Page B6 - January2013

Page B6

JANUARY 2013

FUNERAL HOME & CEMETERY NEWS

S ec t i on B

www.4HEARSE.com

Chicago Office

1-800-4-HEARSE

Twin Cities Office

1-800-639-0604

Then & Forever introduces a Touch Screen Tablet for

Video Condolence System

Adfinity celebrates 13 years in Funeral Home

Advertising

Augie Bottiger of Best Friend Tribute to limit travel

after 52 years of service to the Funeral Profession

Tablet Touchscreen from Then & Forever

prayer and reminiscence is presented to the family in a com-

memorative case by the funeral home as a unique part of its

service. “I’ve had those experiencing the loss of a loved one

tell me how these DVDs get played over and over when peo-

ple come visit,” said

Debbie Ross

, East Coast Sales Con-

sultant for Then & Forever, and member of a funeral home

family herself. “They especially treasure the opportunity to

share a copy with those who were unable to attend, particu-

larly those serving the country all across the world.”

In response to customer demand, last spring Then & For-

ever developed a second product, a touchscreen Digital Reg-

istry System available as a combination kiosk with the video

condolence function or as a free-standing unit in a selection

of sizes and prices.

According to Then & Forever’s Marketing Director,

Tara Soderstrom

, “Unlike other electronic registry sys-

tems, our product also features a comment option—it

records the names of guests

when they make their vis-

it and, if desired, their

thoughts or sentiments

to the family—and then

seamlessly combines both

into one guestbook entry.”

Then & Forever’s Digi-

tal Guestbook System pro-

duces a full-size bound

guestbook with high qual-

ity cover and page stock.

A photo of the loved one

can be printed on the cov-

er, which is available in

a choice of colors. A rich

keepsake cover with a met-

al name plate is offered as a

low-cost option.

CHICAGO,IL—

Just a lit-

tle over a year ago,

Then &

Forever, Inc

. introduced its

first revolutionary touch-

screen video product, the

Video Condolence System

,

which has become an im-

portant fixture in funeral

homes all across the country.

Guests attending visitation

and services are expressing

their condolences personally

to the family in the form of a

permanent video record they

can make in a minute or less

by stepping up to the facil-

ity’s touchscreen video kiosk.

A DVD containing all

the messages of sympathy,

The device also produces tasteful Thank You notes with a

choice of design and internal message options—including

blank notes for the family’s most personal responses. Pre-

addressed envelopes with the names of all registrants are also

provided.

The new Digital Registry product for 2013 is a compact,

tablet-size device that can be located anywhere within the es-

tablishment where desired. It has a full-size keyboard for ease

of entry. Clients may also opt to purchase only the software

at a set price, and with any purchase, there is an upgrade op-

tion to print their own items in house.

For more information about the new Digital Guestbook

Registry Systems or other Then & Forever products, contact

Marketing Director Tara Soderstrom by phone at 630-205-

8272 or email at tsoderstrom@thenandforevertributes.com.

Debbie Ross can be reached at 716-512-8867 or by email at

dross_thenandforever@aol.com.

Cremation Jewelry from Best Friend Tribute

BRADENTON,FL—

Augie Bottiger

,

president of

Best Friend Tribute Inc

.

announced that due to health issues he

will no longer be able to travel the ter-

ritory on a regular basis. Best Friend

Tribute, Inc. is a company that im-

ports cremation urns to funeral homes

in Florida, and several territories.

Bottiger started the business when he

and two partners acquired

Blanchard

Fluid Company

in Tucker, GA in

1960. After selling his interest in the

Blanchard Company, Augie moved to

Florida and started

Control Chemical

Corporation

, which later acquired

Pav

Chemical Company

, where he acted

as president in both companies. When

Pav was acquired by

American Fu-

neral Supply Company

, Bottiger was

promoted to vice president of sales and

marketing for

Belmont Casket Com-

pany

until he resigned and worked for

Boyertown Casket Company

.

Four years ago, Augie started Best

Friend Tribute Inc. He wishes to thank

everyone that supported him and the

companies he represented over the past

52 years. The Bradenton warehouse

was closed, but drop ship goods, and

the cremation jewelry line will still be

available from the office in Bradenton.

You can reach Mr. Bottiger at 941-

753-5539 for details.

TAMPA,FL—

Friday, De-

cember 7, 2012 marked

Adfinity’s

13th year as a

leading funeral home mar-

keting and advertising

agency.

“When we opened our

doors in 1999, we had one

goal: to be the best funer-

al home advertising agen-

cy around,” explained Ad-

finity mastermind,

Doug

Clery

. “We’ve worked with

more than 2,500 funeral

home and cemetery owners

nationwide since then and

feel confident we’ve met

our goal.”

In the past 13 years, fu-

neral home advertising has

shifted from traditional

Yellow Pages, church bulle-

tin ads and newspaper ads

to more billboards, televi-

sion, direct mail and Inter-

net marketing, and Adfini-

ty has shifted as well. “Our

project managers and

graphic designers stay on