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Saving you time to help you focus on your families
CONTENTS 01
Win the Race for Time
03
Establish an Effective Preneed Program
05
Guide Families on the Value of the Funeral
07
Sharpen Your Marketing Strategy
09
Maximize Growth in Online Sales
11
Upgrade your Day-to-Day Technology
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Improve Your At-Need Service
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Take a Victory Lap
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Company Overview
Win the Race
for Time We’ve all been in a race against time. These past two years of the pandemic presented obstacles we’d never encountered before and had us in this race against time. Funeral professionals needed to quickly adapt to changing circumstances while serving families. Though the challenges were overwhelming, funeral professionals persevered! We know how it feels to be in a race AGAINST time, but the truth is, we’re also in a race FOR time. Most days, you may feel that every task in your funeral home needs your time and attention so that you can secure the future of your business. From preneed, to insurance assignments, to financials, these tasks that are necessary to run your business and improve profitability all want to eat up your time. But perhaps the biggest threat to the future of your business is focusing too much time on the wrong tasks.
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your business, and win the race for time in these six areas: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6.
Preneed Education Marketing Online Sales Technology At-Need
When we focus our time on these six crucial areas of your business, we take care of the time-eating tasks. That way, you can spend less time worrying about the future of your business and more time focusing on your most important task: caring for families in their time of need. Our focus empowers your focus. So, whether you want to maximize your time in one area or all six, now is the time to move forward with proven solutions that get results. Don’t let time pass you by. Instead, be proactive with it by partnering with Funeral Directors Life.
The fact is, if you’re focused on trying to “do it all,” though it’s admirable, you’re not spending your time as effectively as you could be. There are things only you can do to serve your community and families, and you deserve more time to focus on what matters most.
Let’s win this race for time together.
All you need is a simple strategy to give you the competitive edge to conquer time-eating tasks, secure the future of
President and Chief Executive Officer
Blessings,
Kris Seale FUNERAL DIRECTORS LIFE
Overall, Funeral Directors Life has proven to myself and my team that they are the leaders in the industry. Their growth is wonderful, and their approach is second to none. It’s just a good company to work with.
Paul Hummel III Owner & Operator HUMMEL FUNERAL HOMES AKRON, OH
Scan the code to hear more from Paul Hummel
FUNERAL DIRECTORS LIFE
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Establish an Effective
Preneed Program
Your preneed business today fuels your at-need business tomorrow. But if your preneed strategy is currently serving walk-in and call-in business only, you are missing out on opportunities to serve more families and earn hundreds of thousands of dollars in business every year. The fact is, there are many factors to consider before setting up a successful preneed program, including finding the right people, training them, monitoring results, and setting new goals. The list goes on, and these time-eating tasks threaten the precious time you have to spend with families. We believe there’s a better way to sell preneed funerals that is cost effective for your funeral home, saves you time, and enhances your reputation in your community.
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Here are your simple steps to success when you work with Funeral Directors Life:
needs, such as On the Go Protection with every preneed plan sold, offering comprehensive travel protection.
1. Get the right people.
3. Offer ongoing support.
First, our turnkey preneed sales programs start with finding the right person to fit your unique funeral home. When you work with Funeral Directors Life, you will have access to our national recruiters who have years of experience locating top talent in the funeral and preneed professions.
Finally, sales professionals receive ongoing support from our sales management team. Sales professionals receive field training and coaching, participate in weekly webinars, qualify for incentive contests, and have access to all the tools they need to succeed, including the most advanced digital contract software in the profession: DIGicon® (more on page 11).
2. Give them the best training. Next, your new hire will receive the best training in the funeral profession, hands down. Our sales professionals are trained in the WeCare™ sales system, where they learn to first ask questions, get to know the family, and uncover needs. Then, they offer custom solutions that meet those
Establishing an effective preneed program doesn’t have to be complicated. Funeral Directors Life’s simple solution provides a custom approach to preneed, giving you one less thing to worry about when it comes to the future of your business. More importantly, it frees up your time so you can focus on your families. Ready to establish the preneed program of your dreams? Don’t leave the future of your business up to chance. Trust the experts at Funeral Directors Life and see a big diiference. Go to www. funeraldirectorslife.com/ preneed to get answers to your questions and request more information today.
