The Law Firm Marketing Blog

How to Market the Personal Injury Practice… Without Spending a Gazillion Dollars in Advertising

2011-09-15T16:00:00.000-04:00

If you are a personal injury attorney and the leader when it comes to advertising spending in your market, this article is not for you.

If however, you are a personal injury attorney who cannot afford to “outshout” the competition on television radio, or in print, fear not. There are a number of tactics the smaller PI firm or attorney can do to ensure their voice is heard. And they involve four very different though interrelated activities.

Before implementing those activities however, the smaller PI firm must take a hard look at what distinguishes it from its competitors. To the layperson, all PI firms appear pretty much the same from the outside -- they all make the same claims and all promise to get paid only if “you do.” Hence, it is imperative that the smaller firm find that little niche it can leverage to its advantage. This can take the form of a particular target group that the firm services, knows well and for which it can provide a sense of comfort. It can also seek to leverage experience in a specific area of personal injury -- be it brain injuries, mesothelioma, motorcycle accidents, birth injuries, etc. Finally, one can also seek to leverage the limited marketing dollars available across a very tightly targeted geographic area. If you can’t be the big player in the major market, be the biggest player in one section of that market.

Once those decisions have been made (and by the way, there’s no rule that says that you can’t elect to proceed with some permutation of them), it’s time to leverage those points of difference.

As stated, there are four ways in which to do this. The first of these involves the firm web site. If you peruse competitive web sites, you will notice that there’s a sameness to the vast majority of them. They all purport to do the same thing and cover the same practice areas. But an individual with a brain injury or mesothelioma or any specific type of injury or illness isn’t looking for a personal injury attorney -- they’re looking for a brain injury or mesothelioma lawyer. If your site can highlight a certain level of experience or accomplishment in this area, not only will visitors pick up on this “expertise,” but so will the search engines. Don’t want to de-emphasize other PI areas by focusing on any one? No problem. Consider creating a microsite on the specific area of interest and having it link off of the firm’s main site. And, just like the firm’s main site, this microsite can also be optimized for high search engine placement. Of course, if you’ve decided not to leverage a particular sub-practice area, you can apply a similar approach in reaching out to members of a specific target group.

The same logic applies to the second of the marketing activities at your disposal -- public relations. Through press releases, articles, broadcast interview placements, and presentations, the smart PI attorney can position himself as a premier authority on a particular subject. This generates not just exposure – but free exposure. Further, all of the articles and videos and presentations can then be used as fodder for that web site or microsite, thereby further enhancing optimization efforts (i.e., the search engines just love new content).

The third highly effective means for getting one’s name out there is through sponsorships with causes and organizations that relate to your particular area of focus. If you are going to emphasize brain injuries in your practice (and on your web site and through PR), then hook up with the hospitals, clinics, and non-profit groups that serve those who suffer from such maladies. Better still, organize an event or campaign that draws attention to a particular concern and to your firm at the same time. Think of public service campaigns that law firms have implemented warning of the hazards of drinking and driving. A little creativity can align your practice with a worthy cause, creating goodwill between yourself and your target prospects -- not a bad thing at a time when perceptions of PI attorneys are not as positive as one might hope.

Finally, if you take the geographic approach and seek to be the dominant player, albeit in a smaller area, the opportunity exists to leverage what marketing dollars you do have towards all kinds of marketing mix permutations. It is important to understand that oftentimes it is more important to reach a smaller number of people several times than it is to reach a large number of individuals only a few times. That is because research has shown that it usually takes quite a number of exposures to prompt an individual to action. And because you can’t really prompt an individual to seek a PI attorney until that time that they’ve been injured, being “out there” on a regular basis in a smaller pond often is a wiser bet than casting your lot by being drowned out in the ocean.

In summary, while no one can argue the advantages of having a large marketing budget with which to promote one’s firm, a willingness to carve out a specific niche, and little ingenuity can go a long way in offsetting those advantages.

Unethical Advertising or Just Poor Taste

2011-03-28T17:49:00.001-04:00

It is rare when issues involving legal marketing make the print or web pages of major metropolitan newspapers. But that is exactly the situation today in regard to coverage of one law firm’s attempt to obtain additional 9-11 lawsuits via advertising that some are suggesting is, at the very least, in poor taste.

The story revolves around an ad in which a New York City fireman appears alongside the headline, “I Was There."

