Page A19 - October 2014

Page A19 OCTOBER 2014 FUNERAL HOME & CEMETERY NEWS S ec t i on A
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Taking Business Mobile: Flip-phones have
no place in Funeral Service By Steven Holland
Steven Holland
The business of funerals is very fast paced. The phrase
“time-is-of-the-essence,” is no more apropos than in the
death care industry.
That is why it is totally unacceptable for any funeral di-
rector to use a flip-phone for business.
If a funeral director wants to use a flip-phone for per-
sonal use, that’s fine. But flip-phones are out of the ques-
tion for funeral directors committed to top service to
their families.
So why do people still
use flip-phones? Price, size
(flip-phones are smaller
than smartphones), and
convenience (to answer a
call, flip it open, to end a
call, flip it close) are the
top three reasons people
give why they still have a
flip-phone, and of course,
some people just don’t
want to have to learn how
to use a smartphone (al-
though it’s called a “smart-
phone” for a reason, not a
“phone for smart people.”)
All of these reasons as to why someone keeps using a
flip-phone have a common thread – they are focused on
the user, or the funeral director in this case. All of these
reasons ignore the family.
Families need their funeral directors to be technologi-
cally efficient. Most families have only one week to com-
plete the funeral process, so they need to move fast. And
it’s particularly hard to move fast when dealing with the
loss of a loved one.
Smartphones can expedite many of the tasks families
must do when making funeral arrangements. Let’s look
at a few.
One of the most time-consuming and most stressful
parts of making funeral arrangements is letting everyone
know about the death.
A funeral director with a smartphone can use texting
much easier to get information out to the family faster.
Texting can be done with a flip-phone, of course, but it is
more difficult to do, taking up valuable time.
A funeral director with a smartphone can have fami-
lies’ text them pictures of the deceased that can be easily
emailed to get pictures posted on the internet for obituar-
ies. Flip-phones can receive pictures as text messages, but
because most flip-phones are not connected to the inter-
net, email is not an option for communication.
A funeral director with a smartphone can access the in-
ternet to view the funeral home’s website, to engage so-
cial media applications such as Facebook and Twitter and
can access the all important Google search engine to lo-
cate information fast. Again, since most flip-phones are
not connected to the internet, these activities are not an
option for the funeral director.
Many people who still have flip-phones keep them be-
cause they want to be disengaged from the world, except
for the ability to make and receive phone calls. But funer-
al directors can’t afford to be disengaged. It’s the opposite
of the families’ needs.
If you are a funeral director still using flip-phone, you
need to have a direct cremation for it. It is obsolete and
does not serve families well.
A family may use you for a funeral, but they will notice
if you are still using a flip-phone. A family may not think
“we won’t use that funeral director again because they use
a flip-phone,” but they may think “that funeral director is
behind the times and next time we’ll use a funeral home
that’s more up-to-date.” Flip-phones have no place in fu-
neral service.
Steven Holland, operations manager for Mobits.org, is a
graduate of the Kellogg Graduate School of Management,
Northwestern University. Holland has several years of expe-
rience in helping firms in a variety of industries implement
mobile marketing solutions. Holland was influential in the
launch of Mobits.org and is bringing several mobile phone
technologies to the deathcare industry.
Steven can be reached at 786-763-1875, StevenH@
mobits.org. Visit www.mobits.org or text “Mobits” to 72727
for more information.
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