Networking Archives - Page 8 of 17 - The Attorney Marketing Center

Faster than a speeding search engine

January 22, 2016 by David M. Ward

Information. You need it, you want it, and you have it, thanks to the search engine of your choice. But there’s something that’s often better than a search engine. In many cases, it’s faster, too.

I’m talking about experts. People who have the answer to your query on the tip of their tongue. Their real-world experience allows them to instantly provide you with answers, or at least point you in the right direction.

Unlike a search engine, you don’t get 101 links of possible solutions. You don’t get sent down a rabbit hole of never-ending research.

You ask, they answer. Done.

We all need to maintainÂ a list of names and contact information of people who know things, and who know people. A group of folks we can call upon to quickly get information, Â recommendations, and referrals.

I’m not talking about paid experts, although we need them, too. I’m talking about friends and business associates and networking buddies who know things and know people and will help us out without sending us a bill.

If we haveÂ a computer problem, we have someone whoÂ can walk us through the solution, or recommend someone who can fix it for us. If we want to find a CPA on the other side of the country for a client who is moving there, we can tap into our network and get referrals.

An information and referral network can benefitÂ you and your clients and other contacts.

Your network makes you better at your job and helps you bring in business. It also allows you to add value to your relationships with your clients and professional contacts.

Let people know that you know a lot of people in different fields and different parts of the country and when they need information or referrals, they should contact you first.

If you know someone, great. You’re a hero. If you don’t know someone, you can find someone you don’t know and expand your network. Nothing like contacting a professional and telling them you have a client who might need their services.

Your network will make you more powerful than a locomotive and able to leap tall buildings in a single bound.

Build your professional network with this

Filed Under: Client relations, Networking, Referral sources, Referrals, Relationship marketing

3 ways to make networking less painful

December 9, 2015 by David M. Ward

You know that networking is a great way to build your practice or advance your career but you avoid doing it because it makes you uncomfortable. One reason you feel that way, no doubt, is because you feel compelled to perform.

You’re supposed to be calm, cool, and collected, but you’re not. You’re supposed to come home with a pocketful of business cards but you get tongue-tied and beat yourself up for not meeting your quota.

You’ve read the books about how to make a good impression, start a conversation and keep it going, but there’s too much to remember and you’re not sure you’re doing it right.

No wonder you hate networking. It’s like handling a jury trial the day after you’ve been sworn in.

You don’t have to be good on day one. Give yourself permission to be bad:

1) Forget the rules

Be yourself. Relax. Meet a few people, shake a few hands, and go home.

If you’re uncomfortable, don’t try to act like you’re not. In fact, tell people how you feel. Poke fun at yourself. Watch and listen and don’t worry about anything else.

No agenda, no goals, no pressure. Just go somewhere there are people you don’t know and be normal.

When the pressure is off and you can be yourself, you might actually enjoy yourself, or at least not hate the experience as much as you thought you would. From there, you can grow.

2) Get a wingman

If you’re attending an event for the first time and not looking forward to it, bring someone with you, someone who is outgoing and can help you. Someone who can talk you downÂ when you feel like calling it an early night.

If not, eventually some good soul will see you standing by yourself, come talk to you and take you under their wing. Hang out with them. Watch them introduce themselves to other people. Listen to how they start conversations.

They will introduce you to others. If they’re real good, those others will have something in common with you and you’ll be able to take it from there.

3) Start with easy

Your first time out, go to an event that is unlikely to have prospective clients or referral sources. That way, there’s nothing at stake and you can practice meeting people without fear of embarrassing yourself or blowing a great opportunity.

Go to a car show, for example, if you know something about cars, and talk to some of the vendors. Ask questions and have fun.

Allow yourself to be not very good at networkingÂ and you might just keep at it until you are.

Filed Under: Marketing legal services, Networking

How to make rain at holiday parties

December 3, 2015 by David M. Ward

I got an email from an attorney friend and subscriber who is hosting a holiday party for 80 clients, referral sources, and prospective clients. He asked me for ideas about how to get more business out of the event, “either at the event itself or soon thereafter”.

