Is it possible to build a successful law practice without doing any marketing?
The answer is no. It’s not possible, because there’s no such thing as practicing law without marketing.
Everything you do in your practice is marketing. Everything.
You’re either doing a good job of it or you aren’t.
The way you treat your clients is marketing. Treat them well (good marketing) and they will come back to you and send referrals. Treat them poorly and they won’t.
Building a successful law practice takes more than just winning the case or delivering the work product. Not when clients can choose one of your many competitors instead of you. Building a successful law practice means getting a lot of little things right, to make your clients feel appreciated and see the value you deliver, and you either do a good job of that or you don’t.
When someone asks, “What do you do?” the way you answer that question is marketing. Your response either tells them how you can help them or someone they know, and makes them want to know more, or it doesn’t.
Good marketing or bad marketing, but marketing nonetheless.
Do you have a website, social media accounts, or a listing in a legal directory? Do other lawyers ever send you referrals? Have you ever handed out your business card to anyone?
You’re marketing.
You might hate marketing, and refuse to admit that you’re doing it, but doing it you are.
Even if you have a job that doesn’t require you to bring in clients, you’re marketing. Every day you go to work and “sell” your employer on continuing to employ you. Do a great job of marketing and they might give you a raise. Do a bad job of marketing and they might let you go.
Everything you do is marketing.
The question is, how well are you doing it?
No matter how well you are doing it, or how poorly, you can improve your marketing and get better results.
You can also do MORE marketing. There are other ways to attract clients than whatever it is that you’re doing now.
Speaking, networking, writing, advertising–they all work. You can do some of them, or all of them, or you can decide to stick with what you’re doing now and do more of THAT.
So we agree, then, you are marketing. You can improve your marketing and you can do more of it, but you cannot avoid marketing, and you can’t build a successful law practice without it.
Need a marketing plan? Here you goÂ
