David M. Ward, Author at The Attorney Marketing Center

Tending to your digital garden

February 22, 2023 by David M. Ward

What would you do if you opened your task app and found it empty? No tasks, no projects, no ideas—nothing. (And you don’t have a backup.)

Would you panic? Not be able to do any work. Or would you see it as an opportunity to make a new and better list?

That’s what I would do.

In fact, periodically, that’s exactly what I do. I put all my tasks and projects out of sight and build a new list from scratch. The new list is, of course, much shorter than the original. Which is the point. The new list contains the most important things I know I have to do. No fluff, no busy work.

Just the essentials.

Once I’ve created the new list from memory, I go through the old lists and add a few things to the new list I’d forgotten. But only a few. The point of this exercise is to get rid of the clutter so I can focus (and do) the most important tasks and work on the most valuable projects.

My re-constituted list is a joy to look at and work through. Because it isn’t a never-ending mass of “too many,” it’s a lean sprinkling of “just right”.

I do something similar with my notes. I have too many to do this much housecleaning, but I regularly archive old notes, eliminate duplicates, and organize notes that relate to current, upcoming, or ongoing projects.

And I suggest you do the same.

The best time to do this is when you start using a new app. It feels good to populate your shiny new app with the things that are most important to you.

If you’re not not changing apps, or you’re not sure about doing this, start with your someday/maybe list. You know, that dumping ground of ideas you told yourself you want to get to one day. Be ruthless, here. Cut out most of them. (If it’s something you really want to do someday, it will find its way back onto your list).

When you reduce the digital clutter in your life, it helps you identify your priorities and focus on them. You do your most important work, your day is likely shorter and less stressful, and you have peace of mind knowing you’re on top of your work.

You’re doing what’s important, not just staying busy.

Filed Under: Productivity

The power of clarity

February 21, 2023 by David M. Ward

We all know the value of focusing as a mechanism for creating successful outcomes in our life. The more we concentrate our time and resources on something, the more likely we are to be successful at it.

In law school, we focused on learning the law. When we started practicing, we focused on bringing in clients, doing the work, and running the business side of things.

What we focus on grows. Which is why it is important to choose what we want to focus on instead of aimlessly doing whatever might be in front of us.

The first step is knowing what you want.

When you know you want something, you activate your Reticular Activating System (RAS), the part of your brain that helps you notice things that are important to you and filter out things that aren’t.

When we lived in caves, what was important to us was finding food and staying safe from enemies. Our RAS helped us stay alert about the strangers we encountered and notice the berries that were safe to eat.

Today, if you’re interested in buying a red car, you suddenly notice red cars everywhere. And tend not to notice ones that are green or blue.

If you want to build your practice, your RAS will help you notice things that will help you do that. Articles, people, ideas, and opportunities you might not have noticed before are seemingly everywhere.

How can you use this to your advantage? By getting clear on what you want. Decide what’s important to you—your goals, your purpose, your values—and let your RAS go to work.

When it does, pay attention. The things it helps you notice are consistent with what you said you wanted.

Filed Under: success

The simplest way to get more (of anything)

February 20, 2023 by David M. Ward

You want new clients. Repeat business. Referrals.

You want more people making an appointment, booking you as the speaker at their event, posting a review, signing up for your list, or liking and sharing your post.

Bottom line, you want more people to do something.

The simplest way to accomplish that? Ask them again.

Because they forget. Or aren’t yet convinced. Or need to give themselves permission to spend the money.

If you don’t ask again, if your messages (email, calls, conversations) are “one and done“ you are missing out on as much as 50% of the sales or “yesses” to whatever it is you’re asking.

Maybe more.

I know you know this makes sense. I also know you might not want to do it, or do it as much as you could, because (a) you don’t want to appear needy or greedy, or, (b) annoy anyone.

But think about this:

If you have something valuable to offer, something people need and want and will benefit greatly from getting, you need to do everything you can to help them get it.

