Law Firm Marketing
Law firm marketing is not simply about advertising legal services, but is a comprehensive plan to raise awareness about the agency and convince individuals and businesses to choose its services. Every legal services company needs a continual stream of clients. Marketing doesn't accomplish this with a one-shot campaign. Efforts must continue weekly, monthly and yearly to keep new clients and cases coming in. But firms shouldn't limit plans to just targeting prospects. One of the most influential audiences for a legal services company is its current client base. Lawyers and attorneys have a prime opportunity to get to know their clients better and develop an ongoing relationship with them. In doing this, they are able to discover other possible legal needs that require professional services. By keeping clients satisfied, firms get more referrals. Solid law firm marketing plans target a specific prospect base, develop methods to turn prospects into clients, and implement a plan to educate and communicate with each client as their needs change.
In order to build a successful agency, lawyers and attorneys need to find a niche, a very narrow field in which to specialize. With the vast legal knowledge required today, professionals do not have time to become experts in every area of the law. People do not trust those who claim to know it all. They don't want lawyers who experiment in various fields. Instead, clients expect and look for counsel who has the specific expertise to handle their problem and have had success with similar cases. Developing a law firm marketing plan with a targeted audience is much easier than shooting in the dark and hoping prospects will walk in the door. Finding a niche will not only help lawyers and attorneys master a particular field, but will help firms define and communicate a specific strategy to that audience.
"Write the vision, and make it plain upon tables, that he may run that readeth it." (Habakkuk 2:2) Even in Bible times, vision was crucial to the success of any effort. Today is no different. Law firm marketing strategies begin with a detailed plan of action that will identify and guide all efforts. Legal service companies first identify goals and objectives. Deciding how many new accounts or dollars to bring in will provide the rule to measure success. Then, marketers research where to find prospects and hone efforts into those areas. A comprehensive plan will include a variety of communication vehicles including networking events, seminars, websites, publications, direct mail, print materials, and sponsorships. Which methods utilized will highly depend on the niche audience and marketing budget. Firms should also evaluate the competition and create a unique advantage that sets them apart. This unique selling position should be clearly identified in all communication pieces. Each step of the law firm marketing plan should have established, measurable benchmarks to help the firm evaluate success and demonstrate a positive return on investment.
Every aspect of law firm marketing must support the brand of the entire practice. Branding is simply the core message and feel that is weaved through all marketing pieces. Most law firms are faced with a difficult choice. Do they promote the agency or the individual attorneys? Many times, agencies with several different niche lawyers will promote each as a different entity, sacrificing the core message in the process. But this doesn't promote either very well. Although an agency may have several different departments, each focusing on its own specialty, the promotion of each area should support the overall image of the firm. This is usually a struggle with larger agencies that need to not only communicate with potential clients, but also send messages out to the local community and other litigators. Smaller practices tend to focus solely on being accessible to people within a specific community or zip code and don't worry about reaching multiple niche audiences.
Legal websites are a key element of law firm marketing. With today's automated and convenient technology, there is no excuse not to have a website. Most people can build one with little or no technical training. Services are available for agencies that would like to add special features or have the assurance of knowledgeable technical support. Tracking software makes it easy to evaluate the success of online campaigns almost instantly. Reports usually include how many individuals have visited the site, how long they stayed, pages viewed and which websites referred them. Websites are an integral part of the marketing plan and should compliment, not work independent of, other offline efforts. The goal of a legal web page is not just to attract visitors but also to convert them to clients. To do this, websites provide information about the firm and convince them to respond by making a purchase, downloading more information or signing up for a newsletter. Be clear and upfront about why and how people's personal information will be used. Design websites that are easy to navigate with content that is informative, simple and clear to follow. Most people look for legal counsel search for a specific area of specialty in a geographical location. Make sure that the site includes the unique selling position of the firm, contact phone number and an online form to collect information.
