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Learn traditional and online marketing methods for selling your legal practice in challenging times. From traditional methods like print ads and direct mail to online strategies such as website and social networking. Find tips for maximizing your marketing efforts to boost your practice. Includes insights on lawyer ratings, collaborative platforms, and networking sites specific to the legal field. Discover how to tailor these ideas to suit your practice and manage your budget effectively to measure success.
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“When the GoingGets Tuff, the Lawyers Get Marketing –How to Sell Your Practice in Hard Times” Gayle O'Connor Tom O' Connor
Traditional Methods • Answer your phone • Get a CRM (Outlook can work for this) • Print Ads • Yellow Pages • Direct Mail • Birthday cards • Holiday cards • Writing • Speaking • Social events/Networking • Get active in local and national organizations • Start to getactive in your alumni groups • Hire a part time person to handle these tasks for you
Answer your phone!!! And take notes!!!
Get a CRM • Free (ZOHO) • Outlook can work • Keep track of personal information • ACT on that personal knowledge
Print Ads & Yellow Pages • Expensive • Must be repeated at least 6 times • Proper coverage for your potential clients • What directories are available in your area • Need to hire a professional to design these
Direct mail • Send your clients a newsletter on issues facing your clients. Should be a couple pages long and timely!!! • Send postcards with personal notes.
Be a joiner at your local level and the national level. Don’t forget to join your alumni association!!!
Time to get some assistance? Hire a consultant to take care of some of these things Minimal expense with maximum results
What does our online presence say about you and your practice? • Website • Blog • Your email address • Email Signature Block • Profile Picture/s • Facebook • Twitter • LinkedIn • Legal specific
From the New York Times http://tinyurl.com/cdyd74
How do you harness the power? • Create a profile on relevant sites • Detail your interests, expertise, blogs, and websites • “Traditional” marketing and internet sites are push medium • Social network sites are pull medium • You want to to pull people to your sites • How? Regularly post enlightening content • Post original content or reuse someone else’s • It’s allowed if done right! • Participation
Established and profoundly professional • Very business-oriented • Heavy “networking” • Google gets into it • Step by step set up, easy entry • Personal and business profiles • Participate and showcase your expertise in the “Answers” section of the Law & Legal category
Blended social networking outlet • Does it have to be? • Can you have two faces? • Own your Facebook business Page • Google juice flows through
Microblogging • Limited by 140 characters per post • Limited info on your Twitter page about you • Can be time consuming • Need to be strategic about your posts
Legal Specific Networking Sites Social Networking for Lawyers by Bob Ambrogi http://tinyurl.com/dmhucs
Hosted by the ABA • Unique people map • Closed network • New and growing • Anyone can join
Networking • Public Profile • Recognition • Groups: Create a law group or join one, you are automatically a member of your law school group. • Documents: Upload documents, get yourself featured on home page. • Answers: Ask or Answer • Moderated Forums: Become a moderator of your own law forum • Classifieds
Collaboration system for: • in-house counsel • invited outside lawyers • third party service providers • International flair..lawyers participating from over 40 countries • Claims a rapidly growing collection of content and technology resources • Basic services are free • All members are expected to contribute to the community as a whole
Lawyer Ratings and Rankings • Legal Guides contributed by lawyers • “You be the judge. Write a lawyer review.” • Powerful Search Engine pusher • Controversial? • Access to lawyer info must be approved by each Bar http://tinyurl.com/clzhlt http://tinyurl.com/ctuumr
Takeaways • Tailor these ideas to your practice • A mix of both is important and necessary • Have a budget and track your results “How did yo9u hear about me” • Confer with an expert - it’s a wise spend