When it comes to the funeral industry, the process has largely remained unchanged for decades. From funerals to the grieving process, much remains entrenched in tradition, despite a desire from many to create a more personal memorial experience.

There are a handful of individuals who see many opportunities to improve the way things are done, so people can better grieve and heal after loss. Adelle Archer of Eterneva is one such individual. However, she's not the only one shaking things up. She's joined by many other industry innovators who want to make a big difference in people's lives.

Here's a look at the death tech panel that brought many of them together - and a peek into what Archer hopes to accomplish with Eterneva.  

The Innovation in Death Tech Panel

To open up the discussion about changes in the industry, many key players came together for the Innovation in Death Tech panel on January 31st, 2021. This panel allowed participants to share how they are improving the industry and what they plan to accomplish along the way.  

Attendees

Jeff Hoffman, a self-professed serial entrepreneur, hosted the January death panel. Eterneva Founder and CEO Adelle Archer joined him, of course, along with:

• Vivian Nunez, Founder of Too Damn Young

• Liz Eddy, CEO, and Co-Founder of Lantern

• Joel Anthony, Licensed Funeral Director and Founder of 'The Grave Woman'

Together, these individuals revealed how they are collectively changing things up and making the death industry easier to navigate.

Inspiration for Eterneva and Other Death Care Companies

As everyone on the panel shared their experiences, it became instantly clear that Eterneva and the other death care organizations came into this space after grief touched their founders' lives.

As they navigated their new world full of loss, they became acutely aware of the absence of support in many key areas. Wanting to create a more personal approach to memorialization, they set out to fill it in amazing ways.

After Archer lost her good friend, Tracy, she wanted to honor her, but couldn't find anything that spoke to her. As she explains, "That was my first foray into looking in death care and realizing -- wow, there's really not been a lot of innovation here -- and we wanted something that was personal and meaningful. I think just the takeaway was like -- wow, we really lack meaningful ways to honor remarkable people."

After much research, she realized that she could use the carbon in Tracy's ashes to create a diamond that matched her beauty inside and out. The other panelists reflected on their challenges and found other fantastic solutions to share with others, such as step-by-step guides for navigating death, grief camps for kids, and other death care support systems.

Although each panelist took a different approach, their efforts complemented each other beautifully as the service a unique need that wasn't already being met within the industry. They are all driven by the desire to help people embrace their grief and start the healing process. Their efforts promise to lift the clouds and help everyone feel a little less alone in their journey through loss.

COVID Demands Overnight Innovation in Death Care

As the COVID-19 pandemic changed the world nearly overnight, the need for immediate innovation hit every industry, including death care. Like other industries, tech landed at the forefront of the changes, allowing people to continue to honor their loved ones despite the restrictions.

The majority of the changes centered around using video streaming for funerals, giving everyone a way to emotionally come together while staying physically apart. While funeral homes took charge of employing that solution, families turned their attention to the digital world to find even more ways to honor their loved ones.

To best meet potential clients where they're at, Eterneva used their website to build lasting connections. They started by leading everyone through the process of creating their diamond from their loved one's ashes. Then, they went above and beyond by giving them a page where they could also bring in their whole community to watch the process from afar and collaborate.

By the end of the eight-month diamond creation process, the recipient gets not only the precious gem but also a full legacy project filled with everyone's memories of their loved one. Plus, the page features messages of support that they can look back on to remember who was in their corner when it mattered most.

A Look at the Cultural Awakening in Handling Death

Since the death care industry is so entrenched in tradition, the cultural reaction to Eterneva was not always 100% positive. In fact, "Some people were like -- wow, that's a beautiful idea -- and other people were like -- that's really weird and I don't know how I feel about it," says Archer.

As COVID brought death much closer to home for many people, perceptions started to change. People are now much more open to talking about their experience with death and challenging the status quo in this industry.

Through this cultural awakening, Archer found it easier to introduce her memorial diamonds to the public. She was also better able to partner with funeral homes in modernizing their approach to helping people honor their loved ones.

Partnerships with Funeral Homes in Helping People Grieve

Although Eterneva is a direct-to-consumer company, they find funeral homes are their greatest partners in this journey. Funeral homes have long served as a source of support and guidance to people grieving their losses.

They help them plan memorials, find the appropriate burial or cremation options, and see the process through from start to finish. For that reason, they are often the best in connecting grieving individuals to other ways to honor their loved ones.

Due to the restrictions on in-person services, funeral homes require support as well. Many of these companies are struggling to stay afloat due to the need for innovation, but not knowing how to move away from tradition. The ones who partner with Eterneva are seeing a different way forward to the great benefit of everyone involved.

Easing the Pain of Loss Through a Best-in-Class Process

Perhaps nothing heightens the pain of grief more than mistakes in the way loved ones are handled after death. Thankfully, funeral homes are experts in this realm, making sure that chain of custody protocols are always followed exactly as written. This helps ease the pain as people know what to expect through every stage of the process.

Inspired by the seamless experience provided by funeral homes, Eterneva strives to also use best-in-class processes in everything they do. Archer claims that "93% of our customers say that they love that, and they want to come down and see it all firsthand."

Furthermore, she says, "I'd recommend it to other operational-based companies, just being more transparent with how everything works." The transparency gives a sense of peace that's lacking in the early days of loss, after all. It helps ease the feelings of things being wholly out of control, helping people get a handle on their grief from the start.

Embrace the Little Things to Bring Peace to People Everywhere

Losing a loved one is a huge blow, but it's remembering the little things that help people grieve and heal. Eterneva kickstarted their aptly named campaign, 'The Little Things,' to highlight this connection and aid in the healing process. Through this campaign, they encourage people to share what little things about their loved one bothered them in life, yet they miss the most after their death.

After the heartbreaking loss of 19-year-old Austin Gray of Texas, the community rallied together to lift the family by remembering everything great - and maddening - about this young man. Through an interview with the principal of his school, they heard the story of when he caused a blackout by sticking a fork in a light socket. As a lifelong jokester, this story reminded everyone of what lengths Gray would go for a laugh, giving them a way to smile through the tears.

Archer tells this story often, pointing out that in the face of a tragic loss, it's important to find a way to laugh at the moment. And to allow for "some brightness and for some celebration and continuing to talk about people in just a celebratory way," as she so eloquently states. By keeping the tone upbeat and bright, it allows people to sit with their grief rather than find a way to numb it away.

The Drive to Truly Know Each Client and Add Value to Their Experience

Every step of the way, Adelle Archer and the other panelists keep this focus on learning who their clients are and what they need to start down the path of healing. They aim to add value to all the experiences they offer, giving people all the support that was previously missing from the industry.

Eterneva does this by hand-delivering each diamond, up to 10 hours away, through their innovative Homecoming process. They get to meet their customers face-to-face and offer their condolences, bearing witness to all the love and grief enmeshed in their service.

By getting to know each client, Archer can better improve the company to suit their every need. She uses that information to overhaul their processes, customer service quality, and everything in between.

The death care industry is better for the efforts of all the panelists and their dedication to putting clients' needs first. The future of the industry is truly in their hands, as they look to modernize death care bit by bit.