Write for your clients, not your prospects

September 30, 2015 by
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A question posed on a marketing blog caught my attention: “How might your attitude to writing your newsletter or blog improve if you saw every reader as a client?”

It’s a great question.

You know your clients, and care about them, and so when you write to them or for them, you communicate at a deeper, more informed level than you do when you’re writing to strangers. You understand your client’s business. You know their family. You know what they like and how they think, what they need and what they want.

You have a relationship with them and when you write to them, you are more relaxed, more open, and more genuine.

Why not be that way with everyone?

When you write a blog post or article, when you speak before a group, when you meet people while networking, think about them as though they already are your clients. You may know nothing about them (yet) but by showing them that you care about them and want to help them, when you generously share your knowledge and advice, when you have a conversation with them instead of talking at them, they will come to know you and trust you.

Some of them will become actual clients. This is a great way to accelerate that process.

Website? Blog? Newsletter? Here’s what to do and how to do it

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Filed Under: Blogging, Communication, Presentations, Seminars and webinars, Writing

What kids can teach you about marketing legal services

September 28, 2015 by
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If you have kids you know that they are like a Terminator when it comes to asking questions. They never stop. They have an innate and insatiable curiosity about the world and their place in it and asking questions is how they make sense of it all.

Of course you also know that their favorite question is “why?”

When you tell them to eat their peas, they ask why. “Because I said so” isn’t a very good answer.

And yet “because I said so” will get many kids to comply. It is a reason, after all, even if it carries an innate threat of punishment for failure to do so.

On the other hand, if you give them a good reason to do what you ask, you should find it easier to get them to comply.

Well guess what? It works the same way with your clients, prospective clients, friends and followers on social media, and everyone else in your life. You want someone to hire you? Tell them why. You want them to click and read your post or register for your event? Tell them why. You want them send you referrals, tell them why?

What’s in it for them? What will they get out of it? What will happen if they don’t?

I got a text this morning from one of my business partners. There’s a conference call at 10 am and he would like me to listen to it. He told me what to do, but he didn’t tell me why.

What I will learn? What’s the subject matter? Who is the speaker? What will I get out of the call?

Many people will do what you ask out of habit or allegiance to you, out of curiosity, or because you said so. But more people will do it if you tell them why.

Studies have shown that the reason doesn’t have to be particularly strong. Offering any reason will increase response. “It’s Monday and we have a call at 10 am” isn’t a very good reason but it’s enough to get some people to dial in who otherwise might not.

But if you ask me, and you do, offering better and more compelling reasons will get more people to sign on and do what you ask.

In fact, the degree of your success in marketing legal services is a direct function of the persuasiveness of your message.

No reason? Some will comply. Lame reason? More will do so. Great reason? Home run. Multiple reasons with valuable benefits and invoking a fear of loss if they don’t? Grand slam.

You can’t threaten to send clients to their room if they don’t hire you or send you referrals. You need to tell them why.

Get this and you will get more clients and increase your income

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Filed Under: Client loyalty, Communication, Copywriting, Marketing legal services, Writing

Will you REALLY fight for me?

September 9, 2015 by
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A personal injury lawyer used to (still does?) run TV ads which ended with him pointing at the viewer and saying, “I’ll fight for you!”

But will he?

It depends.

Is it a good case? Are there enough damages? Does the other party have insurance?

If he were being honest, when asked if he would fight for the client, he would say, “We’ll see”.

“We’ll see” is a lawyer-like answer. But it won’t get the client to call.

Clients want more commitment. They do want you to fight for them. They don’t necessarily expect that you will win every time, or bring in a massive settlement, but they expect you to try.

“We’ll see” doesn’t cut it, so although you might be thinking it, don’t say that to a client.

Most lawyers recognize that their clients expect (and their oath demands) that they provide “best efforts” and they will tell the client something along the lines of, “I’ll do my best”.

That’s much better, but what if their best isn’t good enough? What if they don’t have enough experience? What if the case needs resources they don’t have? What if. . .

Your clients don’t want to hear that you’ll do your best, they want to hear that you’ll do “whatever it takes”. And that’s the message you should convey in your marketing.

This is also true for non-litigation matters. Clients want to know that you’ll do whatever it takes to help them achieve a good outcome. If you’re negotiating a contact, or drafting documents for them, they want to hear that you’ll do whatever it takes to protect them, deliver value, and make them happy.

“I’ll do my best” isn’t good enough. Tell them you’ll do “whatever it takes”.

If you want to earn more, make sure you have The Attorney Marketing Formula

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Filed Under: Advertising, Client relations, Closing the sale, Communication, Marketing legal services, Salesmanship, Writing

Your doctor doesn’t use an away message so why do you?

September 2, 2015 by
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I saw an article this morning about how to write a good out-of-office email and reminded myself that I’ve never used one. I don’t want to tell anyone that I am in or out of the office. I don’t want a leash.

Why do your clients need to know where you are? And why does it matter if you’re out? Do you need to be “in the office” to receive or reply to an email?

No, you don’t.

“What about when I’m out of town and cannot be “reached” (i.e., on vacation?) I won’t even look at their email for two weeks. Don’t I need to tell them that?”