The problem is that this particular fireman was neither there nor a member of the New York fire department on that day ten years ago. To make matters worse, the firefighter who was then working as a model, thought he was posing for a fire prevention ad. He was shot gripping a helmet -- not a picture of the 9-11 catastrophe that was later photo-shopped into his hands. A very small disclaimer at the bottom of the flyer reads, “This is an actor portrayal of a potential Zagroda claimant.”

Although Bar association rules regarding attorney advertising vary state by state, it can be argued that under most state guidelines, the ad does not violate bar rules. After all, many personal injury ads use actors or models to depict accident victims. In this particular case, a small disclaimer does exist, and no individual is falsely portraying one of the attorneys at the firm. Similarly, the ad does not claim past or future results that it cannot substantiate.

Through its visual depiction as well as its copy, it seems rather apparent that the general intent of the ad is to convey the fireman's actual presence at the WTC scene, and by association, the firm’s support of those who were heroes that day. As stated, this is not an uncommon practice. Hence, the concern stems not from how the firm and its advertising agency depicted this particular firefighter, but that it elected to do so in an ad about such a still sensitive topic. The problem is further exacerbated by the very small size of the disclaimer which only serves to encourage a perception that the firm is somehow being misleading. That the approach taken ran the risk of potentially turning off the very group of people for which it was intended suggests not so much that this is a case of unethical advertising, as it does that this is simply bad advertising.

FREE WEBINAR: “Building the Elder Law, Trusts & Estates Practice: 5 Things You Can Do Right Now"

2011-03-24T15:33:00.000-04:00

A.L.T. Legal Professionals Marketing Group will sponsor a free online webinar entitled “Building the Family Law Practice: 5 Things You Can Do Right Now” on Tuesday, April 12, 2011 at 12:00 Noon (EDT).

This fast-moving 1-hour program will highlight no-cost and low-cost tactics that elder law/trusts & estates practices can implement immediately to generate new client revenue.

Content to be covered includes:

• Understanding the Money vs. Time Conundrum
• Integrating Marketing Efforts for Maximum Efficiency
• Do-It-Yourself Search Engine Optimization and Pay-Per-Click
• Cost-Efficient Public Relations
• Effective Newspaper Advertising
• Implementing the Elder Law/Trusts & Estates Seminar
• Utilizing Direct Marketing Towards a Captive Audience

The free webinar will be presented by Les Altenberg, President of A.L.T. Legal Professionals Marketing Group and author of numerous articles on legal marketing that have appeared in such publications as The National Law Journal, Law Practice Management, Texas Bar Journal, North Carolina Lawyers Weekly, Massachusetts Lawyers Weekly, and the Legal Intelligencer. He has over 20 years experience in helping law firms build their business.

Individuals interested in attending this webinar should register at LegalProfessionalsMarketing.com.

BEST SHORT-TERM MARKETING TACTIC FOR GAINING FAMILY LAW CLIENTS: The Family Law Seminar

2011-02-28T15:08:00.001-05:00

Over the years, we have seen, that the most successful marketing tool for generating new family law clients over the short-term, has without question, been the seminar.

And it’s not even close.

That is not to say that seminars are the be-all and end-all when it comes to marketing the family law practice. Far from it. When it comes to legal marketing, there are a lot of things that seminars cannot accomplish, most of which fall under the headings of “long-term” or branding. But if I needed to pick up a handful of new clients, in just a few weeks, and had limited financial resources, implementation of a seminar would be the basket in which I would put my eggs.

There are a number of reasons for this, the most important of which is the fact that seminars offer the opportunity to connect with potential clients before, during and after the actual event.

Let’s take a look at each of these in turn:

Promoting the Seminar
Family law firms and attorneys should understand that the benefits of a seminar for the public are not limited to the interaction such events allow. Promotion of the seminar itself has value - - even on those occasions when it does not attract a large number of attendees. That is because publicizing the event still generates awareness of the firm. That a potential client elects not to attend can be a function of anything from apathy or fear, to simple logistical conflicts. But regardless, even in not attending, there’ll be viewers, readers, site visitors and listeners who will be exposed to the firm name nonetheless.

That’s just one reason. There are a number of others. Unlike image-oriented marketing, promoting a seminar is time-sensitive. This means that you will probably only have to be “out there” for a relatively short period of time (translation: less financial outlay). Our experience has been that such events can be successfully publicized from 2-3 weeks prior to the actual date. Seminars also lend themselves to a myriad of ways in which to reach the individual contemplating or involved in a divorce. These include advertising, press releases, email blasts, announcements via social media, pay-per-click and an announcement on the firm web site itself. Finally, depending on the content of the seminar, the event may be a good way to publicize the firm’s special knowledge or interest in a particular segment of family law (e.g., Gay and Lesbian domestic partnerships).