He’s a sharp cookie and an astute marketer. He buys all my stuff. Yeah, he’s that smart.

Anyway, his question is a good one. What can you do to leverage the event to build your practice? What might you say to the guests? Do you hand out anything? Announce anything? Invite them to see or do something?

The answer is no. Don’t do any of those things. Just be a good host.

You don’t want to be “that guy” who turns a festive gathering into a sales pitch. You don’t want people to question your motives for inviting them toÂ a party.

Be a good host. Enjoy the event and make sure your guests do, too.

As host, your job is to introduce your guests to each other. Say something nice about each one and make sure the other person knows what they do. This will stimulate conversations among your guests, which is always a good thing, especially if they talk about you and how you’ve helped them. Your guests may make some new friends. They may also get some business from those new friends.

And you get the credit for introducing them, you yenta, you.

By the way, you should do this at parties where you aren’t the host. At networking events, too. Be a matchmaker. Introduce people to other people.

After yourÂ party, send everyone a note thanking them for coming. Tell them you enjoyed seeing them again (or meeting them) and you’d love to get together with them sometime soon.

No agenda. No offers. Just friends.

Later, when you meet with them or talk to them again, look for ways you can help them in their business or personal life. If you have something going on–an event, a special offer, news–go ahead and share it. But keep the focus on them.

When these people see your name on caller ID, or see your email or letter, you want them to smile and eagerly take your call or read your letter. You want them to think fondly of you and be glad to know you. You don’t want them to lump you in with everyone else who is pitching something.

They already know what you do. Stay in touch with them, help them, and when they need your services or know someone who does, they won’t call anyone else.

Learn how to grow your practice and income: The Attorney Marketing Formula

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

The starving artist’s guide to marketing legal services

November 23, 2015 by David M. Ward

Suppose that instead of you being a talented legal professional you were a talented singer. How would you go about marketing that talent?

Traditionally, you would try to get an agent or manager in the hopes that they could get you some gigs and eventually a record deal. Today, most singers market themselves. Much of this is done online, by posting videos, showing off their chops and hoping to get discovered, or simply selling their work directly.

But they also audition at clubs and restaurants and network with people in the industry. They build relationships with people who can hire them, advise them, and introduce them to people who can help their career.

The Internet makes marketing easier and less expensive, but it doesn’t change the fundamentals.

Use the Internet to meet more people. Use it build your list and get your name out to the world. But don’t stop there. Talk to the people. Meet them in person if you can. Find out what they want or need and then help them find solutions.

Like building a singing career, marketing legal services is very much about relationships. There’s a lot of “you” in it. You can hire people to help you with websites and advertising, but never forget that the client doesn’t sign up because you have a great ad campaign or website, they sign up because of you.

Marketing legal services online–go here

Filed Under: Marketing legal services, Networking, Relationship marketing

Marketing legal services: let other people do it for you

November 12, 2015 by David M. Ward

You don’t want to blog or do a podcast but other people in your niche do. They need people to interview and people to write guest posts.

You, for example.

Find blogs and podcasts and video channels in your niche and introduce yourself to the head guy or gal. Compliment their work. Promote their content to your lists. Comment on their posts. Get on their Hangouts and contribute to the conversation.

Stay on their radarÂ and eventuallyÂ they will ask if they can interview you. In fact, once they know who you are, let them know that you are available and you’ll probably move to the front of their list.

By helping them, you help yourself. Your interviews and posts will get your name and contact information in front of people who need your services or who know someone who does. You’ll get more traffic to your website, more followers on social media, and more subscribers for your list. New clients will be next.

Remember, they need content and they can only create so much themselves. They need people like you to help them. As you help them, you help yourself.

The more you get your name out there, the more other bloggers and podcasters will seek you out. Marketing will get easier for you. Instead of doing one interview this monthÂ you’ll have three interviews this week.

Soon, your target market will see you “everywhere” and they will know that when they need a lawyer who does what you do, you are the oneÂ they want. Other professionals will see that you are in demand and choose you for their referrals.