No. Nobody needs to know where you are, or for how long, or when you might read or reply to their email.

Yes, you do need to be accessible. Clients need to know that when they need help, they can count on you. But that doesn’t mean they should expect a personal reply to every email or phone call. You have staff to do that for you.

In fact, why are you even giving your clients your email? Do you have your doctor’s email? If he provides one at all, it’s for his office, and if you write to him, someone in the office will reply. You don’t know whether your doctor is in the office, at the hospital, or on the golf course. If it’s an emergency, someone will be able to reach him.

And that’s how it should work for you.

If you are a lone wolf, have one email for your office, another for you in your capacity as a lawyer, and another for personal matters. Don’t give everyone your lawyer email. Give them the official office email, and make sure they know that someone else will be reading it.

Don’t give everyone your cell number, either. Get an answering service who can call you if it’s an emergency, and take messages if it is not.

When I started practicing, in the days before email and cell phones, I had a secretary, an answering service, and a pager. A client could reach my “office” at midnight if they wanted to, but unless it was a true emergency, nobody called them back until the morning.

I was accessible, but on my terms. I served my clients, but I wasn’t at their beck and call.

 

 

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Filed Under: Client relations, Communication, Law office management, Time Management Tagged With: , ,

What you write isn’t as important as how you write it

September 1, 2015 by
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How do you write an original article or blog post? After all, hundreds or thousands of attorneys (and others) are writing about the same things. They talk about the same laws, the same legal system, the same problems and solutions.

The good news is that what you write isn’t nearly as important as how you write it.

Prospective clients don’t read your content because they want to learn the ins and outs of your practice area. They don’t really want to learn about the law, they want to learn about you.

Do they understand you? Do they relate to you? Do they like and trust you?

So, while content is important, style and personality are more so.

Don’t be concerned with delivering the definitive word on your subject. Write something that will make prospective clients see you as someone they would like to work with.

How?

By putting yourself in your writing.

Tell them about clients you’ve helped–what you did, why you did it that way, and what happened. Talk about how you feel about the issues and about your clients. Give them not just the facts, but your advice.

Don’t hold back, either. Give them the unvarnished truth. Write with passion. Open up your heart and your mind and share what’s inside, and let people see who you are.

And that’s the best news, because there’s only one you.

If you give the same raw material to 100 attorneys and ask them to write an article about that material, most of the articles will be very similar. A few will be unique and show readers why they should choose them as their lawyer.

Only a few because most lawyers don’t understand (or are unwilling to accept) the fundamental truth that clients don’t hire your knowledge or your experience, they hire you.

Marketing online for attorneys made simple

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Filed Under: Blogging, Communication, Marketing legal services, Newsletters, Online Marketing, Writing

Sell more legal services with better reviews and testimonials

August 28, 2015 by
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I got another five star review on one of my Kindle books (on network marketing). It was a great review:

“Probably the most valuable book on network marketing I have ever read. . . and that is saying a lot. If you are in direct sales or network marketing, you will find great benefit in this book. Buy it! Now.”

Nice, huh?

Yes. And very much appreciated. But as good as it is, it could have been better.

When a prospective buyer reads a positive review like this, they will want to know “why?” Why is it so good? How is it different? What will I learn? What will this help me to do? What has it helped you  to do?

They want specifics.

The same goes for reviews of your legal services.

When a client posts a positive review about you online, or sends you a testimonial, encourage them to provide details. If they say you treated them well, ask them to give an example. If they talk about the great job you did on their case, ask them to explain what they mean.

Did you get them a bigger settlement than they expected? Did you close the case quickly? Did you do something extra for them?

Were you nice to their kids? Did you regularly keep them informed about the progress of their case? If they had questions, did you answer them thoroughly? If you weren’t in when they called, did you call them back within 48 hours?

Specifics.

Specifics help prospective clients see the benefits of hiring you. They also make the review more believable.

Reviews that recommend you and your services will bring you more clients. Especially when those reviews explain why they are recommending you.

Want more referrals from other lawyers? Behold. . .

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Filed Under: Client relations, Communication, Copywriting, Marketing legal services Tagged With: ,

I just met you, and this is crazy. But here’s my number. . .

July 31, 2015 by
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You just met someone. You give them your card. Then what? What do you do?

Do you tell them to call you? Do you give them a reason to do it? Something you’re going to share with them, or something you want to discuss with them?

Or do you leave follow-up to them?

Okay, maybe it’s too soon to call. Fine. Tell them to go to your website, to see an article you think they’ll be interested in, or a checklist they can fill out, or to download a report that covers the topic you’ve been discussing with them.

Because if they see that article or download that report, they will be one step closer to knowing what you do and how you can help them or the people they know.

Tell them what to do. Give them a reason to do it. Don’t leave it up to them. Don’t say maybe.

Too aggressive? Nah. You’re telling them about something that might benefit them. If they don’t want it, they won’t do it.

By the way, what’s on your card anyway? I see some attorneys make the mistake of not putting their website and email on their card. Why? I don’t know. Maybe they don’t have a website or use email, and if that’s true, that’s an even bigger mystery.

