This year, if you want CE credit for the workshops and events you attend, you must download the NFDA app! Once downloaded, simply scan the QR code on your way out of each workshop or event. App sponsored by Tribute Technology.
Watch for more information on how to get and use the app as we get closer to Convention.
NFDA does not endorse and is not responsible for views expressed by the speakers.Workshop recordings will be available for purchase in the NFDA store.
Brought to you by InSight Institute and hosted by NFDA
Registration: Friday 12:30 p.m.
Seminar Day 1: Friday 1 - 6 p.m.Seminar Day 2: Saturday 8 a.m. - 5 p.m.Seminar Day 3: Sunday 8 a.m. - 12 p.m.
Set your firm apart from the competition and offer more to the families you serve! As families’ wishes continue to evolve, it is more important than ever to offer a variety of services that meet their needs and exceed their expectations. Fewer families incorporate religious rites into memorial services now so how can you fill that gap? Many funeral homes look to celebrants and find it most economical to train their staff to accommodate this growing demand for customized services. A certified celebrant works with a funeral director to provide a funeral service, memorial service or tribute that is personalized to reflect the personality and life of the deceased. (17 CE hours through InSight Institute)
$895 NFDA members or eligible non-funeral directors$1,050 nonmember funeral directors
The rates above are for a 3-day seminar. Fee includes light meals and refreshments.
Expand your knowledge and comfort level to tackle the most difficult cases. Instructors will illustrate step-by-step techniques to make difficult embalming cases more manageable. Discover what works best for techniques and products with various levels of hospital and traumatized cases. Learn different techniques and chemicals that have proven to be successful. Learn what new products are aiding us in the prep room. We will examine conditions including edema, jaundice, cancers, decomposition and medical cases. (4 CE hours)
Onsite Registration: 7:30 – 8 a.m.
NFDA members$185 by August 23, 2023$205 after August 23, 2023Nonmember funeral directors$255 by August 23, 2023$280 after August 23, 2023Mortuary students*$90
* No online registration is available for students. Call 800-228-6332.
The need to strengthen the relationship between the LGBTQ+ community and funeral service has become unprecedentedly visible in recent years. Increasingly, funeral service professionals seek education to fill learning gaps regarding this community in order to meet the needs of clients and staff with grounded and unbiased knowledge, strategies for allyship, and cultural humility. This four-hour workshop will provide the first-ever Safe Zone training offered publicly to members of the funeral service profession. As an internationally recognized, evidence-informed training program, Safe Zone workshops provide attendees with interactive education on LGBTQ+ identities, privilege and biases, cycles of oppression, the coming-out experience, and skill building for allies. Facilitated by an expert in grief and bereavement who is also an experienced Safe Zone trainer, this intensive workshop has been designed specifically to meet the needs of NFDA convention attendees and to address common scenarios for professionals in funeral service. (4 CE hours)
$205 NFDA members and nonmembers$75 mortuary students*
Now in its twenty-third year, the Funeral Service Foundation’s golf outing has raised more than $1.6 million in support of its mission of investing in people and programs that strengthen funeral service and lift up grieving communities.
Experience all the perks of our annual Golf Classic in a social, casual and exciting atmosphere at Topgolf, just a 10-minute ride from Resorts World!
No matter your skill level, at Topgolf, you’ll be able to take a swing and score some points during our tournament-style golf games. You can also relax and enjoy great food and drinks while networking with your fellow funeral service professionals. And because each covered bay is climate controlled, you’re guaranteed to play no matter what weather comes our way in September.
Cost per player is $325. Registration includes transportation, tournament fees, food and beverages, golf clubs, four hours of play in reserved bays, and a golf pro and tournament ambassadors to help the day’s play run smoothly.
Want to support the foundation, but golf isn’t your game? Simply join as a spectator! Your $150 registration fee allows you to experience all the networking and excitement of the day without the pressure to step up to the bay and take a shot.
This year, we will once again offer a limited number of single-player registrations to licensed funeral directors, subject to availability.
Visit FuneralServiceFoundation.org/golf, and click on “Support the 2023 Golf Classic!” to register and learn about sponsorship opportunities. Or click the button below.
