Johnson Consulting Group’s Performance Tracker X is the complete customer management tool that evaluates staff and customer experience, streamlines success plans, and improves your bottom line. Through the power of six different survey types, our system analyzes all of the data for you, giving owners and managers hundreds of different reporting options to see what’s going on in their business. Every year JCG releases a trends and analysis report based on Performance Tracker X survey data. This year Johnson Consulting Group did something a little different, we included a ten-year review and a Covid-19 impact report. From there we created downloadable worksheets based on major takeaways from the 2022 Performance Tracker X Trends and Insight report. These worksheets are designed as a tool to help funeral and cemetery business owners and managers tap into unthought potential. This weeks worksheet is based on marketing discussion points. See what exercises we created to help with marketing your funeral or cemetery business.

Download our FREE worksheet below!

Trends and Insights Worksheet #3: Marketing Key Discussion Points

Contact us today to learn more about how Johnson Consulting Group can help you grow or sell your business.

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Johnson Consulting Group’s Performance Tracker X is the complete customer management tool that evaluates staff and customer experience, streamlines success plans, and improves your bottom line. Through the power of six different survey types, our system analyzes all of the data for you, giving owners and managers hundreds of different reporting options to see what’s going on in their business. Every year JCG releases a trends and analysis report based on Performance Tracker X survey data. This year Johnson Consulting Group did something a little different, we included a ten-year review and a Covid-19 impact report. From there we created downloadable worksheets based on major takeaways from the 2022 Performance Tracker X Trends and Insight report. These worksheets are designed as a tool to help funeral and cemetery business owners and managers tap into unthought potential. This weeks worksheet is based off employee performance. See what exercises we created to help with employee training.

Download our FREE worksheet below!

Trends and Insights Worksheet #2: Employee Training and Review

Contact us today to learn more about how Johnson Consulting Group can help you grow or sell your business.

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The post Trends and Insights Worksheet #1: Level of Client Satisfaction appeared first on Johnson Consulting Group.

Sorting it out

Although there was a noticeable shift toward remote work prior to Covid, the global pandemic made working from home more common than not, at least temporarily. Even some professions we never would have guessed could be performed from a residential bedroom or basement were suddenly doing just that. We went from accepting that doctors would never again make house calls to having video calls with our doctors from their living rooms. The unexpected quickly became the expected.

As we move forward and businesses are able to fully open, there is a sorting game going on. Some jobs can stay remote or adopt a hybrid schedule, while other businesses need that in-person, brick-and-mortar connection every day. The funeral services business is an interesting question mark in this mass sort. Traditionally, most funeral services are planned in a funeral home and carried out in a funeral home, in a place of worship, or at a gravesite. However, while humanity is busy rethinking everything else, it is also rethinking its end-of-life planning decisions.

The next phase: flexibility, flexibility, flexibility

After a year and a half of situational flexibility, adapting is now a way of life, and death, even more so than it was before. We have already witnessed some of this flexibility in the funeral services business: live-streamed funerals, less immediacy and more creativity when it comes to funeral services, off-site visitation locations, and an increased demand for cremation. As people settle into a new way of life, both personally and professionally, the traditional brick-and-mortar funeral services concept of the past is no doubt fading.

Maintaining flexibility to meet new demands means offering an array of choices when it comes to funeral planning. If you do not have the right innovations in place, the funeral home down the street likely will. With the advent of all-online funeral service options, your competition pool may even expand to include out-of-town and out-of-state funeral service professionals when it comes to the ceremonial portion of services.

How to compete and thrive in an endless-options world

You can take comfort in the fact that the whole world is changing with you. Very few, if any, professions will be returning to business as usual. Still, the funeral services business has a history of providing long-standing traditions to families, so the thought of creating an even longer menu of innovative options, especially when you have already been catering to new trends, can feel daunting. Johnson Consulting Services is here to guide you by offering a few tips for taking on the challenge of post-Covid business:

1. Options can be simple. A world of choice doesn’t have to be complicated. In fact, simplicity will likely be appreciated in an option-heavy world.
2. Be prepared for and open to the unexpected. As people adopt a more home-based work life, they may expect most businesses to offer home-based options. Funeral planning will likely become even less about the building and even more about the service and the production. Post-pandemic, you may find yourself still meeting over Zoom with families or even making house calls.
3. Modern means memorable, mobile, and media-based. Before long, the family members planning funerals will have grown up completely immersed in mobile media and expect funeral services to follow suit. You have no doubt delved into this realm, but be prepared to delve even further.
4. Profit margins are still there, but you may have to shift where you look for them. The profit once found in ornate caskets may now be in multimedia production.
5. Stay positive. Stay motivated. Change is inevitable, so accepting it and moving forward gracefully is the best response for both your business and the families it serves.

