Andrew Bertsch This is Me

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1. 1. Woodland

   www.woodlandcemetery.org/ackno - [Cached]

   Published on: 2/15/2005   Last Visited: 2/15/2005

   Andrew Bertsch Associate Director

2. 2. Grave Business - 2002-01-07 - Dayton Business Journal

   dayton.bcentral.com/dayton/sto - [Cached]

   Published on: 6/5/2001   Last Visited: 1/7/2002

   As callous as it may seem, marketing death for profit is a way of life for Andy Bertsch.
   
   To stay ahead in the $10 billion dollar funeral and burial industry, Bertsch works hard to beat his competition on price, lure repeat customers and reach his target audience.
   
   His job as director of marketing at Woodland Cemetery isn't much different than what he did the previous 20 years as a marketing executive with Bank One in Dayton.
   
   As director of marketing at Woodland Cemetery, his strategy includes follow-up calls to families of previous customers and full-page newspaper ads announcing 25-percent-off sales.
   
   ...
   Fearing sales would dip, the cemetery's board of trustees created a marketing position and hired Bertsch to fill it. Sure, there are differences between the banking and cemetery business -- the cemetery business is much more personal and emotional, he said -- still, they have similarities.
   
   "We need sales to operate, and we have to market our products like anyone else does," Bertsch said.
   
   Like most businesses, Woodland Cemetery must stay on top of its competition. And there's a lot more of it today than when the cemetery was first built in 1841. Top on Woodland's priority list is pricing.
   
   "There are a lot more options out there today than there were before," Bertsch said. "Because of the competitive nature, people are pricing more aggressively. We constantly watch that to make sure we are priced right."
   
   Bertsch is so serious about competition he won't talk specifically about his marketing campaign. While there are many cemeteries in the area, Woodland is one of about seven that grab about 90 percent to 95 percent of the local business.
   
   The little he did divulge reveals he makes lots of follow-up phone calls and tries to build ongoing relationships with people who have family members buried in Woodland.
   
   Besides individuals older than 55, this group would be considered one of the cemetery's top target audiences. More often than not, family members want to be buried in the same cemetery as their loved ones.
   
   But cemeteries also reach beyond that group. Woodland, for instance, pumps money into newspaper advertising that markets lots at discounted prices. It also encourages families to preplan in order to spare their family members the burden of making decisions during such a hard time.
   ...
   "We've learned a lot over the past few years, and we've adjusted effectively to the changing conditions," Bertsch said. "We believe we're now positioned to be successful in the future."
   
   Get Copyright Clearance Copyright 2002 American City Business Journals Inc. Click for permission to reprint (PRC# 1.1642.528724)

3. 3. Woodland

   www.woodlandarboretum.org/ackn - [Cached]

   Published on: 5/15/2005   Last Visited: 5/15/2005

   Andrew Bertsch Associate Director