Maybe you need some new friends

March 3, 2016 by
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When you get together with other lawyers, at a bar function, in the courtroom hallway, or anywhere else, what do you talk about?

Do you talk about cases and clients? Do you rap about the law? Do you talk about sports or the weather?

One thing I’ll bet you don’t talk about is marketing.

Yes, I know you’re not like most lawyers. You read me, after all. You “get” that marketing is important and valuable and you work at it. But can the same be said of the lawyers you speak to every day?

Many lawyers are uncomfortable talking about marketing. They don’t want anyone to know they do it, fearing that it makes them look weak and unsuccessful. So marketing isn’t talked about in polite company. Marketing isn’t cool.

Silly, but can you tell me this isn’t true?

Here’s the thing. I believe that the lawyers who are most attracted to marketing, and aren’t embarrassed to admit it, are the lawyers who need marketing the least.

If you like marketing, or at least you respect it and actively work at it, the odds are you’re already doing well in your practice. The lawyers who look down at marketing tend to be the ones who need it most. They are either uninformed, in denial, or resting on their laurels. They are unaware that they are living on borrowed time.

We can differ and debate the different types of marketing. Some lawyers advertise, some don’t. Some are aggressive, some are willing to sacrifice results in deference to image. That’s okay. What’s not okay is pretending that marketing is beneath you and can safely be ignored.

One reason it can’t be ignored is that every attorney is already “doing” marketing, whether they know it or not.

Remember, marketing is everything you do to get and keep good clients. Everything. Any attorney who believes that clients relations isn’t marketing, for example, or that they don’t need to work at it, is fooling nobody but themselves.

When you talk to other attorneys, bring up the subject of marketing. It’s good to compare notes. See what’s working for them and what’s not working. Ask them what they’re doing to get more traffic to their website, for example, or get their former clients to send referrals.

If you get a blank stare, or if your attorney friends don’t have anything positive to say about marketing, it might be time for you to get some new friends.

If your attorney friends are open to learning, tell them to start here

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Filed Under: Marketing legal services

Party favors for new clients? Yes, that’s a thing

March 2, 2016 by
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Remember when you were a little kid and you went to a friend’s birthday party? You got party favors–puzzles, noisemakers, toy soldiers, cap guns, candy, and other fun stuff? Something to take home with you and show your siblings and parents?

It made the party more fun, didn’t it?

Ooh, remember those finger puzzles where you put your index fingers in both ends and couldn’t get them out?

Anyway, you should do the same thing with your new clients.

Party favors for new clients? Why not? Even though it’s not a party, even though they may be seeing you about a very serious problem that is anything but fun, you should make a point of giving new clients things to take home with them.

Maybe a nice folder to hold the paperwork on their case. Maybe a nice pen with your contact information on it. Maybe a book you wrote or a book you recommend. Maybe a gift card so they can get dinner on you and forget about their troubles.

Load them up because people like getting stuff. Adults are just big kids, aren’t we?

You don’t have to spend a lot of money, but don’t let them go home empty handed. Legal services are intangible. Give them something they can hold in their hand and show their spouse or friends.

Make sure you also give them information about your practice areas. Educate them about their problems and the solutions you provide. Show them how you can help them and the people they know. Teach them how to identify your ideal client and give them tools (reports, coupons, DVDs, etc.) they can pass out.

If you have a practice that is suited to having a bit of fun, you can give new clients something whimsical. Maybe an adult coloring book and colored pencils. If that’s not your thing, give them coloring books they can take home to their kids.

I know, lawyers don’t do these things. That’s the point. Party favors are an easy way to stand out, be talked about, and remembered. And maybe put a smile on the face of someone who’s going through a difficult time.

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Filed Under: Client relations, Marketing legal services

I’d rather have four quarters than 100 pennies

February 26, 2016 by
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I love keeping things simple. But simplicity for simplicity’s sake is a foolish economy if it results in fewer or poorer results. “Leverage” means getting MORE results with less effort, or at least more results with the same effort.

