Visibility Foundations

START HERE:
1. WELCOME & WHY WE’RE HERE…

WATCH VIDEO, THEN REFLECT:

What is your instinctive resistance to being visible? Where does it come from - training, culture, temperament, experience? Name it as specifically as you can.

Notice what happens in your body when you think about promoting your work. About posting on Instagram, or updating your website, or telling someone at a dinner party what you charge.

If the good death care practitioners remain invisible - the culture does not change.

Before death care found me, I worked as a "corporate hippy" (aka communications and marketing consultant) across the arts, education, charities, large corporate companies and personal brands. I've helped complex organisations and brands create an aligned voice in the world - and I'm now bringing my worlds together for the most important job of all: making death care workers more visible.

(If you want to get really snoopy, my full CV is on my LinkedIn Profile.)

2. WHY VISIBILITY FEELS WRONG IN DEATH CARE
(AND WHY IT ISN’T)

This is the video most practitioners tell me they needed years ago.

Not the practical stuff - the permission. The naming of something that has been quietly operating in the background of every decision about pricing, posting and self-promotion since they began this work.

WATCH VIDEO, THEN REFLECT...
Which of the beliefs in this video landed most strongly for you? Which one felt most like your own?

The belief I recognise most in myself is...
The reframe I want to carry forward from this video:

3. HELPING THE RIGHT FAMILIES FIND YOU

(**Quick note: In this video I talk about your "workbook" - which is all the prompts and questions you will find below each video. ↓↓↓↓↓↓↓↓↓↓↓ )

POSITIONING FRAMEWORK
I help [WHO] navigate [MOMENT] using [APPROACH] so they can [OUTCOME]

EXAMPLES:
Vague: "I support families with funerals."

Positioned:
"I help families in the Blue Mountains create community-led funerals — ceremonies that actually sound like the person who died — so they feel less alone and more held in their grief."

”I help families who want something different from a conventional funeral navigate the design and delivery of a farewell ceremony using deep listening, collaborative writing and a commitment to honouring the full life of the person who died so they can experience a ceremony that actually sounds like their person — not a template.”

“I help multicultural families navigate the challenge of honouring both their cultural heritage and their Australian context in a funeral ceremony using an interfaith approach and genuine curiosity about tradition and meaning so they can feel that every part of who their person was is acknowledged.”

“I help families who've experienced a sudden or traumatic death navigate the particular rawness of planning a ceremony before they've even begun to grieve using a slow, held, unhurried process so they can make decisions they'll feel at peace with long after the day itself.”

4. TRUST SIGNALS AND HOW TO BUILD THEM

5 Trust Signals

1. Website copy that speaks to the person in crisis, not to your credentials
Goal: Your website speaks directly to the person in crisis. It uses their language, not your training language. Someone who finds you online immediately understands what you do and feels safe to reach out.

2. A photograph that shows you as a human being
Goal: You have a current, warm, professional photograph that allows someone to make a quick human assessment of whether they can trust you.

3. A plain-language description of your services
Goal: You can describe precisely what you offer, what it includes, where the edges of your work are and what happens when someone engages you.

4. Visible pricing
Goal: You display at minimum a pricing range that allows people to self-select before reaching out. You do not hide your fees.

5. Community presence
Goal: You are known in your community as someone who works in this field. You speak, write, show up. People think of you when death or grief comes up.

5. THE 3 CHANNELS THAT ACTUALLY WORK IN DEATH CARE

CHANNEL ONE — Education
Here's 15 suggestions for ways to bring your educational offerings to your community:

THINGS YOU CAN EXPLAIN

1. What a death doula actually does. Most people have never heard the term, or have heard it and aren't sure what it means. A short article or video that walks through a real engagement — from the first conversation to the final visit — does more to build understanding and trust than any amount of describing your qualifications. Concrete, specific, human.

2. What families are legally allowed to do when someone dies in Australia (or wherever you live.) This is one of the most searched and most under-answered questions in death care. Can we keep the body at home? Can we wash and dress the person ourselves? Can we transport the body without a funeral director? The answers are yes, yes and yes — with conditions that vary by state. A clear, plain-language explanation of this is genuinely valuable and genuinely rare. It will be found, read and shared for years.

3. What palliative care actually is — and what it isn't. The myths around palliative care — that it means giving up, that it's only for the last days, that it hastens death — prevent families from accessing it until it's too late. A simple, honest explainer dismantles those myths and positions you as someone who tells the truth about hard things.

