Silence is golden, especially during election season

October 7, 2016 by
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If I’ve blocked or unfollowed you on social media lately, as I have done with hundreds of people, it’s probably because you talked about who you planned to vote for or which issue you supported. You probably did it a lot.

Why did you do that? You could have kept mum and we’d still be friends.

How many clients have you turned off by sharing your views? How many prospects won’t hire you now because you couldn’t resist flapping your gums? How many professional contacts will no longer send you referrals?

And for what? What did you gain by talking politics?

I know this election is important. But so is paying your rent and feeding your kids.

Let the talking heads talk about politics. That’s their job. Your job is to get and keep clients.

Keep your head down and do your work. Keep your mouth shut and stop chasing away business.

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Filed Under: Marketing legal services Tagged With:

A hundred opportunities a day to grow your practice

October 5, 2016 by
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I’m not the only one to point out that everything you do in your practice is marketing.

From the way you answer the phone to the invoices you send your clients. From the way you speak to prospects about how you can help them to the sincerity of your “thank you” notes. Even the way you conduct yourself with opposing counsel who might someday speak kindly about you or send you a referral.

It’s all marketing.

And because it’s all marketing, your day is filled with opportunities to build and develop your relationships and your reputation and grow your practice.

Every time you speak to someone or write something someone else will read, you have an opportunity to help people get to know, like, and trust you. Be aware of these opportunities and don’t squander them. Consistently give people a little more value or a little more insight into how you are different or better.

In the beginning, you may need to make a conscious effort to do this. You may have to ask yourself what you can do to go beyond the core elements of your job. You may have to remind yourself to take a few extra seconds to ask about a client’s children or to re-read your email before you send it to find a way to make it more personal.

Eventually, you will do these things automatically. They will be baked into your persona and your methods of operation. And eventually, you’ll begin to notice that good things are happening in your practice.

Most of your marketing can be done this way. The little things you do, in the moment, if done consistently and with sincerity and heart, will attract more clients, more referral sources, and more opportunities to get the word out about what you do.

This is how marketing used to be done. This is how most of your marketing can be done still.

Learn more ways to grow your practice here

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Filed Under: Marketing legal services

Nothing compares to you

October 3, 2016 by
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Have you ever shared a waiting room with another lawyer who always seems to have new clients waiting for them? Do other lawyers in town get the big cases or clients that you’d like to get? Have you ever wondered why some lawyers always seem to be in the news?

They may have more energy than you or work at a faster pace. They may be willing to take more risks. They may have more time or more money or better connections. You may not be able to compete with these things.

So don’t.

Instead, use your unique self to market yourself.

Because nothing compares to you.

Put as much of yourself into your practice because you are unique. Nobody can compete with you because nobody is you.

I see many attorneys hiding their personality and style and sense of humor. They promote their services and tout their skills and experience when they should be promoting themselves.

Yes, clients want solutions to their problems. Your skills and experience are by no means unimportant. It’s just that what attracts clients in the first place, and what keeps them coming back and referring others, has little to do with your technical ability and everything to do with being liked and trusted.

Many of the attorneys you see with overflowing waiting rooms have figured this out. They aren’t necessarily better lawyers. They’re simply better at selling themselves.

Effective marketing starts with this

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Filed Under: Marketing legal services

Marketing to people who don’t like lawyers

September 27, 2016 by
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They’re out there. People who will tell anyone who will listen how much they don’t like lawyers. They go to great lengths to describe their bad experiences, how they were cheated or lied to or how their lawyer was incompetent or in the pocket of the other side.

True or not, they are angry and passionate about their dislike and distrust for members of our species.

There are others who aren’t necessarily angry but who have been conditioned to be anti-lawyer by a friend’s experience or by what they see on TV or movies. They think lawyers are arrogant or mean or uncaring.

And then there are those who simply think lawyers charge too much. They may be jealous of our income or lifestyle, real or imagined, or jealous of the fact that we don’t seem to work hard compared to whatever they do.

I’m sure you can think of other reasons why people hate lawyers or don’t trust lawyers or are quick to tell the latest lawyer joke making the rounds.

The question is, how do you market to these folks.

A few thoughts.

First, prepare for it, especially if you target consumers and small businesses. “I don’t like lawyers” is an objection, and like any objection, it is best handled before you ever talk to the client. Put something on your website that deals with the issue up front.