A marketing guy I follow echoed my philosophy when he said, “I’d rather have four quarters than 100 pennies”. He was talking about the value of having fewer but better clients.

Fewer clients with bigger cases, or fewer clients who have more work for you and are willing and able to pay higher fees.

Fewer but better clients means you have fewer hands to hold, problems to solve, and fires to put out. It means you can spend more time and more money bringing in new clients and keeping them happy. It means you can earn more income with less effort.

That’s why I talk about letting the mass market of lawyers handle the mass market of clients, while you focus on the upper crust. Let everyone else fight over the scraps while you feast on the steak.

Unless you are especially well funded or daring, you probably won’t be able to do this immediately. But you can immediately state this as your objective and start working in that direction.

When you make it your intent to transition your practice to better clients, you start looking at the universe of clients differently. You make changes to your ads and marketing documents and websites, you start networking with a different crowd, and you do other things that affirm the new direction of your practice.

Eventually, you will embrace this new paradigm and make bigger changes. You eliminate marginal practice areas, for example, and focus on one or two. You might cut down on marketing channels or techniques and focus on the ones that are better suited to the practice you are trying to create.

You may be nervous about some of these changes. I know I was when I started turning down business. There’s a big void in your file drawer when you no longer handle anything that shows up, but if your experience is anything like mine was, you will quickly fill that void with new and better clients.

Then, one day, you’ll get your first “quarter”–a big case or client–and you’ll realize that if you can get one, you can get more. And that’s when everything will change.

This helps you create a profile of your ideal client

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Filed Under: Increase your income, Law office management, Leverage, Marketing legal services

How to train your brain to come up with marketing ideas

February 25, 2016 by
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This morning, I saw an article with this headline: “Arby’s will offer a vegetarian menu for 1 day only this leap year”. I’m not a vegetarian, and I don’t eat at Arby’s, but the story caught my eye because it is an unusual and creative marketing promotion.

The promotion allows Arby’s to remind the public of their meat-centric menu by extending an olive branch to those who don’t eat meat, and thus, don’t usually visit Arby’s. It uses leap year to underscore that this is a one day special promotion.

(In case you’re wondering, the vegetarian sandwiches are simply regular sandwiches without the meat, sold at the same price.)

So Arby’s gets publicity and, I’m sure, more traffic to their stores. I’m betting that most of that traffic won’t be vegetarians, and that’s probably the point. However this plays out for the company, we have to agree that this promotion is well-played.

Okay, why am I telling you this?

I pay attention to stories about unusual promotions (and regular ones, too) to see if I can find ideas I can share with you or use in my own marketing. When I saw this story, I thought, “How could a lawyer do a “one day” promotion or an “opposite” promotion?

I came up with. . . nothing.

Okay, I suppose a divorce lawyer who represents “men only” could, for one day, accept women clients. An estate planning firm that represents wealthy clients could, for a week or a month, open their doors to “anyone”.

The point isn’t necessarily whether or not you can come up with a suitable promotion for your practice, it is that by thinking about how you might do that, you will stimulate (and train) your brain to be on the lookout for marketing ideas.

The next time you see a business running a promotion, it might cause you to think of a way you could use that idea, or one like it. You will become more observant about how businesses and professionals market their products and services, with or without promotions, and thus become more creative in marketing yours.

It’s the difference between seeing the Arby’s story and saying, “that’s clever” (and perhaps, “I’m hungry”) and asking, “How can I use an idea like that?”

Train yourself to ask “how could I use this idea?” because you won’t get answers to questions you never ask.

Marketing is easier when you know The Formula

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Filed Under: Marketing legal services Tagged With:

What are you working on?

February 24, 2016 by
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What are you working on right now? I’m not referring to your regular work–cases, client work, or the daily activities of running your practice–I’m talking about something else: a project or group of projects designed to take you or your practice to a higher level.

So tell me, what are you working on?

You might be updating your website or expanding your advertising. You might be working on a new office procedure manual, updating your forms or form letters, or writing a series of emails to former clients. You might be putting together a list of names of professionals in your market you plan to call and invite to lunch. You might be working on a new presentation, an ebook, or a video.