4. What grief actually looks like in the body. Not the five stages. The physical reality: the exhaustion, the confusion, the way time distorts, the appetite changes, the strange moments of laughter. Content that validates the lived experience of grief — rather than mapping it onto a framework — reaches people who are in it right now and feel like something is wrong with them. Nothing is wrong with them.

5. What an advance care directive is and why most Australians don't have one. Dry subject, vital content. The practitioner who can make advance care planning feel accessible and urgent — rather than administrative and avoidable — is providing a genuine community service. Frame it around a story if you can. "A family I worked with wished they'd had this conversation six months earlier" is a more compelling opening than any statistic.

THINGS YOU CAN DEMYSTIFY

1. What happens to a body between death and the funeral. Most people have no idea. The gap between a person dying and a ceremony taking place is filled with processes that are invisible to families — and that invisibility creates anxiety, disconnection and a sense that death has been taken away from them. Explaining it plainly — what happens, who does it, what families can be involved in — is one of the most genuinely useful things a death care practitioner can publish.

2. What a funeral celebrant does differently from a funeral director. The confusion between these two roles is widespread and costs practitioners work. A clear explanation of who does what, why both matter, and how they work together — written generously, without territorial energy — educates families and builds collegial goodwill at the same time.

3. What a home funeral looks like from beginning to end. Not an argument for home funerals over conventional ones — a simple description of what actually happens when a family chooses to care for their person at home. The practicalities, the timeline, the emotional texture. Families who want this option often don't pursue it because they can't picture it. Show them the picture.

4. What the difference is between grief and complicated grief. Most people who are struggling with grief wonder whether what they're experiencing is normal. A clear, compassionate explanation of when grief is doing what grief does, and when it might be worth getting specific support, helps people make better decisions about their own wellbeing — and positions you as someone whose expertise goes beyond ceremony.

5. What questions to ask when choosing a funeral home. This is content that serves families directly and immediately — a list of ten questions, with notes on what the answers should tell you. It is also content that implicitly positions you as an advocate for families rather than a service provider. Practitioners who educate families on how to navigate the funeral industry — including the parts you're not personally involved in — build enormous trust.

THINGS YOU CAN TEACH THROUGH STORY

1. A ceremony you were part of that changed how you think about this work. Not a case study — a story. Something specific that happened, something that surprised you, something that showed you what this work is actually for. Told with care for the privacy of the family involved. The practitioners whose content people remember are almost always the ones who are willing to say: here is something real that happened, and here is what it showed me.

2. Something a dying person taught you. One insight, told as a story. It doesn't need to be profound in a performed way — the most resonant content of this kind is often quietly specific. "A man I sat with in his last weeks told me he wasn't afraid of dying. He was afraid nobody would remember what he found funny." That sentence does more death literacy work than a thousand explainers.

3. What you wish families knew before the death, not after. The conversations practitioners hear after a death — "I wish I'd asked her about that," "I wish we'd had more time," "I didn't know that was an option" — are a goldmine of genuinely useful pre-emptive education. What would you tell a family six months before a death, if you could? Write that.

4. A moment when the conventional approach failed a family — and what would have helped. This is not an attack on the mainstream funeral industry. It is an honest account of a gap — a family who wanted something different and didn't know it existed, or didn't know how to ask for it. Told with generosity toward everyone involved. Content that names a real problem and points toward a real solution is some of the most valuable education a death care practitioner can offer.

THINGS YOU CAN TEACH IN COMMUNITY

1. A free public session on one specific topic. Not a general death literacy event — something focused enough to be genuinely useful in ninety minutes. How to talk to a child about death. What to do when someone dies at home. How to write a eulogy that actually sounds like the person. How to plan a meaningful farewell on a small budget. The more specific the topic, the more useful it is to the people who need it — and the more clearly it demonstrates the particular depth of your expertise.

CHANNEL TWO — Relationships

Most of your work will come through relationships. The barrier is usually not knowing what to say. These three templates are warm starting points. Read them, make them yours, then send one this week.

Always personalise - mention something specific about their work that drew you to reach out. Keep it brief. Two to three paragraphs maximum.

NOTES ON USING THESE TEMPLATES

• Always personalise — mention something specific about their work.

• Keep it short. These are introductions, not pitches.

• Don't follow up more than once. If they don't respond, let it rest.

• The goal is a relationship, not a transaction.

