There are two powerful marketing methods available to you that you’re probably not using. You’re not alone. Most lawyers don’t use them, either because there are rules that preclude them from doing so or because they aren’t comfortable doing them even when the rules permit it.
What if I could eliminate these two obstacles for you? What if I could show you how you could safely and comfortably use one or both of these marketing methods to bring in a steady stream of new clients?
Would you hear me out?
Great. I’m going to pull back the curtain and show you the faces of these beasts.
The first beast goes by the name “unsolicited email”. You may recoil in horror, but I urge you to gaze at the face of this beast. Examine him, though your stomach may churn, for he can make you rich.
Take a breath as I reveal the second beast, who many say is more hideous than the first.
In polite company, we refer to the second beast as “cold calling”. You may know him as the Devil himself.
I know, you thought I was going to show you things you could do and here I’m talking about things you would never consider.
Never say never.
You can use cold calling and unsolicited email to build your practice, without violating any rules or doing anything unprofessional or uncomfortable.
You can let your marketing beasts out of their cage and tame them. Here are three ways to do that.
Strategy number one: Contact someone other than a prospective client
As far as I know, there are no rules against contacting another professional, a business owner, or other center of influence in your community or market via cold call or cold email. As long as you’re not contacting a prospective client, you can contact anyone, unsolicited though that first contact might be.
With email, you have to follow CAN-SPAM rules, and there may be rules against calling too early or too late in the day, but these rules are easy to follow.
And, with the right approach, you should be completely comfortable doing it.
What’s the right approach? See below.
Strategy number two: Call or write about something other than you and your services
Don’t promote your services. Don’t ask for referrals. In fact, on the first contact, you should say very little about yourself.
What do you say? There are lots of options. Here are a few:
You can introduce yourself as a fellow professional in the community, say something nice you heard about them or saw on their website, and offer to buy them coffee. You could ask to interview them for your blog or for an article. You could ask them to recommend a vendor or expert or if they know anything about an arbitrator you are considering. You could offer to send them information on a subject that would benefit them or their clients.
Strategy number three: have someone else make the first contact for you
If you’re still gun-shy, have someone in your office or a VA make the call or send the email on your behalf. You don’t have to talk to anyone until someone says they’d like to talk to you.
And that’s how you can tame these powerful marketing beasts.
For more approaches, scripts, and additional strategies, get this
