ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED: March 2023
LAST UPDATED: June 2026
By Daniel Zepeda, Content Supervisor for Funeral Directors Life
In our work with funeral homes, we’ve seen a consistent pattern: when families can take a meaningful first step online, more of them follow through. That means better leads and conversations for your preneed program.
Because planning ahead doesn’t always start with a phone call. It can start with a quiet moment by a family thinking, “We really need to get this done.”
In that moment, most people do what they do for any important decision: they go online. They look for a trusted local funeral home, then they look for a simple way to start.
If your website doesn’t offer a clear first step, many families won’t come back. Not because they don’t care, but because life gets busy and the first step still feels heavy.
That’s why offering families a blended preplanning experience matters. Done well, it turns families' online interest in funeral preplanning into preneed sales for your funeral home.
What is a blended preplanning experience?
A blended preplanning experience means families can start planning online and finish with your team (online, in person, or by phone).
In other words, families can begin their preplanning journey in the way that feels comfortable:
And while it may sound like a blended preplanning experience removes your funeral home from the process, the opposite is true. It removes friction, not your care, so more families move forward with clarity and confidence.
Does a blended preplanning experience drive preneed growth?
A healthy preneed program isn’t won or lost in the arrangement room. It’s shaped earlier, when families are researching options and trying to make the first step feel safe and manageable.
If your preneed program depends mostly on walk-ins and call-ins, you’re relying on a shrinking part of your market. The truth is, many families are interested in preplanning, but they’re just not ready to begin with a conversation at your funeral home.
Families who visit your website aren’t looking for a sales pitch. They’re looking for answers to questions like:
What does preplanning include?
Can we start online after work, when things are quiet?
If we begin online, what happens next?
If your funeral home’s website educates families and provides a clear starting point, you’ve made the first step in the preplanning journey easy and manageable.
Want to see what a true blended preplanning experience looks like? Schedule a meeting with our team and see how our online planning tool, The Arrangement Guide™, can help families and your preneed program.
What does a blended preplanning experience look like?
A blended approach doesn’t require a huge team or a complicated system. A blended preplanning experience often looks like this:
Family finds you online and clicks Plan Ahead on your homepage.
They explore and save progress (often returning more than once).
Your team follows up to answer questions and guide next steps.
They finalize online, in person, or both.
What’s the final result? More families who start planning online turn into more families who finalize their wishes with your funeral home.
And that handoff from the online planning tool to your funeral home’s staff is where a lot of the momentum is gained or lost.
3 parts of a blended preplanning experience that work
A blended preplanning experience works best when these 3 things support each other:
An online planning tool that helps families begin
A member of your staff who is responsible for follow-ups with families
Marketing strategies that keep you top of mind with families
Let’s break that down.
That’s where an online arrangement tool, like The Arrangement Guide™, fits in.
The Arrangement Guide™ offers easy online planning and funding and is built to help families plan ahead from home. It also supports a blended experience – online, in person, or both – and can be customized to your funeral home, so families see options that match what your firm actually offers.
At a minimum, your funeral home’s online preplanning page should help families make real progress, not just “request information.”
A strong online preplanning experience typically includes:
A clear “Plan Ahead” button that’s easy to find
A guided flow that helps families think through preferences
The ability to stop and pick up where they left off
A simple next step (so families aren’t wondering “now what?”)
A clean handoff to your funeral home’s staff when families want help
Families feel more confident when they can make progress privately before ever having to talk to someone.
Actionable takeaway: Spend 5 minutes on your funeral home’s website as if you’re a first-time visitor who’s not ready to call yet. Can you find preplanning fast? Does it feel simple and low-pressure? Or does it feel like every click forces you into a conversation before you’re ready?
2. A member of your staff who is responsible for follow-ups
A blended preplanning experience that starts online doesn’t replace your funeral home.
It sets it up for success.
Because once families start exploring their options and planning, the questions start, too:
“Do we have to decide everything today?”