Talk about how some lawyers give others a bad name but that most are honest and hard working and want the best for their clients. Talk about why lawyers charge what might seem to be exorbitant fees, and say something about the costs of running a practice.

Talk about some of the issues clients sometimes have with their lawyer, such as the failure to keep them informed. Explain what a lawyer should do and what the client can do if their lawyer doesn’t do it. Explain the recourse that is available, i.e., how to file a complaint with your bar association.

Use this as an opportunity to explain your policies, procedures, and safeguards on those issues. Tell them what you do to keep your clients informed, for example. Explain when and how you seek permission before you do certain things. Tell them how you handle delays and contingencies.

In other words, don’t run from the issue, turn it into a selling point.

Second, make sure clients and prospects know that your door is open. If they have questions or something bothers them, encourage them to contact you and tell you about it. You want to know because it helps you do a better job for your clients. Make it easy for them to fill out a form to communicate with you.

Third, if allowed, make sure your website provides testimonials from clients who talk about the great job you did for them, how you were patient with their questions, how you always got back to them, and other “trust factors”.

If testimonials aren’t allowed, provide “success stories” wherein you describe cases and matters you have handled that a good outcome. Talk about how you copied the clients on everything, and other things you did to keep them informed and happy. If possible, include stories about clients who came to you after they had a bad experience with another lawyer and what you did to fix things.

Fourth, make sure your website has lots of substantive content. Explain the law and procedure and process for handling cases, negotiating and drafting documents, and the like. Illustrate your points with cases and matters you’ve had as examples. Let prospective clients thus see you “in action,” helping clients, solving problems, saving the world.

Of course much of the above applies to prospective clients who don’t have any trust issues with lawyers but might have unanswered questions about what you do and how you do it.

Most people who say they don’t like lawyers still hire lawyers. When they have a problem or need something a lawyer can provide, they will hit up a search engine or ask someone for a referral. When they do, the above steps will make it more likely that you’ll be the one they choose.

More about how to build trust: The Attorney Marketing Formula

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Filed Under: Marketing legal services Tagged With:

Does your practice need more sales people?

September 23, 2016 by
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Before you say no, give me one minute to convince you of the value of hiring a sales person for your practice. Someone who would talk to prospective clients and referral sources on your behalf and convince them to hire you or send you their referrals. Suppose that this was legal and ethical and could be done with little or no cost.

This sales person could deliver a steady stream of new business for you. Every day, prospective clients will call your office to make an appointment. When they meet with you, they are either sold on hiring you and ready to sign up or they have a few questions about their legal matter, and then they sign up.

So. . . how many sales people would you hire?

Hold on. Calm down. This is doable. In fact, there’s a very good chance that you’re already doing it. You already employ one or more sales people who are bringing you new clients.

Okay, I’m not really talking about people. I’m talking about information.

Articles, blog posts, reports, ebooks, videos, audios, podcasts, seminars, and other content you deploy on your website and elsewhere. This information attracts prospective clients who learn what you do and how you can help them, and persuades them to call you, fill out a form, or otherwise take the next step towards becoming your client.

Your content does what a sales person does, but in many ways, it does it better. It works for you 24 hours a day, never complains, and never asks for a raise. And once your content is deployed, it works for you tirelessly, endlessly, for many years to come.

So the next time you’re looking for a way to bring in more clients, start writing, or hire someone to help you, and get more content out into the world.

Here’s how to create content for your website

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Filed Under: Marketing legal services, Online Marketing Tagged With:

The lawyer who would be clown

September 22, 2016 by
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Okay boys and girls, gather up your blankets and let’s form a circle, it’s storytelling time.

Once upon a time there was a lawyer who wanted to be more successful. Does anyone know what a lawyer is? Johnnie? No, it’s not someone who loys. A lawyer is someone who gets paid a lot of money for writing letters and talking on the phone. So children, pay attention to your reading and writing lessons and someday, you’ll drive a nice car and live in a nice house.

One day, the lawyer decided he wanted to get more clients. Do you know what a client is? Right, Cindy, a client is someone who pays you to tell them what to do, and if you pay them more, they’ll do it for you.

