“Have the Talk of a Lifetime®” 2015 Webinar #1

The Funeral and Memorial Information Council (FAMIC) hosted the first webinar of 2015 about the Have the Talk of a Lifetime® campaign on April 30th. The webinar was presented by Rob Rosenberg, President of Springboard Brand & Creative Strategy, and drew participants from throughout the U.S., Canada and beyond. 

More than 90 funeral service professionals participated in the webinar that reviewed the campaign materials available to members, and success stories from the field. 

For those unable to attend, the webinar recording is available online at: "Success Stories: One Year Later."

You can also access this webinar, campaign materials, and other webinar recordings on the FAMIC member website: 

1. Go to http://www.famic.org
2. Log on    
• Username: famic 
• Password: campaign    
3. Click on the link that says, “Learn more about this exciting new consumer education program”
4. You will be directed to a page that describes the campaign and background information about it. There will also be a link that says, "Download the Have the Talk of a Lifetime materials here" highlighted in green text. Click on that link to view and download available materials, past webinars, and guides

“Success Stories: One Year Later”

The April 30th FAMIC webinar featured a panel discussion by funeral professionals who have had success using the Have the Talk of a Lifetime campaign materials. The panel members were Andy Clayton of Wilson St. Pierre Funeral Service & Creamtory, Brian Warner of Daniels Family Funeral Services, and Mathew Forastiere of Johnson County Funeral Chapel and Memorial Gardens. Below are key takeaways of how these FAMIC members have successfully implemented the Have the Talk of a Lifetime campaign in their marketplaces.

1. Internal Integration
• The best way to get the Have the Talk of a Lifetime campaign message across to consumers is through employees, who are the points of contact for your business
• This doesn’t just include managers or funeral directors – all of the internal staff should know how to facilitate “having the talk”
• The campaign can be tied into your existing brand and identity! There are many tools available to you to find out which works best for your business and marketplace
• Consider coming up with a game plan, which can include an internal launch for the campaign to get your employees and stakeholders unified

1. Rule of Three
• Avoid getting overwhelmed by the amount of materials available to you by picking three tools to introduce to your community
• Adding the video, Have the Talk logo, or link to your website are all easy ways to get started and begin to identify with the campaign
• Many members have had great success using the co-brandable Have the Talk print materials in their local publications
• The social media co-pilot can easily and quickly help you set up your business’s Facebook profile and populate with posts from the campaign’s main page
• The workbook can be used to help build strong client-family relationships

1. Public Speaking is the Corner Stone
• Work with your community to talk about “having the talk!”
• Local chambers of commerce, Rotaries, and senior groups are great target audiences for your business to reach out to
• Small groups, lunch and learns, and breakfast meetings are good tools to use when meeting with community groups, hospice groups, social workers, and care facilities
• Find a partner who may not have the same message, but will have a good target audience

• For example, your state or local associations (social worker, hospice, etc.) and see if your businesses can work together to sponsor events and encourage people to talk

• Craft a preneed presentation that includes campaign materials

1. It’s More than a Promotional Program
• The campaign is designed to help to create a shift in consumer opinions and attitudes toward memorialization
• You can own the program and take it to your market place!
• The campaign helps support your brand recognition
• The tactics are diverse and can be applied to many marketplaces, with more tactical applications in the works

Questions & Answers

Attendees asked the following questions during the webinar.

How have your local market competitors responded to your Have the Talk of a Lifetime initiatives?
Local market competitors are responding extremely well to others’ initiatives! The campaign helps all funeral service professionals by allowing communities to view them as someone needed and trust worthy. The better and stronger the industry becomes, the more value is created for the whole. But, you can still take your own approach to the campaign! It is one message but try to tie it into your business’s own brand.

How do I begin the process of creating a Facebook page?
Check out the Social Media CoPilot tool available on famic.org/campaign; this tool enables you to easily – and automatically – post campaign messages onto your business’ Facebook page.

What is the best way to go about joining with other industry members in our communities to support this campaign?
There are many co-brandable materials available – you can put as many identifiers on them as you’d like! Pooling resources together is a great way to strengthen your voice.

Is there a cost to use this information or tactics?
Materials are free for members!

What are the best ways to educate employees about the program?
Begin with a Q&A session among all employees to create a think-tank environment. This will allow all employees to have a voice in the campaign’s applications and implementation, and give them ownership over the ideas. The campaign is not just another promotional program – but can be engrained in your company’s culture. Your staff can help you come up with new ideas, and can participate in past and future webinars to gain more insights.

Links to Materials/Websites/Social Media accounts

www.famic.org/campaign (for funeral professionals)

www.talkofalifetime.org (for consumers)

www.youtube.com/user/TalkOfALifetime

www.facebook.com/HaveTheTalkOfALifetime

www.twitter.com/TalkOfALifetime

www.pinterest.com/talklifetime/

www.plus.google.com/u/0/102470508579365026272/posts