Since we began working with Funeral Directors Life, we have probably doubled our preneed business. I want to deal with people I trust who are experts at what they do.
Steve Kreamer Owner & Funeral Director KREAMER FUNERAL HOME ANNVILLE, PA
Discover how an active preneed program benefits funeral homes of all sizes
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Guide Families
on the Value of the Funeral
Education is your best asset when it comes to helping preneed and at-need families plan a healing and meaningful funeral or ceremony, but educating families on the value of a funeral or ceremony begins by educating yourself. You want to share how healing and meaningful a well-planned funeral can be...but how do you communicate the value of a funeral with the families you serve? Transformative training like that is hard to find, and your time is too valuable to spend searching for options while balancing your current workload of caring for families. That’s why Funeral Directors Life has partnered with Dr. Alan Wolfelt, renowned author, grief expert, and founder of the Center for Loss and Life Transition, to develop the industry’s best training on the healing value of a funeral ceremony.
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Schedule training for your team. Funeral Directors Life offers training programs for preneed and at-need staff. The Virtual Wolfelt Experience™ workshop offers insights into why we have had funerals since the beginning of time, how the elements of the funeral work together to meet the unique needs of mourners, and the importance of a final resting place.
Contact your Funeral Directors Life sales manager or reach out to DJ Jons, Director of Funeral Service Education, at dj.jons@funeraldirectorslife.com to learn more about upcoming Wolfelt Experience workshop opportunities near you.
Educate families with support tools. The Virtual Wolfelt Experience workshop will equip you with the education, language, tools, and resources you need to share the value of a meaningful funeral experience with the families you serve. Another way to educate families is through Funeral Basics, a free, online resource library that covers topics ranging from preplanning to grief support.
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Schedule a virtual training for your team
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Funeral professionals who have gone through the Wolfelt Experience start to see an amazing transformation in the families they serve. They see direct cremation families changing their minds and fully embracing a meaningful ceremony. They see lives changed. They find a renewed sense of fulfillment in the work they do. Best of all, they maximize their time by attending the best funeral service education training in the profession.
Share free resources for all funeral planners
Help families with loved ones in hospice
Work with local hospice organizations. With the Wolfelt Hospice Program, you can serve hospice families by partnering with community hospice organizations to help them educate and support families at an emotionally draining time. Work with your Funeral Directors Life sales manager to sponsor a Wolfelt Hospice Program and provide education and support tools, including Hospice Basics, an informative website with articles specifically for families with loved ones in hospice. Want to help families understand the value of a ceremony? Contact your Funeral Directors Life sales manager or reach out to DJ Jons, Director of Funeral Service Education, at dj.jons@funeraldirectorslife.com to learn more about these options.
The heart of a meaningful and healing funeral, the Virtual Wolfelt Experience in its entirety, is a game changer for us. This is the roadmap we’ll follow with our families. We are changing our approach with all of our arrangers using the Heart for every funeral. This [The Virtual Wolfelt Experience] is the secret sauce.
Chad Vice Chief Executive Officer Funeral Director SERVICE GROUP OF OKLAHOMA NORMAN, OK
Listen to a conversation with Dr. Alan Wolfelt
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Sharpen Your
Marketing Strategy
A preneed program has plenty of timeconsuming tasks to tackle, but what else could be taking your time away from families?
You know a key ingredient to your success is missing, but you just don’t know how or when you will be able to pull it all together.
Here’s your simple, three-step solution:
Marketing. More specifically, finding the right marketing for your funeral home.
If this sounds like you, we have great news! When you partner with Funeral Directors Life, we create a marketing plan that works for your unique situation. You have access to experts in the areas of print and digital marketing, such as:
2. Work with us to develop a custom marketing plan that covers all the needs you’ve expressed.
Whether it be in print or digital form, marketing can have a huge impact on your sales and your reputation in your community. A single marketing campaign with a talented sales professional can increase your preneed business significantly. The right Google ad can drive traffic to your website. A testimonial video of your funeral home can bolster your reputation with families. The options are endless. But most funeral home owners don’t have the time or the expertise to test the right strategy and put together a full marketing plan that works.