You should always have a project you’re working on, and when someone asks, you should immediately know what it is.

There’s always something you can do to improve your marketing or the operations in your office. You can always improve your speaking, writing, negotiation, and sales skills.

So, what are you working on?

Are you learning how to get more referrals? Are you watching training videos about software you bought but haven’t used? Are you planning a meeting with your staff or partners to discuss ways to streamline the workflow in the office, lower costs, or increase profits?

You should always be working on at least one project designed to advance your skills or improve your results. And you should always have time scheduled during the week to work on that project.

You are are a professional but you also run a business. That business has many facets, many moving parts that need to be coordinated and maintained. Your business competes with other firms who do what you do and you need to stay at least one step ahead of them.

Delivering quality legal services isn’t enough. Most lawyers do that. If you want to stand out from the crowd, you have to do more.

So tell me, what are you working on?

Are you working on your website? This is what you need

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Filed Under: Law office management, Marketing legal services, Personal development

Create a better marketing message by keeping it simple

February 23, 2016 by
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The best marketing messages are simple. They are easy to understand and easy to remember, and the ideas embodied in them affect the reader or listener on a basic emotional level.

The same can be said for any message.

The strength of a simple message is in its clarity. The reader or listener grasps the message on its face, without explanation or documentation, and without delay. It says what it means and it means what it says.

Robert Louis Stevenson said, “Do not write merely to be understood. Write so you cannot possibly be misunderstood.”

But how does one do that?

Ultimately, this is a function of the writer’s or speaker’s understanding of the essence of the message and their ability to communicate it. In other words, it takes some skill and effort. But there’s a lot you can do to make your message simpler, clearer, and more effective, even if you’re not (yet) a great writer.

Make your message about fewer ideas

Include a few key points in your message, not everything you could say on the subject. This is true no matter who your audience is, but even more so for a lawyer seeking to influence lay people.

Be brief

Spare the details. Don’t write pages when paragraphs will do. See if you can convey the same idea in a sentence or two.

Most people want no more than the bottom line and a fact or two that supports it. You should have additional information available, however, for those who want it. On your website, for example, put your message on the home page; provide links to the details for those who want to drill down to get them.

Write at a fourth grade level

You want your message to go from the page or the lectern to the recipient’s brain at the speed of thought. You don’t want anything slowing it down. So use shorter paragraphs and sentences, and simpler words. “Don’t use a five-dollar word when a fifty-cent word will do,” Mark Twain told us.

Use repetition

No matter how effective your message is, it will be more effective if it is repeated often. Repetition helps people understand, accept, and remember your message. It is key to earning their trust and their business.

Think of your message as a campaign speech, if that helps. You address the same handful of ideas and repeat them over and over again, to new crowds and to your die-hard supporters alike.

Repetition makes your message stronger and affects people at a deeper level. The first time they hear it, they may be critical and doubtful. After they’ve heard it several times, they are better able understand and accept the message. Eventually, after they’ve heard your message repeatedly, they can remember it and articulate it to others.

And that’s what you want.

You want your clients and prospects, friends and followers, to know what you stand for and what you promise, and you want them to easily share that message with others.

Need help crafting an effective marketing message? Try this

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Filed Under: Marketing legal services, Public Speaking, Referrals, Writing

Why should I hire you? Really, tell me why?

February 22, 2016 by
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You make some big promises in your marketing. At least I hope you do. I hope you tell prospective clients that you offer something that’s different and better than what other lawyers offer.

I also hope you explain the “reason why” you are able to do that.

I heard a radio commercial the other day for a Toyota dealer. The copy said that they have lower prices than other dealers. Okay, fine. But a lot of dealers claim they have the lowest prices. So hearing “lowest prices” usually goes in one ear and out the other.

But then the ad explained why they are able to offer the lowest prices. They said, “We sell more Toyotas than other dealers in [the market], so we get more Toyotas allocated to us, and that’s why we can sell them to you for less than other dealers”.

It’s not brilliant, but it does explain WHY this dealer can sell you a car for less. They back up their assertion with a fact that makes their claim to lower prices more credible.