The Seminar Itself
Seminars provide a combination of benefits that most other marketing tools cannot. They offer the opportunity for a potential client to actually begin a relationship with the attorney. The “immediacy” of the moment is second only to a one-on-one consult. The information the attorney provides is invaluable to the individual most often hungry for anything that will help him or her get through the process more painlessly. Seminars create a non-threatening environment. (Remember, all of this is ‘old hat’ for you, but usually quite intimidating for the potential client). And finally, seminars offer the attorney and the firm a forum for touting their “expertise” in particular areas of the law.

Clearly, the single most important variable in determining whether your seminar is successful in attracting new clients will be the actual event itself. In planning this, aside from preparing the actual content, there are three questions one must invariably ask:

What kind of a client do you wish to attract?
There are many family law practices that seek out any and all kinds of clients. There are others however, that focus on attracting specific segments of the overall population. For example, a firm may emphasize serving mostly those with a high net worth. Or it may have particular success in attracting clients of one gender or another - - or of one sexual orientation or another. Whatever the target market may be, the determination of the target audience will have significant impact on the content of the seminar itself.

Where should you hold the seminar?
Keeping with the example noted above, a determination to seek out high net worth individuals may suggest charging for the seminar, thereby screening out those whom the firm may not wish to represent. Similarly, one should have a good understanding as to the types of clients the firm is most likely to attract and to the geographical locations to which such prospects will be most comfortable traveling.

When should the seminar be held?
Finally, your choice as to the date and time of the seminar will have some bearing as to who does and does not show up. The middle of the day probably will not be an attractive time for most working professionals. It may be however be exactly that, for non-working mothers of school aged children. Be aware of holidays – not just national holidays that impact everyone, but also those holidays that have special significance to religious or ethnic segments of the population.

After the Seminar
Opportunities for promoting the firm both before and during the seminar are a plenty. But there are also opportunities to do likewise after the event as well.

“Keepsakes,” in the form of brochures, Case Information Statements, summaries of relevant state statutes, articles, (even the proverbial refrigerator door magnet), etc., all lend themselves to being maintained by the prospect or passed along to others also seeking family law counsel.

Seminars can be publicized following the event as well, especially if you’ve provided a little “twist.” For example, if you had decided to charge for the event, you might have also elected to allocate all or a certain percentage of the proceeds to a relevant cause – perhaps a women’s shelter, or a special program for children of divorce. Handing over that check to the non-profit becomes an event unto itself, replete with press releases and photo opportunities. If you’ve thought ahead, you can have your seminar video recorded and archive it on your web site, thereby extending the presentation’s life still further and potentially reaching other prospects who had been unable to attend. Finally, depending on the nature of your event and the situation of each attendee, seminars can be a way to build on the firm’s database of prospects.

Obviously, the importance of creating a seminar that’s informative, captivating and that sheds the attorney/firm in the best light possible cannot be overstated. That being said, the greatest opportunity for maximum success comes in a careful planning of not just the event itself, but of all pre and post-event activities as well. Done right, seminars can often be a great way to jump-start the family law practice.

Are New Jersey’s Efforts at Curbing Attorney Mail Solicitations Missing the Real Issues?

2010-12-09T09:40:00.001-05:00

New Jersey legislators are currently considering statutes that would require attorneys to wait 30 days before contacting defendants or victims of accidents. The proposed bills reflect a response on the part of those seeking tort reform to curb what many deem to be activities that undermine the image of the legal profession. They may, in fact, be quite right.

But the proposed bills also raise some other interesting questions as well. As a legal marketing company, we are often pressed to determine the optimal way in which to promote our law firm clients’ services. Because of the ethical considerations involved, this is a little trickier than it might be for other service businesses. Attorneys are limited in the manner in which they may promote their wares and reach out to potential clients. Hence, to limit their right to contact prospects based on information gleaned from public records is to restrict attorneys in ways most other service businesses are not. Marketing is really just about educating others regarding the benefits of a given product or service. Should not a law firm have the same right to “market” as any other business entity? Is not that part of their first amendment rights as well?