Download this free resource about reaching families online
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• • • • • • • •
Content development Social Media Management Preneed lead generation Google and YouTube ads Direct mail Audio/visual services Website optimization And custom solutions for your business!
Discover your perfect digital marketing package
1. Meet with our team to tell us about your needs and unique market.
3. Put your plan into action! Want to sharpen your marketing strategy and get your time back? Save time on marketing your funeral home by leaving the timeconsuming and detailed tasks to our team of experts. Contact our team at marketing@ funeraldirectorslife. com or reach out to your Funeral Directors Life sales manager to get started on a custom solution that’s right for you!
Craft the perfect video message Be found online with Google and YouTube ads
We work together as a team to collaborate with FDLIC on Google Ads, and I like that team aspect.
If you’re wanting to increase your preneed or even at-need sales, Funeral Directors Life’s Social Media Management service can play a big role in helping you do that. Highly recommended!
David Mahn Mark Sunshine Co-CEO SUNSHINE CREMATION SERVICES & KRONISH FUNERAL SERVICES BOCA RATON, FL
The personal contact has been great, and the ability to have regular meetings and conversations has been helpful. Joe Mahn MAHN FAMILY FUNERAL AND CREMATION SERVICES RED WING, ROCHESTER, ZUMBROTA, LAKE CITY, AND PINE ISLAND, MN
Learn more about Google Ads Management Discover why a digital marketing plan works
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Maximize Growth in Online Sales
Digital Buyers in the United States from 2016 to 2021 NUMBER OF ONLINE SHOPPERS IN MILLIONS
230.5 227.5 224.1 220.6 215.4 209.6
2016
2017
2018
2019
2020
2021 Source: Emarketer.com
Statistics show that 230.5 million Americans are shopping online and looking for ways to do virtually everything online, from buying a car to planning ahead for funeral wishes. Families are already searching for how to plan a funeral online, but the question is whether or not they will plan ahead with you. In order to connect with consumers who prefer to shop online, you need a simple, timesaving, online planning and funding tool.
That is why we are proud to offer the Arrangement Guide™, available only from Funeral Directors Life and created in partnership with Passare®. The Arrangement Guide is the funeral profession’s most advanced online preneed planning and funding tool that offers convenience and saves you time on paperwork!
The problem is, most of the options for online planning today cater to low-cost direct cremation shoppers, which means that families who would typically prefer full-service funeral options end up purchasing a direct
Unlike any other option on the market today, the Arrangement Guide educates families on the valuable elements of a funeral. It’s easy for families to use and allows them to plan and pay for a preneed funeral online in
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cremation...without you. You and your families shouldn’t have to settle for less than the best.
about 20 minutes. And if families start to plan online and want to finish their plans in person, it’s easy for you or your preneed staff to pick up right where they left off with a seamless integration through Funeral Directors Life’s digital contract sales software, DIGicon®. No one has to re-key information or start over, which saves time and reduces workload for all involved. Getting set up with the Arrangement Guide is easy. Here’s how it works:
1. Set up your package options. We recommend offering full-service funeral packages along with cremation memorial packages to offer families a full range of service options.
The Arrangement Guide is very user-friendly. People are able to go online and click the preplanning link and really have had very few questions navigating it on their own. It’s been very beneficial for a lot of families, especially during COVID, because they’ve been able to do everything online without having to come into the funeral home in person. If you are a Funeral Directors Life or Passare client, it works together seamlessly with all the other services they offer. It’s simple and streamlined for funeral homes and families, and there is not really another company out there that is offering an e-commerce solution that is so well-integrated into an all-in-one system.