Help others with their marketing and they will help you with yours.

Learn more about marketing legal services online, here

Filed Under: Blogging, List building, Marketing legal services, Networking, Online Marketing, Publicity, Social media marketing, Web traffic, Writing Tagged With: interviews

Won’t you be my neighbor?

November 11, 2015 by David M. Ward

My wife and I have lived in their house for over 20 years. We don’t know most of our neighbors, however, and we like it that way. We like our privacy and, we think, most of our neighbors do, too.

But what’s true for a home isn’t true for a business. At least it shouldn’t be. One of the easiest ways to get more referrals is to get to know your neighbors.

Most of the professionals and businesses near your office have local clients or customers. If you handle consumer or small business matters, they are a natural source of referrals for you, if not potential clients themselves.

Okay, you get this. What can you do to start getting some of that business?

You could mail something to them, and that’s better than nothing, but why not simply knock on their door?

Introduce yourself and ask for their card and perhaps a brochure. What’s your “excuse” for doing that? You don’t need one, but if you think you do you could tell them you were “in the building” (that’s true; you don’t have to tell them why you were in the building), you saw their name on the door or on the building directory and wanted to find out (more about) what they do.

Which is also true.

Give them your card, tell them to have a nice day, and you’re done.

When you get back to your office, send them a one or two sentence email that says, “Great to meet you”. If you feel bold, you might also say you’ll keep them in mind if you have a client or meet someoneÂ who might need their products or services. Do not ask them to do the same.

That’s enough for now. Actually, that’s quite a bit. You have a new contact who has a favorable impression of you. Â You did comb your hair and wear a clean shirt, right? Great. You’ve opened newÂ doors to endless possibilities.

To get referrals from lawyers and other professionals, use this

Filed Under: Marketing legal services, Networking, Referrals

My take on gun control

October 5, 2015 by David M. Ward

I have a very strong opinion on the gun control issue. I’d like to share it with you but I would be a fool if I did.Â I write about marketing, not politics or policy. Telling you my opinion on an emotionally charged issue like gun control might satisfy my need to express myself, but from a marketing standpoint it would be a mistake.

I might lose half of my readers who disagree with me. If I represented a special interest group or had a talk show or forumÂ of some sort where “taking sides” was part of the deal, fine. But I don’t, so why unnecessarily alienate people who might hire me?

As a friend of mine colorfully advises, “Don’t shit on your money”.

And that’s my advice to you.

There is a way to talk about issues like gun control, climate change, abortion, and the likeÂ without stabbing yourself in the back. You do that by writing about those issuesÂ as though you were writing a Bar exam essay.

Present both sides of the issue–the legal arguments and the body of law–in an unbiased manner. The facts and arguments on one side, and then the other.Â Leave out the conclusion altogether, or couch it in terms of “if/then”.

State the facts and keep your opinion to yourself.

Your clients and prospects, readers and listeners, will appreciate you for educating them about both sides of the issue and for giving them credit for making up their own mind. You have presented a valuable service to them, and haven’t pushed anyone away.

I know, it’s hard to keep mum about what we think, especially when we have strongly held opinions about important issues. But we just can’t go there.

When I see what some people post on Facebook, I have to bite my tongue and watch cat videos to calm down. But I don’t comment. I also don’t like political posts I agree with. I don’t letÂ anyone know my opinion.

Lately, however, I’ve taken to un-following people who reveal their foolishnessÂ through their posts. I’m not their client or prospect, so it doesn’t matter, but if I were, their opinions might cost them a small fortune.

What to write on your website or blog

Filed Under: Blogging, Image, Networking, Newsletters, Online Marketing, Public Speaking, Social media, Writing

Lawyer to lawyer referrals: don’t ignore this potential gold mine

October 2, 2015 by David M. Ward

How many lawyers do you know in another state? Probably not many. That means there are a lot of attorneys in other states who also don’t know you and if they don’t know you, they probably won’t send you referrals.

What if there was an easy way to change that?

