Looking for ways to set your funeral home apart from the competition? Or just researching more ways to go above and beyond for your families? These out-of-the-box ideas for serving your client families can do just that.

We brainstormed some unique ideas for serving families during funeral planning and their healing journeys. Whether your families are from out of town or are locals, these ideas will exceed their expectations.

Out-Of-The-Box Ideas for Your Funeral Home

1. Partner with a local rental car or taxi company for families from out of town. They can use it for rides to and from the airport or getting around while they’re in town for the funeral.
2. Partner with local hotels to reserve blocks of rooms for families from out of town. You can offer a discounted rate or a free night’s stay for mourners in town for the funeral.
3. Create an informational guide about your town with addresses, directions, and phone numbers to give families from out of town. You can include the best local restaurants, inexpensive dining options, local grocery stores and pharmacies, closest hospital, nearby hotels, and your funeral home’s contact information.
4. Organize a community group to make meals for families grieving the loss of a loved one. You also can include a thoughtful handwritten note with the meal to let families know that your funeral home’s staff is thinking about them and there to help.
5. If your funeral home has a therapy dog, take it one step further by scheduling home visits with families. As you know, grieving doesn’t end with the funeral, and getting a visit from your therapy pup in the comfort of their home can help brighten their day.
6. If your funeral home’s facility allows for it, offer your space for other events like weddings, parties, and family reunions.
7. Host hands-on workshops in your community for creating mementos, ICE books, and other memorial items and resources.
8. Host more community events, such as a summer barbeque to raise funds for a local charity or a fall festival for families with activities like pumpkin carving and making caramel apples.
9. Give families ideas for creating personalized funerals. Download our free funeral personalization and personalization by profession eBooks for some inspiration!
10. Going off of personalization, provide families with supplies for creating personalized funeral displays, such as shadow boxes for displaying possessions. You can get creative and collect décor for seasonal funeral themes, such as fake pumpkins and leaves for fall and holiday lights and pinecones for winter. These are all supplies you can lend to families and keep on-hand for other funeral services. You also can consider partnering with a local craft store for supplies.
11. Create flower mementos for families. It’s as simple as saving one petal from the funeral flower arrangements to turn it into a frame-pressed flower memento.
12. Take photos of the decorated funeral service or visitation area and give them to families. The photos could be of the photo and memorabilia displays and the floral arrangements.
13. Make a donation to a local charity or notable cause in a family’s loved one’s honor.
14. Create care packages for grieving families who don’t have the time or energy to run errands. You can include easy-to-make meals and snacks, basic toiletries, grief resources, and memorial items.
15. Speaking of grief resources, give families an educational grief guide. It can define grief, provide healthy grieving tips, and other words of advice and comfort. Download our free grief guide to learn more ideas!

Has your funeral home tried any of these out-of-the-box ideas? Share your experience with us in the comments!