Kasi Welch Baker Owner & Funeral Director NALLEY-PICKLE & WELCH FUNERAL HOME & CREMATORY BIG SPRING, STANTON, AND MIDLAND, TX
2. Get your custom Arrangement Guide link. Once your packages are set up, you will receive a custom link to your online planning and funding tool with your logo and contact information.
3. Start marketing! Next, it’s time to share the news about your new online planning tool with a digital marketing campaign to drive traffic to your site. Funeral Directors Life will provide you with a starter marketing toolkit, or you can work with our Social Media Management team, who can promote your online planning tool for you. That’s one less task taking up your time with families!
Best of all, the Arrangement Guide is available to you at no monthly charge. Just a simple, one-time setup fee, and you are ready to launch your online planning solution.
Start serving online funeral shoppers
Ready to see how it works? With the Arrangement Guide, you can start connecting with preneed families online and have a steady source of FREE qualified leads coming in. In fact, our research shows that 50% of individuals who reach the site create an account! Plus, you will be reaching up to half of your market that you wouldn’t otherwise be able to reach. To learn more, request a demo today at www. funeraldirectorslife.com/arrangementguide.
The top reasons to implement an online planning tool
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Upgrade Your Day-to-Day
Technology
Efficient technology is everything, especially when you need to set appointments, write contracts, and close sales. What’s another way to save time on necessary tasks? Having up-to-date technology THAT WORKS FOR YOU. At this point, many preneed companies let their sales professionals down. They provide only paper contracts or software that is too hard to use or too time-consuming. No one wants to fill out a paper contract only to then notice a missing signature when they’re back at the funeral home. Well, Funeral Directors Life is on a mission to minimize time-consuming tasks necessary to close sales. Our inhouse development team works hard to make sure our sales professionals and funeral directors are taken care of from the moment a lead comes in. Families appreciate the convenience, too!
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Here’s your three-step plan to success:
1. Automatically track your leads. Funeral Directors Life has partnered with a leading CRM (Customer Relationship Management) software to automatically filter leads into your sales pipeline. Leads flow in from direct mail campaigns, Facebook ads, aftercare, and much more, all ready for follow-up. Automatic lead tracking also gives you greater visibility into opportunities and activities that your sales team has in the pipeline, allowing you to monitor your team’s success.
2. Save time per contract. All the data from your CRM is set up to sync to DIGicon®, the industry’s most advanced preneed sales software. DIGicon makes writing the contract much faster and easier, enhancing the professionalism of your preneed
sales staff. Plus, with the addition of electronic signatures, you never have to waste time tracking down a family to sign a missed dotted line.
3. Get paid lightning fast. We understand that making sure sales professionals are paid quickly and efficiently is essential to keeping your preneed program running smoothly. That is why we are proud to offer faster than average processing times for DIGicon contracts, plus direct deposit and daily commission payments. And with DIGiclaim®, you have 24/7 access to your claims. That means you can submit paperwork and death certificates online, start the reconciliation process at any time, and get paid sooner!
Our motto? Work smarter, not harder. Every sales professional knows that sinking feeling when you realize you have to go back to a family to re-write a contract because of a mistake found during processing. At Funeral Directors Life, we never want you to have that feeling again! Just let our software do all the math, check for accuracy and errors, and maximize your time on paperwork so you can submit your contracts with complete confidence. Now, that’s working smarter, not harder. To learn more, head over to www.funeraldirectorslife.com/digicon.
I love DIGicon. I like the technology, and I think the product itself is amazing. It’s easy for the counselors to go out and write their contracts, and the reporting that we get is great. Funeral Directors Life is able to customize DIGicon for exactly what we need.”