If you don’t, how will you feel if something happens to them that might have been prevented or mitigated if you had followed up?

This doesn’t mean you should pound on people to sign-up. Just remind them, respectfully, but repeatedly, and keep doing that until they get it.

And guess what? They want you to do this.

They want you to tell them again. Remind them of the benefits and/or what they’ll lose if they don’t take action.

They appreciate being reminded of an approaching deadline. They appreciate that you respect them enough to stick with them while they figure out how and when they can sign up.

Sometimes, they need to hear from you again before they’re convinced of the seriousness or urgency of your request or offer.

Assume they didn’t get your previous message or got busy with other things. Assume they need to hear more reasons, more examples, or what more people say about your services.

Because they do. If they didn’t, they (might have) signed up the first time they heard from you.

Follow-up is essential to building your practice. And you need to do it.

The only thing you have to figure out is how often.

But you don’t have to figure that out in advance. All you need to do is figure out the next follow-up, and put that on your calendar.

The easiest way to follow-up is with email

Filed Under: Communication, Increase your income, Marketing legal services

Simply the best

February 17, 2023 by David M. Ward

You are the best in your field. The most talented, the most successful, the most dedicated to your clients.

That’s why your clients hire you; that’s why prospective clients should do the same.

Unfortunately, you can’t go around saying you’re the best. Even if it’s true.

You want others to say this about you. Which is why you should do everything you can to obtain testimonials, positive reviews, and praiseworthy survey responses from your clients, and endorsements from prominent people (especially other lawyers).

It’s also why you should get yourself invited to be interviewed by centers of influence in your niche and be seen in their company.

If you say you’re the best, people will doubt you. Maybe laugh at you. If your clients and others say you’re the best, it must be true.

Not only does third party praise help you bring in more business, these kinds of comments give your clients a warm and fuzzy feeling knowing that they made a wise decision to hire you.

It also means you’ll attract higher-paying clients and a lot more referrals, because you’re not just competent, you’re the best.

Don’t be shy about asking your clients for reviews and testimonials. If they’re happy campers, they should be happy to provide them. But you have to ask because they may not know how important this is to you.

And, while you’re collecting these, you can create the same effect by liberally adding client success stories to your articles, posts, presentations, and other content. That’s where you describe a client’s case or situation before they came to you and how you rescued them and made everything better.

Set up a file to collect emails and quotes from people who say something nice about you. Thank them, tell them how much it means to you, and ask, “May I quote you?”

Happy clients are the foundation of a successful practice

Filed Under: Client loyalty, Client relations, Law office management, Marketing legal services, Referrals

Maybe you need some new friends

February 16, 2023 by David M. Ward

Jim Rohn said, “If you wish to be successful, study success.” A good place to start is by studying successful lawyers.

Some lawyers are great marketers. Some are great at managing their practice. Some have other skills that have helped them build a happy personal life.

You would do well to identify, learn from, and emulate the ones who know what they’re doing, as long as what they are doing is consistent with how you work and what you want to build.

It might be someone you know. Spend more time with your successful lawyer contacts. Ask them what they’re doing, find out the systems and methods they use, ask them to recommend vendors and resources, and follow in their mighty footsteps.

It might be someone you would like to know. Ask your contacts if they know them and ask them to introduce you. Or just pick up the phone and introduce yourself. Tell them you liked their article, ask a question, or congratulate them on their recent victory.

Sometimes, you can learn from someone without ever speaking to them.

Study their articles, their website, their advertising, their webinars, and anything else you can find about them. Discovering their secrets might be as simple as reading their book, watching their videos, or subscribing to their newsletter.

And there are other ways you can benefit from networking with successful lawyers.

You can learn about their practice areas and markets. Find out who’s who and what’s what.

You can promote each other’s content, events, and practice.

You can become workout partners, holding each other accountable to doing what you said you intended to do.

Or you can help each other with learning how to use an app, sharing templates or forms, or providing feedback about your new project.

