Question - IS IT GUARANTEED THAT HIGH PRICES ENSURE GOOD QUALITY IN THE FUNERAL INDUSTRY?
ANSWER - Not it is not.
Higher prices tell you one of five things;
1. The facility has a very high overhead (bills, Staff & such).
2. The business owner has very rich taste.
3. The business is corporate owned and has shareholders.
4. The business just charges allot.
5. All of the above.
I’m sure we all can remember at one time or another that one specific business that charged outrageous prices and we thought that because of that, the services or merchandise or things they sold were going to be of an “above and beyond” quality, but then “BAM!” once we use the services, we realized that the quality was poor and the services are those of days gone by. But wait a minute! they SAID it was going to be "QUALITY", you know, "Beyond Expectation"!
The funeral industry in general has made it a point of being gobbled up by “Corporations” who have made it a point of buying quality, good named businesses and running them into the ground, all the time ridding on the name of the family or facility that use to own them. This was not their intent but after working in the “Corporate” funeral industry for exactly one year and nine months, It became apparent that there are those within the “Corporate funeral industry that only care about Fridays paycheck. (not all, but they are there).
Now, for an independent funeral home to make such claims like “HIGHER PRICES MEANS BETTER QUALITY” is not only untrue, but also misleading. That is like me saying, “I cook good food, you should pay me to eat my good food”. (I’m a horrible cook). It also is a form of advertising that service providers use to try and get you to believe that funeral home services are really worth $7,000 to $10,000, or a simple metal casket is worth $2,000. (I believe these charges not to be true)
I’ll tell you something about funeral services. Let’s look at cremation. I charge $569 for cremation of a standard size adult. It takes 3 to 7 days maximum to have this process complete.
Our profit = $383
Cremation costs me $186. That’s it! I pay $186 for cremation.
Of that:
$155 is to have the deceased cremated at a local crematorium.
$12 is for the cremation container (cardboard box).
$4 is for the permit.
$15 is for the County Fee’s.
Now, my local competitor the next town over charges you $1,725 for the exact same thing, using the exact same crematory as I do and the exact same guidelines established by the state. (They are not wrong for charging what they charges, this is America, they may charge what they like, the question is...., is it your decision to pay those high prices?)
Their profit = $1,539, That is:
Of our two facilities, their advertised reason for higher prices is due to the “QUALITY” of service they provide. Now, there is nothing wrong with that, any individuals can charge anything they like for services as long as it is priced as such on the General Price List they provide. The price they charge “MUST” match the price shown on the GPL.
So I ask you, if you are having no services, if you are not using the hearse, if you are not purchasing a casket, if there are no flowers, if you are not having any stationary done, if the only visit you are making to the funeral home is to make arrangements and pick up death certificates….. Then why the difference in cost?
Overhead. Overhead is usually the high cost driving factor. But! remember that initial list up top that we spoke of? Take your pick. Also, using the excuse of overhead is also the second best reason a funeral service provider will give you for high prices.
My original point being is that a vast majority of those things that the “Old School Traditional Funeral Home” charges are WAY overpriced. Not that there is anything wrong with that, if they choose to charge it and you choose to pay it, there is no law broken.
Remember, FUNERAL SERVICES DO NOT COST THAT MUCH!
ALSO! ALL FUNERAL HOMES SELL AND USE ALL THE SAME MERCHANDISE, period!
ANSWER - Not it is not.
Higher prices tell you one of five things;
1. The facility has a very high overhead (bills, Staff & such).
2. The business owner has very rich taste.
3. The business is corporate owned and has shareholders.
4. The business just charges allot.
5. All of the above.
I’m sure we all can remember at one time or another that one specific business that charged outrageous prices and we thought that because of that, the services or merchandise or things they sold were going to be of an “above and beyond” quality, but then “BAM!” once we use the services, we realized that the quality was poor and the services are those of days gone by. But wait a minute! they SAID it was going to be "QUALITY", you know, "Beyond Expectation"!The funeral industry in general has made it a point of being gobbled up by “Corporations” who have made it a point of buying quality, good named businesses and running them into the ground, all the time ridding on the name of the family or facility that use to own them. This was not their intent but after working in the “Corporate” funeral industry for exactly one year and nine months, It became apparent that there are those within the “Corporate funeral industry that only care about Fridays paycheck. (not all, but they are there).