Kim Kandaras Co-Owner WALTON’S FUNERALS & CREMATIONS RENO, NV
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Improve Your
At-Need Service
You have a lot on your plate as a funeral director. There are so many little timeconsuming tasks behind the scenes to take care of, such as working through insurance assignments, inputting data, and managing payroll. All of these tasks leave you with less time to spend helping families plan unique and healing services. You may think something’s got to give, but at Funeral Directors Life, we believe that running your business shouldn’t take you away from doing the most important aspect of your job: serving families in their time of need. That is why we have invested so much time and energy into at-need support services. We want to take the busy work off your shoulders so that you can focus on the single-most important thing that you need to do. Why? Because the better you become, the better we become. When you win, we win! It’s that simple. Here’s how to minimize time spent on busywork:
1. Improve your cash flow and funeral home financials. IMPROVE CASH FLOW
assignment company that offers fast pay (80% of funeral home partners get paid in 1-2 days!), GREAT customer service (you’re assigned your own concierge customer service rep), and a simple platform to submit assignments. IMPROVE FINANCIALS Directors Business Solutions (DBS), a division of Funeral Directors Life, offers financial services for funeral homes, from accounting to payroll, to help grow businesses.
2. Streamline data entry and collaborate with families. Funeral Directors Life is proud to partner with Passare®, an online case management software with built-in business management tools. Through Passare, funeral directors can connect and communicate with families, plan services online, and access case information anytime, anywhere, using any internet-connected device. Offering unlimited users, unlimited devices, and unlimited updates, Passare is helping funeral staff save time on paperwork so they can spend more quality time with the families they serve and with their own families at home.
CLAIMCHECK®, a division of Funeral Directors Life, is a life insurance
With CLAIMCHECK, I get paid immediately, and that’s really what I’m looking for.
Syd Waldman Owner and Certified Funeral Service Practitioner WALDMAN FUNERAL CARE HOUSTON, TX
2021 NFDA Innovation Award Winner
®
Get paid faster on life insurance assignments
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Make accounting and payroll a breeze
Elevate your funeral home software
3. Connect with families during the funeral and after the service. Encore™, our funeral home livestreaming service, connects all family members, even those who cannot attend the service in person. Our team handles the setup behind the scenes, so all you have to do is hit record! Circle of Friends+ (COF+) is a digital aftercare service to help families in the areas of settling an estate and grief support. Families receive monthly newsletters and unlimited access to videos, articles, a support line, and more to help them navigate the grief journey after a loss. Our experts develop the content and send text messages to connect with families so that your funeral home can grow your esteemed reputation, acquire more Google reviews, and serve more families by creating loyal customers who spread the word about your funeral home.
The best part? These services work together seamlessly, make time in your demanding schedule, and allow you to serve families in more customized ways. Ready to improve your at-need service for families? We know you didn’t go to school to be a technology expert, an accountant, or an aftercare program manager. How much extra time would you have to dedicate to your at-need families or to your family at home if you no longer had to spend your time trying to do it all? See how much time you can get back with Funeral Directors Life’s services working for you.
The DBS and Passare integration makes reporting simple. I plug information into Passare, and it’s automatically sent to DBS.
Marlan Gary Owner MARLAN GARY FUNERAL HOME, THE CHAPEL OF PEACE COLUMBUS AND MANSFIELD, OH
TM
Bring families together via livestream
Connect with families after the funeral
Take control of your funeral home’s finances
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Take a
Victory Lap
The right people. Transformative training. Outstanding marketing support. Technology that makes your life easier. It’s not magic or rocket science; it’s a systematic plan that works to help you win the race against time-eating tasks. Combined with at-need solutions, you now have more time back in your day to spend doing what you love: being there for your families. With these simple solutions in place, our funeral home clients start to see results they’ve only dreamed of. On average, our programs lead to an increase in preneed year over year of 68%*, with some seeing results up to 100%, 200%, or even 300%. If you are ready to start putting some or all of this plan into action, contact us today at sales@funeraldirectorslife.com or www.funeraldirectorslife.com and request a consultation!
As I look back at historic moments in my career, the day we went with Funeral Directors Life was one of those historic moments in the life of our business. From day one, I felt that this was
*Results based on a study of funeral homes using Funeral Directors Life’s employed sales professionals.
one of the best moves that we’ve ever made.
