Marketing your law practice one hour a week

May 9, 2013 by
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If you only have one hour a week for marketing your law practice, I would spend that time on the phone. Here’s how I would break it down:

  • Twenty minutes speaking to clients and former clients. I would call new clients to say thank you (in addition to sending them a thank you card) and current and former clients to see how they are doing. These people put food on your table and are your best source of new business. Speaking to them “off the clock” is a highly leveraged marketing activity.
  • Twenty minutes speaking to referral sources. I would call other professionals I work with, thank them for their recent referrals, look for ways I can do something to help them, and brainstorm ways we can work together to our mutual benefit.
  • Twenty minutes reaching out to other professionals. I would call people I don’t know, to introduce myself, find out what they do, and see if there is a way we could can work together to our mutual benefit.

A law practice is a people business. We talk to people to strengthen our relationships and cultivate new ones. If you can’t meet people face to face, the phone is the next best thing.

In some ways, the phone is even better than face to face because there is no travel time. So, with only one hour a week, I would smile and dial.

Of course if I had two hours a week for marketing, I would use the second hour to have lunch or coffee with people I know and people I want to know.

This shows you how to set up marketing joint ventures with other professionals. 

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Filed Under: Client loyalty, Client relations, Leverage, Marketing legal services, Marketing Plan, Networking, Referral sources, Referrals, Relationship marketing Tagged With:

How does a new attorney get clients?

May 1, 2013 by
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Yes, how does a new attorney get clients? I remember when I was opening my practice this was something I desperately wanted to know. Unfortunately, I couldn’t find a good answer.

I was told that I should do the following:

  1. Send engraved announcements to everyone you know announcing your new practice
  2. Pass out business cards to everyone you meet
  3. Join groups where you can network and pass out cards to everyone you meet
  4. And, that was about it.

There was no Internet in those days. Yellow pages advertising was too expensive. Besides, I’d have to wait months for the book to come out and I needed business immediately.

I didn’t send out announcements, but I did tell everyone that I had opened my own practice. That brought in exactly zero business. I didn’t do any networking. I was 23 years old and looked it, and I didn’t think anyone would take me seriously. Hey, I didn’t take me seriously.

What I did do (on the phone and in classified ads in a bar journal) was contact other attorneys and let them know I was available for (a) appearances and (b) overflow work. And that actually worked. It gave me some breathing room until I could figure out how to get some clients of my own.

If you’re a new attorney today, opening your own practice, I suggest you do the same. It’s a great way to generate immediate income and get some hands on experience.

But the first thing you should do is set up a website.

Not a page in an online directory or a free website, but your own site. A domain name you own and a site that you host. You don’t need anything fancy. You don’t have to spend a lot of money. You can either do it yourself–if I can learn, you can learn–or pay someone $100 to set up the site for you. Monthly costs are less than $10.

Add lots of content to your site, to show people what you know and how you can help them. Educate people about the law and procedure. Show them what they need to know. Answer their questions, show them their options, and help them understand what to do.

Yes, you should also tell them about the services you offer. But fill your website primarily with information prospective clients want to know about their legal problems and the available solutions . Give them enough information and they will see that you can deliver those solutions.

Make sure your content has appropriate keywords so clients can find you via search. And make sure your site has social media sharing enabled so visitors to your site can share your content with their friends and contacts.

As you gain experience, update your site with additional content–articles, blog posts, reports, checklists–and stories of how you have helped your clients solve problems.

Start building a list. Not everyone who visits your site is ready to hire you. Capture their email address so you can stay in touch with them, notify them when you post new content, and remind them that you are still available to help them or people they know.

When you meet someone who might be a prospective client or referral source, send them to your website so they can learn about what you do.

What’s next? Well, that depends on you. You can continue to build your practice primarily online. You can join networking groups and do public speaking. You can create a free seminar or webinar and “allow” other professionals and centers of influence to invite their clients.

But here’s the thing. Your best source of new clients is referrals from existing and former clients. So, as soon as you have a few clients who are happy with your work, you should leverage those relationships to generate new business.

You can ask for referrals directly but you have another option: ask your clients to refer people to your website and the great content you have available.

How does a new attorney get clients? The same way an old attorney gets clients. Plus appearances and overflow.

The Attorney Marketing Formula. How attorneys get clients.

