t have an office staff, so having that catalog of forms right there is huge. Some of their forms, like the hospital release authorizations, are actually better than the ones I was using before.
I would say just do it. Just make the switch. It’s already better than what you have, and if it’s not, it’s your fault because you aren't taking part in the design process. Just tell Passare what you need, and the team will make it work for you.
You aren't paying for features you aren't using, which is great from a business standpoint.
From a small funeral home's perspective, it’s intimidating to look at other products because they’re designed for multi-rooftop operations. Passare can definitely accommodate that, but it doesn’t have to. You are not the minority just because you don't have 5 funeral homes attached to you. It shows me that Passare is serious about what they offer the industry. They’ve created a very powerful, affordable program.
About the funeral home:
Popiolek Funeral Home is located in Barrington, New Jersey, and serves around 60 families each year.
See how Passare helps funeral homes with a seamless implementation plan and launch. 👇