The answer is not a simple one. In directing mailings to individuals based on public records, many feel that attorneys are nonetheless also invading the privacy of these very same people. The problem is exacerbated when such mailings contain content that either misleads and/or misinforms the recipient. Yet, cannot the same be said about the scores of tacky attorney television commercials that promise, by word or implication, to obtain oodles of money on the injured person’s behalf?

From our perspective, it would seem that the real question concerns not the medium employed as much as it does the content of the message. When attorneys and law firms are allowed to convey the benefits of their services in a manner that is informative, it is not just the law firm that is best served, but also the individual solicited. Armed with information, that person can make better, more educated decisions. Ambulance chasing only becomes ambulance chasing when it smacks of opportunism. This is true regardless of whether the medium employed is direct mail, television, radio, newspapers, billboards or online. And it’s true regardless of whether the individual becomes a recipient of a message on the day of an accident, the next day, or on the 30th day thereafter. Hence, the legislative focus should be not on limiting attorneys’ marketing alternatives, but rather on developing clearer, fairer guidelines as to what information about itself a law firm can rightly tout -- while still protecting against the vulnerability of the individual. When communications to defendants or accident victims provides valuable information versus unsubstantiated hyperbole, it is doubtful whether these same individuals will feel quite as strongly that their rights to privacy have been violated.

Free Webinar on “Building the Family Law Practice: 5 Things You Can Do Right Now”

2010-11-18T13:54:00.000-05:00

Thursday, December 2, 2010 9:00 AM EDT.

This fast-moving 1-hour program will highlight no cost and low cost tactics that family law firms can implement immediately to generate new client revenue. And you’ll learn it all without ever leaving your desk.

Content to be covered includes:
• Understanding the Money vs. Time Conundrum
• Integrating Marketing Efforts for Maximum Efficiency
• Public Relations for the Short-Term
• Search Engine Optimization and Pay-Per-Click
• Investing Time Wisely in Social Marketing

Webinar will be presented by Les Altenberg, President of A.L.T. Legal Professionals Marketing Group and author of numerous articles on legal marketing that have appeared in such publications as The National Law Journal, Law Practice Management, Texas Bar Journal, North Carolina Lawyers Weekly, Massachusetts Lawyers Weekly, and the Legal Intelligencer. He has over 20 years experience in helping law firms build their business.

Register for this FREE on-line event

Assessing the “Cost” of On-Line Social Marketing

2010-11-04T19:52:00.001-04:00

About 15 years ago, we used to advise our law firm clients that unless they were prepared to invest heavily in developing a web site, it was probably not a wise idea to create one. We said this, not out of any doubt that web sites would some day play a big role in conveying information about law practices. Rather, our recommendations were based on limited budgets and the feeling that being a “pioneer,” should be left to the big boy advertisers with deep pockets who were inclined to experiment with new types of media. I still believe this was good advice at the time, with the operative words being “at the time.”

Flash forward those 15 years and I cannot imagine recommending that a law firm refrain from developing a web site. In fact, we are often in a position where we feel just the opposite, emphasizing to our clients the importance of not just having a web site, but creating a dynamic, interactive, portal of information that conveys the firm’s identity in the best light possible.

With the advent of social media, I find myself back to where I was when the internet was first all the rage. I understand social media. I can see its benefits. But I am also cautious in how I suggest law firms utilize the new promotional tools available to them.

The primary thing that bothers me is the misperception that somehow social media is “free” or something close to it. As I see it, nothing could be further from the truth.

For the most part, social media consists of three main parts. There are blogs, networking sites (e.g., Facebook, Linkedin, etc.), and online groups (listservs) in which one can ask questions and/or exchange thoughts and ideas on specific issues. Let’s take a look at each in turn.

Writing a blog has proven to be a great generator of leads for many – particularly those that started early, found a niche, and most important, kept at it all the time. Blogging has many advantages in that not only are you conveying expertise on a certain subject matter, but you are also, hopefully, also developing followers. Further, the more people who connect to your blog (and perhaps indirectly to your firm’s web site as well), the more likely you are to see your name, your blog and your web site ranked high in the search engine, all for a very small financial investment. But, and it’s a big “but,” blogs take an enormous amount of time and tremendous discipline to maintain. You will need to not only write a piece at least once a week (and probably more), but will also need to keep coming up with fresh, new and relevant topic ideas. Hence, if you spend 2 hours each week, just about every week of the year, and multiply that times your billing rate, you’ll get a good sense of the real investment that’s involved. Further, if you also include the time spent following and commenting on other people’s blogs as a means to attract more visitors to yours, that investment goes up even further.