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Filed Under: Advertising, Business cards, Client loyalty, Marketing legal services, Marketing Plan, Networking, Online Marketing, Referrals, SEO, Social media marketing Tagged With: , , , , ,

What to do when you forget someone’s name

March 5, 2013 by
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I once had a friend who had an almost uncanny ability to remember people’s names. It allowed him to build a large network of contacts and a very successful business.

We did a lot of networking together so I got to watch him in action. Like the rest of us, he would often forget the name of someone he had just been introduced to, but soon thereafter, he was introducing his new contact, by name, to others in the room. How did he do it? He did it by getting his ego out of the way and simply asking his new contact to “tell me your name again,” sometimes two or three times before he had it.

Most of us are too embarrassed to admit we forgot a person’s name so we skirt around it. Not my friend. He felt it was vital to know and use people’s names and he was willing to do whatever it took to accomplish that.

Time and time again I’d watch him ask people to repeat their name. Even with people he supposedly knew for a long time. Sometimes he’d tell them he had a poor memory and if they say their name again it will help him remember. He was genuine and easy going about it. I think most of them appreciated that he cared enough to ask.

My ego is too fragile, I’m afraid. I’d rather rely on tricks. I’ll give you my favorite: only network where everyone wears a name tag.

How about you? What do you do to remember names? What do you do when you forget?

Marketing is everything we do to get and keep good clients. Start with this.

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Filed Under: Marketing legal services, Networking, Personal development, Relationship marketing Tagged With: ,

What to say when someone asks, “What’s new?”

February 21, 2013 by
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How do you typically answer when someone asks you, “What’s new?”

One expert says that answering, “Nothing much,” squanders an opportunity to promote your practice. She says, “Highlight recent successes or certain aspects of your practice.”

What do I think? I think that most people don’t really care about what’s new in your world, they’re just being polite.

They really don’t want to hear about how great you are doing, unless it benefits them. “I just settled a multi-million dollar case,” would be great news to share if you are talking to your spouse or partner. Nobody else cares.

Most people aren’t listening, anyway. They’re thinking about themselves. Their problems. Their unfinished business. If they have good news, they’re thinking about that and waiting for you to stop talking so they can tell you about it.

Yeah, maybe that’s a bit cynical. But no less true.

If you do have some good news, it’s okay to share it. But be brief. If they don’t pick up on it and ask for details, move on.

If they do pick up on it and ask questions, the odds are they’re still being polite. Don’t fall into the trap of telling them all about it. Turn the conversation back to them.

Let the other guy do most of the talking. Ask about his work or what he’s doing for fun. Ask him, “What’s new with you?”

If you don’t have good news to share, please don’t tell them about your problems. Yes, they might be happy to hear that your life is actually worse than theirs, but you can forget about them hiring you.

“What’s new?” “Nothing much. How about you?”

Works for me.

Want more clients? Click here.

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

The hidden cost of social media marketing

February 13, 2013 by
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Social media marketing isn’t free. You pay with your time.

It takes time to

  • Read incoming tweets, stories, posts, and mentions
  • Reply and/or re-post incoming tweets, stories, posts, and mentions
  • Create or find content to share
  • Create and update your profiles and pages
  • Stay up to date with all the new tools and techniques
  • Try out new apps to manage all of the above
  • Read posts like this one. . .

Whether you do this yourself or you hire others to do it for you, there is a cost to social media marketing.

I’m not saying it’s not worth it. It could very much be worth it. If you spend $1500 a month (your time or someone else’s) and bring in $10,000 a month in new business, that’s a good thing.

But that’s a big “if”.

I don’t think most people get this kind of return on their investment.

If you’re not making a profit on your investment in social media, or you don’t “do” social media marketing because you don’t believe it will be worth it (and you don’t want to spend the time to find out), I have a suggestion.

Keep your social media profiles up to date. Promote your web site content to your social media connections so they can push it to THEIR social media connections. But instead of trying to interact with hundreds or thousands of fans, followers, and connections, instead of “one” (you) to “many,” use social media as a tool for marketing “one to one”.

Use it to find one person who targets the same market you do. Another professional, a business owner or executive, a consultant, a blogger. Someone who would be a good fit.

Learn about them. Approach them. And begin the process of networking with them, the old fashioned way. In case you’ve forgotten, that means talking to them and meeting them for coffee.

