What happens to the body after death? How does embalming work? Undertakers talk about this openly on social media – and many follow suit.
Nobody likes to think about their own death. Nevertheless, Luis Bauer landed a hit on the Internet precisely with the topic. Thousands of people watch the 16-year-old on Tiktok, some of his videos are clicked a million times.
“We didn’t believe it ourselves, it just went up overnight,” says his father Johannes Bauer. He owns a funeral home in Fürth near Nuremberg, in which his son also works.
In his clips, Luis Bauer talks about death, grief, and work as an undertaker – and answers all sorts of questions, such as whether it stinks in the hearse or what has been his worst experience so far.
Father and son share the same enthusiasm for social networks. Johannes Bauer has been active on Facebook for 15 years. He has his own video blog on YouTube. He also regularly feeds Instagram with new pictures.
“We show ourselves at work, privately and that we are people who laugh too,” says the 43-year-old. The goal is to take away people’s fear of the subject of death. “And we notice that they are thirsting for information.”
According to the Federal Association of German Undertakers, social media are becoming increasingly important for the industry. This was also shown in the face of the corona pandemic when funeral ceremonies were broadcast as a live stream due to the contact restrictions, says Secretary General Stephan Neuser. “We think it is very important that the subject of death and mourning comes into the public eye and is no longer consistently taboo.”
Johannes Bauer’s funeral home recently opened an account on Snapchat, which it uses to send encouraging messages to grieving youngsters once a day. This is looked after by his 13-year-old daughter. Being present on the various channels takes a lot of time, but he and his team are happy to take it, says Bauer. “It is an affair of the heart.”
David William is a talented author who has made a name for himself in the world of writing. He is a professional author who writes on a wide range of topics, from general interest to opinion news. David is currently working as a writer at 24 hours worlds where he brings his unique perspective and in-depth research to his articles, making them both informative and engaging.
