Unlocking the 5 Benefits of Mobile Software For Your Cemetery

| Read time: 4 mins

In 2009 Apple coined the phrase, “There’s an app for that”’, and in doing so, not only launched a thousand memes, but introduced a phrase into the lexicon that has come to express how applications and mobile devices continue to transform our relationship with technology.

Fast-forward a decade or so, and the ubiquity of smartphones and tablets reflects how integral they’ve become to our lives - in terms of how we communicate, and how we interact with the world around us.

And so too, they’ve become essential tools for many organisations - the accessibility, mobility and connectivity they provide facilitating new ways of working that help to streamline processes, improve communication, and increase efficiencies that together help save time and money.

And for many deathcare providers, they’re helping to revolutionise how they manage their operations and serve their families.

With that in mind, we look at 5 practical benefits of using PlotBox’s cemetery management software in conjunction with mobile devices:

#1 Risk Assessments

Whether it’s cracked paths, overhanging limbs, unstable memorials or unsafe headstones - cemeteries pose a certain level of risk to both staff and members of the public. 

Good practice in risk assessment processes is essential in remaining compliant, keeping visitors safe and reducing the risk of lawsuit, so it’s therefore important that your team has the tools they need to carry them out effectively and in a timely way.

Locating, identifying and recording potential hazards means going mobile and navigating your space - something which may be more of a challenge for grounds crews if using paper maps and pen and paper. Providing the ability to accurately pinpoint locations on digital maps and record important information when onsite, means less back and forth to the office, less time and greater accuracy.

Cemetery Risk Assessments can be carried out via the PlotBox ipad app using a tablet device. Plots can be searched and viewed on digital maps, then all of the relevant information recorded ‘in the moment’, from memorial type, to condition, results, and any actions that need to be taken. Photographs can even be taken and attached directly to the record.

Together, this can help to create a complete picture of your risk assessments, keeping you on track and providing and ensuring you know what needs to be carried out and when.

Learn more about risk assessments with PlotBox.

#2 Customer Service

Whether during a special event, or as an everyday occurrence, it's important for cemeteries to have everything they need to help create a positive experience for families and visitors.

Helping them to locate the resting places of loved ones - especially in larger cemeteries - isn’t always easy without instant access to accurate mapping information.

Oftentimes, that requires teams out on cemetery grounds having to jot down information, then going back and forth phone to the office to look through records, or similarly, calling it in and having someone within the office do the same thing. All of which takes time for staff and a somewhat disjointed experience for the visitor.

Using the PlotBox ipad app, staff can quickly search deceased records within the cemetery and view where they’re buried on a digital map. This allows them to easily direct families to the grave location, and even print a map out for them if required.

With access to that information, your team will also be able to see what plots are available close by, should the family wish to have a conversation about their own future planning needs - all in the moment, all from a tablet device.

Think of your next event - now think of staff placed around your cemetery grounds with tablets, quickly and efficiently dealing with queries and potentially maximising opportunities for you.

Watch Memorial Day 2021 at Inglewood Park Cemetery, California.

#3 Sales Processes

It’s important that your team has everything they need to remove any barriers to making the sale.

That means having instant access to all of the information they need - and just as importantly - all of the information families need to make a decision and sign on the dotted line.

Paired with your cemetery management software, a tablet can provide your team with the mobility to make sales from anywhere - whether that’s in the home or from the comfort of the office.

Access to real time inventory lets them search plots and view exactly what they have to sell and where. Seeing burial plot locations, with a heat map providing visibility of status information means less time verifying space, and no confusion over what’s available.

Importantly - with PlotBox, because data is updated in real time, there’s also less risk of double-selling or mis-selling plots - less risk and complete confidence for both you and the family.

As an aid to selling, digital maps also allow your team to show families exactly where plots are and what surrounds them, without having to refer to paper maps or without having to come onsite - helping them to make a decision then and there.

Bringing contracts to completion isn’t always straightforward, with lots of back and forth and reams of paperwork slowing the process, or even bringing it to a halt. With PlotBox, you can generate a contract straight from a tablet, process payments and even add electronic signatures. 

Going mobile means no limitations on selling remotely.

#4 Funeral Director Portal

We know that challenging circumstances for families do not keep regular hours. 

In order to make the process as seamless as possible, it's important for clear and timely communication between deathcare providers. That also means funeral directors being able to provide families with the information they need to make the important decisions as soon as possible.

That may mean a back and forth with the cemetery or crematorium office to confirm availability, and often physically going to the site to fill out a diary booking request over the weekend, to be dealt with by the team on Monday morning.

All of which together can mean uncertainty for the family, and time away from them for the funeral director. It can also mean backlogs for staff at the beginning of every week.

The PlotBox Funeral Director Portal provides funeral directors with access to cemetery and crematorium calendars, at any time of the day or night, enabling them to provisionally book slots.

Simply by using their phone, they can talk through available options and provide dates and times for families immediately.

Read how the funeral director portal is transforming customer service in Wirral.

#5 Work 0rders

Streamlined operational processes and clear communication between the office and grounds teams is essential in ensuring that the right work is carried out in the right place, in the right way, at the time. 

In practice, a tablet can help you share information in real time between the two.

Work orders linked to digital maps means grounds teams can easily see exactly where work needs to be carried out without having to refer to paper maps and records. 

Work orders can also be generated and assigned to staff remotely, and when completed, can be signed off onsite. Need to review work completed? Teams can simply take photographs when out in the field and attach them to the work order.

In all, real time job status and email and text alerts keeps everyone informed, up to date, and provides accountability from start to finish.

Learn more about Work Orders with PlotBox.

Watch how the PlotBox Funeral Director Portal is helping to transform customer srvice in Wirral: