Archives for January 2013

Is your web site boring? Try these quick fixes

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Many competent and successful attorneys are, frankly, a bit dull. They live in a world of dry facts and esoteric knowledge and in that world they may be brilliant, but clients don’t usually live in that world.

The truth is, if your web site is boring people won’t read your content. If they don’t read it, they won’t know what you can do to help them. And trust me, they won’t call to find out.

How can you improve your writing? One of the best ways is to study good writing.

Think about your favorite web sites, the ones that aren’t boring. The next time you visit, save some of their articles and study them. Read them several times, slowly. Read them out loud. Copy them, by hand. Then, create an outline of the article and use it as a template for your own.

Now, what can you do right now to improve your web site’s content? Here are three quick fixes:

  1. Don’t write, speak. Dictate and record your thoughts and transcribe them. You’ll have a more natural, conversational first draft. You’ll be more likely to say what you want to say and leave out the boring bits. You could also record your content on audio or video and post that on your web site, along with a transcript.
  2. Put people in your posts. Stories breathe life into writing because they engage human emotions. Readers relate to the people in stories and keep reading to “find out what happened.” I’d much rather read about your client and what happened when he didn’t follow your advice than to only your advice.
  3. Make it visually appealing. Many people don’t read anymore, they scan, so give them something scanable. Use more white space and photos. Shorter articles, shorter paragraphs, and shorter sentences. Use bold headlines, sub-heads, and bullet points. By scanning, they’ll get the gist of what you’re saying and for now, that might be enough.

Don’t stop with quick fixes, though. Writing is one of the most valuable skills any attorney can have and worth the time and effort to improve. Read books or take courses on writing, copy writing, and sales. Make writing a daily habit. The more you practice, the better you will get. And, if you have more money than time, hire an editor or writing coach. Their feedback will help you get better.

You may be boring but your writing doesn’t have to be.

If you aren’t open minded, don’t buy this course.

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Marketing legal services by offering digital document signing

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Technology allows us to get legal documents signed without ever printing them. This post on the Evernote blog shows how to do that with two free apps, Docusign and Evernote (or Box, Google Drive, Dropbox).

I have Docusign and several other apps like it. I have pdf’s emailed, open them in the app, sign them, and send them back. It saves time, paper, postage and/or the cost of a messenger. And saving a copy in Evernote allows me to access those documents everywhere. (For more on how to use Evernote for storing client and other documents, check out my ebook, Evernote for Lawyers: A Guide to Getting Organized & Increasing Productivity).

If you have a tech savvy client, they can download the app to sign and return the documents to you by email. If you don’t, or if you need to explain the document to the client before signing, you can meet with them and have them sign on your tablet.

Offering digital signing is a benefit to you and to the client. If you offer it, you should promote the fact that you do. Make a big deal out it. Let clients and prospects know what you do, how it works, and how it saves them time and money.

Even if other attorneys do it the same way, most of them don’t promote it. When you do, you will “own” that benefit in the eyes of your target market.

To stand out in the crowd, you must show people how you are different. Click here to learn how.

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Why that client hired another attorney instead of you

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Why do prospective clients come to your office to talk to you and then go out and hire someone else?

They need your help. They have the money. You answered all their questions thoroughly and politely. But they still said no.

We assume that because we have the skills and they have the need that they’re going to sign the retainer agreement, and most of the time they do. When they don’t, we have to remind ourselves that the first meeting with a prospective client is a job interview. When we don’t get the job, we have to stop and figure out why.

Sometimes, we don’t get hired because of the nonverbal cues we communicate. Did you fail to make eye contact? According to a survey of people who hire employees, 67% of job applicants make that mistake. Was your handshake too weak? 26% of job applicants failed that test. How about forgetting to smile? That omission plagues 38% of applicants.

Statistics say as much as 55% of the impact we make when meeting another person is nonverbal: the way we dress, walk, and act.

But maybe it’s not your body language. If you don’t get the job, maybe you made one of the “Top ten common mistakes at a job interview”. For example, number 8 is “Lacking Humor, Warmth, or Personality”. What, attorneys? No way.

How about number 6, “Concentrating Too Much on What You Want”. “Out out, damn ego.”

Number 2 on the list: Failing to Set Yourself Apart From Other Candidates.” That’s true of most attorneys, isn’t it? Again, we assume that because we have the skills and they have the need, they’re going to sign up. When they don’t, there’s a good chance this is why.

