FAQs

MIMS™ stands for the Mortuary Information Management System. It is an all-inclusive funeral home management software package. This means that you will be able to automate tasks that funeral directors deal with in their office, such as: take case information, print state, federal and custom documents, print stationary, prayer cards and memorial folders, keep track of financial information including payments and interest, print invoices and statements, print General Price Lists, and much much more.

To run MIMS™, you will need a PC running the Windows™ operating system. MIMS™ will work on Windows™ machines running Windows™ XP, Windows™ Vista or Windows 7. MIMS™ can work on Apple computers using Parallels or you can access a Windows server using your Mac and Microsoft Remote Desktop Connection Client for Mac. MIMS™ does not run on Unix/Linux machines.

You will need to be using Microsoft Word™ software. MIMS™ interacts extensively with Microsoft Word™ and in fact all stationary and documents used by MIMS™ are Microsoft Word™ documents and templates.

Twin Tiers recommends the use of HP printers; however chances are that MIMS™ will work fine with your existing printer, especially if you have no problems printing Microsoft Word™ documents.

If you wish to include photos with your cases for use on prayer cards and memorial folders, we recommend a basic flatbed scanner. Many scanners are below $100 now and will work fine for general purpose use.

Your MIMS™ purchase comes with one year of support. After this initial year, you can choose to renew your yearly support for a fee.

Included in this yearly support fee: Any and all updates and patches to the system. Form changes State and Federal, including updated Death Certificates and any newly required forms. Toll-free 24/7 phone support. Replacement Disks, Access to the Downloads area. Access to the Customer portal.

Of course! Simply call or email us and request a free demo. This demo program is good for a full 60 days and phone support during the 60 day trial period is included.

Chances are, no. We can convert data from almost any competitors' software program so you can access it in MIMS™. Data conversion is a separate service from the MIMS™ software packages and prices depend upon the amount of data and the type of program we are converting from. Please contact us for a more detailed quote.

Not at all! When you receive your full MIMS™ program and install it, it will use the same database as the demo program. You will not lose any data you have entered.

As safe as you want to make it. MIMS™ works with SQL database files and we have a backup and restore feature in the MIMS™ program that will allow you to backup your data to a flash drive. We HIGHLY recommend weekly backups of your MIMS™ data file to prevent loss of information in the event of file corruption or a hard drive crash.

MIMS™ data has never been lost due to MIMS™ program upgrades.

That depends. If you have more than one location, yet you do all your paperwork from a single office, you will not have to purchase a site license. MIMS™ has the ability to keep track of multiple funeral home information.

If you have more than one location and each location operates independently of each other, you will have to purchase an additional site license to install MIMS™ on the computers at your second location. Site licenses are an additional cost.

We accept multiple payment options. Visa, MasterCard and American Express are all accepted. We also accept checks. Please contact us for more information.

To complete your MIMS™ order, we will need the following information when you return your signed proposal and payment receipt:

• Copies of your letterhead or company logo. If you do not have a company letterhead, please send us information on what information you want listed on the letterhead.
• The Register Books that you use.
• A copy of your standard obituary format.
• Any custom forms you want incorporated into the MIMS™ program are an additional cost. If you wish to add your own forms to the program provide us with the original forms and we will give you an estimated cost to complete the work.

By "custom forms", we mean any forms that are not State or Federal forms that you currently use and want included in the MIMS™ program. These could be local (county or city) forms, or custom forms that your funeral home has developed for your own use. We can incorporate these into MIMS™ so that you can access them from the program, and they will automatically be filled out by the program.

If you're not comfortable installing new software, you have a few options available.

If you have a computer technician for your company, he or she can help you install the program. This is useful if you have more than one computer in your office and they are networked together.

Once you receive the software, you can contact Twin Tiers and we will be happy to walk you through the installation over the phone.

Twin Tiers technicians are available for on-site installation and training services. Prices start at $500 per day plus expenses. Please contact us if you would like more information on this service.

That depends. If you send us all the information required to process your order with your payment, we can generally ship your basic system to you within 4 days. Your basic system is a full version of MIMS, but without any custom documents (register books, custom obituaries, etc.)

