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Marketing A Product To The Funeral Industry

essayhelpessayhelp subscriber Posts: 10
edited December 2007 in Marketing
Hi all!
 
I have been looking into a unique product that is geared for the funeral industry.
 
My question is - When marketing a product to the funeral industry who would be the right person to contact within that industry? Funeral providers? Suppliers? directors? homes?
 
If anyone has any experience with this industry - let me know!
 
 
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    DaleKingDaleKing subscriber Posts: 141
    Hello Aaron:
     
    Not knowing what your product is, I can`t accurately answer your question. I think a better question is, what audience do you want to target? Don`t try to be all things to all people. EVERYONE IS NOT A PROSPECT. You need to figure out who your target audience is, focus on a niche and market to that niche aggressively.
     
    Again, not knowing what your product is, I`m taking a shot in the dark here. But I think a good place to start advertising would be American Funeral Director and American Cemetary magazines.  They`re the leading independent trade magazines for funeral directors and other funeral service professionals:
     

    http://www.kates-boylston.com/index.aspx?page=afd

     
    Dale King
    DKing12/16/2007 3:01 PM
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    LiveWiseLiveWise subscriber Posts: 5
    If you have a new product, some magazines have a free press release.  However, if you start advertising immediately, realize that most people don`t jump the first time they see it.  I would think the best thing is to try and sit down with somebody in the industry, ask them who would benefit the most and approach those people. 
     
    Start in your own hometown and get some people/funeral homes on board.  They will do talking and your business will grow.  I see more results from word-of-mouth than I have gotten by expensive advertising.  For instance, almost everybody buys books, CDs, and DVDs.  At my website, they get a free preferred customer membership which qualifies them for the biggest discount, to be able to download free books, and donate profits to charities, it`s not until they hear people talk about how good it is before they make the switch.  My best growth is off the recommendations of others.  I would recommend you try the same. 
    LiveWise12/18/2007 1:18 AM
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    essayhelpessayhelp subscriber Posts: 10
    [Dale - I enjoy your postings here at SUN]
    Hey TigerTaco - thats true this is an amazing industry [some people think its a dead industry] if you have a unique product. The concept of this product is a religious one, however I cannot reveal the rest.
    I think that in general many people stay away from the funeral industry and are not aware of this huge market.
     
    I hope to run a telemarketing campaign. This is why I am trying to figure out the right people I would have to contact, in other words who the A&D person - authority and decision guy that I would need to contact. Would I need to contact the funeral home? or is the funeral home just there to host the funeral and someone else like an event planner runs the show and I would have to contact the event planner? or the person who supplies the products to the event planner?
     
    These are the issues that I am trying to figure out.
     
    Thanks!
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    DaleKingDaleKing subscriber Posts: 141

    [Dale - I enjoy your postings here at SUN]
      Aaron, thank you for the compliment! I hope you`re able to figure things out on your end. Dale KingDKing12/17/2007 8:37 AM
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    essayhelpessayhelp subscriber Posts: 10
    Thanks Joann!
     
    My only question  - why would the marketing message have to change from a small family owned to a larger corporate compan owned?
     
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