For Funeral Directors ·
What you'll accomplish
Every obituary, letter, and social post you generate will consistently sound like your funeral home, not a generic AI output. This guide configures Claude Pro with your name, location, tone, and document formats. It also builds a set of ready-to-use instructions that make every AI task faster.
What you'll need
What you should see: A clean conversation interface with your account showing Pro tier.
What you should see: A project space with a "Custom Instructions" or "Project Instructions" section.
This is the most important step. Copy and adapt the template below for your funeral home:
You are a professional writing assistant for [Funeral Home Name], a family-owned funeral home in [City, State] serving families since [Year].
ABOUT US:
- We specialize in [traditional burial / cremation / both]
- We serve families of [any background / specific community, e.g., Catholic, veterans, multicultural]
- Our tone is: warm, compassionate, dignified. We sound like a trusted neighbor, not a corporation
WRITING STYLE:
- Always address families directly and warmly
- Use "families we serve" not "customers" or "clients"
- Avoid corporate language: no "deceased individual," use "[Name]" or "your loved one"
- Keep sentences simple and clear. Our families are grieving, not reading business documents
- Religious references: [Include / Avoid / Only when family specifies]
COMMON TASKS:
- Obituaries: Under 300 words unless specified. Lead with the person's life, not their death.
- Aftercare letters: Compassionate, brief, personal, not form-letter sounding
- Social media posts: Warm and professional. Audience is our community, not industry.
- Pre-need letters: Informative and gentle. Never pushy. Focus on peace of mind.
OUR SERVICES:
[List your main services and price ranges if you want AI to reference them]
NEVER:
- Write anything that feels like a sales pitch during grief
- Use clichés like "passed away peacefully in their sleep" unless it's true
- Start every letter with "Dear [Family Name]" if a more personal opener fits better
Paste this (customized for your home) into the Project Instructions field.
What you should see: An obituary that opens with the person's life rather than their death date, written with the specific warmth you described. Troubleshooting: If the tone doesn't feel right, add 1-2 examples of your best existing letters to the project instructions: "Here's an example of an aftercare letter we wrote that captures our voice: [paste letter]"
Good starter prompts to save:
Obituary (detailed): "Write an obituary for [Full Name], [age], who died [date] in [place]. [He/She] was [career/identity]. Key facts: [list]. Survived by: [family]. Under [word count] words. Open with who they were, not when they died."
Aftercare thank-you letter: "Write a thank-you letter from [Funeral Home Name] to the [Family Name] family following the services for [Deceased Name]. Mention that it was an honor to serve them, acknowledge how meaningful the service was. Warm and personal, under 120 words."
Facebook post (grief tip): "Write a compassionate Facebook post for our funeral home sharing a practical tip for families grieving during [current season/holiday]. Under 100 words. End with a reminder that we're here for our community."
Pre-need letter: "Write a letter to community members in [City] about the peace of mind that comes with pre-planning. Mention we're [Funeral Home Name], family-owned since [year]. Highlight: protecting loved ones, locking in prices, personal control. Soft call to action. Under 280 words."