Anyway, the lawyer didn’t know how to get more clients because they don’t teach you that in law school. Yes, Johnnie, it is incredible to pay six-figures for a degree and learn nothing about how to make money with it.

Anyway, the lawyer looked all over the Internet to find out how to bring in more clients. One thing he learned is that he should do something to stand out and look different from all the other lawyers in town. He needed to do something to get noticed. Can you think of any ways he could do that?

Yes, Johnnie, dressing like a clown and chasing people down the street with a knife would definitely get him noticed, but that’s probably not the best way for a lawyer to stand out.

The lawyer learned that since many lawyers offer the same services, one way to get noticed is to offer services that are better or different. If he did that, people would notice him and talk about his services and go to his website to learn more about how he can help them.

He also learned that he could stand out by telling people about himself. He heard that a lot of people choose a lawyer based on their personality and style, more than anything else. If they learn more about your background, personal life, and outside interests, they often relate to you  and like you, and this brings them a step closer to hiring you.

The lawyer thought about what he had learned and decided that he would do both things. He would offer services that look different from what other lawyers offer and he would show people some things about himself. Not too much, just enough to let them get to know him.

A few months went by and the lawyer was already getting more clients and earning more income. A few years went by and he was very successful and very rich.

Unfortunately, the lawyer let his success go to his head. He decided he would run for office. He started lying, cheating, and stealing, got elected and ruined the world.

Well kids, what lesson have you learned today? That’s correct, it’s better to dress like a clown and chase people down the street with a knife than to become a politician.

More ways to stand out from the competition: here

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Filed Under: Marketing legal services Tagged With:

To attorneys who refuse to change their underwear

September 16, 2016 by
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We know that attorneys resist change and we know why. Change implies risk and risk avoidance is in our DNA. We’re paid to watch our clients’ backs and it’s only natural that we do the same for ourselves.

Yes, change implies risk. If you change your strategy, tools, or process, you might get poorer results. You might waste time or money. You might embarrass yourself or your firm. So we often wait until other attorneys do it first. (Is it any wonder that the average attorney gets average results and earns an average income?)

Anyway, for most attorneys, change usually happens slowly, if at all.

But change can be good. It can lead to better results, especially if you’re the first lawyer on your block to do something. Change also allows you to learn new things and meet new people and open up opportunities for growth.

Change can also feel good. I get a rush every time I buy a new computer, don’t you?

Attorneys are smart and have the resources to accommodate change. They can afford to buy new tech and try new ideas, they can afford to hire people to do most of the heavy lifting, and they can afford to lose their investment should things not pan out.

For many attorneys, accepting change comes down to ROI. They know it takes time to learn and implement new ideas and in return, they demand a big return on that investment. Not just an incremental increase but a huge increase, to compensate for their time and the risks of being wrong.

Nowhere is the potential for a huge ROI more apparent than with marketing.

One new strategy, one new referral source, one new keyword can lead to a massive increase in traffic, leads, prospects, and new clients. On top of that, the potential downside is de minimis.

So take off your training wheels, remove your protective padding, leave your first aid kit at home, and dive in. Do something you’ve never done before. Or change something you’ve never changed before.

Worst case, you’ll find something that doesn’t work for you.

But if things go well, you might find, as I did when I fully embraced marketing, a measure of success beyond anything previously imagined.

Marketing is easier when you know the formula

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Filed Under: Marketing legal services Tagged With:

Lawyers, what’s wrong with this picture?

September 13, 2016 by
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A business owner’s truck was in front of me in traffic the other day. I knew it belonged to a business owner because there was a decal on the back window of the cab that advertised the owner’s business. Actually, it advertised the owner’s two businesses.

Behold:

“[Owner’s last name] Professional Auto Detail & Landscape [phone number]”

Okay, what’s wrong with this picture?

If you’re looking for a landscaper for your yard, are you going to choose one that also does auto detail or will you keep looking and hire a specialist?

Correct.

It’s okay to own more than one business. But you have to be careful about how you market them.

If you’re a lawyer and a licensed as a real estate broker, for example, stifle the urge to mention both in the same breath. Or ad. Or car decal.

In fact, consider not telling anyone you’re also a broker. You’ll scare away prospective clients who want to hire someone who is dedicated to practicing law and successful enough at it that they don’t have to do anything else. Mentioning you’re also a broker will also scare away prospective real estate broker referral sources who see you as a competitor.