Number 1 on the list of mistakes: “Failing to Ask For the Job.” Relax, you don’t have to ask the client, “Do I get the job.” There are other ways to ask, such as, “Do you have any other questions before we get started on your case,” or “Would you like me to send your ‘New Client Kit’ to your home or to your office?” But you do have to close the deal.

One more thing. Don’t be complacent because prospective clients usually hire you. Yes, you got the job but that doesn’t mean you passed the interview. They may not have been thrilled with what you said or how you comported yourself but hired you because they were intimidated or didn’t know they had a choice.

You want your clients to like you and be glad they chose you. So work on yourself, even if you don’t think you have to, because marketing is everything you do to get and keep good clients.

Are you doing everything you can to get and keep good clients? If not, read this.

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Building your marketing investment account one day at a time

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Aristotle said, “We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit.”

Is marketing a habit for you?

You’ll often hear me say that you can build your practice with 15 minutes a day of marketing activity. Anybody can find 15 minutes today, but most don’t do it every day because it isn’t a habit. Unfortunately, it won’t become a habit until you do it every day.

Catch 22.

But then nothing starts out as a habit. Everything starts out as “the first time”. And then you do it again. Now you’re two days into it. One more day and you’re on your way. Keep going and it will become a habit, especially once you see some positive results.

Leo at Zen Habits has an excellent article today on building habits. He uses the analogy of saving and investing money, i.e., putting away a little bit every day. Over time, the dollars compound.

If you want to (or need to) write, for example, but have not been able to make it a habit, he says:

“. . .just write a sentence today. I’m completely serious. Then write a sentence tomorrow. Do that for a week. Next week, write two sentences. This sound ridiculously easy, so most people will ignore this advice. But if you follow it, you’ll be writing 1,000 words per day, every day, this time next year. Maybe 2,000 per day the following year.”

In the context of marketing, then, if you have not developed the habit of doing something every day for 15 minutes, start with one minute. Read something, write down an idea or two, or just sit and think. That will get you started.

The other thing about habits is that we have to be reminded to do them. “Set a daily reminder. . . and make it a priority to do each day,” Leo says. I take it a step further, suggesting you making a daily appointment with yourself and put this on your calendar. Then, keep that appointment. If a new clients wants to see you at 2 and that’s your marketing time, you must tell them you have an appointment and can’t see them until 2:15.

Yes, we are what we repeatedly do. Today, you may be in the habit of NOT marketing. You’re excellent at not marketing, in fact. But today, you can start a new habit. All you need is one minute.

Want something to read during your marketing minute? Try this.

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How to get targeted traffic to your web site by commenting on others’ blogs

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As a group, attorneys don’t seem to post a lot of comments on blogs. It’s not that we don’t have anything to say. We’re friggin blabbermouths when we’re getting paid for it.

Guess what? If you do it right, you CAN get paid for posting comments. You’re paid in the form of traffic back to your web site from people who read your comments and think you have something intelligent to say.

If your web site is doing it’s job, those people see something they like on your site, opt into your list, and let you court them. Eventually, they hire you.

The key to getting targeted traffic is to choose the right blogs to add comments. You might have an opinion about the legality of claiming a fake girlfriend, but unless you market to a sports niche, your comment on ESPN.com isn’t going to do you much good.

To get started, here’s all you have to do:

  1. Make a list of blogs in your target market. If you target Enterprise software developers, American couples seeking to adopt Russian babies, or diamond brokers in New York City, Uncle Google will help you find the blogs they read.
  2. Note the blogs that accept comments and a link back to the poster’s web site. Not all do. The ones that don’t accept comments might prove useful, however, if they accept guest posts, that’s another way to get targeted traffic.
  3. Subscribe to the RSS and comment feeds. Learn what you can about the kinds of articles posted and the frequency and nature of their comments. A blog with lots of comments is probably going to have more people reading your comments. Also pay attention to the style of the comments and the sophistication of their readers.
  4. When you read a post that is worthy of your two cents, add a comment. Reference the post, tell why you agree or disagree, and offer something of value to the discussion. Tell readers about resources you have found on other sites. Demonstrate your expertise, knowledge, and especially, your experience in the particular niche. When you say, “I represent several diamond brokers. . .” within your comment on a blog for diamond brokers, you will get noticed.
  5. The best way to link back to your site is to link to an article you wrote on the subject being discussed or something related. Tell readers why they should click through to read your post, e.g., “I just posted an article with 27 do’s and don’ts for adopting Russian babies.” If nothing else, your web site link appear when readers hover over your name above your comment.

Post a comment a few times a day or a few times a week and you should see traffic coming to your site from these blogs. And because it is targeted traffic, it doesn’t have to be a swarm to be profitable.

Marketing is easy. Clients are waiting. Start here.

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How to get more clients to sign up when you quote your fees

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I’m listening to Spotify as I write this. The ’70’s station. Elvin Bishop, Paul Simon, Elton John, Al Stewart, Seals & Crofts, America, Earth, Wind & Fire. . .

How cool is that?

I “liked” every single song so far and now they’re in my playlist.

So much music, so little time.

Anyway, I wanted to share something with you that I think will make your day. Or your week. Maybe even your year.

Our microwave died two days ago. It’s amazing how much we use that thing. Boiling water on the stove is so 1970’s.

Anyway, my wife goes online and starts pricing replacements. We’ve had this one for 18 years so it wasn’t that simple. It has to fit in the space above our range and match the oven.

She finds one that works and gives me the price. Holy crap! “It’s a microwave, not a car!” I was overhead saying.

She took that to mean, “keep looking,” and she did. Sure enough, she finds one that has everything we need, fits in the space, and is 40% cheaper than the first one.

“Order it!” I said. And she did. It will be installed tomorrow.

Now, here’s the thing. If she had first come to me with the price on the one we ordered, knowing how I am, I still would have thought it was too high. But because she showed it to me second, it looked like a bargain.

I don’t know if it IS a bargain. I just know I was happy to order at the lower price. “Look at how much we saved. . .”.

Anyway, this reminded me to remind you about pricing your services.

If possible, you should put together a lower priced version of your services to offer prospective clients. If the deluxe package is ,000, and the basic package is ,500, you can show them both and let them choose. If ,000 is “too much,” they can choose the basic version. Instead of “no sale” you get a ,500 sale, and a new client. The client gets his basic needs met and could possibly upgrade later.

Or, show him the ,000 package first. If he objects, (“It’s a legal document, not a car!”) you can show them the ,500 package. It may not have all the bells and whistles but it does the job. In comparison to what he thought he had to pay, it will seem like a bargain.

You’ll get more prospects saying “sign me up,” instead of “I have to think about it.”

Get the Attorney Marketing Formula and find out how to earn more. Click here for details.

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Marketing is easy. Here, let me prove it

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Marketing: “Everything we do to get and keep good clients.”

In keeping with that definition, and the premise that marketing is easy, here are three things you can do right now to help you get (or keep) good clients:

IDEA NO. 1

Write down the names of three “good clients” you have or had in the past. Send them an email that says, “Happy New Year–Just checking in. Hope things are going well. Talk soon. DW [your initials].

IDEA NO. 2

Write down three ideas for a blog post or article. Here, I’ll get you started:

  • “The strangest case [client] I ever had”
  • “3 things my clients always want to know”
  • “How to help your lawyer save you money”

IDEAS NO. 3

Describe a category of professionals who might be a good source of referrals for you. Go to google or your favorite social media channel and do a search. Find three names of professionals with web sites within a few miles from your office. Find something you like about their web site or practice. Maybe it’s their header or logo, an article, or the way they describe what they do. Or, find something you have in common. Maybe you went to the same law school or undergrad. If nothing else, you’re offices are “right around the corner” from each other.

Send them an email and tell them what you like and/or what you have in common. Ask a question or ask for a recommendation. “Where did you get that great header?” “Can you recommend a networking group nearby?” “Would you be interested in doing a guest post on my blog?”

You have now “met” one or more local professionals with whom you can begin the process of networking. Go buy them some coffee.

There, I told you marketing was easy.

Want more ideas? Go here.

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What would Steve do?

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I was reading an article remembering Steve Jobs more than a year after his passing. The author provides “Ten Life Lessons” from Mr. Jobs that we can all learn from and apply in our lives. A lesson like, “You don’t beat the competition at their game. You redefine the game,” reminds me that Steve Jobs was an incredible leader. He defined the future, where things should go, and then he took us there.

Jobs thought differently, and he encouraged us to do the same. Even Apple’s advertising at one time encouraged us to do so. So when you’re faced with a seemingly insurmountable problem or you’re looking to redefine your game, ask yourself, “What would Steve do?”

If you’re having an issue with one of your employees who isn’t doing his or her job, you might ordinarily give them some time to see the light, offer some additional training, or have a heart to heart talk. If you ask yourself, “What would Steve do?” however, you might berate them and/or fire them on the spot. The lesson, “Don’t tolerate bozos around you,” confirms what most people know about Steve’s lack of patience with under-performing employees.

Am I saying you should chew out your employee? No. But you should consider why Steve would have. It might serve to warn you that the problem is potentially more serious than you think. The employee might improve, but they also might do irreparable harm if your other employees see them getting away with less than excellent performance.

Thank you, Steve, for reminding me to think about the problem from a different perspective.

One of the benefits of reading biographies about successful people, in business, sports, politics, and other fields outside of our own, is that they allow us to see our problems through different eyes, and thereby, find solutions we might otherwise never find. Albert Einstein said, “No problem can be solved from the same level of consciousness that created it.”

Einstein also said, “Imagination is more important than knowledge,” so use your imagination for a moment and think about this: If Apple had acquired your law practice, what would Steve Jobs have told you to change?

Steve never read The Attorney Marketing Formula, but I imagine he would approve.

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Marketing your legal services with the right posture

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Lawyers don’t cold call to sell their services. Aside from the ethical issues it’s bad posture.

You don’t want to chase clients, you want them to chase you, yes?

Last week I saw a posting on a forum where “people with work” and “people who want work” meet. A woman in Los Angeles posted, “I need an attorney to do an ex parte”. (That’s all it said.)

Two attorneys replied. One said, “I am very familiar with many kinds of ex parte motions (reviewed them, as a law clerk, at Los Angeles Superior Court, for 8 years). Feel free to call me for a consultation. xxx-xxx-xxxx.” The second one said, “Can you please call me at xxx-xxx-xxx for details? Maybe I can help! Thanks.”

What’s wrong with this picture?

  1. The “best” clients usually don’t hire lawyers by posting on a job board, and
  2. The “best” lawyers usually don’t get clients by responding to posts on a job board.

But work is work and if a young lawyer can get some business this way, so be it. When I was starting out, I got a few clients (and a whole lot of experience) by volunteering at a legal clinic. Not great posture but my other clients never knew, unlike a job board on the Internet where everyone can see.

The problem is that lawyers who respond to these postings tell the world they need work. Successful lawyers with more business than they can handle would never look at a job board, let alone respond to a posting.

If you want the best clients, you have to have the right posture. People need to see you as busy, successful, and highly sought after. The busier and more successful you appear, the more people want to hire you, yes?

Yes.

They’ll also pay more to have someone like you as their lawyer. That’s a good thing.

Be the pursued, never the pursuer.

But what if you are just starting out and you do need the work? What do you do?

Here’s what I would do: Get someone else to reply to the posting. A friend, a good client, another attorney. Anyone but you.

They say nice things about you, offer a testimonial or otherwise endorse you and your abilities, and recommend that the job poster call you. If they can add something about how busy you are, even better.

Not only does your posture as a successful professional remain intact, it is enhanced because what someone else says about you is always more powerful than what you say about you.

Didn’t your mom tell you it was important to have good posture? I think this is what she was talking about.

For more on creating the right posture, get The Attorney Marketing Formula.

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Get more clients by being yourself (even if you’re nothing special)

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An unremarkable undergrad at an unremarkable college is in talks with a prestigious Wall Street investment firm for a coveted internship, on the strength of the cover letter he sent with his resume. The letter has been called the ‘best cover letter ever’ and has gone viral throughout the investment world and on the Internet.

The article reporting the story put it this way:

“Rather than inflating his qualifications and bragging about his grades or past job experiences, the humble applicant simply stated his case and matter-of-factly asked for an internship–even if it meant shining shoes.”

He added: “I have no unbelievably special skills or genius eccentricities.”

You can read the letter and the rest of the story here.

So, great story, huh? Boy meets (investment) world. Boy lands big internship. Boy makes his mom proud.

Nice. But what does it have to do with marketing legal services?

Here’s what:

It deftly illustrates a timeless direct marketing principle–the supremacy of the sales letter. It wasn’t this young man’s resume that got the job. It was the letter. Similarly, your CV or list of accomplishments won’t get clients to hire you. Not by itself. You need a sales letter.

Let me show you what I mean by taking you on a stroll down memory lane.

