Email marketing rocks, for reasons I’ve spoken about many a time. But it’s not for everyone.
There are a few situations where a lawyer in private practice probably shouldn’t do email marketing.
Such as. . .
(1) Your firm or jurisdiction doesn’t allow it
There’s a difference between cold email, sent to strangers, and permission-based email sent to clients, business contacts, subscribers, and others who have opted in to a list or otherwise want to hear from you.
If you want to use email to build your practice, make sure your firm understands the difference. If they don’t and you can’t convince them or find exceptions (and you like your job), email marketing isn’t for you.
(2) You don’t need or want more business
You’ve got all the work you can handle, earn more than you can possibly spend, and are reasonably certain that this will continue. You don’t have a reason to do email marketing, or any marketing at all.
(3) You don’t believe it works for your practice
Why wouldn’t staying in touch with clients and business contacts result in repeat business and referrals?
I’ll give you a minute.
But hey, if you really believe it’s not right for you, you shouldn’t do it. Your heart won’t be in it and, frankly, you’ll find a way to mess it up to prove that what you believe is true.
(4) You don’t want to do it
That’s legitimate. There are a lot of marketing strategies that work incredibly well for a lot of lawyers I don’t want to do, and I don’t.
To each his or her own.
And that’s all I can think of.
Note, I didn’t mention “not enough time” or “don’t know how”. I don’t buy either of these. Any more than I accept “I tried it and it didn’t work.”
Like anything, it works if you want it to. It doesn’t if you don’t.
