January 2018

Page B12 JANUARY 2018 FUNERAL HOME & CEMETERY NEWS S ec t i on B • Families are the most satisfied with at-need cremations with memorials. Trends and Insights: Article (Volume 2, 2017) Continued from Page A10 Satisfaction among Market Segments • In 2016 (and 2014), overall satisfaction was highest among firms primarily serving multiple ethnicities – which was lowest in satisfaction in 2015. • This year, firms primarily serving Asians and African Americans were rated lowest, which suggests funeral homes may not know how to best meet the needs of these ethnic groups. • Standalone funeral homes again outperform other funeral home types in overall sat- isfaction. Those consumers who used combination funeral homes and cemeteries were least satisfied. Satisfaction with Specific Aspects of Funeral Experience The survey included questions asking families to rate specific touchpoints of their fu- neral experience: initial contact with the funeral home, the arranging funeral director, facilities and vehicles, and staff and services. Overall • When all the scores for each area were aggregated, overall, high ratings were earned across functional areas that trended up from 2015 to 2016. Similar to last year, Staff and Servic- es earned the highest satisfaction ratings and Initial Contact scored the lowest. • Those most satisfied in 2016 were slightly different than those in 2015: *Composite scores: Score represents an average of all attribute ratings in each respective area. Initial Contact • For all three years, consumers were most satisfied during their initial funeral home contact with the genuine care and concern expressed but least satisfied with their ini- tial phone conversations. • Consumers with lower satisfaction in this area cited unsympathetic reception staff, unresponsiveness to initial phone calls, and pushy sales staff as reasons for their lower ratings. As before, a number of respondents mentioned their initial contact with the firm was important to their choice, so this is a key area for improvement. Funeral Director • Consumers continue to rate their funeral director highly across all attributes mea- sured; ratings in 2016 were even higher than prior years. Directors earned the high- est ratings on effectiveness in listening and answering questions and being attentive to families’ needs. While still rated highly and improved from last year, attention to detail received the lowest score. Facilities and Vehicles • Satisfaction with vehicles’ appearance, cleanliness, and condition was rated highest, and the convenience and comfort of the facilities received the lowest scores all three years. Those least satisfied with facilities in 2016 cited an outdated appearance, un- comfortable temperatures, and lack of wheelchair accessibility as reasons for their dissatisfaction. Staff and Services • For all three years, families were most satisfied with the staff’s friendly and accom- modating manner followed by the actual service or ceremony, and least satisfied with the appearance of the staff and their loved one. • Verbatim family comments mentioned the loved one did not look like him/herself even though pictures were provided, and expressions or positions were unnatural. Likelihood to Recommend • According to survey ratings, most respondents are very likely to recommend their fu- neral home and were more likely to do so in 2016 than in previous years. • Of those who were less likely to recommend, the most frequently cited reasons were lack of/ miscommunication regarding costs, unwanted sales attempts, performance issues (i.e., errors and disorganization), and very little sympathy or compassion ex- pressed by staff. Net Promoter Score The Net Promoter Score (NPS) is a loyalty metric based on customers’ like- lihood to recommend a product or service. Cus- tomers respond on a 0-10 point rating scale and the NPS is calculated by sub- tracting the percentage of Detractors (ratings 0-6) from the percentage of Promoters (ratings 9-10). • The NPS score was cal- culated from overall likelihood to recommend survey ratings (above). • The resulting NPS score of JCG clients is healthy and stable at +85%, and up slightly from previous years. Cost of Services and Products • In 2016 about three-fourths of all families believed costs were what they expect- ed – slightly more than in prior years. • Int e re s t ing l y, more African American firms in 2016 than in 2015 thought costs were lower than expected. Also noteworthy is direct crema- tion firms con- tinue to trend to lower than ex- pected costs. Reasons FH Was Chosen • Prior experience with a firm continues to lead fu- neral home selection. Con- venient location, pre-ar- rangement, and reputation also factor in the decision and were mentioned about equally all three years. • While relatively few fami- lies primarily chose their funeral home based on price, hospice or web- site, the influence of these seemingly growing ele- ments in 2016 may war- rant attention. Relationship between Sales and Client Satisfaction Correlation analysis was per- formed to determine whether relationships existed between the overall satisfaction mea- sures in our survey and total sales for the year. • In general, firms with high- er satisfaction had higher sales, and those with lower satisfaction had lower sales. Essentially, as family satis- faction increased, sales also increased. • The relationship between sales and satisfaction is moderately strong; how- ever, additional research is needed to understand which funeral aspects drive sales. Conclusions • Confirmed again this year, we know statistically that firms with higher satisfaction have higher sales; improving satisfaction benefits both families and funeral firms. • Cremations continue to rise in the US, and so is the average cremation sale amount. • Overall, the average per case sale is generally holding steady; however, the average per case casket sale is trending down. • Although cremations with memorials and traditional cremations have higher satisfac- tion and sales than direct cremations, direct cremations are increasingly the most com- mon cremation disposition chosen. Funeral firms would best serve these families (and themselves) by providing information on all the cremation options available – perhaps even citing research that shows families have greater satisfaction with other choices. • A family’s initial contact with the firm is important to their selection. Funeral homes should ensure this first impression is consistently positive: professional, gen- uine, and compassionate. • Next year (2018) will be interesting to see if these trends continue or reverse. Stay tuned for Volume 3 of Trends and Insights!