Remember back before email when we all got a lot of direct mail solicitations in our mailboxes? For various goods and services, magazines, record clubs, insurance, and such? The mailing has several components and each plays a role in getting the sale.

First, the envelope.

Oh yes, the envelope is a sales tool. Direct mail experts consider (and test) the size and shape of the envelope, the color, the stamp, the address (label, print, or hand written), and the copy–the words printed on the outside of the envelope. It is those words that get the recipient to open the envelope (or not). Envelope copy grabs you (or doesn’t) and that determines whether or not you open the dang thing. Just like the “subject” line in an email today.

Inside the envelope is the sales letter and other documents. These may include a brochure or leaflet, a booklet of testimonials, a guarantee, an order form, a return envelope, and perhaps various “involvement devices” like stamps or tokens you’re supposed to affix to a the order form to indicate your preference.

Let’s compare that package to your web site.

You get people to “open” your web site with your “envelope copy”–the title and description of your site in search engines or in an ad, for example. Your description or ad piques their interest and they click through to your site.

In a mailing, the brochure and other components provide supporting materials: facts, details, proof. People buy for emotional reasons and justify their decision with logic and facts. The brochure supplies the latter.

On your web site, your brochure takes form in articles, FAQs, and a list of accomplishments. This is the supporting data that helps people justify their decision to take the next step towards hiring you.

Other content that supports this might be a page that offers a pledge or guarantee, involvement devices like polls (or results), videos, checklists, forms, and the like. These get people to spend more time on your site.

All of this content helps. But it is the sales letter that gets them to act.

On your web site, your sales letter might be on a welcome page or your “About” page. It might be a video. You greet the visitor and tell them what you can do for them. You tell them about yourself and do your best to connect with them. You want them to feel good about you and trust you. If they do, they’ll read some of your other content to learn the details.

The sales letter is the most important part of the mail package and your web site. It has to connect with the reader and do a complete sales job. There’s no sales person sitting with them or on the phone so the letter has to do all the talking. It has to tell the story, answer questions, overcome objections, and close the deal. In a mailing package, it has to get the order. On your web site, your sales letter has to get the visitor to call, fill out a form, or opt into your email list.

Now, how did this young college student with ostensibly no sales or marketing experience write such an effective sales letter? How did he stand out in a sea of competition?

He did it by ignoring what everyone else does and what conventional wisdom says he should do.

He wrote from the heart. Straight talk. No hype, no pretense. “Here I am, nothing special. I’m reasonably intelligent and I’ll work hard. Give me any job, I want to learn.”

He told the “buyer” what they wanted wanted to hear. Not because he knew what they wanted to hear, but because he didn’t know what else to say except the unvarnished truth.

It worked because he was refreshingly honest.

People don’t want “canned” and “commercial”. They want “real” and “believable.” If you can deliver that, they’ll pay attention, and if they want what you offer, they’ll buy.

The most critical job of the sales letter is getting the reader to pay attention. Employers sort resumes with a bias towards trashing them. They read only a handful that have a cover letter that catches their attention.

Web visitors do the same thing. When they arrive at a web site, they look for reasons to click away. Your “sales letter” has to get them to stay.

When you write your sales letter, you should do what this young man did. Be yourself. Tell your story, warts and all. Okay, maybe you can hide some of the warts, but keep it real and talk to them from the page like you would if you were talking face to face.

Don’t give them the packaged and polished (and boring) stuff you see coming from most attorneys. If you don’t grab them, you’ve lost them. If you don’t get their attention, it won’t matter how impressive your accomplishments might be, nobody will see them.

So here’s what I want you to do. Write a letter to a prospective client. Tell him why he should hire you. Tell him what you can do for him or his company and how you’ll work hard to do it. Imagine you’re sitting with him in a coffee shop, just the two of you. What would you say to get his attention and make your case?

Write that down.

I’m not suggesting that you’ll write something brilliant that will go viral on the Internet and be called the “greatest lawyer letter ever”. In fact, nobody will see this letter because you’re not going to send it to anyone.

But you might just get some ideas you can use on your web site or the next time you write an email or a blog post. You might just write something that reaches out and touches someone and makes them want to hear more.

Human beings are starved for real communication. A lot of people don’t even talk on the phone anymore, they “talk” with their thumbs. So when they hear a real person who speaks plainly and openly, without pretense or affectation, they listen.

To college students, and even to lawyers.

Learn more. Earn more. Get the Attorney Marketing Formula.

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