You know where I’m going with this. If you have more than one practice area, be careful how you promote yourself.

Clients prefer to hire a lawyer who specializes. If they’re looking for a divorce lawyer, for example, the fact that you also handle criminal defense doesn’t help, it hurts. Clients think you might not be as good as a lawyer who only handles family law. (Some clients may stay away because, “ew, she has criminals in her waiting room. . .”)

Does that mean you should have separate websites, brochures, ads, presentations, and other marketing collateral for each practice area? Unless your practice areas are a natural fit, you should consider it. Personal injury, workers’ compensation, and med mal, go together. Small business transactional and litigation are fine. Estate planning and elder law work. Other mixes, perhaps not so much.

Think about it, okay? Especially when you order your next truck decal.

Make sure you don’t send out a mixed marketing message. This will help

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Filed Under: Marketing legal services, Specializing

You won’t know for sure unless you try it (again)

September 12, 2016 by
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You say you don’t like networking but have you given it a fair chance? Maybe you’ve been doing it wrong. Maybe you haven’t met the right people. Maybe you haven’t done it enough to get good at it.

So how can you say it’s “not for you”?

I thought network marketing wasn’t for me until I found something I couldn’t refuse and made a fortune with it. I learned that I could do it without compromising my values or being someone I am not. And, whereas I didn’t stick with it in the past, this time, I gave it the time it was due and it made all the difference.

There are a lot of ways to market legal services and you should try as many of them as you can. If you’ve tried them once and they “didn’t work” or you “didn’t like them,” try again. You may find that things have changed, or that you have changed. What was once off the table may become a valuable practice building tool for you.

Start by learning as much as you can. If advertising has always been distasteful to you, for example, or you haven’t considered it because your bar rules forbid it, keep learning. You may discover a way to do it that “you never thought of”. Here’s an example: instead of advertising your practice, your services, or yourself, advertise your book, report or seminar. Sell it or give it away and let it sell readers on you.

Next, find some practitioners who use these methods and study them. What are they doing? How are they doing it? Can you make some changes that better suit your style and market?

Finally, if you’re still not crazy about a marketing method, consider other ways you can get the benefits of that method without a lot of personal involvement. Delegate to staff or to VAs or hire an outside company to do it for you.

In other words, you don’t have to love something to profit from it.

Don’t be like many attorneys: stubborn, closed-minded, stuck in your ways. The world is changing and if you don’t change it with it, you may be left behind.

Start or restart your marketing with a plan

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Filed Under: Advertising, Marketing legal services

The simplest way to beat your competition

September 6, 2016 by
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You’ve heard me pound on the importance of creating a profile of your ideal client. I hope you have files set up for notes, ideas, articles, lists of key websites and blogs, sample emails, and everything else there is to know about them and their world.

Because the more you know about your ideal client, the easier it will be to attract them and show them why they should hire you instead of any other lawyer.

Your file should include information about their background, problems, and goals. It should detail their likely legal issues and the circumstances that precede them. It should note the books and magazines and blogs they read and where they network or hang out online.

You should become an expert on your ideal client and know more about them than any other attorney in your market. When you do, you’ll be able to write to and speak to them using examples, terminology, and stories that resonate with them and show them that you have helped many others like them.

It’s the simplest way to beat your competition.

If you have more than one practice area, you should do the same thing for your ideal client in each practice area. Marketing a divorce practice is very different from marketing a personal injury practice.

You should also set up research files about your referral sources.

This takes time but it makes marketing easier and more effective. Your superior knowledge can help you dominate your niche. Your ideal clients will see you as the best choice. They’ll pay you higher fees, stay with you longer, and recommend you to others.

On the other hand, if you don’t have this knowledge and aren’t aligned with your ideal client, your marketing will be unfocused and look like every other lawyer’s marketing. Instead of creating content that speaks to your ideal client and the people who can refer them, you’ll create generic content that speaks to nobody. Instead of seeking out and networking with the people you want to work with, you’ll waste your time networking with “anyone”.

Jim Rohn said, “If you want to be successful, study success.” I say, “If you want to attract your ideal client, study your ideal client–and the people who can refer them.”

This will help you create a profile of your ideal client

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Filed Under: Marketing legal services Tagged With: ,
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