David M. Ward, Author at The Attorney Marketing Center

How was your day?

March 8, 2023 by David M. Ward

I didn’t do much work yesterday. I meditated, wrote a blog post, took a walk, helped my wife set up a cabinet, watched a couple of videos (and took notes), read a few pages in a book, and not much else.

Because I didn’t feel like doing anything else.

Some call this being lazy. You won’t get anything done if you don’t do the work, whether you feel like it or not. Breaks are for after work, weekends, and vacations, not when you feel like it. Get more sleep if you need more energy. Stop goofing off.

Conventional “wisdom”.

But not everyone agrees.

Some describe this as an effective way to structure your time. It’s “nonlinear,” meaning flexible and in sync with what your body and brain tell you. If you’re getting things done, it doesn’t matter how or when you do them.

9 to 5 is for suckers.

According to one study, people with the highest “brain health scores,” which include memory, focus, sleep, mood, productivity, and creativity, are those who follow a flexible schedule.

Yes, I know this isn’t conducive to trial work or being available to see clients when clients need to be seen, but even the busiest of lawyers can work around those limitations, at least some of the time.

And they should. Because, according to the study, not only is this better for your brain, it’s a better predictor of overall happiness.

And I’ll take happiness any day of the week.

Filed Under: Career satisfaction, Productivity, success

Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman

March 7, 2023 by David M. Ward

Wouldn’t it be great if the first time you talked to a prospective client about your services they said, “Where do I sign up?”

It would, but they don’t.

They usually want more information. Maybe a lot more. And they want you to explain things in enough detail that they not only understand it, they see that your solution is their best solution.

Because they don’t want to make a mistake.

They will have questions. As you answer those questions, they’ll often think of more.

Getting them from not knowing to knowing, and from knowing to doing (hiring you) is a process, and it usually takes time.

The prospective client needs you to explain things again, in different want, so they can understand everything.

And, no matter how good you are at explaining, not everyone “gets” it as quickly as others. Especially with something complicated (like the law) and scary (like the law) and expensive (like the law).

When you’re sitting with the prospect, you can take your time explaining things properly, ask questions to make sure they understand, show them the paperwork, read their body language, and answer all of their questions. You can take as long as they need.

And you no doubt do all that. But it’s a different story when you’re communicating with them online.

Putting up more FAQ’s, videos, and other information can help. But sometimes, all that information overwhelms or confused them, leading them to conclude they’re not ready to do anything.

What can you do?

The answer isn’t to wait until their problem gets worse and they’re in enough pain to finally call. The answer is to stay in touch with them, via email.

Send more information. Send them the same information stated in different ways. Send them more examples, use cases, and stories about others who had what they have and found relief by hiring you, or found relief by speaking with you (and then hiring you).

Don’t do this once or twice. Do it over and over again, for as long as it takes, because you don’t know when (or if) they will be ready.

Let your newsletter do the heavy lifting. Until they’re ready for you to get on your white horse and save the day.

Email marketing for attorneys

Filed Under: Closing the sale, Communication, Newsletters

A strange way to make people like you

March 6, 2023 by David M. Ward

This is going to sound weird. It’s a psychological concept named after Ben Franklin, who used it to get a rival legislator and powerful political enemy to put aside his ill will towards Franklin.

His foe didn’t like Ben and had been making negative speeches about him. Ben was determined to win him over. But instead of offering to give something to his rival, or do something for him to show him he was a good guy, Ben did the opposite. He asked the man to do something for him.

Yep, he asked his enemy for a favor.

He knew the man owned a rare book, and Ben asked if he would loan it to him. When he returned the book, Ben thanked him profusely and found that his old enemy became his friend.

Ben had triggered what we now know as cognitive dissonance.

Our brains find it difficult to hold two contradictory beliefs at the same time. To resolve this conflict, we tend to alter one of our beliefs.

His rival didn’t like Franklin, which contrasted with his belief that you don’t do favors for people you don’t like, something he had just done. To resolve this conflict, he was forced to back away from his negative feelings towards Franklin, and that’s how these enemies became friends.

Today, it’s called The Ben Franklin Effect and you can use it to win friends and influence people.

If you want someone to like you, get them to do you a favor.