You need to do the same.

In your ads and on your website, in your presentations and on all of your marketing documents, give prospective clients the “reason why” you are able to do what you say you do. Your assertion is more believable and powerful when it is backed up with facts or logic or with a story that illustrates its veracity.

If you say you have a lot of experience in your field, tell them how many years, how many cases, or how many clients. Or tell them some of your accomplishments or accolades that are consistent with a lawyer who has a lot of experience. You teach CLE or serve as an arbitrator or Judge Pro Tem? Wow, you must have a lot of experience.

If you say you work hard for your clients, tell a story about a case that was thought lost and how you burned the midnight oil, hired another investigator or expert, talked to witnesses again, or reviewed your research or notes, and found something that allowed you to win the case.

In other words, don’t just make empty promises, say something that proves what you say.

Your “reason why” needn’t be remarkable or unique, however. In a world where most attorneys offer no reasons why, stating that you can call up every single state and federal decision published in your field of practice since 1892, right from the iPad you carry in your briefcase, may be enough to “prove” that you are the better choice.

So tell me again, Why should I hire you?

For help in formulating your “reason why,” get The Formula

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Filed Under: Advertising, Marketing legal services

What would happen if you stopped marketing?

February 18, 2016 by
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A few years ago, I saw a few episodes of a program called, “Life After People”. It depicted what the earth would look like in 25, 50, 100 and 300 years (I think) if mankind was extinct.

It showed our tallest skyscrapers decaying and eventually crumbling into dust. It showed the forests overtaking our cities. It showed some animal species thriving, and others becoming extinct.

It was both a fascinating and frightening portrayal of nature reclaiming the earth, and it made me realize all of things humankind does to maintain and nurture our planet.

Thinking about this program made me think about what would happen if professionals stopped marketing. If we no longer did anything to bring in new clients and keep them happy, what would our practices look like in a few years?

What would happen if you pulled all of your advertising and stopped networking, writing, and speaking. If you never added anything new to your website, posted on social media, or sent your clients and prospects another letter or email?

What would your practice look like if you did nothing more for your clients than the legal work you were hired to do? If you did nothing else to inspire your clients to tell the world about their great experience with you?

If you stopped all marketing, what would your practice look like in a year? Five years? Ten? Would you still be open for business or would the weeds overtake you and hasten your extinction?

Just as mankind maintains the world’s infrastructure and continually creates new and better ways to add quality of life to our days on Earth, so must every lawyer maintain their practice and make it grow.

Do yourself a favor and make a list of everything you do that could be considered marketing. Big things and small things. Old things and new things. Easy things and challenging things. Making this list will help you see how much you do to keep your practice’s engine in good repair.

Then, imagine what would happen if you stopped doing these things and let the practice run on it’s own. No doubt the image you see in your mind’s eye would be sobering, even if you haven’t seen “Life After People”.

Finally, look at your list again and imagine what your practice might look like in a few years if you made a little extra effort to do the things we call marketing a little better, and found some new things you could do to help your practice grow.

And grow you must, because if your practice isn’t growing, it’s dying.

If you want a simple marketing plan that really works, get this

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Filed Under: Law office management, Marketing legal services

Would you hire you?

February 16, 2016 by
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Suppose you were interviewing attorneys to come work for you. You take out an ad or contact an agency and before long, you’re paging through resumes, trying to decide who should make it to the interview stage. One of the candidates you decide to interview is. . . you.

You made the first cut (surprise) and you’re interviewing yourself. Now tell me. . .

Would you hire you?

This is a good question to ask and answer. If you would hire yourself, the next question is why?

What do you bring to the firm in terms of talents and accomplishments? What could you do to make the firm more profitable? Would you be good at bringing in clients? Better clients? Will you bill more hours? Will you be a good fit for the firm in terms of practice areas, target markets, marketing and management philosophies? Will you get along with the other employees?

Whatever you offer as reasons why you should get the job, your next step is to prove it.

You (the applicant) say you would bring in more business to the firm, for example. Why should you (the interviewer) believe that statement? What have you done in the past that provides evidence of what you will do in the future?