Online, print and broadcast methods, new and traditional media, all play important roles in law firm marketing. Some of the best avenues of reaching new clients don't cost anything. Networking is the best promotional method around. Meet people. Talk to them about their needs. Chances are, they will either need legal services or know someone who does. Another effective method is publishing books and professional articles. Publication gives credibility to the writer and is a form of promotion that doesn't look overtly like advertising. It also opens the door for further free promotion like book signings, interviews, and reviews. Publishing can take the form of articles in legal periodicals or trade journals, non-legal magazines, or letters to the editor of local newspapers. Getting the word out and educating people is ultimate goal.
In order to build a successful agency, lawyers and attorneys need to find a niche, a very narrow field in which to specialize. With the vast legal knowledge required today, professionals do not have time to become experts in every area of the law. People do not trust those who claim to know it all. They don't want lawyers who experiment in various fields. Instead, clients expect and look for counsel who has the specific expertise to handle their problem and have had success with similar cases. Developing a law firm marketing plan with a targeted audience is much easier than shooting in the dark and hoping prospects will walk in the door. Finding a niche will not only help lawyers and attorneys master a particular field, but will help firms define and communicate a specific strategy to that audience.
"Write the vision, and make it plain upon tables, that he may run that readeth it." (Habakkuk 2:2) Even in Bible times, vision was crucial to the success of any effort. Today is no different. Law firm marketing strategies begin with a detailed plan of action that will identify and guide all efforts. Legal service companies first identify goals and objectives. Deciding how many new accounts or dollars to bring in will provide the rule to measure success. Then, marketers research where to find prospects and hone efforts into those areas. A comprehensive plan will include a variety of communication vehicles including networking events, seminars, websites, publications, direct mail, print materials, and sponsorships. Which methods utilized will highly depend on the niche audience and marketing budget. Firms should also evaluate the competition and create a unique advantage that sets them apart. This unique selling position should be clearly identified in all communication pieces. Each step of the law firm marketing plan should have established, measurable benchmarks to help the firm evaluate success and demonstrate a positive return on investment.
Every aspect of law firm marketing must support the brand of the entire practice. Branding is simply the core message and feel that is weaved through all marketing pieces. Most law firms are faced with a difficult choice. Do they promote the agency or the individual attorneys? Many times, agencies with several different niche lawyers will promote each as a different entity, sacrificing the core message in the process. But this doesn't promote either very well. Although an agency may have several different departments, each focusing on its own specialty, the promotion of each area should support the overall image of the firm. This is usually a struggle with larger agencies that need to not only communicate with potential clients, but also send messages out to the local community and other litigators. Smaller practices tend to focus solely on being accessible to people within a specific community or zip code and don't worry about reaching multiple niche audiences.
Legal websites are a key element of law firm marketing. With today's automated and convenient technology, there is no excuse not to have a website. Most people can build one with little or no technical training. Services are available for agencies that would like to add special features or have the assurance of knowledgeable technical support. Tracking software makes it easy to evaluate the success of online campaigns almost instantly. Reports usually include how many individuals have visited the site, how long they stayed, pages viewed and which websites referred them. Websites are an integral part of the marketing plan and should compliment, not work independent of, other offline efforts. The goal of a legal web page is not just to attract visitors but also to convert them to clients. To do this, websites provide information about the firm and convince them to respond by making a purchase, downloading more information or signing up for a newsletter. Be clear and upfront about why and how people's personal information will be used. Design websites that are easy to navigate with content that is informative, simple and clear to follow. Most people look for legal counsel search for a specific area of specialty in a geographical location. Make sure that the site includes the unique selling position of the firm, contact phone number and an online form to collect information.
Online, print and broadcast methods, new and traditional media, all play important roles in law firm marketing. Some of the best avenues of reaching new clients don't cost anything. Networking is the best promotional method around. Meet people. Talk to them about their needs. Chances are, they will either need legal services or know someone who does. Another effective method is publishing books and professional articles. Publication gives credibility to the writer and is a form of promotion that doesn't look overtly like advertising. It also opens the door for further free promotion like book signings, interviews, and reviews. Publishing can take the form of articles in legal periodicals or trade journals, non-legal magazines, or letters to the editor of local newspapers. Getting the word out and educating people is ultimate goal.
Law Firm Marketing
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