January 23, 2023
Published by 
Nicole Vullo on January 23, 2023
Nicole Vullo on January 23, 2023Have you wondered whether you need to pay employees while they are “on-call” for your funeral or cemetery business? This is a common question we have received when having this type of employee on your staff. Curtis Rostad provides his insights to this important question below. Question: Do I have to pay my employees to be “on call?” Curtis Rostad: In thirty-four states* most employees, including licensed funeral directors, must be paid hourly with overtime for work over 40 hours per week. That makes the “on-call” question especially important. The Wage and Hour Division uses two principles in addressing this issue. The first is “engaged to wait.” The employee is not performing duties, but they are unable to use the time effectively for his or her own purpose. For instance, if they must remain in the building to answer the […]
December 20, 2022
Published by Nicole Vullo on December 20, 2022
Nicole Vullo on December 20, 2022Have you ever wondered why your Gross Profit Margin has such importance when analyzing the strength and performance of your funeral or cemetery business? It is a question that we receive quite often when working with our clients. Our Financial Analyst, Taylor Weber provides informative insights on this important element of your business analysis. Question: Why is Gross Profit Margin important when Foresight performs their Strategic Performance Analysis for my business? Taylor Weber: The Gross Profit Margin is one of the most significant measures for determining your business’s profitability and financial performance. Gross Profit Margin is defined as “a metric that analysts utilize to measure financial health by calculating the amount of money left over from total sales (or revenue) after subtracting the cost of goods sold (COGS) that is sometimes expressed as a percentage of total sales/revenue.” The general […]
November 21, 2022
Published by Nicole Vullo on November 21, 2022
Nicole Vullo on November 21, 2022Pricing is always a hot topic. When it comes to vendors setting pricing for items such as caskets, do you have to accept their price structure, or can you make changes as you see fit? Gabe Ngo provides his insights on this important topic. Question: Do I have to accept the prices the casket vendor set? Gabe Ngo: The short answer is no, you do not have to accept the casket vendor’s pricing they set. There are so very many angles in answering this question, but I will keep it grounded and simple. Often times historically, owner-operators have not always made pricing changes to reflect the “October 1st” pricing changes that have typically come from Batesville or Matthews annually. However, over the past fifteen to eighteen months or so, funeral home owner-operators have seen a variety of “temporary surcharges” (which […]
November 21, 2022
Published by Nicole Vullo on November 21, 2022
Nicole Vullo on November 21, 2022Have you ever wondered what to do if your property/real estate value is worth more than the actual value of your business? This is actually a common occurrence and a question we are often asked to provide guidance on. Our Senior M&A Analyst, Jared Tanke is back to provide informative insights and various scenarios. Question: What should I do if my property/real estate is worth more than the value of my business? Jared Tanke: I have heard this question much more frequently over the past few years as property values have appreciated at an exponential rate, and it’s a fair question. In last month’s Ask the Analyst, Jarod Bernat answered the question about the difference between valuing real estate as “highest and best use” and “Special-use” which goes hand in hand with this month’s question. There are a few different […]
October 24, 2022
Published by Nicole Vullo on October 24, 2022
Nicole Vullo on October 24, 2022We want to continue to provide you with insight and guidance on Pricing. For this month’s column, we spoke with Doug Gober again as he answers more popular pricing questions. Continue reading below as we provide information on competitor pricing. Question: Should I set my prices lower than my competitors to gain market share? Doug Gober: The critical factor when determining your pricing should be how you want to be seen in the marketplace. Since the funeral and cemetery market is segmented, it is a challenge to be all things to all people. It would be in your best interest to focus only on your business and define who you want to be in the marketplace rather than what your competitors are doing. This idea of determining your position is certainly more important than seeing what your competitors in the market […]