Batesville to offer ObitLink™ online obituary and memorialization products as part of its ConnectivitySuite™ |
Oct 27, 2009 -
BATESVILLE, IN – October 27, 2009/PRNewswire-FirstCall via COMTEX News Network/-
Batesville Casket Company, the leader in the funeral service industry, announced
an alliance with Legacy.com, the largest provider of online memorials and obituaries,
combining the reach and resources of two industry innovators to give funeral homes
access to the largest nationally networked obituary system. The company made the
announcement today at the National Funeral Directors Association conference in Boston,
MA.
Through relationships with more than 750 newspapers, Legacy.com hosts online obituaries,
memorials and guest books for more than 70% of the people who die in the United
States. The Legacy.com network of sites has become the most popular online destination
for obituary information, with more than 14 million visitors each month. This new
alliance allows funeral homes to be part of this national network through Batesville’s
exclusive ObitLink online obituary and memorialization solution.
“Legacy.com has built an online obituary network that is second to none – in size
as well as functionality,” said Troy Brake, General Manager of Batesville Interactive,
the company’s technology solutions group. “ObitLink allows us to bring that national
network directly to a local funeral home’s website, and add the very latest interactive
memorialization features not available with traditional print obituaries.”
ObitLink will be fully-integrated with Legacy.com’s extensive network of online
obituaries, death listings, memorial websites and guest books, bringing a new level
of connectivity to funeral homes and the communities they serve. Funeral homes using
Batesville’s industry-leading WebLink™ website solution will have direct access
from their local funeral home websites to Legacy.com’s expansive database, which
includes 100 million detailed newspaper obituaries, guest books and death listings,
updated throughout each day.
Recognized for a history of manufacturing excellence, product innovation and superior
service, Batesville is also the largest provider of hosted funeral home websites
in the U.S. The company’s highly functional websites are designed for simplicity
and affordability, making them an ideal fit for funeral directors and their staffs.
“Batesville has an unsurpassed reputation in the funeral industry,” said Stopher
Bartol, Chief Executive Officer for Legacy.com. “They are innovators who understand
the role of the Internet in funeral service – and are forward-looking in their desire
to build bridges that connect newspapers, funeral homes and the families they serve.”
As more consumers seek information online, websites have become one of the primary
ways funeral homes connect with their communities. Online obituaries and guest books
take center stage in a funeral home’s website, driving as much as 60% of traffic
to the site. By establishing an interactive connection between the funeral home
website and the national obituary network, ObitLink increases the visibility and
impact of the funeral home’s online presence.
ObitLink is being developed as part of Batesville’s new ConnectivitySuite, a group
of modular web-enabled products aimed at connecting funeral homes to the families
and communities they serve in new and innovative ways. The ObitLink product is expected
to be available in January 2010. Other ConnectivitySuite offerings include WebLink
funeral home websites and TributeLink™ online video tributes. Each of these affordable
products utilizes web technologies that can be easily implemented into the funeral
home’s operations with minimal infrastructure and training.
ABOUT BATESVILLE
Batesville Casket Company (www.Batesville.com), a wholly owned
subsidiary of Hillenbrand, Inc. (NYSE:HI), is a leader in the North American death
care industry through the sale of funeral services products, including burial caskets,
cremation caskets, containers and urns, selection room display fixturing, technology
solutions, and other personalization and memorialization products. For more than
125 years, Batesville has been dedicated to helping families honor the lives of
those they love. Our history of manufacturing excellence, product innovation, superior
customer service and reliable delivery has helped Batesville become – and remain
– a market leader.
For additional information contact:
Teresa M. Gyulafia
Director- Brand & Marketing Communications
Teresa.Gyulafia@batesville.com
812.931.5084
ABOUT LEGACY.COM
Founded in 1998, Legacy.com is the world’s most
timely and comprehensive resource for online obituaries and the undisputed leader
in Web-based memorialization. The Legacy.com domain is among the 100 most visited
on the Internet, according to comScore, and includes a network of more than 750
newspapers in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, Ireland and Australia.
By making interactive memorial content accessible directly via the websites of newspapers
and funeral homes, Legacy.com helps a fast-growing number of people expand the ways
in which they can express condolences and share remembrances of loved ones. A privately
held company, Legacy.com is headquartered in Evanston, Ill.
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