PUBLISHED: July 2026
By Todd Carlson, EVP of Sales and Chief Sales Officer at Funeral Directors Life
As a funeral professional, your calling is to serve families well. You walk them through their hardest days, doing everything possible to ease their burden.
But while your mission remains the same, the funeral consumer is changing rapidly.
Today’s families are no longer waiting for a death to occur to choose a provider. They are looking for guidance and education long before they ever walk through your doors. If your funeral home relies on a passive preneed program (one that simply waits for the phone to ring), you are missing the opportunity to be the guide your community is looking for.
An active preneed program reaches families early, educates them before a death occurs, and builds trust. It moves your role from a reactive provider to a proactive guide.
Let’s look at 3 ways an active preneed program helps you care for families the way they deserve while supporting your funeral home’s long-term success.
Short answer: An active preneed program serves families by providing education and outreach before a loss occurs, creating a calm environment where they can make confident, informed decisions without the pressure of immediate grief.
When families enter a funeral home at the time of need with no plan in place, they are forced to make dozens of major financial and emotional decisions under extreme duress. Even the most compassionate arrangement process feels heavy when a family is overwhelmed.
An active preneed program changes that. Instead of waiting, you intentionally engage your community through seminars, digital outreach, and follow-up.
This shift allows you to:
By reaching families earlier, you establish your firm as the clear, trusted authority long before the time of need arrives.
Short answer: Yes. Families make more meaningful and financially sound decisions when they are educated in advance. Proactive education leads to higher satisfaction for the family and improved case volume and financial stability for the funeral home.
The deeper value of an active preneed program is that it helps families plan well, not just plan ahead.
If you aren't proactively educating families, they often default to the simplest or "fastest" options during a moment of grief. Unfortunately, those quick decisions often fail to support their long-term grief journey.
An active program creates the space for you to teach the family about the value of a gathering and guide them toward a service that truly honors their loved one.
When families are informed in advance, your funeral home sees:
An active preneed program ensures families don't just find a plan. They find peace of mind.
Short answer: An active preneed program is a strategic growth engine that keeps your funeral home visible and "top-of-mind" in an increasingly competitive and digital market.
One of the biggest risks a funeral home can take is assuming the community will automatically call them because of their history. In today’s market, that’s not guaranteed. If you aren't actively engaging your community, you risk becoming invisible to the next generation of consumers.
This is where an active preneed program becomes your most valuable marketing strategy. By consistently providing helpful, non-salesy information, you build brand awareness based on sincerity and service.
In the short term, an active preneed program leads to:
In the long term, an active preneed program secures your business through:
In my 30 years in this profession, I’ve often told funeral directors that a passive preneed program is like a filing cabinet. It only holds what has already happened.
An active preneed program is a bridge. It creates the opportunity to guide and build trust before the crisis.
In today’s market, that proactive connection is what separates a surviving funeral home from a thriving one.
An active preneed program is a sales strategy that can be a vital service to your community. When families have a plan in place, they can focus less on logistics and more on healing.
The question is: Is your preneed program active or passive?
If you’re ready to strengthen your outreach and bring more peace of mind to your families, we’re here to help. Fill out the form below to get started!
About the author: Todd Carlson serves as the Executive Vice President of Sales and Chief Sales Officer for Funeral Directors Life and for Passare, Inc. With more than 30 years of experience in the funeral profession, Todd has dedicated his career to helping funeral home owners grow their businesses, implement innovative marketing solutions, and become increasingly more relevant as they serve today’s changing funeral consumer. Todd joined Funeral Directors Life in 2006 and helped redefine the company’s sales experience. Todd earned his bachelor’s degree in Mortuary Science from the University of Minnesota.