Hello, is this on?

But then making it easy for people to find out more about you and how you can help them is only one of the reasons we carry cards, and it’s not the most important one.

It’s not? No. The most important reason for giving someone your card is to get their card. So you can contact them. Because it’s your practice, not theirs, and marketing and following-up with people you meet is your responsibility. It’s also your best bet for turning a one-time meeting into new business.

So, I just met you, and this isn’t crazy. Here’s my card, may I have yours, so I can call you or send you something?

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Filed Under: Business cards, Communication, Marketing legal services, Networking, Online Marketing, Relationship marketing

Calling all note-taking junkies–come and get your fix

July 29, 2015 by
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Who knew?

I had no idea how many different note-taking methods there were. Different methods for different styles and a variety of situations, from classroom to courtroom and everyone in between. And then I read a blog post, The Ultimate Guide to Note-Taking, which I heartily recommend to you.

Even if you’re not a note-taking fanboy or girl, or looking for something different from what you currently use to record notes or ideas, you’re bound to find something you can use.

The post presents a wide variety of note-taking methods, including the traditional outline/list method we first learned in grade school, visual methods like mind maps and charts, the Cornell method, and more. The author first demonstrates a paper version of each method, and suggests how it might be adapted for digital.

I think we all develop our own methods of taking notes. I know I did, first in law school, and then in depos and court. For the latter, I would write down what a witness said, what I thought about what they said, and notes to myself about what to ask in cross or what to look into when I got back to the office. I used abbreviations and visual marks to identify notes to zero in on when I later reviewed them.

I do something similar when I’m listening to a presentation or in a business meeting.

I’m going to study this blog post to see how I can use some of these methods for recording tasks and projects and for taking notes on books and blogs.

If you want to talk nerdy to me, check it out and let me know what you think.

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Filed Under: Communication, Productivity, Writing Tagged With:

One step forward, two-steps back?

July 23, 2015 by
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A tax resolution firm is running a radio ad featuring one of their satisfied clients. He says he hadn’t filed a return since 1990 and the IRS had finally caught up with him and demanded $68,000 in back taxes.

I don’t know how he could ONLY owe $68,000 after 25 years, but that’s his story. He couldn’t pay it and didn’t know what to do.

Enter the tax firm.

They did what they do, and helped him eliminate most of his indebtedness.

Here’s the problem.

As he tells his story, he laughs gleefully at his good fortune. Twice. Like he got away with something. His story, and especially his attitude, suggest to listeners that we’re all suckers for paying our taxes.

I can imagine prospective customers listening to this spot and intentionally calling another firm because it looks like this firm isn’t helping good people who fell on hard times, it’s helping irresponsible people get away with irresponsible behavior.

That’s the sub-text.

They could have conveyed the message that they know what they’re doing and can help you with IRS problems, without the negative sub-text, had they portrayed the client as “relieved” and “thankful” instead of flippant and irresponsible.

They shouldn’t have mentioned 25 years of unfiled returns, just that he’d fallen behind and couldn’t pay $68,000 the IRS said he owed. And they shouldn’t have had him laugh. Twice.

Obviously, the ad is working because the firm keeps running it. But how much better might it work if they made the client more sympathetic?

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Filed Under: Advertising, Communication, Copywriting, Image

Career day for fourth graders

May 12, 2015 by
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Did you attend your child’s third or fourth grade class for career day? Do you remember explaining what a lawyer does and making it as interesting as possible? Tough to do when you’re competing with Joey’s dad who is a professional magician, but you did it.

You explained what you did, who you helped, and why it is important. You helped some future lawyers see that being a lawyer is cool.

If you had to do it again (or for the first time), what would you say?

Think it through and write it down, or record it. This is a valuable exercise, even if you don’t have any kids.

It can help you explain what you do to prospective clients and referral sources. It can also help you create content for your website, articles, and presentations.

You don’t necessarily have to write at a fourth grade level, but keep it simple enough that your ideal clients can follow.

Here are some ideas to prime your mental pump:

  • What kinds of clients do you represent? What kinds of problems do you handle? Give some examples of real clients you have helped.
  • What’s the first thing you do when a new client comes to you? What do you do after that?
  • Do you charge by the hour? Flat fees? Why? How is this better for your clients?
  • Why did you become a lawyer? What do you want to accomplish in your career? Do you have any role models?
  • What’s the best way to find a good lawyer in your field? What questions should someone ask?
  • What’s the hardest part of your job? What’s the worst case or client you have had?
  • What are you most proud of about your work? What do you like best about what you do?
  • How is your practice different from others in your field? What do you do that other lawyers don’t do, or what do you do better?
  • Who would make a good referral for you? If someone knows someone like that, what should they do to refer them?
  • What questions do prospective clients and new clients typically ask you? How do you answer them?

Take one of these and write a few paragraphs. It won’t take you more than a few minutes and you can start using it immediately. And, if you run into a fourth grade class and are asked to speak, you’ll be ready.

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Filed Under: Communication, Inspiration, Legal industry, Marketing legal services, Networking, Online Marketing, Public Speaking, Referrals
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