The networking sites such as Linkedin also require a considerable time commitment. Here, you are connecting with all of your contacts and hopefully connecting with their contacts (and the contacts of their contacts) as well. Obviously, the opportunity here to meet, be introduced to, and interact with potential new clients is great as the exponential nature of these sites gives you exposure to hundreds of thousands of individuals and businesses, as well as them to you. However, even if one knew 100 people in a filled Yankee Stadium, where over 50,000 “potential” clients sat, one would be hard-pressed to make a case that being introduced to the most promising of those 50,000 by the 100 one knew, was the best use of one’s time.

There are situations of course, where pursuing the online contacts makes good sense. For example, a large law firm may hire an individual whose singular responsibility it is to pursue new business. This individual, not charged with actually servicing clients, has the luxury of time, and hopefully a far-reaching online rolodex to make such an effort pay off. The solo practitioner probably does not.

Another concern I have is to where exactly do such social media sites go from here. Last I checked, Linkedin had over 80 million subscribers. That’s a large number, but as it gets larger and everyone becomes a member, with everyone (including your competitors) pursuing the same agenda, how much more difficult will it become to work the names and the numbers efficiently.? (I have the same concerns with search engine optimization as well, by the way. How many law firms can be listed #1 on the search engines at any given time?).

Third, while the concept of such networking makes good sense in theory (and in many cases, in practice as well), how eager are you to hear from your second grade classmate asking you to refer him/her to a prospect whom you know? And if this becomes the norm, we will get to that point ad nauseum. The reality is that networking is a very personal activity, requiring individuals to not just meet, but also make a good impression on new as well as old acquaintances. Much as the internet minimizes the need to get out of one’s seat, and however good a writer one may be, it simply cannot replace the firm handshake, the pleasant smile, or the well-placed comment that comes with carrying on an face-to-face conversation.

Last, we come to the online groups, also sometimes referred to as listservs. These are essentially forums for people with similar interests and/or in the same industry, who wish to share information, get answers to questions and hopefully display their expertise. Again, like the two examples noted above, from a dollars perspective, they usually cost very little, if anything at all. From a time commitment however, they are tremendously expensive. Even if one provides all of the relevant links to one’s web site, blog, etc., the opportunity to become recognized as an “expert” can sap one’s “sweat” resources – particularly as more and more groups are created and more and more people join them. As a tool for perhaps getting an answer to a particular question, they can be quite useful. But if one is enticed by their potential as a means for replacing more traditional marketing tools, one needs to be careful about exactly where the trade-off of time versus money becomes less than beneficial.

The point of all of this is not that on-line social marketing is useless, deficient or in some ways, unworthy. That would hardly be true. And the way we use them may improve over time as well. But as with all marketing tools, from advertising to public relations, they do come with very clear advantages as well as drawbacks. Law firms must remain aware of both and remember what has always been true. Nothing is ever free.

The Importance of Integrated Marketing in the Internet Age

2010-01-25T15:45:00.002-05:00

With the coming of age of on-line marketing, the range of potential ways in which to reach target prospects is almost limitless. There is SEO, pay-per-click, webinars, electronic newsletters, mass e-mails, banner ads, blogs, and all kinds of avenues for social marketing. Yet even with all these relatively new options, implementing “integrated” marketing efforts remains as critical as ever – perhaps even more so today than yesterday. That is because, the whole concept of integrated marketing rests on a few basic premises, including:

1. The most successful marketing campaigns are those in which different marketing tools work to support another.
For example, obtaining high placement on search engines has become an area of prime focus over the past several years. And what’s one of the main ways to enhance such efforts? Getting links pointing to the firm’s site. And what’s one important way of making that happen? Generating “news” in the form of articles, releases, opinions, etc. and disseminating it to both on-line and off-line outlets. Sound familiar? Enhance your site’s rankings by raising your perceived credibility. Same old dog, just new ways of making it do tricks

2. A multiplicity of message exposures is still critical.
Yes, someone may get to your site via Google or otherwise. Yes, they may call you based on interfacing with your firm’s web site alone. But let’s face it, the most powerful marketing programs are those which allow one “touchpoint” to reinforce another. For example, a prospect may see/read about your firm, but when that curiosity/interest is validated through another exposure (e.g., an individual, a published article, a seminar, etc.) the likelihood of creating a comfort level between firm/attorney and that prospect can only be enhanced. This is important when one looks at not just lead generation, but conversion data as well.

