Announcement or invitation?
The two are close, but they answer different questions. An announcement says: this person has died. An invitation says: this is where and when you can come. Sometimes a family sends both, first a simple announcement and later an invitation once the arrangements are made. Sometimes there is only an announcement, because the service will be private or because nothing has been planned yet. In the maker you choose the kind of video at the top, and it adjusts what it asks for. An announcement without a time or place is complete as it is. If there will be a service everyone may attend, see how to make a funeral invitation video.
What a funeral announcement video contains
A typical announcement has the full name, the years or the full dates, a portrait and one short line, such as "With love we share that Dad passed away peacefully on Sunday." You can add that details about the service will follow, so nobody needs to call and ask. If the service is for family only, you can say so gently; the private service announcement shows how. The video is about half a minute long, long enough to read everything calmly and short enough to watch to the end in a text thread.
Sending it the same day
The first message usually goes out quickly, often within a day. That is exactly when a typed text gets copied with small mistakes. A video keeps the wording the same for everyone. You can send it by text or iMessage, email, WhatsApp, or post it on Facebook. If something changes, such as the service being added later, you correct the video and send the new version with one short line saying it replaces the first one. Practical steps are in how to share a funeral invitation video.
Words that work
Plain words are usually best. "Passed away", "died" and "left us" are all fine; choose the one the family would say out loud. Avoid putting the cause of death in an announcement unless the family clearly wants that. For more examples, including texts for social media, read death announcement wording.
What it costs
You can build the announcement and watch the preview for free. The preview has a PREVIEW watermark. When it is right, a finished video is $199 total, paid once, and you download it in vertical, square and landscape format. If the family later wants an invitation with the service details, that is a separate video.
Who the announcement is for
An announcement often goes to a wider circle than the people who will attend: former coworkers, neighbors from an old street, friends from church or a club, relatives who live far away. Many of them would like to know, even if they cannot come. A short video lets the family reach all of them at once, without retelling the news on the phone again and again. It also gives people something to forward to others who knew the person, with the wording the family chose. If you want people to be able to reply, add one short line with the name of the family member who will answer messages, so condolences go to one place instead of five.
When you send an announcement and later an invitation
If the family sends an announcement first and an invitation once the service is set, the two videos can look alike. Use the same photo and the same background, so people recognize the second message as the next step. In the invitation, the service details are the main thing; the name and dates stay the same. Each video is its own video, so you can keep the announcement as it was. For timing between the two, see how soon to send a funeral invitation. For more announcement wording in text form, read what to include in a funeral invitation and adapt the parts that apply.
Check before you send
- The family agrees with the wording
- The name and dates are correct
- You decided whether service details are in or out
- The photo came from the family
- You watched it once with sound on
About these guides
Written by Funeral Invitations, in plain language, for funeral directors and families. If anything changes about the videos or the price, we update the guides.