I had a great time visiting with my sister-in-law last weekend, and somehow we got on the topic of her brother’s social media handle, “Dan the Funeral Man.” Yep, you read that right.
Her brother Dan owns a funeral home in Salem, Ohio. Not exactly a business most folks are dying to talk about, but Dan’s found an unexpected way to start the conversation. And it all comes down to brand positioning.
At its core, positioning is about how you choose to be seen. Not just what you do, but how clearly you frame your brand so people understand it, remember it, and feel something about it. And from a social media standpoint, Dan’s leaned into that in a way most funeral directors simply haven’t.
About a year ago, he began sharing glimpses into his life as a funeral director on Instagram. He gave people tips on what to bring to a funeral (a hug, a story about the deceased) and what to leave at home (anything that starts with the words “at least you still have ___”). He talks openly about grief, funeral planning, and the emotional weight of the job. Every reel has an engaging hook and a caption that pays it off with an insight, an unusual fact, or a personal story.
And then, a few weeks ago, came the FashUrn Show.™
In this video series, Dan walks a red carpet like it’s fashion week holding different cremation urns. One has a leopard print. Another’s painted bright purple. Another’s shaped like a butterfly. He stops and poses each one for the camera, with music and lights flashing in the background. Trust me, it’s a vibe. The videos have gained tons of attention, reaching over ten million views on Instagram and 11 million on TikTok.
On the surface, it might seem like a gimmick, but at its core, it’s much more. It’s brand positioning, expressed differently on social. He’s not making light of death. He’s making something uncomfortable a little more comfortable, and a little more human. “I just wanted to use the platform to make funerals less taboo,” he said in a recent interview. And that intention shows up in everything he’s creating.
His video showing the inside of a hearse removes the mystery around the vehicle. His posts about how grief can surface offer a bit of comfort when people need it most. And his runway-inspired FashionUrns gets people to lean in instead of look away. Before I knew it, I’d spent 15 minutes scrolling through content about cremation, mortuary school, and what drove him to get into the business in the first place.
Most businesses underestimate how much perception drives trust, especially in industries that people don’t think about until they need them. Dan the Funeral Man has found a way to remove the stigma around his business, while building trust and gaining followers along the way.
So what can other brands take away from this approach?
Social media is a place to show people what they normally wouldn’t see.
Dan didn’t create interest out of thin air. He tapped into what was already there. What feels routine to you may be unfamiliar (and fascinating) to your audience. People love going behind-the-scenes, especially with things they don’t understand (electricians, mechanics, plumbers, this could be your “in”).
It’s a chance to make the uncomfortable approachable.
Funerals are inherently tough to talk about, but Dan’s making it easier. Every industry has some sort of tension point. The brands that win don’t ignore it; they make it easier to engage with.
It’s a place to build trust before it’s needed.
No one wakes up excited to research funeral homes. But when the time comes, who do you trust more – the brand you’ve never heard of, or the one that’s been quietly educating you all along?
Brand positioning on social media doesn’t require viral videos or a million views. It simply requires clarity, consistency, and a willingness to show up differently than everybody else.
And those same principles show up in our own work all the time.
A few years back, our team partnered with Arnold Funeral Homes to get people doing something they didn’t even want to think about – pre-planning a funeral for themselves or a loved one. Just like Dan’s doing through his own brand positioning on social media, we knew we had to find a way to break through and start the conversation there, too. Our position was that funerals can – and should be – a celebration of a life well-lived, however the person lived it. Their passions, their hobbies, their personality, their quirks, all of those things can be alive and well in their final arrangements. And we knew they should absolutely be a part of our campaign. The tagline, “it’s your funeral,” took center stage, alongside vibrant pictures of people doing life “their” way.
The campaign generated over 3,000 clicks to the website and a click-through rate well above the industry benchmark. More proof that, together, clarity and connection can break through even the toughest barriers.
The truth is, most brands don’t have a content problem. They have a positioning problem. Until you’re clear on how you want the world to see you, no amount of posting will fix it.
At Innis Maggiore, we help brands find that clarity and turn it into work that actually works. Because if your brand’s positioning isn’t owning the runway, somebody else’s will.