Funeral Apologetics 101: Stop Clinging To Your Despair

[Apologetics (from Greek ἀπολογία, "speaking in defense") is the discipline of defending a position (often religious) through the systematic use of information.] Much of my career has involved business turnarounds.  This experience serves me well as a funeral home consultant.  Over the course of more than 30 years I have learned a lot about human nature. [...]

By |2018-01-25T22:02:23-05:00March 19th, 2012|Blog, Leadership, The Creedy Commentary|13 Comments

EXPERT OPINION: How Are Funeral Directors Like Bankers?

I serve on the Board of Directors of a community bank based in Orlando, Florida. In that capacity I receive frequent educational correspondence and one I received this week highlighted the striking similarities between what we do and banking. The author says: "Bankers often forget that they are in a retail business where [...]

EXPERT OPINION: HOW TO CALCULATE YOUR SHARE-OF-WALLET

A few years ago we came to the realization that there was a real necessity to review our system.  Not all calls are equal in service type, in merchandise and in revenue.  The old system indicated that direct cremation had the same market share value as a traditional burial.  In a sense that [...]

If Lee Iacocca Owned a Funeral Home

There is an apocryphal story in accountant circles about Lee Iacocca's first day as CEO of Chrysler.  As the story goes, Mr. Iacocca's very first act was to call in the Chief Financial Officer and ask how many day's cash was on hand.  The CFO responded that the company had 3 day's cash available.  Mr. [...]

By |2011-02-28T18:43:32-05:00February 28th, 2011|The Creedy Commentary|4 Comments

Is Your Company Coherent?

Booz & Company, one of the foremost consulting leaders in innovation, has discovered a link between performance and strategy called "Coherence."  For a company to be described as coherent, it must be resolutely focused on the interrelationship among three critical elements: its market position (its chosen “way to play” against competitors); its most distinctive capabilities, [...]

By |2010-11-30T07:23:48-05:00November 30th, 2010|The Creedy Commentary|1 Comment

Interrupting This Blog For an Urgent Message

Once in a while something comes along that deserves to be viral.  Something that speaks to the common good and addresses issues deep enough to be shared by everyone.   Intelligence indicates knowledge not wisdom. A wise man knows how to use his knowledge to make a good decision. A person may have a lot [...]

By |2010-09-13T21:40:34-04:00September 13th, 2010|The Creedy Commentary|1 Comment

How To Stop Customers From Fixating on Price Part 3

Part 3 Willfully Overpricing to Stimulate Curiosity Last week we discussed the commoditized customer and the second of 4 pricing strategies: “Using Price Structure to Clarify Your Advantage.”  If you didn’t think I was certifiable last week there is a good chance you will be thinking about sending me for treatment this week.  Please remember: [...]

By |2010-07-20T12:01:52-04:00July 20th, 2010|The Creedy Commentary|2 Comments

How To Stop Customers From Fixating on Price: Part 2

Part 2:  “Using Price to Clarify Your Advantage” Increasingly, funeral markets are being commoditized.  This series is adapted from an article in Harvard Business Review entitled “How to Stop Customers from Fixating on Price.” You can purchase a pdf copy directly by clicking on the link.   In the article the authors point out that: “Most [...]

By |2010-07-13T12:31:51-04:00July 13th, 2010|The Creedy Commentary|3 Comments
Go to Top