Legal marketing re-defined

Too many small and midsize firms give up when competing against the big guys with big money behind them.  They feel that they can’t compete, so they don’t.  And that is a big mistake.  They can and should compete, but they should not simply copy the big firms.  They need to find smart ways to outflank them.

With thanks: Vecteezy.com

It’s actually quite simple as long as they follow a number of proven strategies that are easy to implement and quite cost effective to self-finance.

Here are the 10 Legal Marketing things you need to do to guarantee success

1. Accept that you are running a business and a law firm – that helps you see things through a different perspective.  Bring in professional management, even if it is just a Fractional Chief Operating Officer (FCOO) or a Fractional Chief Marketing Officer (FCMO).  Start running your firm with a business orientation and simply treat your legal services as such – just the services you supply.  It’s what you have to sell.  But really, you need to convince potential clients to buy.  You can sell because You want to.
2. Be smarter – think strategically; you don’t need to outspend competitors or overspend what you can afford.  Marketing will help to differentiate you from your competitors.  So don’t copy them.  Understand what they are doing and then outflank them.  That way you’ll become well known.
3. Differentiated positioning and “notice me” advertising (make sure your advertising does not look like your competition and properly reflects your positioning).  That’s the next step in the strategy – ensure that you have your value proposition clearly defined and communicated.  Once again, a FCMO can help you with this.  It is the key to unlocking your business development process.
4. Focus and expand market: Remain laser focused on your desired target audience (have you even defined the audiences you would like to pursue?) with your marketing investment – invest slowly and consistently.  If you think long-term the benefits will accrue cost effectively. This brand building approach has led to sustainable growth without excessive marketing budgets.   The lawyer and the firm are both brands that need attention.
5. Showcase the expertise of all lawyers/partners/practitioners – legal marketing is about actively promoting both the law firm and the lawyer.  You need a strategy to accomplish this critical component. Content really is king – showcasing expertise, makes you an “expert” in the prospect’s eyes and is great for helping you to be found on the internet – it associates you with meaningful topics of interest.
6. Reach reach reach: there are portals that disseminate legal content that are well respected and that you can leverage to showcase yourself.  A FCMO will show you how this is done.
7. Be seen, everywhere, without breaking the bank; and have a social conscience while doing that.  There are smart ways to do this and it will help to enhance the reputation of both lawyer and law firm. A FCMO will show you how this is done.
8. Individual lawyer coaching on Personal Business Development – every lawyer must accept that they are responsible for their own business development.  It is critical to their success, in terms of their reputation, value to the firm(s), their own sustainability and the earnings capability.  Each lawyer should take this into their own hands.  A FCMO who has coached lawyers before would be a great asset in this regard.
9. Put a Plan in place.  Nothing really great happens without putting it down on paper.  That way you are able to compare tactics, find relevance in what you are doing, and make sure that the different activities support each other.  Think 1 + 1 = 3. Once again, a FCMO will help you to document and plan everything.
10. Finally, motivate your people to be better, do better. Lead and Park your ego. Your professional business team (full-time or part-time) will help you redefine a new level of success that you would only have imagined in the past.

There are also a number of DON’T DO factors that also need to be understood: These include:

1. Don’t try compete with your budget
2. Don’t copy your competition
3. Don’t see social media as the savior of your business. There are more important tactics you need to adopt before considering social media.
4. Don’t follow blindly.  Chart your own course

Neville Pokroy has worked for many years as an FCMO, helping law firms achieve a level of success they could only dream of years ago.  If you want to guarantee success, follow some of the guidelines mentioned above.  If you need professional help to do so, contact Neville and he can guide you through an unfamiliar process for lawyers, but one that is second nature to him.  Call him on 1-844-647-6984 Ext. 1 or complete the form on this page.