“Can we do cremation but still have a service?”
“What happens if Mom changes her mind later?”
“How does funding work?”
That’s where your funeral home can build trust with families.
When a family starts planning online, you have a limited window of opportunity. Not because they’re “hot leads,” but because they’re paying attention right then.
We recommend reaching out quickly – ideally within 30 minutes – to offer help while the family is still engaged. If 30 minutes isn’t realistic every time, set a standard your team can consistently hit (maybe the same business day?).
This intentionality to follow-ups isn’t your funeral home being pushy. It’s being present.
Actionable takeaway: Decide (in writing) who on your staff will handle follow-up, how quickly you’ll reach out to families, and what the goal is for the first contact with a family—call, text, email, appointment, or a gentle nurture step.
Most families think about preplanning after a major life event, such as a health change, a milestone birthday, a funeral, or another significant event. But sometimes, it can be sparked by a conversation at the kitchen table.
That’s why your funeral home’s marketing strategy needs to focus on being visible and helpful, so when the moment comes, families will remember you.
Families discover funeral homes in a lot of different ways:
Online search (Google, Maps, and AI search engines)
Social media content
All these strategies across different channels can give you the desired result: you’re fresh in families' minds before the moment of need.
If you want a practical starting point, your funeral home should focus on consistency rather than complexity. Start by having:
One primary “Plan Ahead” link in your top website navigation
Actionable takeaway: If you’re investing in your funeral home’s brand awareness, make sure it points families to one clear place to start – your preplanning page.
How to get started with a blended preplanning experience
If you want a practical starting point, begin here:
Make your preplanning page obvious on your website’s homepage.
Offer families more than one way to start (online, phone, in-person, seminar, virtual).
Treat follow-ups with the same dedication as you would a service (not a separate task).
Keep the experience families have with you and on your website consistent.
A blended preplanning experience works best when everything feels connected.
How can I tell if a blended preplanning experience is actually driving preneed growth?
Look beyond web traffic and watch what happens after families start. Track whether online planning turns into real conversations, appointments, and funded cases. If starts are up but funding isn’t, the issue is usually follow-up or an unclear next step.
Who should own online preplanning follow-up, and what is a simple workflow?
One person should own it, with a clear backup, so families don’t slip through the cracks. Keep it simple: reach out, try again if you don’t connect, then send one helpful touchpoint and offer an easy next step. The goal is to be present and helpful, not pushy.
What’s the best way to handle pricing questions during online preplanning?
Be clear, kind, and as transparent as possible. Many funeral homes use starting points or ranges and explain what typically changes the total cost. Then invite the family to talk with someone briefly so they can get an accurate number for their situation.
What should we do when families start planning online but don’t finish?
That’s normal, because planning can feel heavy. A short check-in and a simple way to pick up where they left off can bring people back. One helpful note, answering a common question, is often enough to restart momentum.
What privacy and compliance concerns should we consider for online preplanning?
Most concerns come down to what you collect, how you store it, and whether the family clearly agreed to be contacted. It also helps to explain that online selections can be updated later, so families don’t feel locked in. When you’re transparent, trust goes up fast.
**Always confirm requirements with your legal/compliance team and applicable state regulations.**
Use blended preplanning to fuel future preneed growth
Most families put off preplanning because they think it will take a lot of time and effort.
A blended approach fixes that. It gives families a place to begin online and gives your funeral home a better chance to step in at the right time with the right guidance.
And if you want a tool built to support a true blended preplanning experience, The Arrangement Guide™ was designed to make planning and funding a funeral ahead of time simple and easy. With The Arrangement Guide™, families can explore their options, finalize their plans, and even pay, all from the comfort of home, while your funeral home remains at the center of the process.
Ready to offer families a blended preplanning experience?
Schedule a meeting with our team, and we’ll show you how The Arrangement Guide™ can help you reach more families and grow your preneed program.