A Look on Memorial Plans of a Local Funeral Establishment: Basis for Improved Marketing Strategies

The main purpose of this study is to look on the memorial plans of a local funeral establishment and develop improved marketing strategies. It sought to describe the respondents in terms of age, sex, educational attainment, occupation, civil status, monthly income, and purchased memorial plan. Furthermore, it determined the factors affecting the purchase of memorial plans in terms of cost, age, health and lifestyle, and coverage and terms as perceived by the respondents and determined if the type purchased memorial plan of the respondents is dependent on their respective demographic profile. It also focused on the development of improved marketing strategies for the memorial plans. The study used the descriptive-survey method of research. The respondents of the study were 100 selected clients who availed a memorial plan and are currently paying their monthly installments. The researcher has concluded that (1) most customers who availed funeral plans belong to the 35-44 age group. Majority of the clients are female and most of them are high school graduates. They are self-employed and majority of the clients are married and have a monthly income of below Php 15,000. Majority of the respondents have availed of Plan A; (2) Clients purchased the plan because ?the price of the monthly payment is affordable? and because they wanted security in terms of a memorial plan when they get older. Furthermore, they purchased the plan because a member of their family who might need it due to health concerns and because the terms of payment is convenient and flexible; (3) The type of memorial plan purchased by customers is the dependent on their age, sex, educational level, occupation, and monthly income but not civil status; and (4) The improved marketing strategies focuses on the funeral home‘s competitive edge, marketing strategy, and sales strategy. The researcher recommends: (1) Respondents may be asked on their satisfaction on the services offered by the funeral establishment; (2) Identify the strengths and weaknesses of each memorial plan offered by the funeral establishment; and (3) Apply the improvement plan on the actual business setup and observe how well it helps the establishment.