Now, for an independent funeral home to make such claims like “HIGHER PRICES MEANS BETTER QUALITY” is not only untrue, but also misleading. That is like me saying, “I cook good food, you should pay me to eat my good food”. (I’m a horrible cook). It also is a form of advertising that service providers use to try and get you to believe that funeral home services are really worth $7,000 to $10,000, or a simple metal casket is worth $2,000. (I believe these charges not to be true)
I’ll tell you something about funeral services. Let’s look at cremation. I charge $569 for cremation of a standard size adult. It takes 3 to 7 days maximum to have this process complete.
Our profit = $383
Cremation costs me $186. That’s it! I pay $186 for cremation.
Of that:
$155 is to have the deceased cremated at a local crematorium.
$12 is for the cremation container (cardboard box).
$4 is for the permit.
$15 is for the County Fee’s.
Now, my local competitor the next town over charges you $1,725 for the exact same thing, using the exact same crematory as I do and the exact same guidelines established by the state. (They are not wrong for charging what they charges, this is America, they may charge what they like, the question is...., is it your decision to pay those high prices?)
Their profit = $1,539, That is:
ONE THOUSAND FIVE HUNDERED AND THIRTY NINE.....................................00/100
So I ask you, if you are having no services, if you are not using the hearse, if you are not purchasing a casket, if there are no flowers, if you are not having any stationary done, if the only visit you are making to the funeral home is to make arrangements and pick up death certificates….. Then why the difference in cost?
Overhead. Overhead is usually the high cost driving factor. But! remember that initial list up top that we spoke of? Take your pick. Also, using the excuse of overhead is also the second best reason a funeral service provider will give you for high prices.
My original point being is that a vast majority of those things that the “Old School Traditional Funeral Home” charges are WAY overpriced. Not that there is anything wrong with that, if they choose to charge it and you choose to pay it, there is no law broken.
Remember, FUNERAL SERVICES DO NOT COST THAT MUCH!
How do I know? I own a funeral home!
ALSO! ALL FUNERAL HOMES SELL AND USE ALL THE SAME MERCHANDISE, period!
So what is their a reason to charge you more? It's all the same stuff, isn't it? Yes, it is.
 |
| Really? and the difference is...? |
You would think good quality service is something you would want to give if you claim to have such a strong passion to serve in the industry, not hold it hostage to the highest payer.
But The high priced funeral industry has nothing to fall back on to counter an affordable funeral homes low pricing other than, “YOU GET WHAT YOU PAY FOR” or “QUALITY COSTS MONEY” or something that they cannot prove or show you until you already have used their service. By then, it's to late. Take a good long look at the picture to the right, it speaks leaps and bounds as to the industry, what they are trying to do, and what they are trying to think they are doing. I mean, a hugs a hug when you need one.
So the next time you read, or are told something as outlandish as something about “Quality” and one’s high prices, or shown a list of google reviews that could have been posted by “Anyone”, (Hmmmmm) consider looking a bit farther and if you don’t like what you see, then go back to them. In the end, the choice is still yours, spend wisely.
Thanks,
Miguel Legaspi
But The high priced funeral industry has nothing to fall back on to counter an affordable funeral homes low pricing other than, “YOU GET WHAT YOU PAY FOR” or “QUALITY COSTS MONEY” or something that they cannot prove or show you until you already have used their service. By then, it's to late. Take a good long look at the picture to the right, it speaks leaps and bounds as to the industry, what they are trying to do, and what they are trying to think they are doing. I mean, a hugs a hug when you need one.
So the next time you read, or are told something as outlandish as something about “Quality” and one’s high prices, or shown a list of google reviews that could have been posted by “Anyone”, (Hmmmmm) consider looking a bit farther and if you don’t like what you see, then go back to them. In the end, the choice is still yours, spend wisely.
Thanks,
Miguel Legaspi
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