Every business has long-term goals. To achieve those goals, two things need to happen: retain your key employees and have an exit strategy. Entrepreneurs have built their businesses through hard work and sacrifice. These owners deserve a great exit package, and a great exit package means knowing what your business is worth. This presentation will focus on rewarding key employees as well as price and common business valuation mistakes. (1 CE hour)
Prepare your firm for online pricing, the new normal. Learn how to implement online pricing and what benefits transparency has to your firm. Explore how you can compete in areas other than just price. If you aren’t listing your prices online now, join us to learn why it’s an essential business benefit. (1 CE hour) (Translation available: Spanish)
For decades, improv comedy theatres like Second City, The Groundlings, and The Upright Citizens Brigade have offered training on how the principles of improv can relate to, and improve, business performance and customer service. Learn how you can take the basics of improv comedy and adapt them to the various scenarios funeral directors often encounter to enhance customer service, improve funeral plan execution, and help navigate unforeseen circumstances. (1 CE hour)
Have you noticed a growing number of families don’t automatically value funeral service? Building on the latest research and data, learn why consumer norms are shifting and how preneed is the best way to innovate the customer journey. With a focus on proactively educating and connecting with families, find out how to increase your reach and build lasting brand awareness with preneed experiences that are nothing short of remarkable. You’ll discover why consistently engaging today’s customers will transform how they start experiencing your funeral home. (1 CE hour)
Helping families feel comfortable with the idea of interacting with a funeral service professional begins with that professional’s ability to connect. The need to ease anxiety and discover what each family values and how family members want to honor the life of their loved one can only be met through first building trust. When a high level of trust is achieved, that connection will open the doors for understanding bereaved families’ unique needs and desires for providing care and memorialization for their deceased loved one. This workshop reinforces how to understand what families need from funeral service professionals, how to better build trust with families, and what can be done to develop a customized approach for relating to families. (1 CE hour)
The generational transition is happening with baby boomers approaching 75. Millennials are moving into the primary planner role, and they make purchasing decisions differently than their parents. Unlike previous generations, they’re forming an opinion before stepping foot into your funeral home: from visiting your website, reading Google reviews, and scanning your social media profiles. Your funeral home is perfectly curated to create a welcoming and safe environment, but without the proper online presence, you may never be given the opportunity to show the next generation of planners what makes you unique. (1 CE hour)
When a child dies, the need for support for both the family and the community is overwhelming. It does, however, provide an opportunity for funeral service to shine in a way that will be remembered forever. Join us as we discuss creative and innovative ways that your funeral home can reach out to community partners such as hospices, healthcare systems, schools, grief centers to create awareness and provide support following the death of a child. (1 CE hour)
Danny will take the audience to a place of laughter, reflection, and learning as he works the audience to participate in the session. Using a question and answer “live interview” format with selected audience members, Danny and Alan will facilitate a discussion on a variety of topics, including recruitment and retention, tips to increase sales volume and cash flow, merchandising, caseloads and staffing, and motivational leadership. Our role as leaders is not to provide information…it is to facilitate transformation. (1 CE hour)
With changes to the FTC’s Funeral Rule looming, now’s the best time to reevaluate your internet presence. How can you best prepare to meet (and exceed) the potential new requirements on your website? And how can you support your digital visitors while standing out among the other homes in your area? Afterword has analyzed over 14,000 funeral home websites across America, and in this data-driven talk, we’ll present our insights on how you can create the best experience for your visitors. From website layouts to button placement, GPL formats to featured testimonials, and SEO to privacy guidelines, we’ll share case studies and specific recommendations you can follow. Discover how you and your business can go beyond the FTC Rule requirements, help families see what makes your home unique before they ever visit in person, and increase your chances at winning new families’ business. (1 CE hour) (Translation available: Spanish)
As professional embalmers, we must work diligently to continue learning from our personal experiences, and to discover techniques and tricks of the trade from others. Discover 50 helpful hints that are tried and true that will refresh your mind and improve your knowledge and skill set in the prep room. (1 CE hour) (Translation available: Spanish)
Funeral Directors already fulfill some of the most important recording and reporting responsibilities in the U.S. National Vital Statistics System (NVSS), by faithfully completing the Death Certificate. Overall, procedures for recording decedents’ demographic characteristics are working well. But there is room for improvement. The U.S. National Center for Health Statistics studies the degree of accuracy of race assignments in national mortality data. Among whites and blacks, less than 1 percent of decedents had incorrect race assignment. Among Asian Americans, the rate of incorrect race assignment has improved, from 7 percent to less than 3 percent. But among Native Americans, that rate remains unsustainably high, at 40 percent. How can the NVSS collaborate with Funeral Directors to improve that rate? (1 CE hour)
The typical funeral home in the United States is owned and/or operated by an individual of the Baby Boomer or early Generation X age range. The up-and-coming Millennial generation, which will soon become the successors in these businesses, act and operate very differently and are changing how businesses operate and are carving new paths in almost every industry, including deathcare. Owners and managers are now getting their first experience with the newest generation entering the workforce, Generation Z, which has vast differences from Millennials. Discover tools and tips for how to motivate and get the most productivity out of your younger staffers, while dispelling misconceptions and falsehoods about the younger generations. (1 CE hour)
PAWS Pathway is our life path through pet loss where our pets have imprinted on our hearts with their paw prints, kisses, and cuddles, and we honor their memories through our future words/actions. This is a personalized way of going through pet loss that honors the human-bond and always embraces your special bond with your pet, while learning to acknowledge and grow through your grief. PAWS Pathway can be utilized through both Anticipatory Pet Grief and Pet Loss and helps one feel supported and embraced among others in a disenfranchised society. We’ll focus on the common obstacles of pet loss and help others find ways to help with their emotional and physical pain, including discussing anticipatory grief and understanding your pet’s quality of life. (1 CE hour)
The decisions made by federal legislators and regulators in Washington DC impact your business every day. It is vital that NFDA remain the strongest voice for you, your business, the funeral profession, and the families we serve. Having a strong advocate keeping up with the ever-changing federal legislative and regulatory landscape and how it impacts your business and profession is vital to your success. Join NFDA’s federal lobbyist for a comprehensive review of federal legislative and regulatory issues facing funeral service today that will dictate the viability of your business and the funeral profession. (1 CE hour)
Your convention adventure kicks off in style at the Welcome Party! Every year, this is the place to be. Join us and reconnect with old friends, plus make some new ones, while enjoying amazing music, hors d’oeuvres, and refreshments.
Will this be your first time attending the NFDA convention? Join us at the First-time Attendee Reception, starting at 5 p.m. before to the Welcome Party.