3. Measurement of marketing efforts must be holistic.
Is it important to track/analyze metrics such as “hits,” “visitors,” “click-throughs,” the number of PR placements, responses to advertisements, etc? Yes. But because so many of these variables are, in fact, dependent on one another, it’s also important to look at the firm’s marketing efforts in their totality. Without one element, it’s quite possible the success of other elements would have been diminished.

The critical thing to understand is that while the tools to be used may change over time, the basic concepts of marketing remain the same. That is why determining objectives and developing appropriate “strategies” must still be done prior to writing an ad, designing a web site, pitching an article, spending time on a social media program or implementing an optimization effort. Only in this way can one be sure that each element of the marketing program is given the maximum opportunity to help make the whole program succeed.

Marketing Mix for Dummies

2009-10-10T22:43:00.003-04:00

I can remember quite vividly when I was starting out in my career at one of the larger NY advertising agencies, attending in-house seminars on the inherent characteristics, benefits and drawbacks of the different media. Basically, within advertising, it came down to just six different types: television, radio, newspapers, magazines, cable TV, and outdoor. There was something comforting about applying one’s best creative thinking towards the development of media plans that incorporated these six elements.

Flash forward, and now there is a seemingly endless array of traditional as well as non-traditional (i.e., internet) mediums that potentially could be utilized in an advertising campaign. Augment this with the myriad of non-advertising tools such as public relations, direct marketing, SEO, and everything from personal networking to getting a page on Facebook, it’s no wonder that law firms have a difficult time when it comes to creating marketing plans that make sense.

With this in mind, the following offers a handy-dandy, nuts and bolts, “Marketing Mix for Dummies” chart on the positives and negatives of the marketing tools most often utilized by law firms. With apologies to skywriting, bathroom advertising, and in-video game product placement, it should provide law firms with a pretty good checklist of activities to consider (and/or to consider rejecting). No doubt, it will have failed to cite every possible use of every potential tool, nor will it accurately describe every inherent benefit of failing of each type of vehicle. But it’s a place to begin, a place to house all potential approaches under one roof, and an opportunity to examine how different tools can work together to create an effective, integrated marketing program.

As always, I look forward to hearing from you regarding anything I’ve missed or any refinements you might suggest.

Effective Legal Advertising Requires Frequency, Unless...

2009-09-10T13:43:00.002-04:00

There are thee reasons why legal professionals cringe when the topic of law firms and advertising comes up. The first is that the industry is filled with images of lawyers screaming from their desks that they “get paid only if you get paid.” That’s number one. The second reason is that the legal industry remains reluctant to fully embrace a marketing “tool” that only relatively recently has been open as an option to law firms seeking to promote their services. Unfortunately, there’s not a lot I can do about these first two reasons.

But there is something that can be done about the third reason. When people think about advertising, they tend to think about branding and image-building. It’s certainly true that much of advertising in the legal industry, or any industry for that matter, focuses on such activities. Unfortunately, branding/image-building is usually a highly expensive proposition. That is because the cost of purchasing media space in a newspaper or magazine can be extremely expensive on a single unit basis. Effective branding programs require generating multiple exposures of the firm’s message. Prospects must be exposed to threshold levels of frequency. An advertising campaign does no good unless it reaches a certain number of people a certain number of times. Hence, simple math will dictate that several (and that really means “quite a few”) ads times a high per unit cost translates into big-time bucks.

But traditional frequency-oriented branding campaigns are not the only types of advertising approaches available to the growth minded law firm. We have seen firms achieve terrific results utilizing advertising a) as a means for promoting an event or free information, b) associating itself with a cause or organization and, c) in an opportunistic fashion by being placed in special editions of publications which the firm knows will be well-read by key prospects/constituencies. Let’s take a look at each of these.

Promoting a service by offering a seminar, a free guidebook, a “tips” brochure holds many inherent advantages for the astute practice. For one, it allows the prospect to begin a relationship with the firm in a relatively risk-free manner. Second, it promotes the firm as being especially knowledgeable in this particular area of the law. Third, it allows the firm to create a database of prospective client contacts. And finally, seminars, free giveaways and such can be promoted with a deadline, meaning the usual rules of frequency do not necessarily apply. A smaller schedule of ads ultimately means lower overall costs.

Advertising the firm in a myriad of organizational directories, charity event programs, religious directories, etc. is another way of having the firm appear “all over the place.” The actual circulation numbers may be considerably less than traditional publications, but this type of sponsorship advertising allows the firm to be associated with the “movers and shakers,” as well as worthwhile causes/endeavors. And just because the publications may not be slick, 4-color vehicles doesn’t mean that the firm can not use the precious communications real estate as a means for further branding itself. We’ve seen it work.

