Earn More. Work Less.
This isn’t an attorney but he offers a cogent explanation of how social medial should fit into an attorney’s marketing mix. What’s that? You don’t have a mix? Oh my, you really should have a mix. . .
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(Originally sent to my ezine list, The Prosperous Lawyer.)
You haven’t heard from me in a few weeks–because I haven’t written much lately. I’ve posted several articles on the blog , but I haven’t kept pace with my original "posting" schedule.
There’s a simple reason for that: I’ve been busy. Okay, that’s not completely true. I haven’t written much lately mainly because I didn’t feel like it.
Of course professionals have to do things we don’t feel like doing. We have responsibilities. People depend on us. And if we want to keep the income flowing, we have to work. But that’s not my job description anymore.
Nope. I started my other business because I wanted passive income and "time freedom," the ability to do what I want, when I want, and work only if I want to. I’ve accomplished that, and don’t rely on my blog for income (nor do I practice law any more), but I have been recommending to my readers that they set up a blog because of the many advantages they offer.
But my quasi-hiatus did get me thinking about the idea behind blogging, that is, even though there isn’t a lot of work to keeping a blog going, you really can’t stop. Not if you depend on it for your business or practice.
Then I got an email from someone for whom I have a lot of respect, Ken Evoy, a former physician turned online entrepreneur. He is extremely successful and well-regarded. Ken’s company specializes in helping people with little or no experience get a website and, more importantly, get free traffic from search engines, and they do it extraordinarily well. I was one of his original customers when he launched his SBI program years ago, and I have nothing but good things to say about Ken and SBI.
But his email troubled me. Probably because it touched on what I was already thinking.
Ken said that for most people (people like you and me) blogging is not the way to go. He says it’s a mistake, a "time-sapping strategic error." One reason (but not the only one) is that because of the way Google valuates the timeliness of posts, taking a break from blogging will cause your relevancy to drop, and the result is a drop in traffic. And search engine traffic is one of the key advantages of blogging.
Another reason is that because of the way blogs archive information, most visitors never see most of it. They read the most current post or two and never dig deeper.
I didn’t want to hear this. Although I don’t depend on my blog, I’ve posted a lot of content and I’d like to think people are reading it and benefiting from it. Wouldn’t you?
Ken’s going to ruffle a lot of feathers, especially considering the respect he has in the online community. But I read his email and the web page he’s posted explaining it, and I have to admit he does make a compelling case. He shows why a static web site, properly organized and optimized, will bring you more search engine traffic than a blog. What’s more, if you take a break from writing for two months, you won’t be penalized.
Ken says his service, SBI (SiteBuildIt) is a better choice than blogging because it is
I am not an expert on the subject; not even close. No doubt many experts will weigh in. I’ll see what they say, and
suggest you do, too.
There’s no question Ken is biased. After all, he does sell SBI (and I am an enthusiastic affiliate), but based on what I know
about him, I think he believes every word he says. Read Ken’s argument and see what you think.
I’ve used SBI and recommended it for years. There’s no question that it has monumental benefits, especially for busy lawyers who can’t spend a lot of time on their web site. And SBI has blogging capability built it, for those who want the best of both worlds. So take a look and tell me what you think. I’ll post this on my blog and you can post your comments there.
P.S. Quick links:
If you write a newsletter or a blog (and you should) you need content. But it takes time to write something worth reading and attorneys have precious little time to spare. There are services now that sell articles you can use, copyright free. You pay your money and you can print them under your name.
It’s a new twist on an old idea.
Canned newsletter for professionals have been around for years. My state bar sells pamphlets lawyers can send to their clients with their name stamped on the back. Of course you can hire a ghost writer, or assign someone in your office to write material for you. There are plenty of ways to get content that you don’t originate. The question is, should you?
In my opinion, you should not. Canned materials are never a good substitute for creating your own newsletter, articles and reports. They are better than nothing, but not much.
One reason is that far fewer people will read it. These articles and newsletters are very general and very bland. And a lot of people will know you didn’t write them. I toss my insurance agents newsletter in the trash, unopened, because I know it comes from a staff writer in New York and has little value to me. There is nothing personal or interesting in it. My dentist writes a personal newsletter, but it is terribly boring. I open and glance at it, in case there might be something that pertains to me in it (e.g., a change in his office personnel or procedure) but I don’t read it.
(Here’s a clue that it’s canned: there are no stories in them. Facts tell, but stories sell, and if what you write doesn’t have stories in them, either, you’re missing the boat.)
Now, there is some value in your clients getting something from you with your name on it, even if they don’t open the envelope or email. They are at least reminded that you still exist. But you’re missing the opportunity to build a relationship with them, and that’s costing you more than you can imagine.