• If they respond — meet in person if at all possible.

Template 1 — GP or Palliative Care Nurse
For reaching out to a medical professional who regularly encounters families facing death. Lead with usefulness, not your credentials.

SUBJECT LINE: Death care support for your patients — brief introduction

EMAIL BODY" Dear [Name],

My name is [Your name]. I'm a [your role] based in [your area], and I work with families navigating death, dying and funeral preparation.

I'm reaching out because I imagine you regularly encounter families who are struggling — not just medically, but with the emotional and practical realities of what's ahead. I offer [brief description of what you do].

I'm not looking for a formal arrangement — just a connection. If you ever have a family who might benefit from the kind of support I offer, I'd be glad to be someone you can refer to.

I've attached a brief overview of my work. I'd welcome a short call if that's useful.

With warm regards,

[Your name]

[Website] · [Phone]

Template 2 — Grief Counsellor or Psychologist
For a complementary practitioner whose clients may need ceremonial or practical deathcare support alongside their therapeutic work.

SUBJECT LINE: Connecting — complementary death care support

EMAIL BODY: Dear [Name],

I hope this finds you well. My name is [Your name] — I'm a [your role] working in [your area].

I'm reaching out because I think our work might be genuinely complementary. You support people through the psychological terrain of grief. I work in the ceremonial and practical space — [brief description].

Often the families I work with would benefit from therapeutic support. And I imagine some of your clients might appreciate the kind of ceremonial or practical guidance I offer.

I'd love to know more about your work, and share a little about mine. Would you be open to a short conversation — a coffee or a call?

Warmly,

[Your name]

[Website] · [Phone]

Template 3 — Fellow Death care Practitioner
For connecting with someone in a complementary role — a death doula, a funeral director with a different approach, a grief facilitator.

SUBJECT LINE: Fellow death worker — introduction and connection

EMAIL BODY: Dear [Name],

I came across your work recently and wanted to reach out — it resonates with mine in a way I don't often find.

My name is [Your name]. I'm a [your role] based in [your area]. I work with [brief who and what].

I don't think of other practitioners in this field as competitors. I think of us as a network — and a stronger one when we know each other. If you ever have a family whose needs fall outside your scope, or you're looking for someone to refer to, I'd be glad to be in that conversation with you. And likewise.

I'd love to connect — even briefly.

With warmth,

[Your name]

[Website] · [Phone]

CHANNEL THREE — Authority

Here's is 15 ideas for you to consider:
THINGS YOU WRITE

1) The thing families wish they'd known before the funeral. A short article drawn entirely from your own experience — the moment a family said "I didn't know we could do that" or "I wish someone had told us." One story, one insight, one shift in understanding. This is the kind of content that gets shared by people who recognise themselves in it.

2) A plain-language explainer of what you actually do. Not your bio — a genuine explanation of what it is like to work with you. What happens in the first conversation. What you bring to a family that they couldn't easily find elsewhere. Written for someone who has never heard of a death doula or a funeral celebrant and is trying to work out whether they need one.

3) Your honest answer to the question you get asked most often. Every practitioner has one. "What actually happens to a body?" "Can we have the funeral at home?" "How do I know if I need a grief counsellor?" Write the full, honest answer you would give a friend — and publish it.

4) A piece about a cultural or seasonal moment. Día de Muertos, Dying to Know Day, the first Christmas without someone. Write something that uses the moment as a doorway into a bigger conversation about death, grief or ritual. Timely content travels further and stays useful longer than people expect.

5) A letter to someone who is about to lose a person they love. Not advice. Not a list. A letter. The kind of thing you wish existed when your own grief was new, or that you wish you could hand to every family you work with. Personal, specific, generous.

THINGS YOU CAN SAY OUT LOUD

6) A Death Café. If you don't already host one — start one. It is simultaneously a community service, a visibility strategy, a referral pipeline and a demonstration of your facilitation skills, all in a single evening. The How to Start a Death Café video covers the rest.

7) A free community talk at your local library. Most Australian libraries actively seek community speakers on health, wellbeing and social topics. A one-hour talk on death literacy, advance care planning, or what families are legally allowed to do when someone dies — offered freely, to a general audience — puts your name and your face in front of people who would never have found you online.

8) A guest spot on someone else's podcast or platform. You don't need your own podcast to build authority through audio. Identify three podcasts whose audience overlaps with yours — grief, wellness, community, spirituality, women's health — and pitch yourself as a guest. One conversation, heard by a thousand people who trust the host, does significant work.