Finally, in an effort to attract more advertisers, both consumer and business-to-business publications always create “special issues” focusing on a specific topic. For example, a consumer-oriented publication may decide to feature the topic of divorce. This may prove to be a wonderful opportunity for a family law practice to advertise without committing to an extensive schedule. Similarly, a business publication may devote most of an issue to the challenges face by corporate counsel – again a wonderful opportunity for firms seeking to reach this type of decision maker. Sometimes it is even matter of ego. As a business that serves law firm clients, we often consider advertising in community publications (e.g., South Jersey Magazine) that are highlighting the area’s top attorneys – largely because we know that probably every attorney in the area will be reading to see who’s in and who’s out.

The bottom line is that advertising needs to be looked at in the broadest sense possible. And while nothing can replace the importance of frequency in making a message “stick” with prospects, there are creative means for making an impact cost-effectively.

In Print or On-Line? Where Should those Directory Dollars Go?

2009-08-24T15:54:00.000-04:00

One of the questions that consistently comes up these days is how law practices should allocate or rather reallocate their advertising funds between print directories versus directories of the on-line variety.

The issue is a rather complicated one and much depends on the nature of the firm, its areas of emphasis, the types of clients it is seeking to attract, the amount of funds available, competitive activity, etc.

Having said that, it is important to recognize that the pendulum is certainly shifting towards on-line usage (up approximately 70%) vs. print directory usage (down up 40%). A look at one’s own media consumption habits would probably reveal that if you’re a baby boomer or younger, you use the internet more often when seeking contact information about a company. It’s usually more accessible (computer’s right there), and quicker (not to mention a whole lot less heavy). If desired, you can also immediately find out a great deal more information about a company or firm. In addition, for law firms with a business-to-business focus, or for those who enjoy a broader geographical service area, the print directories may be less influential.

Yet the world is filled with highly successful Personal Injury attorneys for example, who have done quite well for themselves through traditional “yellow page” advertising. Their track record speaks for themselves. But analysis of that track record needs to ascertain at exactly what level that advertising effort paid out. Individuals perusing through what are largely indistinguishable full page or double-truck ads for what should be a serious purchase may be “fishing.” Print directories may offer more prospects, but are they “qualified” prospects? There is a cost in screening out the wheat from the chaff.

In addition to the PI area, print directories may be useful for some of the more consumer-oriented practice areas such as family law and in particular, elder law, where one of the target groups (the elderly) may not be as comfortable with the new technologies.

Probably the best advice one can give is to test, test, test. Determine the cost vs. benefit scenario for alternative scenarios (including maintaining print presence, but perhaps reducing ad size). This may take some time (and effort in terms of tracking), but it will allow the firm to move forward more confidently with its directory program.

Do Your Firm’s Marketing Materials Stand Out from Your Competitors?

2009-08-17T17:16:00.000-04:00

It always amazes me to see the same attorneys who spend sleepless nights developing unique, creative arguments for their clients turn around and agree to have a gavel as their logo, the scales of justice on their web site, or the firm brochure littered with photos of court house pillars.

The business card, the web site, the brochure . . . each represents valuable communications real estate. Gavels, pillars and the proverbial scales of justice may indicate you’re a law practice. But they do virtually nothing to suggest why someone should retain your firm.

It is a difficult task to accomplish, but creating any effective piece of marketing material requires creative executions that truly reflect the uniqueness of the firm. The strongest marketing communications are those that convey why the firm is different from its competitors.

Getting at that point of difference involves a great deal of internal soul-searching akin to putting the firm on the analyst’s couch. Law practices that are willing to take an objective look at themselves invariably find that there are distinct aspects about their organization that makes it what it is. Most often, it’s not just that they offer great service, are the largest, the most accessible, the cheapest, the best “value,” etc. These are cliché features and benefits we’ve all seen hundreds of times before. Rather, the firm’s uniqueness can be found in its culture, it’s approach to law, it’s approach to its clients, it’s special expertise, its perspective on issues based on extensive experience, or a vision of how the business of law should be practiced.

Once that uniqueness is uncovered (though when working in committees, don’t expect an “Aha!” moment), the challenge of turning that concept into an ad, onto a web site, etc. becomes surprisingly easier. More importantly, the executions that evolve also are more compelling, more engaging and more convincing as to why the firm is the “best” choice.