The purpose of newsletters and reports and blogs is to (a) stay in touch, reminding people that you still exist, (b) demonstrate your expertise, your ability to deliver the benefits they seek, and (c) create a dialog with the reader that supports your relationship with them. With canned material, you can only stay in touch, and poorly, at best.
You want people to read your words, and "hear" your voice. You want them to believe you are writing just to them. You want them to read and appreciate your special news or offer. And you want them to see that you care enough about them to take a couple of hours once or twice a month to write something "just for them".
The time you invest in this process will not only be "worth it," it is the single most profitable thing you could do to build your practice.
Seriously. The people who know, like, and trust you will hire you again and again and they will efer people to you, too. There is no cost to acquire these clients, other than printing/mailing costs if you do that (and you should) and your time.
Now, don’t panic. Once you get the hand of it, it doesn’t take as long as you think.
Start by producing some "evergreen" materials, reports, for example, that once written, you can use over and over again for years to come. You have expertise in your field and you can write a report in two hours. Here’s your assignment for your first one: Take the five or ten questions you are asked the most by prospective or new clients, and answer them. There, you have a report.
A newsletter or blog require continual replenishment of material, but this is worth it, too. You don’t need as much as you think. A monthly newsletter could be two pages. A postcard, if that’s all you can do. Far more important than quantity is that they hear from a real person, sharing a story, a thought, a piece of your mind.
For a blog, three to five paragraphs, one to three times a week can be enough. What’s important is that it be your voice, your opinion, a glimpse into your world. Your clients and prospects (and referral sources) need to feel they are a part of your life and you a part of theirs. You want them to "know, like, and trust" you, and to do that, your material needs to be your own.
I’ve told attorneys in the past to order the canned newsletter or articles if they feel they must, but to make them their own. "Rewrite them, add your commentary, offer examples and advice that are specific to your practice. What do you agree with? Disagree with? What else does the reader need to know?"
Today you can pretty much do that without paying a service. Just go online, find something someone else has written, and use it as an outline or idea starter for your own material.
If you want to know how to optimize your blog for search engines and other great tips for building visitors and subscribers, check out this easy to read free resource, The Blogger’s Guide to SEO. I have it on good authority that the author of this guide is a good authority. In fact, he wrote the book on it: (The SEO Book).
Author Aaron Wall says, "While we wrote a 300+ page book about SEO, only a dozen pages are needed to cover how to do SEO for a blog." Get it? It’s not because there’s not much you can do with a blog vs. a static web page, it’s becuase you don’t have to–blogs do most of it for you.
If you are hesitant to start a blog (or add one to your existing web site), perhaps this will persuade you. But hey, if you don’t want free advice about getting free traffic that could turn into paying clients, then go ahead, renew your M-H web page and tell yourself you are marketing online. (Yes, I’m being sassy; deal with it.)
The latest version of the software I used to create The Attorney Marketing Center blog (and several new web sites) has just released a new version. Very cool. I’ll be upgrading the site soon and show you some of the new bells and whistles. In the mean time, you can check it out on this page.
Would like to add video to your web site or blog? Techsmith, makers of Camtasia, wants to give you a free copy of their powerful screen capture software. You can use it to post audios, videos, software demos, narrated Powerpoint presentations, or anything else you can think of. And did I mention, it’s free?
The catch? It’s not the latest version. Camtasia Studio 3.1.3 has all the core functions of the latest release, minus the newest bells and whistles.
Posting (original) videos to our web sites is something we all need to do, and this is a good place to start. I haven’t used the software yet, but I’m told it’s easy to use. My first project will be a video tour of another website I own, showing what’s what and where to find it, how to subscribe to the newsletter and the feed, and so on.
To get your free copy of Camtasia Studio 3.1.3, here’s all you need to do:
Step 1
Download the software from here – (save the file to your desktop).
http://download.techsmith.com
Step 2
Go to this page, complete your name, country and e-mail address and Techsmith will send you a software key to unlock the program.
http://www.techsmith.com
Step 3
Install the software and then input the key to unlock it and you will have the full working version of Camtasia Studio 3.
Note: Unfortunately, this is available for PCs only (sorry Mac users!)
Thanks to Yaro Starak for alerting me to this offer.
When I write a post for this blog, I often reference what I’ve said in previous posts, but it’s getting harder to remember what I’ve said, let alone where I said it. I can’t even remember what I wrote yesterday without looking.
I can scroll through the blog, of course, and read what I wrote, but how far back do you go? I’ve only been writing the blog for a couple of months, what am I going to do after a couple of years?