Filed Under: Networking, Personal development Tagged With: negotiating

Mom likes you better

March 3, 2023 by David M. Ward

Some of your clients like you more than others. And because they do, they’re willing to do things for you that other clients won’t.

They’re willing to provide a review or testimonial, and it will be a good one. They’re willing to fill out your survey, share your content, tell their friends about your upcoming event, send traffic to your website, and. . . send you referrals. Maybe lots of referrals. And introductions, too. And wit

Without being asked.

Your best clients give you more legal work, sure, but they also do other things that help you build your list and your practice.

And they should be treated accordingly.

Give your best clients extra time and attention. Invite them to your “inner circle”. Give them bonuses, promote their business or cause, and give them personal time.

Start by making a list of 10 to 30 of your “best of the best” clients. Keep that list in front of you, to remind you to give them extra attention. Once a week or so, call or write, send them an article, or just say hello.

See how they’re doing, and what they need or want. And find ways to help them get it.

And we’re not talking about legal issues, necessarily. Maybe they need customers; you might do a profile of their business in your newsletter. Maybe they have a personal issue you have had some experience with and can offer advice. Maybe they have a child who is sick or injured and they need to hear someone tell them it will be okay.

Talk to them, ask about them, and look for opportunities to help them, console them, support them, promote them, or inspire them.

Yes, that takes time. What about the rest of your clients?

Reserve 80% of your “client time” for your best clients and do it one-on-one. Allocate 20% of your client time for the rest of your clients, and give them time primarily “as a group” e.g., via your newsletter, and automate and/or delegate most of that time.

Treat your best clients the way they deserve. Your practice will thank you.

The Attorney Marketing Formula

Filed Under: Client loyalty, Client relations

Every dud knows a stud

March 2, 2023 by David M. Ward

In the corporate and legal worlds, employees and pre-qualified before they are hired. Prospective clients and customers are similarly screened, to determine their needs and wants and ability to pay.

In the network marketing world, however, prospective distributors aren’t pre-screened or pre-qualified because it is a waste of time.

You never know whether a prospective distributor will sign up in your business, or if they do, if they will get to work.

And it doesn’t matter because it’s not about them, it’s about who they know and can lead you to.

Your friend might have no interest in becoming a distributor, but might know people who are very interested. You talk to your friend and find out who they know.

Because duds lead you to studs.

Yes, we’re talking about referrals.

Lawyers should pre-qualify prospective employees and prospective clients, but not prospective referral sources or business contacts, because it’s not about them, it’s about who they know.

You might meet a business owner who doesn’t need your services, but they can lead you to people who do. Or to people who know people who do.

Guess what? The same is true of your clients. They might not be able to send you referrals, but might know people who can.

When you embrace this idea, you understand that it’s not about anyone you know or meet, it’s about who they know.

Your job is to find out who they know.

How to get more referrals from your clients

Filed Under: Referrals

Give it time

February 28, 2023 by David M. Ward

I’ve heard it takes 3 to 4 years to fully get to know someone. If that’s true, it means that a lot of people you “know” you’re really just starting to get to know.

And you should give it time.

As you get to know them (better), and they get to know you, your relationship can grow from new acquaintances to solid business connections, referral partners, and friends. And that might take awhile.

True, sometimes you hit it off immediately. The circumstances are right, the chemistry is right, and while it will probably take time to fully know each other, you can tell there’s something there and it’s worth it.

But that doesn’t happen often.

Which means we shouldn’t be so quick to judge someone, or make up our minds as to where they might fit into our life.

What do you do while you’re giving things time to develop? Asking about their business or family. Sending them information about things they might need or want. Asking if they need help with anything. Inviting them to meet for coffee. Or just staying in touch.

And not expecting them to do the same for you.

Not everyone will reciprocate. You might reach out often, promote their business or cause, offer to introduce them to someone they should know, or send them a boatload of goodies, and they might do none of that for you.

That doesn’t mean you can’t have a relationship.

Keep the fires burning, or at least keep them from going out. One day, they might need your help with something, or reflect on how much you’ve done for them already, and realize how much you mean to them.

And this could be the start of your “romance”.

But don’t expect (or demand) more from them. Let the relationship develop naturally.

If the day comes when you realize that things aren’t going anywhere—they don’t return your calls or respond to your email, they don’t show appreciation for anything you’ve done, back off. Give them less time and attention.