Still feeling overwhelmed by what the future holds? JCG is always here to help.

Contact JCG Today!

The post What does the post-Covid world look like? appeared first on Johnson Consulting Group.

The theme of Summit 2021 is The New Confidence, which focuses on the new changes brought in by the new year and their anticipated effect on the funeral industry. After the unprecedented events of 2020, it’s evident that it’s time for something different and as the saying goes, “Change is the only constant.” If you aren’t ready for 2021, then it’s time to prepare yourself for the new wave of trends and transformations in the funeral home profession. “I recommend you ride this new wave, stay true to your business, but challenge yourself too,” says Johnson. “A great way to evolve your thinking is by reaching out to your peers or [networking] by attending an event.”

The JCG Virtual Summit takes place March 1 – 4, 2021. You don’t want to miss the conference’s interactive sessions which include:

• Innovative speakers that teach design thinking to help funeral/cremation professionals develop agile mindsets and build resilient organizations.
• Lively discussions with peers on how to navigate operational hurdles and take their business to the next level.
• Hands-on coaching on how to listen and understand the Voice of the Customer, and how this feedback can help you retain customers and improve the value of product and services.
• In-depth insights into the future of the funeral profession and how to maintain financial stability in a new normal.

Jake Johnson and the Johnson Consulting team created the M&A Minute to help business owners through the process of of buying or selling a business. The M&A Minute utilizes Jake and the JCG team’s knowledge to give advice that helps individuals feel confident and at ease when going through one of the most important times of their lives, selling or purchasing their most valuable asset. The M&A Minute is released every other Thursday. You can watch episode 5 now. Follow us on Facebook, LinkedIn, and Twitter to get M&A Minute updates.

Interested in Summit 2021? Register here! 

The post M&A Minute Recap: Episode 5 appeared first on Johnson Consulting Group.

Johnson Consulting Group’s Performance Tracker is the complete customer management tool that evaluates staff and customer experience, streamlines success plans, and improves your bottom line. Through the power of six different survey types, our system analyzes all of the data for you, giving owners and managers hundreds of different reporting options to see what’s going on in their business. Every year JCG releases a trends and analysis report based off of Performance Tracker survey data. This year Johnson Consulting Group did something a little different, 2020 was greatly impacted by the Covid-19 pandemic. With this being the case we commissioned a special report to show how Covid-19 has affected the funeral profession. From there we created downloadable worksheets based off of major takeaways from the Performance Tracker Analysis: 2020 Covid-19 Impact Report. These worksheets are designed as a tool to help funeral and cemetery business owners and managers put what they learned from the the Covid-19 report into practice. This weeks worksheet is based off employee performance. See what exercises we created to help with employee training.

Download our FREE worksheet below!

Covid Impact Worksheet #3: Employee Training and Review

Contact us today to learn more about how Johnson Consulting Group can help you grow or sell your business.

The post Covid Impact Worksheet #3: Employee Training and Review appeared first on Johnson Consulting Group.

Johnson Consulting Group’s Performance Tracker is the complete customer management tool that evaluates staff and customer experience, streamlines success plans, and improves your bottom line. Through the power of six different survey types, our system analyzes all of the data for you, giving owners and managers hundreds of different reporting options to see what’s going on in their business. Every year JCG releases a trends and analysis report based off of Performance Tracker survey data. This year Johnson Consulting Group did something a little different, 2020 was greatly impacted by the Covid-19 pandemic. With this being the case we commissioned a special report to show how Covid-19 has affected the funeral profession. From there we created downloadable worksheets based off of major takeaways from the Performance Tracker Analysis: 2020 Covid-19 Impact Report. These worksheets are designed as a tool to help funeral and cemetery business owners and managers put what they learned from the the Covid-19 report into practice. This weeks worksheet is based off of key marketing strategies. See what exercises we created to help improve marketing efforts.

Be on the look out for our final downloadable worksheet available February 12th, 2021. 

Download our FREE worksheet below!

Covid Impact Worksheet #2: Marketing Key Discussion Points

Contact us today to learn more about how Johnson Consulting Group can help you grow or sell your business.