Find out what you can do for them and they for you. Networking. One to one.

Marketing is simple. If it wasn’t, you wouldn’t do it. Here’s proof.

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Filed Under: Marketing legal services, Networking, Referral sources, Referrals, Social media, Social media marketing, Time Management Tagged With: ,

Why Bill Clinton wants to touch you

January 7, 2013 by
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Have you ever watched how Bill Clinton shakes hands. He doesn’t just clasp your right hand in his, he also touches your arm with his left hand. During the conversation, as he makes a point, he might reach out again to touch your arm or put his hand on your shoulder.

Clinton’s use of nonsexual touching is, arguably, one of the reasons people seem to like him so much. (No comments about his alleged use of other kinds of touching, however.)

According to psychologists, touch “can influence behavior, increase the chances of compliance, make the person doing the touching seem more attractive and friendly, and can even you help make a sale.”

Tests have shown that when touched, people are more likely to comply with requests, more likely to provide help, and more likely to buy. And touching more than once seems to increase these results.

Indiscriminate touching, however, could backfire. In a school or work place setting, any kind of touching could be misinterpreted. In some cultures, touching is generally less welcome than in others. And some individuals don’t like to be touched under any circumstances.

By and large, the rewards are probably worth the risks. Just use common sense when meeting someone new. A pat on the arm or the shoulder is probably safe. A lingering full body hug, probably not a good idea, even for Bill Clinton. Especially for Bill Clinton.

Earn more in 2013. Click here to learn more.

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Filed Under: Communication, Networking Tagged With: , , , , , ,

Marketing legal services at the XMAS dinner table

December 20, 2012 by
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Ah, Christmas dinner with the family. A time to celebrate the holidays and enjoy a good meal. You’ll find out who got engaged, who got divorced, who had a baby, and who has passed. You’ll eat way too much and fall asleep on the sofa. You’ll laugh at your brother’s ridiculous sweater, and pretend to laugh at your Uncle’s bad jokes.

You’ll wait for just the right moment and then, you’ll hand out your business cards. “In case you run into someone who needs a lawyer,” you’ll say.

Clever, huh? Leverage the family dinner to get some new clients. Hey, why not–it’s family. You can ask the family to pass out your cards, right?

No. They already hate you because you make so much money and think you’re so smart. Okay, maybe they don’t hate you, but you still shouldn’t pass out cards. Not because it’s “bad form” at the Christmas dinner but because it’s “bad marketing”. It’s not going to get you any business.

Your family already knows what you do. They have your phone number. If they run into someone who might need you, they’ll tell them. Besides, they still have the cards you gave them last Christmas.

So what’s better? What should you do at the family dinner?

Nothing. Relax. Enjoy the evening. Have fun.

Your best marketing tool isn’t your card, it’s you. The fun, likable, overeating, asleep on the sofa you.

Get The Attorney Marketing Formula and plan your after-holiday marketing

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Filed Under: Business cards, Marketing legal services, Networking Tagged With:

Why every attorney needs to have a global presence

December 3, 2012 by
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You only practice in one state or province or country. You can’t do legal work outside of your jurisdiction. So why should you pay attention to anything elsewhere? Because we live in a global society.

Every day, people move into and out of your city. New arrivals in your city will need an attorney. Some research attorneys before they move. If someone in Los Angeles is being transferred to New York where you practice, they might find you online long before they arrive in town.

Others will ask their attorney, CPA or other professional (in LA) if they know any lawyers in New York. If you have a relationship with those professionals, there’s a good chance that you’ll get the nod. But even if you don’t have a relationship, many professionals will go online to find an attorney in another city to whom they can refer their client.

It happens all the time, even when nobody is moving. People ask people if they know an attorney in LA or NY or Houston or Miami, because their aunt or cousin or business partner has asked them and they thought you might be able to help.

When you send referrals to attorneys in other parts of the country, or other countries, those attorneys will be inclined to send their referrals to you. The same is true of other professionals and businesses.

A law practice is a local business but from a marketing perspective, it is also a global business.

No matter where you practice, you need a strong online presence. You never know when someone in a country you’ve never heard of might be looking for an attorney in your town.

You also need to reach out to professionals and businesses in other parts of the world so that when a client or professional contact asks you if you know a real estate agent, insurance broker, CPA, or lawyer in another city you can give them a referral.

