| Read time: 5 mins
In today’s digital world, we all expect new levels of service and accessibility. And that presents cemeteries with a range of new opportunities.
Deathcare providers can maximize these opportunities by harnessing the power of the data they hold to connect more services and solutions to their families online.
We’ll come to how to achieve that, but if you can’t wait - and why should you - skip to it right here.
With that said, here are five reasons why extending the value your locations can offer is a must for cemetery businesses right now:
The online genealogy trend shows no signs of slowing down in 2024, with families eager to trace their roots and uncover their heritage.
The proliferation of websites like Ancestry or Family Tree exist to meet that need, and the popularity of TV shows such as, ‘Who Do You Think You Are’, suggests that the emotional resonance of uncovering hidden family histories has been reflected into the public consciousness.
With some even suggesting that it’s American’s second favorite pastime (after gardening), there’s no doubting its potential for your business.
By engaging with this audience, cemeteries can both position themselves as valuable resources, while showcasing their rich history and offering meaningful experiences.
By making cemetery records and maps accessible via an online grave search portal, you can tap into this booming interest.
This not only increases traffic to your website but also positions you as a key player in the genealogy community. By catering to this interest, you’re creating a bridge between your services and a wide audience, ensuring your cemetery remains relevant in this digital age.
With genealogy, the past could be your future.
Let’s leave the phrase, ‘strategic online engagement’ on the table for a moment.
Providing online access to services and solutions can open up a range of new avenues for sales and lead generation.
Consider a visitor browsing your site and discovering a family connection. They then explore options for nearby plots or memorial services by navigating your cemetery and viewing locations with real-time status availability.
Now, they’re in a two-way conversation with one of your sales people.
You’ve just converted a website visitor into a potential customer, and by allowing people to register their interest, you're capturing leads and building a database of potential clients.
The online sales opportunities don’t end at plot sales. From flower sales, to grave cleaning, a digital commerce shop now means you can sell a range of products and services online.
In this way, you’re diversifying your offerings and ensuring long-term financial sustainability.
‘Enhancing accessibility’ essentially means making it easier for people to get the information they’re looking for. And that means giving it to them online.
According to Forbes, around two thirds of us are online (around 5.35 billion), a figure set to grow by nearly 50% over the next 5 years.
With over half of the world’s population online, providing easy access to cemetery information is no longer just a convenience - it’s expected.
For families, that will mean that they can access and engage with information on their loved ones, regardless of where in the world they are. That may be discovering when a memorial service is taking place, leaving digital tributes, or looking up grave locations.
More than this, digitizing records helps to preserve your history for future generations.
By making digitized records accessible online, cemeteries contribute to the preservation of cultural and historical knowledge, ensuring that stories of the past aren’t lost to time.
The role of cemeteries is evolving.
No longer just resting places for the deceased, they can also become vital hubs that bring the living together; part of the glue that can help to hold communities together.
From the upcoming Dia de los Muertos celebrations, to hosting historical preservation societies and educational groups, cemeteries are embracing the opportunities to connect, attract new visitors, to educate, and inspire.
By digitizing your records, you can extend this role into the digital space, reinforcing this connection by transforming cemetery data into an engaging, shared digital experience.
This can be further enhanced with interactive tools, such as walk-to-grave apps that guide visitors to specific plots, (and help cemetery teams in their daily roles) or highlighting persons of interest, facilitating tours that showcase the rich history of your cemetery,
These not only enhance the visitor experience, but help to create a shared sense of community
For grieving families, a grave search portal can be a source of solace and support. It offers them the ability to connect with their loved ones’ resting places at any time, regardless of distance.
For those who can’t physically visit the site, this digital connection via online memorials can provide a source of comfort, removing restrictions of time or geography.
As mentioned, online portals can integrate features like walk-to-grave apps, helping families navigate large cemetery grounds during visits. In this way, they can significantly enhance the experience, allowing families to focus on remembrance and reflection instead of logistical challenges.
As tech continues to evolve, cemeteries that embrace these changes are better placed to seize future opportunities.
By staying ahead of the curve, you can help to ensure that your service delivery model is aligned with the expectations of both current and future customers.
Preserving your history and enhancing visitor experiences in this way can also open doors to new partnerships that keep you at the center of your community. Schools, historical societies, or even cultural organizations will be coming to you to collaborate on programs that give your data new life.
By leveraging technology today, you’re preparing your cemetery for a future where digital engagement is key to sustained growth and community connection.
EverAfter by PlotBox is a digital engagement platform that connects you with your community and offers extended value to grieving families, with 24/7 online access to their loved ones.
It helps you to build lasting connections by transforming your data into an accessible customer-facing digital experience.
From your own personalized design, to online selling to digital memorials, service schedules, to visitor insights, EverAfter delivers exceptional value to your business.
All of these things in one place, powered by PlotBox’s best-in-class cemetery management software supporting your entire back office.
Discover EverAfter.
Refs.
https://www.bps.org.uk/psychologist/family-trees-selfies-and-our-search-identity
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