How to Set Your Marketing Budget

2009-02-09T20:27:00.000-05:00

As a new year begins, it’s important not to put off the unavoidable - establishing the firm’s annual marketing budget. Many either simply abide by industry guidelines which suggest that 2-5% of firm revenues should be allocated towards the promotion of the practice, or they just don’t develop one altogether.

But guidelines are just that – guidelines. Usually a wiser approach to budget-setting is to take a “task” approach. Such an approach requires careful consideration of a series of questions addressed in a very specific order:

What should the marketing effort accomplish?
There may be several answers to this, each suggesting a whole range of possible tactics. A firm may be seeking to raise its profile within the community, promote a particular practice area, educate potential clients, highlight the hiring of a new attorney or any combination of such matters. In addition it should determine the relative importance of each of the stated objectives.

What are the potential strategies for each defined objective?
This includes addressing the key issue of the optimal “marketing mix.” The marketing mix is a function of a number of things including the nature of the services being offered, the target audience, the extent and character of the competition, geographical considerations and the economic times. Any and all possible marketing tools should be explored for their viability in addressing the challenges posed in the first question.

How will each potential tactic/marketing tool be maximized?
It’s not enough to develop an advertising campaign if the ad is only going to run once or twice. The most wonderfully designed web site will prove ineffective if the site is not ranked high on the search engines. And a content-rich seminar will not “pay out” if it garners an insufficient number of potential prospects to “convert” into clients. It is important to determine the threshold level of commitment to each activity that will be required in order to make it a success. How many ads? How high a rank on the search engines? How many seminar participants?

What is the cost to implement each potential marketing activity?
This can require some digging but is necessary in order to determine the optimal dollars required if the firm were to implement everything it wished to do at a sufficiently high/strong level (e.g., running ten ads instead of one or two).

Making the requisite cuts
In most cases, implementation of all possible marketing tools utilized at their optimal levels will result in a dollar figure well beyond the realistic scope of the firm. This is where the art of budget-setting comes in to play.

Two options exist. The first is to cut the level of spending allocated to each of the activities. Hence the advertising campaign, the web site optimization, the promotion of the seminar, etc., are all implemented - but at reduced levels. The problem with this is that the level of marketing activity will fall below the threshold necessary to make any of the programs effective. A preferred option is to instead, focus on just some of the potential activities – but at levels high enough to ensure their success. Which activities should be supported in such a way becomes a function of whether the activity addresses the more important of the objectives as determined in Step 1 and by their relative cost.

If you have questions regarding setting your marketing budget, e-mail Les Altenberg or call (856) 810-0400.

TEN TIPS FOR LEGAL MARKETING IN A RECESSION

2008-12-29T09:45:00.000-05:00

Even in an economic downturn, there are things you can do
to grow your practice:

Adjust firm's mix of services, leveraging practice strengths and focusing on growing/emerging legal areas

Commit to ongoing client contact.

Cross-sell existing clients on other firm services

Recognize marketing as an investment - not an expense. Then INVEST.

Implement marketing programs that initiate a firm/client relationship (e.g., seminars) without committing the client financially

Develop marketing tools that can be utilized in many ways (e.g., an informational brochure that can be distributed in office, at seminars, as a direct mailer, and/or forwarded to the appropriate media for further dissemination to prospects)

Implement a low cost (though work intensive) PR effort that includes press releases and feature articles

Track sources of prospect calls and new clients as well as conversion rates

Maintain existing price structure (i.e. resist the temptation to be a low cost provider)

PLAN. PLAN. PLAN.

Maintaining Media Exposure (Particularly in a Down Economy)

2008-12-23T14:10:00.000-05:00

What’s great about public relations is that it’s FREE. That’s also why we always urge our law firm clients to build credibility by getting their name in the papers (or on broadcast) by sending out those releases and constantly pitching articles and story ideas. We did this recently for one full service firm, developing an article on Special Education – outlining what parents of children with “special needs” should know about their rights.

In an economic downturn, it’s important to maintain media exposure by:

1. Recognizing that Even the Smallest of Happenings Can be Newsworthy
2. Being Cognizant of When Your Case May Have News Value
3. Thinking “Evergreens” (seasonal type stories)
4. Pitching Articles on Your Area of Expertise
5. Leveraging Events and Cases on which You’re Not Even Involved
(but in which you have expertise)
6. Pitching Speaking Opportunities to Relevant Groups