dbracknell
New Member
Hey gimme a break its been a long day. Ha ha.
Can't Name Funeral Home Beneficiary on Life Policy?
- Thread starter Russ
- Start date
- 16,928
That one is a coffin.
A casket has straight sides. In modern times we use caskets. When viewed from the top they are a rectangle. the lid usually hinges up and down.
A coffin is wider at the shoulders so when viewed from the top is more diamond shaped. The lid usually lifts completely off.
Coffins were old school in Europe. Today they are mainly associated with vampire movies.
Caskets are what we use.
For years we had a hand made wooden coffin stored in our barn loft. I think it was there when my dad bought the place. I do not know whatever happened to it.
- 16,928
Do you think that having a top of the line casket on display is too tempting or too high pressure?
A funeral home I sell for has a $25,000 casket on display (same one Michael Jackson was in) and several in the $15,000 range. Most people like to look at them but never seriously consider them.
But just a couple months ago a guy looked at all of them and wanted something even nicer. We had to order him a hand made Marcallas (probably mis-spelled). It's the same casket that the Kennedy family all uses and most US presidents are buried in. It was around $30,000 just for the casket.
A funeral home would be crazy to think everyone wants a real cheap casket. Some don't.
What kind of markup does a funeral home get?
- 16,928
Nowadays most caskets are double what the wholesale cost is. Some will multiply by 1.5. But the service charges are where prices really vary with a wide range.
In the old days, caskets were marked up 4to 5 times what the paid for them but the service charges were much less. Sometimes the service charges were built in to the price of the casket.
This was all because funeral directors are terrible salespeople. They wanted to sell it all as tangible (the casket). They were terrible selling the intangible (their time and service.) that led to huge casket markups. And that exposed them to people buying their caskets elsewhere.
Today, all but the dumbest funeral home owners have raised their service costs way up and reduced their casket prices way down. They make their real money on the service. Most funeral homes have caskets as low as $700 or so and they don't care too much if someone brings in their own casket from Costco or Wal-Mart which is pretty rare.
Many agents tend to think funerals are sold on price and cheaper is what the public buys. It's not true at all. Every town has cheap providers (Red Roof Inn Style), mid range (think Hampton Inn), and high end (the Hiltons). Most families go to the mid range not the cheapest. But the families that go to the high end would never use the others. It's very similar to the hotel industry. There are just different price points, not everyone trying to be cheapest.
In the old days, caskets were marked up 4to 5 times what the paid for them but the service charges were much less. Sometimes the service charges were built in to the price of the casket.
This was all because funeral directors are terrible salespeople. They wanted to sell it all as tangible (the casket). They were terrible selling the intangible (their time and service.) that led to huge casket markups. And that exposed them to people buying their caskets elsewhere.
Today, all but the dumbest funeral home owners have raised their service costs way up and reduced their casket prices way down. They make their real money on the service. Most funeral homes have caskets as low as $700 or so and they don't care too much if someone brings in their own casket from Costco or Wal-Mart which is pretty rare.
Many agents tend to think funerals are sold on price and cheaper is what the public buys. It's not true at all. Every town has cheap providers (Red Roof Inn Style), mid range (think Hampton Inn), and high end (the Hiltons). Most families go to the mid range not the cheapest. But the families that go to the high end would never use the others. It's very similar to the hotel industry. There are just different price points, not everyone trying to be cheapest.
dbracknell
New Member
Newby, i don't think they need many high priced ones in inventory at once because most people won't want to spend that much for a box that will be seen for a couple of hours then buried. But for sales if you are selling tangible items it makes the ale easier if a person can touch and feel a product. People buy out of emotion and with their senses (touch, smell, sight, sound).
- 16,928
Yes. You will find people all the time that can't understand the concept of prepaying their funeral (intangible). But they will go and prepay for two cemetery spaces they don't need yet (perceived as tangible, but really it isn't either.)
- 1,931
With every policy delivery I provide along with the Memorial Planing Guide a print out of Walmart and Star Legacy caskets for around $1,000 with a note that the funeral home is required by law to allow them to be used. I also have a couple ad's that run in our area with funerals for $1,995 that includes funeral, removal, embalming (not required), dressing, casketing, hearse, funeral director and staff. I advise that they write out what they want their family to do with their funeral and use what I provided as a base point when they shop or plan the funeral. I advise they think about and write out their wishes so their loved ones don't have to guess when the time comes and waste money. If they understand the emotional overspending aspect of funerals they are more likely to write out their wishes to avoid that for their family.
- 16,928
Most funeral homes don't inventory any caskets anymore. They just have corner sections on display. Batesville ships them to arrive within 24-hours of the order.
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