The post Covid Impact Worksheet #2: Marketing Key Discussion Points appeared first on Johnson Consulting Group.

Johnson Consulting Group’s Performance Tracker is the complete customer management tool that evaluates staff and customer experience, streamlines success plans, and improves your bottom line. Through the power of six different survey types, our system analyzes all of the data for you, giving owners and managers hundreds of different reporting options to see what’s going on in their business. Every year JCG releases a trends and analysis report based off of Performance Tracker survey data. This year Johnson Consulting Group did something a little different, 2020 was greatly impacted by the Covid-19 pandemic. With this being the case we commissioned a special report to show how Covid-19 has affected the funeral profession. From there we created downloadable worksheets based off of major takeaways from the Performance Tracker Analysis: 2020 Covid-19 Impact Report. These worksheets are designed as a tool to help funeral and cemetery business owners and managers put what they learned from the the Covid-19 report into practice. This weeks worksheet is based off of client satisfaction. See what exercises we created to help provide better satisfaction.

Be on the look out for our next downloadable worksheet available February 5th, 2021. 

Download our FREE worksheet below!

Covid Impact Worksheet #1: Level of Client Satisfaction 

Contact us today to learn more about how Johnson Consulting Group can help you grow or sell your business.

The post Covid Impact Worksheet #1: Level of Client Satisfaction appeared first on Johnson Consulting Group.

JCG’s Performance Tracker is the complete customer management tool that evaluates staff and financial performance, streamlines success plans, and improves your bottom line. Through the power of six different survey types, our system analyzes all of the data for you, giving owners and managers hundreds of different reporting options to see what’s going on in your business. This year Johnson Consulting Group did something a little different, 2020 was greatly impacted by the Covid-19 pandemic. With this being the case we commissioned a special report to show how Covid-19 has affected the funeral profession.

Stay tuned as we are creating downloadable worksheets based off the major takeaways from the Performance Tracker Analysis: 2020 Covid-19 Impact Report. 

Download our FREE report below!

PerformanceTracker Analysis: 2020 Covid-19 Impact Full Report 

Contact us today to learn more about how Johnson Consulting Group can help you grow or sell your business.

The post  Performance Tracker Analysis: 2020 Covid-19 Impact Report appeared first on Johnson Consulting Group.

Q: What trends are you seeing based on the pandemic?

A: Regarding the pandemic, it has effects on the business from two sides: the customer service side and the business side. As we know, COVID-19 has placed restrictions on the way loved one’s can celebrate the memory of someone who has passed. I think these restrictions—once lifted—will increase the significance of the funeral’s afterward. But, it’s important not to overstate this. When we think about percentages of the population, right now, a very small percentage of the US population has been to a funeral during the restrictions. So, if those are lifted, for all those people, it’s always been business as usual. As we know, many clients only visit a funeral home once or twice in a lifetime. It’s not the same relationship model as other businesses that depend on frequent visits. For all those customers who are having funerals now, it’s important that we help them feel that we did all we could within the restrictions to help them celebrate their loved one, to mourn their passing.

Q: How do these trends fit into goals for 2021?

A: From the business side, it’s taught us the importance, more than ever, of having a strategic plan. You have to look at your business from every angle, from business practices, financials, workplace morale, customer service, to make sure you’re prepared for fluctuations. You have to build a working budget and be able to adjust as the needle moves. You need to build a strong budget for 2021, based on what 2020 has looked like. You have to be prepared to review financials monthly, and to watch the market, to know what the government is doing, how is the jobless rate, so that we can respond to customer needs with what we offer.

Q: How is it a seller’s market and how is it a buyer’s market?

A: Regarding whether it’s a seller’s or a buyer’s market, it’s both. Here’s what we mean. There are investors out there looking to diversify in the funeral industry. So, it’s a seller’s market if you have your financials in order to show the investor that your business is a smart investment. If you have a succession plan in place and you know how to treat your employees, you’ll sell even better.

For the buyer’s the opportunities come from the people, maybe those who are over 55, who don’t want to deal with COVID-19 lingering around or with something similar, and they just want to sell. This is an especially good opportunity when the seller is unprepared. They don’t have clean and orderly financials. They don’t have everything in order, so they have to sell for less. As a buyer, you’re in a good place when you have options, many businesses to chose from, and there are plenty of businesses for sale right now.

If you are thinking of buying a business, creating your exit strategy, or taking your business to market contact our experts at Johnson Consulting Group.

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