Custom documents are generally available anywhere from 5 days to 2 weeks from the date the documents are received. Depending on your preference, these documents will be made available via download from the Twin Tiers website or you can choose to have a new program CD sent with the custom documents included.

Well, that's a matter of opinion! Here are some of the reasons that our clients have given us as to why they chose MIMS™, or why they switched to MIMS™ from another software system:

• It's all inclusive. To get the features of the MIMS™ Basic program from another company, you would have to purchase multiple modules and spend up to 4 times as much money.
• It's easier to use. We designed MIMS™ from a funeral director's standpoint, so you don't have to change your work habits to work with MIMS™.
• The support is better. Our clients who have switched from other software programs tell us that our support team is the best they've worked with - and we're proud of it!
• It's powerful. We think the best thing about MIMS™ is the fact that you can determine the level upon which you operate with MIMS™. If you're not too comfortable with computers, or just don't have the time to delve into everything that MIMS™ can do, that's fine - MIMS™ can operate perfectly well with a minimum of effort. However, MIMS™ power users find that the program is vastly powerful, and with a little practice users can create their own custom forms and documents - even reports! - Opening up a whole new world of control and convenience.

Twin Tiers can get you a great deal on domain name registration. We can get you a ten-year registration on the domain name of your choice for a one-time only payment of $145.00! That works out to $14.50 a year - a great value compared to other registration companies who charge $20 or even $30 dollars a year. Every domain name we register belongs to you.

Not at all! Although our database-driven websites are designed to work with the MIMS™ system, they are also great for non-MIMS™ users. The Website Manager system allows you to add obituaries and calendar information easily and quickly, without having to know any programming. It works just like an easy-to-use software program - just fill in the blanks!

Non-MIMS™ clients will have to purchase the Premium hosting package to access Website Manager. Please contact us for more information and a walkthrough.

This is a good example of the old adage, "You get what you pay for". Most hosting packages are set up with the professional web designer in mind. They offer very little in the way of technical support, walkthroughs or easy to use interfaces. You end up renting space on a server and little else. Of course, professional web designers generally need very little in the way of extra support or features - they know what to do.

You, on the other hand, are a funeral director. You already have a business to run, with your own expertise and training in your chosen field. You want a website that's easy to maintain, great technical support when you need it, and lots of choices.

The Website Manager system is based on a database engine and is installed on our servers - that's why we cannot offer the system for use with other hosting companies. The powerful features and interaction with the MIMS™ program alone would cost hundreds - even thousands - to replicate on its own.

In addition to the cutting edge technology involved with the Website Manager system and database engine, Twin Tiers also offers full support with each website package. Most discount hosting packages only list an email address or - if you're lucky - a non-toll free phone number. We're here to assist you with whatever comes up with your website!

In conclusion, with a website and hosting package from Twin Tiers, it's like having an on-site website designer and IT helpdesk right in your own office - for a fraction of the cost of actually hiring additional personnel!

Still not convinced? Look at it this way: Having an obituary online is a value-added service for your families. Let's say you charge $15 for having an obituary included on your website. You would only need a few interested families take advantage of this service to pay for your hosting for a month!

Once we have all the information we need to build your website - content, pictures and an approved site design - we can have your site up and running in 1-2 weeks. Some of this time is dependant on when Domain Name Server lists are updated, and those times vary with each ISP and is not something we have control over.

If you are in a hurry to have a web presence, we can set up a simple page with your contact information noting that your new website will be launched soon within 24-48 hours. This will also have a place where people can sign up to be notified of the official website launch. You can even begin uploading obituaries to this temporary site right away!

That depends on what you want to do with your site. With the MIMS™ software, you can upload obituaries and schedule information right from MIMS™ - something you can do yourself while you're preparing information for the case!

If you want to make textual changes to the site and you have the Premium hosting plan, making changes is as easy as typing in a Word document. If you don't have time to do it yourself, it is easily accomplished by any administrative personnel you wish to assign the task to.

If you do not have the Premium hosting plan or if you have major overhauls in mind that you don't want your in-house staff to do, contact us and we can get you a very reasonable quote for the work you have in mind.