The more referrals you give, the more you will eventually get. But where do you start?

Well, you could pick a city and pick a profession and ask your contacts if they know someone in xyz who does abc, or you could go online and find someone yourself. Then, when someone asks for a referral to someone in xyz who does abc, you’ll have someone. But this is too slow. I suggest you do things in reverse.

Start by announcing to your clients and contacts that you have connections throughout the country–in law, real estate, banking, insurance, and businesses of all kinds. Encourage them to come to you when they need a referral or know someone who does.

When someone asks for a referral, go find someone. The urgency of having someone who needs that referral will force you to find someone fast. But now, instead of merely introducing yourself and saying you hope the two of you can do some business together some day, you’ll actually have someone ready to refer.

It’s called “working smarter” for a reason.

Want to know more ways to work with other professionals and get more referrals? Get The Attorney Marketing Formula and find out.

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Filed Under: Leverage, List building, Marketing legal services, Networking, Online Marketing

The Harley-Davidson of law practices

August 24, 2012 by
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Seth Godin pointed out that it is more profitable to be #1 in a small market than number three in a larger market.

I agree.

He says the market leader sets the agenda and attracts the leading customers.

That’s true.

He says that Harley-Davidson isn’t #1 for all motorcycles but they are clearly #1 in their category.

Yes they are. They have a very loyal following and get lots of word of mouth referrals (or maybe that should be “word of ear” referrals).

There is great wisdom in this concept. I followed this in my practice where I targeted a small niche market, I preach it daily in my private consulting, and I write about it extensively in my new course, The Attorney Marketing Formula.

Let others fight over the mass market while you go fishing in a small(er) pond. Marketing is easier, the clients are better, the profits are greater.

As Godin points out, by redefining your focus and the way you serve your clients, you redefine (and come to own) your market.

As attorneys, it’s easy to stroke our chins, nod our heads, and say, “yes, this is truth.” But most attorneys go right back to swimming in the vast “mass market” ocean. Sadly, most attorneys will never come close to being #3, or even #333 in the mass market. But they could easily be #1 in a smaller market.

Yesterday I corresponded with an attorney who told me he is struggling to find a good niche market. I pointed out that in his email, he mentioned that his practice served many same sex couples and that this is a niche market.

By networking with other professionals and businesses owners who target that market, by working deeply in that market, he could become #1 in that market for his practice area.

Then he could afford a fleet of HOGS.

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Filed Under: Marketing legal services, Networking, Referrals, Relationship marketing Tagged With: , , , , ,

Using LinkedIn to get more traffic to your blog or web site

July 30, 2012 by
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Are we connected on LinkedIn? We should be. Send me a request to connect and mention this blog as our connection.

I like LinkedIn. It’s an excellent social media platform for professionals. No LOL cats, vacation photos, or game requests.

Our LinkedIn profiles lets others learn about what we do, and if that’s all it did, that would be great. But LinkedIn is a giant directory of professionals and business owners we can reach out to and network with, and with a little effort, it’s also a mechanism for actively generating more traffic to our sites.

Here is a very basic example to illustrate:

Let’s say you represent small businesses and you connect with commercial real estate attorneys, brokers, bankers, et. al. One of them posts a link to an article on new government programs for small businesses. You like the article and

  • Comment on their LinkedIn post, which exposes your brilliance to others and brings traffic to your profile, and then to your blog.
  • Comment on their blog, which can also bring traffic.
  • Reach out to the author and tell him you like the article, which may lead to future networking opportunities, guest posts, etc. You can do the same with the person who posted the article if they aren’t the author.
  • Share the article with your clients and prospects, which earns their appreciation.
  • Learn something you can use in your practice and in your marketing.

There are lots of ways to network and share content on LinkedIn. This excellent article on how to use LinkedIn to drive traffic to your blog shows you seven ways to do precisely that. Some of these I’m doing; others are now on my “Next Action” list.

There’s a link in the article to LinkedIn applications you can install to help automate some of these tasks. I use the WordPress app to sync this blog and recommend it. A few applications are designated for legal professionals and I’m going to check them out.

Are you using LinkedIn to get traffic and make new connections?

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Filed Under: Marketing legal services, Networking, Social media, Social media marketing, Web traffic Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
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