Barry Henderson Owner and Funeral Director HENDERSON & SONS FUNERAL HOMES ROME, GA
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Company
Overview
Established in 1981 by funeral directors for funeral directors
Privately-held
Phones answered live by real people who really care
Recipient of numerous awards from FORTUNE magazine and Texas Monthly magazine for being a great workplace Dedicated to helping funeral homes grow and succeed in a rapidly changing marketplace
Rated A- (Excellent) by AM Best
Over $1.69 billion* in assets
Over $1.9 billion* in life insurance in force
Over $159 million* in capital & surplus
Board of Directors comprised of funeral service professionals
*Projections for 2021
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60
30
0
CAPITAL & SURPLUS
2021*
2020
2019
2018
2017
2016
2015
2014
2013
2012
2011
2010
2009
2008
2007
2006
2005
2004
2003
2002
2001
2000
1999
1998
1997
1996
1995
1994
1993
1992
750
500
250
TOTAL ASSETS
0
2021
2020
2019
2018
2017
2016
2015
2014
2013
2012
2011
2010
2009
2008
2007
2006
2005
2004
2003
2002
2001
2000
1999
1998
1997
1996
1995
1994
1993
1992
1991
1250
1990
1500
1991
2021
2020
2019
2018
2017
2016
2015
2014
2013
2012
2011
2010
2009
2008
2007
2006
2005
2004
2003
2002
200
150
100
50
0
SALES GROWTH
300
1989
1988
350
1990
90
1989
1988
Company
Overview 400
IN MIL L IONS
$380 MILLION* * P RO J E CT E D
250
1750
I N M I L L IONS
$1.69 BILLION
* P RO J E C T E D
1000
150
120
$159 MILLION
IN M ILLION S * P RO J E C T E D
STATEMENT OF PURPOSE To Be the Best, Most-Respected Provider of Service to the Funeral Industry
RI NJ
Licensed in 47 states
OUR STORY Funeral Directors Life (FDLIC) began as the vision of four independent West Texas funeral directors who owned their own funeral homes. They were especially concerned about the fair and proper representation of prepaid funerals in their communities, as well as the long-term effects that prepaid funerals would have on the value of their businesses. FDLIC has now grown far beyond the original founders’ expectations. We are currently licensed in 47 states and are dedicated to being the best and the most-respected provider of service to the funeral industry.
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Contact Us Receptionist
800-692-9515
www.funeraldirectorslife.com
Customer Service
800-234-8031
customer.service@funeraldirectorslife.com
New Business
800-692-8411
new.business@funeraldirectorslife.com
Help Center
800-692-5125
help@funeraldirectorslife.com
Claims
800-692-2808
claims@funeraldirectorslife.com
DIGicon DIGiclaim Online Access Policy Generation
Online Access
www.fdliconline.com
CLAIMCHECK 800-692-3688 info@claimchecknow.com www.claimchecknow.com Passare Sales Passare Support
800-692-6162 sales@passare.com 800-692-5111 support@passare.com www.passare.com Custom Marketing Solutions 800-692-9515 x6459 jeff.stewart@funeraldirectorslife.com
Lead Generation
800-692-9515 x6386
drew.seale@funeraldirectorslife.com
Digital Marketing
800-692-9515 x6391
mitchell.mclean@funeraldirectorslife.com
Audio/Visual Solutions
800-692-9515 x6398
rob.davidson@funeraldirectorslife.com
Digital Services
800-692-9515 x6386 Arrangement Guide Social Media Management PipelineDeals Google Ads My Tribute Planner Circle of Friends+
Learning & Development
800-692-9515 x6499
Fulfillment
800-692-9515 x6640
Recruiting
800-692-9515 x6387
humanresources@funeraldirectorslife.com
Directors Business Solutions
800-692-9515 x6402
jason.gazaille@funeraldirectorslife.com
Prayer Requests
800-692-9515 x6419
ray.thompson@funeraldirectorslife.com
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drew.seale@funeraldirectorslife.com
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training@funeraldirectorslife.com
WWW.FUNERALDIRECTORSLIFE.COM
6550 DIRECTORS PARKWAY ABILENE, TX 79606 800-692-9515
WWW.FACEBOOK.COM/FDLIC
@FDPRENEED ITEM #202 © 2021 FUNERAL DIRECTORS LIFE