In the Lawyer to Lawyer Referrals, I said that the simplest way to get more referrals from other lawyers is to get to know more lawyers. Yes, you want to know more lawyers in your local area, but there’s a very good reason for getting to know lawyers in other states: no competition.

If you are in Pittsburgh, PA, an attorney in San Diego, CA might not have a lot of referrals for you, but if you’re the only lawyer he knows in PittsburghÂ in your practice area, when he does have a referral, you’ll be the only one on his list.

Me entiendo?

Imagine having an email list of lawyers in other parts of the country, or in other countries, who know who you are and what you do? They hear from you occasionally, gettingÂ updates about your interesting new client, your big settlement, or your latest article or blog post. Your name and contact information is continually in front of them.

Of course you also ask them to keep you informed about their practice, because you might have a referral for them, or know someone who does.

Many of your contacts will never pan out, but some will. If there are 100 lawyers on your list, you’re going to get some business.

In fact, make that a goal. 100 lawyers on your list in the next 60 days. (You could do this in two days if you wanted to.)

Lawyers are easy to find. They have websites, they are on social media, they advertise. Find lawyers who represent the kinds of clients you target, contact them and introduce yourself.

You can call first, or email. Calling is better; email is faster.

Tell them you saw their website or ad or read something they wrote. Pay them a compliment or ask them a question. And then tell them that you’d like to know more about what they do because you don’t know any lawyers in their area and you never know when you might have a referral.

Of course they will ask about you and your practice.

It really is that simple.

For more ways to find and approach attorneys, both locally and in far off places, see Lawyer to Lawyer Referrals.

Filed Under: Marketing legal services, Networking, Referral sources, Referrals

Two lawyers walked into a bar. . .

September 14, 2015 by David M. Ward

Okay it’s not a bar, it’s a networking event, but a bar is funnier. Oh, and guess what? You’re one of the lawyers. I’m there too, but I’m not me, I’m the owner of a small chain of restaurants and I’m looking for a new lawyer (who does what you do).

We meet and I ask “What do you do?” You tell me you’re a small business lawyer (work with me here or my story won’t make sense) and you tell me a little bit about yourself. I’m impressed.Â I can seeÂ that you have a lot of experience and think you must be good at what you do.Â You’re a nice guy, too.

I meet another lawyer and have a similar conversation. Her name is Alice and she also represents small businesses. She also has an impressive background.

During my conversation with Alice, sheÂ asks me if I know Joe Martin. Joe is the president of our local restaurant owner’s association and I know him well. Alice hasÂ handed several legal matters for JoeÂ personally and he’sÂ just invited herÂ to speak at our next monthly meeting.

Then Alice asks me if I know Karen Collins, co-owner of a popular restaurant in town. I don’t know Karen, but I’ve had several friends tell me about her restaurant and I tell Alice that I plan to go. Alice tells me I will love the food. “Tell Karen I said hello; she’ll take good care of you.”

Yes, Karen is Alice’s client. In fact, Alice represents quite a few restaurant owners.

Before the conversation ends, Alice asked me if I am familiar with a tax proposal the national chapter of our association is supporting. When I tell her I don’t much about it,Â she asks for my email address so she can send me an article she wrote about the bill for our association’s newsletter.

Can you see where this is going?

Yeah, sorry. Better luck next time.

It helps to know people in your prospect’s niche market. It helps to be able to say you represent many of their colleagues or neighbors. It’s even better when your prospect knows them and can ask them about you.

How does this happen? It happens when you target a niche market and build your reputation in that market by writing, speaking, and networking. It happens when you focus on that market, learn all about it, and meet the top people in it. It happens when you focus your time and resources on that market and eventually dominate it.

You can do that in business niches and consumer niches. You can do that by targeting prospective clients or people who can refer them (or both).

Gotta go. I’ve got a reservation for lunch at Karen’s restaurant. Alice sent me.

How to choose the right niche market: The Attorney Marketing Formula

Filed Under: Marketing legal services, Networking, Specializing, Writing Tagged With: Niche marketing

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

July 31, 2015 by David M. Ward

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?

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