The answers might not appear on your resume. Impressive though it might be, if it’s like most resumes, it is a record of where you’ve been, not what you have accomplished. You need to show the interviewer what you have done and make the case for hiring you instead of a plethora of other candidates with equally impressive resumes.

You may never consider working for someone else. You may have always worked for yourself. Nevertheless, this is a good exercise for exploring the “four corners” of value you bring to the market.

To make it more meaningful, you might update your resume and write a cover letter. You might fill out a job application. Then, write down questions you think an employer (you) would ask you, and answer them.

When you’re done with this exercise, you’ll be better able to assess your strengths and weaknesses and see yourself as the world sees you. You can use this information to improve your image, develop new skills, or neutralize your weaknesses.

Once you have done this, I suggest you do it again, but from a different perspective. Instead of pretending that you’re interviewing for a job with your firm, pretend you’re interviewing to be hired by a prospective client.

Look at your website and all of your marketing materials. Note what’s good and what could be improved. Write down the questions prospective clients typically ask you. Add questions they should ask but usually don’t. And then interview yourself and record your answers.

If you can’t make the case as to why someone should hire you, you shouldn’t expect to be hired. Not even by you.

Why should anyone hire you? The answer is in The Formula

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Filed Under: Marketing legal services

Have you done your marketing workout today?

February 11, 2016 by
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You don’t have to fall in love with marketing any more than you have to fall in love with exercising. You keep doing it because you love the results.

Do it long enough, however, and you might fall in love with the marketing itself.

At some point, your brain will associate the positive results you’re getting with the activities you’re doing. You’ll get a chemical rush in much the way you do when you exercise. Eventually, you’ll do the activities as much for the enjoyment of doing them as for the results.

When that happens, you won’t have to force yourself to do the activities, they will be a natural part of who you are and what you do. When you wake up in the morning, you won’t think about legal work necessarily, you’ll think about writing a blog post or calling someone to invite them to lunch.

How do you get to that point? You keep at it, a few minutes every day, no matter what else is going on in your life. You get your marketing workout done, no matter what.

You do the laps. You do the reps. And you keep doing it, over and over again, until the day comes when you realize that you can’t keep up with all the new business you’re bringing in.

Like exercise. One day you look in the mirror, and you don’t recognize yourself.

Like exercise, the hardest part is getting started. After that, the hardest part is to keep going, to get through the pain and the desire to quit, until it’s a part of your daily routine.

Here’s how to do that:

MAKE A COMMITMENT  

Schedule marketing time on your calendar. Make an appointment with yourself and don’t miss your appointments. If someone wants to see you or talk to you during that time, they’ll have to wait until you finish your appointment.

START WITH EASY

If you’re completely out of shape, don’t start training for a marathon, start with a 15 minute walk. Keep a list of easy things you can do that are marketing related, things like writing down names of people you want to talk to or ideas for articles or blog posts or presentations.

GET A WORKOUT PARTNER

Like a trainer at the gym, find someone who will hold you accountable to getting in your workout, but also someone with whom you can share ideas and cheer each other on.

KEEP A JOURNAL 

Write about your tough days and your doubts, your victories and goals. Take notes about your execution. Write down ideas.

STUDY MARKETING 

Read, takes courses, and never stop learning. Associate with other professionals who value marketing and do it every day.

REWARD YOURSELF

Take pride in your progress. When you hit a milestone, treat yourself to a nice dinner or a weekend getaway, or buy yourself a new toy.

THINK LONG TERM

Don’t measure results in days or weeks, give yourself months or years. If you give yourself a year before you evaluate your progress, it won’t matter if you mess up today. You’ll shrug it off and get it right tomorrow.

Eventually, you’ll see a breakthrough and you will literally be a new person. Like many formerly out-of-shape people who start walking and eventually get into the best shape of their life, you’ll find yourself saying, “I’ll never go back”.

Marketing is easier when you have a formula and a plan 

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Filed Under: Marketing legal services, Marketing Plan, Personal development
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