9) A panel or Q&A at a professional event. Palliative care conferences, social work continuing education days, nursing professional development events. These audiences — allied health professionals — are your referral network. Being visible to them as a knowledgeable peer is worth a year of Instagram posts.

10) A workshop for a specific community. Not a general public event — a targeted one. A workshop for aged care workers on talking to residents about death. A session for HR managers on supporting staff through workplace grief. A morning for new parents on talking to children about death. The more specific the audience, the more useful you are to them, and the more clearly your authority forms.

THINGS YOU CAN MAKE

11) A short video answering one question. Not a produced piece — a phone video, two to three minutes, answering one question directly. "What does a death doula actually do on the day?" "What's the difference between a funeral director and a funeral celebrant?" "What should I do in the first hour after someone dies?" One question, one honest answer, filmed wherever you are. These are the most searchable and shareable pieces of content a deathcare practitioner can create.

12) A resource families can use without you. A one-page guide to what to do when someone dies at home. A checklist of questions to ask a funeral home. A list of what goes into an advance care directive. Something genuinely useful to a family in a difficult moment — with your name on it. Resources like this travel far and return to you slowly, as people remember who made the thing that helped them. One that performs really well for me is: Blue Mountains Funeral Venues - 21 Stunning Locations For A Beautiful Funeral.

13) A behind-the-scenes post or story. Not morbid. Honest. What does your preparation look like before a ceremony? What do you carry in your kit? What do you do to decompress after a hard day? The ordinary texture of this work — seen by people who never get to see it — is consistently the most engaging content practitioners in this field produce. It humanises you and demystifies the work at the same time.

THINGS YOU CAN BUILD OVER TIME

14) A monthly or quarterly newsletter. Not a marketing email. A genuine correspondence with your community — what you've been thinking about, what you've read, what you've noticed in your work. One piece of useful content. One link. Sent to whoever has opted in to hear from you. A newsletter is the quietest and most durable visibility tool that exists. The people on your list chose to be there. That is a different quality of attention than a social media algorithm. I will create a whole class on this for those who need some inspiration and guidance - coming soon!

15) A signature talk you give everywhere you're invited. One talk, refined over time, that you can deliver to almost any audience with minor adjustments. Something that sits at the intersection of your specific expertise and a question that matters to people who know nothing about death care. "What I've learned from sitting with dying people." "What good grief actually looks like." "Why your community needs to talk about death before it has to." The practitioners who become known in their fields are almost always the ones who have one thing they say, and say it well, over and over, to whoever will listen.

6. COMPLETION: WHY WE NEED YOU VISIBLE

This Week: Three things. Not thirty. Three.

You've done the thinking. You've watched the videos, worked through the framework, identified your trust gaps and your channels.

Now it's time to do something visible with it.

Not next week. Not when everything feels perfectly ready. This week — because the only thing standing between you and a sustainable, visible practice is the gap between knowing and doing.

Here are your three starting actions:

01 — Publish your positioning statement somewhere public

You wrote it. Now put it somewhere people can see it.

Your Instagram bio. Your website homepage. Your email signature. Even just one of these.

It doesn't need to be perfect. It needs to exist somewhere outside your head. This is the single most important action you can take this week — because everything else in visibility rests on it. If people can't understand what you do and who you're for, none of the other work lands.

Where will you put it? 

02 — Send one relationship-building email or message

One person. One genuine, warm, brief message.

A GP whose patients might benefit from knowing you exist. A grief counsellor you've been meaning to connect with. A palliative care nurse you met at an event. A colleague in a complementary field who refers work to practitioners like you.

Not a pitch. Not a newsletter. A real message, from you, to one specific person, that says: I exist, this is what I do, I'd love to know what you're working on.

Use the Referral Outreach email template from your resources if you need a starting point.

Who will you contact? 

03 — Draft one piece of educational content

Not publish. Draft.

Choose one topic from the Channel One examples in Lesson 5 — something you know deeply and that the people who need you genuinely need to understand. Write the first version. Film a rough take. Sketch the outline.

It doesn't go anywhere yet. It just needs to exist. Because a piece of content that exists in draft form is infinitely closer to being published than one that only exists as a good intention.

What will you write or film?

These three actions are not a marketing plan.

They are the beginning of a habit.

And habit — sustained over months and years — is what builds a visible, sustainable death care practice.

Amy x