An important rule of funeral etiquette is to send thank you cards - also known as acknowledgement cards - to friends and family who have sent flowers, plants or donations in honor of the departed.
In the past, funeral home professionals had a finite number of design themes to provide to client families, often religious in theme.
The cards came with an option of one of maybe two pre-printed designs.
The funeral home might also add some generic printing inside - such as the name of the person who passed away, birth and death dates.
However, with today's funeral software, designed specifically for funeral industry professionals, there are a wealth of options to create personalized thank you cards with almost any theme a client family may wish to use and complete control of the customization.
With just a computer, printer, blank perforated stock and funeral stationery software, a funeral director or other funeral home employee can design and print beautiful thank you cards - all in-house! With hundreds of themes to choose from, representing virtually all professions, interests, hobbies and service associations, client families face no restrictions in sending their friends and family members the exact card that they want.
Photographs, specific verses or poems can be added - actually, the possibilities are as limitless as the imagination.
Funeral software can be downloaded in minutes.
Included are templates for each piece of funeral stationery.
Including photos, special sayings, prayers, the deceased's name and any other information the family wishes will make for a completely customized acknowledgement card.
The client family will have the opportunity to select an appropriate theme to represent the true character within their loved one.
There are themes available for nature lovers, avid readers, attorneys, law enforcement, and carpenters.
Almost every imaginable theme has already been created.
Adding a link to the funeral home website, client families can utilize an online theme viewer making the selection process quick and convenient - as they can do this on their own from the comfort of their own home.
Once a theme is chosen, the family simply notifies the funeral director of their selection.
Of course, the selection process can also be done at the time of the arrangement with the guidance of the funeral director.
A customized thank you card, complete with a favorite photo of their loved one and a coordinated theme to reflect the personality, career or hobby can be just one part of a family's life celebration.
If the family wishes to order other funeral stationery, such as a funeral register book, memorial folders, prayer cards, bookmarks, and even a tribute video or personalized funeral candles, all of these items can be customized with the same theme so that there is a consistent look and feel for the person's entire life celebration.