I can use the "categories" and "search" functions to bring up posts on a given topic, but that only works if I use the same categories or key words to describe something, and I don’t always do that.
So, today I created a marketing diary for the blog. (Hmm, that’s a diary for a diary.) Anyway, it’s a simple list, updated with each post or page, describing the topics and resources mentioned. Nothing fancy, just a few lines that tell me what I’ve done. The first entry will be about this article.
It’s digital, not on paper, so it’s simple to copy and paste the headline, which automatically copies the permalink. Add a few descriptive lines and key words, and I’m done. Because it’s digital, I can easily search the diary and find everything I’ve said on a given subject. (I’m using Info Select, which I wrote about here). But I can also see, by scrolling through the list, exactly what I’ve been doing day to day and week to week.
A marketing diary isn’t just for blogs, however, it’s a good idea for all marketing activities. Recording your activities in a daily diary specifically for that purpose is not only a valuable reference tool ("Did I send that thank you note?" "How many calls did I make last week?") it’s also a way to remind yourself to do something every day.
Marketing isn’t about giant leaps, it’s about simple daily activities, done repeatedly, over time. That’s why I recommend 15 minutes a day, every day. Everyone can find 15 minutes a day; that’s easy. But, "what’s easy to do is also easy to not do," Jim Rohn says, and so calendaring the time to do it, in advance, and recording it in a diary afterwards, will help keep you on track.
If your phone isn’t ringing as much as you would like and I was your marketing coach, the first thing I would do is ask to see your calendar. The second thing I would do is ask to see is your diary.
Grant Griffiths, at Home Office Lawyer, wrote about his disappointment with a recent ABA Journal article, 50 Ways To Market Your Practice: Top tips from successful solos and small-firm practitioners, because the list doesn’t include blogging or, indeed, much of anything about marketing legal services online.
I agree. It is a glaring omission.
Many of the tips came from the ABA’s Solosez discussion group, comprised of more than 2000 solos and small-firm lawyers, and you would think that lawyers in that demo would be more progressive. But this is THE ABA we’re talking about and we really shouldn’t expect them–or their readers–to be on the leading edge of thought regarding the business of law, any more than we should expect this of law schools.
I suspect that many of their readers know about blogging but don’t do it, and that’s why they didn’t offer it as a "marketing tip". Let’s face it, most attorneys from all demographics still don’t have a web site, let alone a blog. Attorneys are risk-adverse and most aren’t early adoptors (I still consider November, 2007 to be early in the blogging game). Congratulations to those of you who have been at this for awhile–you can be proud of your leadership.
As more attorneys consider blogging, I predict that most will come around slowly, at best. Here’s why:
Many lawyers will eventually see the benefits, and monkey-see, monkey-do. (Does anyone remember that expression?) We’ll start to see more attorneys at least talking about blogging.
For those who are challenged by technology, there are ebooks that show how to do it quickly (and free), and other information resources. There’s also software (which is what I used), and firms like this and this who will design and set up a blog for you. We’ll see more resources coming along, so that lack of "know how" will no longer be an excuse "not to".
Those who say it’s too much work are right, of course, assuming they don’t see the benefits or don’t believe they have the time. And then there will be those who say they will set up a blog only if they can delegate the work to someone else, and, of course, that’s not blogging.
The biggest group will be those who see it and want to do it, but don’t think they have the time. Of course if one compares blogging to other marketing activities, i.e., seminars, public speaking or networking, fifteen to thirty minutes a day, a few days a week doesn’t sound like much, and it’s not, especially if you blog not just for the material benefits but because you enjoy it. Nevertheless, a lawyers’ time is precious and I’m going to do my part to demonstrate that with a little thought, you can easily line up more material for your blog than you will ever be able to use. Let’s use the ABA article to demonstrate.
The article presents 50 ways to market a law practice, and while they aren’t all gems, most are good ideas. Marketing is often simple ideas, well executed, and so while these tips might be in the "I already know that" category for some, they will be completely new, for others. And everyone can benefit from knowing not just what to do (the tip) but how to do it (or do it better). That’s where I come in. From this one artcle, I can get enough ideas to write my blog for an entire year.
The first tip is to join your local chamber of commerce. Well, now, I could write a dozen articles on that subject alone! There’s what to look for in a suitable chamber, how to do due diligence before you join, how to meet people, what to say when you introduce yourself, which committees are best to volunteer for, how to start a conversation with people you meet, how to get others interested in you, how to leverage your membership to create other marketing opportunities, and so on. Two, maybe three weeks worth of material from the one tip, and who knows what other ideas that will lead to.
