Thought Leadership

Written by Welton Hong The call came in at 2:17 a.m. A daughter had just lost her father and didn’t know where to turn. She searched “funeral home near me,” clicked on the first result, and landed on a website that looked professional — but offered little clarity. No hours. No indication of whether someone was available right now. No pricing guidance. Unsure and overwhelmed, she hit the back button and called the next funeral home on the list. That funeral home answered. This scenario plays out every day. Funeral home websites unintentionally fail the very families who need them most. In moments of grief, people are not browsing. They are seeking certainty, reassurance and immediate direction. A funeral home website should answer questions. When it lacks essential information, families do not wait. They move on. Here are six must-have […]

Personalization as the new advantage in 2026. Each January creates a natural pause – a moment to reset, refocus and reimagine what’s possible. For funeral home owners and cemetery operators, 2026 isn’t just another year on the calendar. It’s the start of a new era for the profession – one defined by personalization, differentiation and the courage to stand apart. Over the past two years, this column has explored various avenues of business. In January 2025, for example, I explored three pillars of success: self-awareness, proactive planning and strong culture. In November 2025, I urged you to build your 2026 strategic plan so that you could act with purpose and discipline at the start of the new year. Now, it’s time to take the next step. Strategy and awareness mean little without execution. And in 2026, execution will be measured […]

Marty Blackwood, age 75, had spent his life doing what few others could: running a small-town funeral home operation in the rural South nearly single-handedly. A lifelong servant of his community, Marty had built a reputation as both dependable and deeply personal in his care for families. Over the years he had expanded his single location into a three-rooftop business. Together his funeral homes served just over 100 families a year, a manageable volume for decades, but now the demands of middle-of-the-night calls and increasingly complex operations were wearing him down. Marty knew it was time to plan his exit. The challenge was understanding what his business was actually worth. One of his longtime advisors suggested a $2.5 million valuation, a number that sounded good, perhaps too good. The business produced about $300,000 in annual cash flow, meaning that figure […]