Mother Nature has what we need

Erin Brodbeck, LCSW, CT,
Director of Grief Services,
Sunset Funeral Home

With the recent February weather being in the 70s here in our part of Illinois, I am beginning to get a touch of spring fever. The warm weather has got me thinking about spending time outside and its ability to aid in the grief process. I recently read a few articles that discussed the therapeutic abilities of nature and its tendencies to reduce stress.

When a family is grieving after the loss of a loved one, their stress levels are more than likely skyrocketing. By utilizing the healing powers of Mother Nature and her many different resources as ways of memorialization, we can help the families we serve to reduce their stress levels.

• Plant a tree in honor of a loved one.
• Dedicate a favorite hiking spot by placing a plaque or memorial in their honor.
• Design a memorial by incorporating images of nature’s beauty or decorate a grave with some beautiful flowers.
• Host a nature walk or presentation in your cemetery to educate the community about our natural resources. At Sunset Memorial Park, we host an Arbor Day celebration at the end of April for area schools to learn about its history and plant a tree.

The combination of memorialization and nature can be a great way to help the families we serve in their journey to healthy healing.

This article originally appeared in Modern Memorialization, Trigard Memorials' weekly electronic newsletter featuring information for the funeral industry. Sign up for your free subscription at http://www.trigard.com/thursdays.

Do you have laser focus?

Rich Darby,
Chief Operating Officer

Does your company have a strategy in place for creating new growth? At Trigard, we are currently going through a major exercise of continuous improvement. We have spent many hours in meetings, brought in experts in several different fields and put together a major plan to create a new focus. We have learned a lot about our company throughout this process, but one thing is for sure, we must have a laser focus on the things that we do best.

Often times, as we explore new sales strategies, we get excited about the possibilities to offer a bunch of new products and solutions to our customers. The more the merrier, right? Well, that may not be the correct answer.

As we head into the spring months, I challenge you to focus on your core competencies and work on a growth strategy based on what you do best. What advantages do you offer over your competition other than price? What can you highlight and what value-added services can you bring to the table that set you apart from your competition? Yes, the price is important, but someone is always going to come in and do it cheaper. Come up with a laser focused strategy that is realistic, obtainable, and one that is guaranteed to complement your strengths. Many small wins are much better than an occasional home run.

If you are reading this article, that means you have a strong company and have survived some hard times. Your company has its strengths and is good at something. I encourage you to go back to your roots and begin growing from there. You may not be able to do it exactly the same way you have always done it, but a new spin on an old product or process just may be the ticket. 

This article originally appeared in Modern Memorialization, Trigard Memorials' weekly electronic newsletter featuring information for the funeral industry. Sign up for your free subscription at http://www.trigard.com/thursdays.

Because it won't fit in the pan

Julia Sullivan,
Creative Director

Have you ever heard the old story about cutting off the ends of a roast? There are many versions of this legend, but they all involve someone making a roast and cutting off the ends before putting it in the pan. When asked about it, the woman explains that her mother always did it that way. The tradition is followed up the family tree. Finally, a great-grandmother explains that she started cutting off the ends of her roasts because that was the only way it would fit in her pan.

I wonder how many things you do every day in your business that are only because that’s how you’ve always done them. These things are especially tricky to spot when things are going well. If there’s a problem, suddenly everything is on the table, right? You’re desperate to find the problem and patch it. But when things are going smoothly, that’s really the time to take a good look at how – and why – you work the way you work.

That’s exactly what we’ve been doing at Trigard over the past few months. We’ve been mapping out our processes, finding opportunities to do them better, and questioning everything. All of our changes and decisions are filtered through what we believe will be the most valuable to you, our customer.

You may have already seen some of our changes in action. We’re getting you proofs even faster than before, and our Customer Service team is able to track your order more accurately through production. There are even more things on the horizon, and we can’t wait to share them with you.

But what about your business? What are the things that you do every day because that’s your business tradition? Is there a way to do things that would give your customers even more value?

This article originally appeared in Modern Memorialization, Trigard Memorials' weekly electronic newsletter featuring information for the funeral industry. Sign up for your free subscription at http://www.trigard.com/thursdays.

Do your memorials talk about the dash?

Donna Darby-Walthall,
Chief Financial Officer

When we started Trigard Memorials thirteen years ago, we thought it was time to help families memorialize in a different way. We had the vision to make memorials say more about our loved ones than just the dates they were alive. We wanted to tell the story of the "dash." The time between the dates.

Were they a proud grandparent or a Cubs fan? Did they have a huge heart and a love for animals? By putting beautiful, full color photos on bronze, the family gets to relive their memories, and, passersby get to know the person a little better. Since day one, our goal was to honor a life well lived, and I believe we continue to do that very well.

I know our industry is slow to change, but we can’t let that get us down. It is our job to change the mold and give families what they need. If your cemetery’s rules and regulations limit how families can memorialize their loved ones, change the rules. I know it isn’t easy, but anything worthwhile never is. In the end, it will be worth it.

Over the years, we have learned a lot and it is always fascinating to walk through our manufacturing facility and see the work we create. Our design team truly has a gift for bringing a person's "dash" to life. The things they create are so amazing.

I would like to invite you to come see our process and let us show you what we do. We strongly believe in what we do and we want to share that with you. Give us a call at 800.798.4900 and schedule your visit.

This article originally appeared in Modern Memorialization, Trigard Memorials' weekly electronic newsletter featuring information for the funeral industry. Sign up for your free subscription at http://www.trigard.com/thursdays.