The second tip is to have a unique business card and hand it out frequently. I’ve written on this subject before, and have more advice in my head (and in my marketing course), and, in addition, a quick search on the Internet will bring other ideas, as well as resources I could recommend (e.g., designers, printers).
And so on. Enough ideas for a year or more.
It’s true that a tip is not an article (I have to produce that), but when you are an expert on something (marketing, your practice area), you have a lot more to say than you may realize. What is obvious to you is often brilliant to those who don’t know it.
And blog articles are usually short. They provide a few pointers and/or resources, share a story, or offer an opinion about something in the news or on someone else’s blog. It doesn’t take a lot of time to write a few paragraphs, especially when you are knowledgeable about (and interested in) the subject.
One caution if you’re thinking of starting a blog: it can be addicting. If you’re not careful, you could spend too much time writing and not enough time doing everything else you need to do, like I have done today. Maybe I should reconsider that delegating thing. . .
Internet empresario John Reese, announced today that Blogrush, designed to help bloggers generate free, targeted traffic to their blog, has entered phase 2. (I announced the arrival of Blogrush, here.)
You’ve seen the Blogrush widget on this blog, and others, for the last month or so. The widget displays posts from other related blogs, providing visitors with a convenient method of finding other relevant blogs. My posts have appeared in the widget on other law-related blogs; posts from other blogs have appeared on mine. The result: free, targeted referral traffic to my web site.
Thanks, John!
Because my blog is new and I don’t yet have a lot of traffic, Blogrush gives me free "bonus credits". This gives me extra impressions, which bring extra traffic. Thanks again!
In Phase 1, The Attorney Marketing Center has been listed in the "law and legal" category. On Friday, Reese says the company will unveil new categories. I’m hoping to see vertical market categories for lawyers and others interested in marketing legal servicees. I sent an email to the Blogrush team today, and suggested some representative key words: attorney marketing, lawyer marketing, law firm marketing, legal marketing, marketing legal services. I could live with a category that includes law office management and marketing, but the more specific the categories, the more targeted the traffic.
Blogrush is free. If you have a blog, go watch the movie and see how Blogrush can bring you free traffic.
If you’re interested in marketing your law practice online (and you should be) there are two resources I want to recommend. The first is a new book, "The New Rules of Marketing & PR" by David Meerman Scott. The sub-title is, "How to use news releases, blogs, podcasting, viral marketing & online media to reach buyers directly." That about says it all. I’ve just started reading it and can tell you, it’s excellent. Highly recommended.
The other resource is a free ebook from consultant Brandon Cornet at websmartlawyer.com. It covers web sites, blogging, search engines, lead generation, and has links to oodles of resources. Valuable stuff.
Cornet’s ebook is itself a fine example of viral online marketing, in that it is a free download from his web site (you don’t even need to supply an email address to get it), coupled with good content that demonstrates his knowledge and experience. Sure enough, here I am "distributing" it to you, and thus, this strategy could quickly generate hundreds of qualified leads for Cornet’s consulting services.
It illustrates another key marketing concept, niche marketing. Cornet could hold himself out as, simply, an Internet/website consultant, hoping to appeal to "everyone" but, like so many others, he would find his voice drowned out by his many competitors. Instead, by targeting lawyers, he narrows his focus, which should make it easier to both generate leads and close them, since clients (and that includes lawyers) prefer specialists.
Both books agree, the Internet has forever changed the rules of marketing. Those who ignore this, do so at their peril.
More free software–promote your law firm web site through blog comments
One way to promote your web site or blog is by posting comments on other blogs, but finding the right ones is time consuming. To some extent, you can automate that process with "Comment Kahuna," free software from Jason Katzenback, Marc Quarles & Jason Potash at DealDotCom.com
This link takes you to a short video that explains how it works, and then you can download the software.
I used Comment Kahuna to find attorney marketing blogs I’ve never seen, and I then posted pithy comments thereon, linking back to my web site. Because your searching and posting activities are saved for you, it’s easier to go back to web sites where you have posted and see if your moderated comment got posted and if any follow-up by you is called for.
In the process, I found some good material I can use, here. For example, one site I found had an article listing web sites/directories where lawyers can list their web site. Here’s that article, and my comment.
Speaking of software, Susan Cartier Liebel mentioned she’s using PC Pitstop Erase to erase personal data from her lap top. Since data that has been deleted from your hard drive can be recovered by identity thieves, and stolen lap tops are a major source of identity theft, software like this is something every attorney should have. As I mentioned a few days ago, new laws impose liability on businesses (and that includes law firms) for failing to safeguard certain non-public information, so losing your lap top (or a breach of your desktop) could spell real trouble. If you’ve used PC Pitstop Erase, or something else you can recommend, please add your comments.