Came across an interesting article that looks at the merits of utilizing social networking sites as a component of marketing for law firms. Written by Jason P. Lisi and Julie Meyer for the Legal Intelligencer, the article focuses on LinkedIn, but also mentions other sites such as Facebook, MySpace, and Avvo. Though written about seven or eight months ago, the article is definitely relevant and worth reading.
I recently attended the Great Legal Marketing Conference in Virginia, and there was a lot of discussion about the importance of social networking as it relates to successful lawyer marketing. There is little question that lawyers need to make the social networking sites a part of their marketing plans as soon as they can because the internet's reach continues to grow every day. Plus, traditional approaches to lawyer marketing and advertising such as the Yellow Pages continue to fade from the scene.
As always, law firm marketing should reflect a good mix and balance by reaching out to current and prospective clients through print media, electronic media, direct mail, personal appearances, and other methods.
Wednesday, February 25, 2009
Thursday, February 12, 2009
Lawyer Marketing Tip: Build Your Client List
One of the most critical, yet overlooked, elements of a successful lawyer marketing program is the client list. Many attorneys are spending huge sums of money on traditional media such as television, radio and Yellow Pages advertising, casting a wide net in hopes of attracting new clients.
While these approaches can reach large audiences, the return on investment (ROI) is typically the lowest they will find. Worse yet, many lawyers aren't even sure what kind of ROI they are receiving with mass media because they either don't track the results or they have trouble tracking the results.
Where should attorneys focus more of their marketing dollars? On their in-house list. Why? Because their best cases are going to come from referrals and the best referrals will come from their in-house lists. I've seen this again and again in the 10+ years that I have helped attorneys with their marketing.
Every lawyer should have a list of previous and current clients. But they should also have a list of key local professionals that they know and trust. Some examples might be their florist, auto mechanic, tailor, real estate agent, etc. They should all be added to the list. Attorneys should continually focus on building and cultivating their in-house list.
The next key is communicating with that list - regularly and consistently. Attorneys should strive to connect with their in-house list at least once a month through a variety of marketing touches, including newsletters, postcards, advertising specialty items, e-mails, and other methods.
While these approaches can reach large audiences, the return on investment (ROI) is typically the lowest they will find. Worse yet, many lawyers aren't even sure what kind of ROI they are receiving with mass media because they either don't track the results or they have trouble tracking the results.
Where should attorneys focus more of their marketing dollars? On their in-house list. Why? Because their best cases are going to come from referrals and the best referrals will come from their in-house lists. I've seen this again and again in the 10+ years that I have helped attorneys with their marketing.
Every lawyer should have a list of previous and current clients. But they should also have a list of key local professionals that they know and trust. Some examples might be their florist, auto mechanic, tailor, real estate agent, etc. They should all be added to the list. Attorneys should continually focus on building and cultivating their in-house list.
The next key is communicating with that list - regularly and consistently. Attorneys should strive to connect with their in-house list at least once a month through a variety of marketing touches, including newsletters, postcards, advertising specialty items, e-mails, and other methods.
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