But don’t shut the door.

Keep them on your list of people you stay in touch with (via email, predominately), and reserve personal time for other folks who have shown you they want you in their life.

You might hear from them eventually. The time might finally be right for them, which means it’s also right for you

If not, that’s okay. There are plenty of other fish in the sea.

The Attorney Marketing Formula

Filed Under: Networking, Relationship marketing

Trust me, I’m not a doctor

February 27, 2023 by David M. Ward

I don’t know about you but in the last few years, I’ve lost what little remaining trust I had in the medical community.

I now “DON’T trust AND verify”.

Which is problematic for me given this statement I recently found online:

“Medicine works best when the patient has complete confidence in his doctor’s skills. Doubts about the doctor delay recovery.”

I don’t know if this is based on research but it makes sense. If you believe you’ll recover (with a doctor’s advice and treatment), it seems you’ll be more likely to do so.

When I read this statement, I wondered if the same can be said about attorneys. If a client doesn’t trust their attorney, are they less likely to have a successful outcome?

And I thought the answer to that question would have to be “no”. Because what someone thinks about their attorney doesn’t affect the job that attorney does for them.

But it does.

If the client doesn’t trust their attorney, they might hold back important details, and exaggerate others. The attorney’s perception of the case clearly depends on what the client tells them, at least initially, and if the client isn’t forthcoming, the case can suffer.

While an experienced attorney can usually figure out what they need to know, having a client who holds back certainly makes things more difficult.

In addition, clients who don’t trust their attorney are more likely to question the attorney’s fees or handling of the case, which isn’t good for anyone.

On the other hand, clients who trust the attorney are more likely to hire the attorney in the first place, and bring them repeat businss and more referrals.

Bottom line, you want your clients to have faith in you and it’s up to you to make that happen.

Filed Under: Client relations

I’m working

February 24, 2023 by David M. Ward

One of the nice things about being a writer, or an attorney who does a lot of writing, is being able to indulge our other interests.

When we watch videos about something that interests us, for no other reason than because we enjoy it, we not only give our brains and bodies a brief respite from our busy schedules, we learn things we can use in our writing.

Examples, stories, new ideas or new ways of looking at old ideas help us illustrate our points and make our articles and posts more interesting.

They can also stimulate us to be more creative and productive. Seeing how others do presentations, structure their articles, or make their points can give us new ways of doing what we do.

Reading books about history can make us better leaders and problem solvers. Reading about entrepreneurship can help us get better at building our practice or business. Reading mysteries or doing crossword puzzles can make us better problem solvers and keep our brains from getting rusty.

Read widely. Every day, even if just for ten minutes. Take notes, even if it’s just a quote or one sentence about what you read.

Follow your curiosity. Go for walks and think about whatever is on your mind.

And don’t feel guilty about taking time to do this.

What you read can teach you, inspire you, and help you become better at what you do.

You may not be able to bill for the time you spend doing something other than your core work, but you’re still getting paid.

Filed Under: success, Writing

Start with what, not how

February 23, 2023 by David M. Ward

I’m guilty of this myself. Trying to figure out how to do something or improve something when that’s the wrong question to start with.

The right question is, “What do I want?“

Because when you know what you want (to be, do, or have), you can almost always figure out how.

Asking “how“ before you know “what“, often leads to wasting time on less important projects or goals.

Finding solutions without a problem.

Example? You’re trying to figure out how to set up a new website. All your energy is dedicated to looking for ways to do that, or finding people who can do it for you.

If you had first asked, “What do I want?” you might have realized that you want more opt-ins to your email list, and while a new and improved website might help, there are other things you can do to get what you want that don’t require a new website.

“What” is more important than “how”.

If you’re not sure of what you want, or even if you are, a good follow-up question to ask yourself is “why?” Why do I want that? Why is it important to me?

The answer to that question will confirm that what you said you want is indeed important and valuable to you, (or it isn’t), and provide you with the motivation to move forward.

Why do you want more opt-ins? Because this is a simple way to get what I want: more clients from the visitors to my website.

First, figure out WHAT you want (and why). Then, figure out HOW to get it.

Email marketing for attorneys

Filed Under: Email, Law office management, Marketing Plan, Online Marketing, Productivity