At the very least, other lawyers can inspire you and show you what’s possible. Having a successful lawyer to model gives you a track to run on.

What if you’re not sure you have something to offer in return?

But you do.

You can promote their practice, without asking anything in return. Send them referrals if you can, write about them on your blog, interview them for your channel.

You’ll get their attention. And earn some of their time. And take the first step towards a mutually rewarding professional relationship.

And maybe a new friend.

How to get referrals from other lawyers

Filed Under: Referrals, Relationship marketing

I was a dumb kid

February 15, 2023 by David M. Ward

I’ve told you that when I was a kid, I hated pizza. But I had never eaten any. There was just something about it I was sure I wouldn’t like.

Yeah, dumb.

You know what happened. You know my parents told me to “try one bite” and if I didn’t like it, I didn’t have to eat any more.

Of course I loved it.

On the other hand, my grandfather told me that beets were good for me and I would like them. Nope.

So, parents and grandparents aren’t right about everything. But they’re right about one thing. You won’t know until you try it.

We know this is true as adults. Or do we?

More than a few attorneys tell me they don’t like (take your pick of marketing activities). So they don’t do it. Even though they never tried it.

More often, they have tried it. They just didn’t try it enough. Or learn how to do it properly. So they don’t do it again.

I’ve done this. I’m sure you have, too. We think we know better. We’re stubborn. And we tell ourselves that something isn’t for us.

My message to you, and to myself, is to not only try things that might be good for us, but to give them a fair try.

One time might not be enough to determine that networking isn’t your thing. Maybe it was the wrong organization for you, or you met the wrong people. Try again.

Advertising? Yes, you might lose money and decide it’s not for you. But you could also learn from your first experience, improve, and go on to earn a fortune.

One time being interviewed on a podcast or giving a talk (and messing up) doesn’t mean it will always be that way.

Giving things a fair a fair try also means being willing to learn more. You might try something you read about in a book, for example, and get poor results. But you might read another book that gives you another way and that might be just what you needed.

You wouldn’t know that if you didn’t read that other book.

But what if you give something a fair try and hate it? What then?

Don’t do it. Don’t continue doing things you hate, even if they work. Delegate them or outsource them, or do something else that works that you enjoy.

I tried beets and hated them, even if they were good for me.

Pizza was an entirely different story.

Filed Under: Personal development

It just takes one

February 14, 2023 by David M. Ward

Public speaking at industry events and conferences has long been an effective way for lawyers to build their authority and reputation.

But there are some challenges.

You can’t just waltz in and expect to be selected to speak. You have to build your authority and reputation outside of those events before you are recognized and invited (or accepted) to speak.
Being a good lawyer doesn’t mean you’re a good speaker.
You can build your reputation and authority, and an email list, through less demanding forms of content creation. Articles, a blog, a newsletter, interviews, podcasts, and the like, provide much greater exposure and many more leads. And your content will live online forever, continuing to do so.

On the other hand, speaking at a convention or industry event offers a big benefit. It allows you to put on your bio that you spoke at said event.

They invited you to speak, so you must be good at your job.

So, do it once or twice. Get yourself invited to a panel discussion or to the center stage. You’ll forever be able to say that you did this, as I shamelessly do when I mention speaking at an ABA convention.

But there is one additional benefit for speaking at these events. You get to meet influential people, which can lead to referrals, introductions, and other marketing and business opportunities.

And this should be your primary goal when you attend any event, even if you’re not one of the speakers.

It just takes one. Because if they are the right one, it can lead to massive growth in your practice and career.

How to take a quantum leap in your practice

Filed Under: Content creation, Image, Increase your income, Networking, Public Speaking

Email marketing done wrong

February 13, 2023 by David M. Ward

It’s funny, the guy who sent me this email is a successful blogger with a big email list. So he should know better.

He sends emails to his list announcing each new blog post. That’s good. But the subject line in those emails all say, “New Update on [his blog]”.

That’s bad.

Nobody is interested in knowing there’s an update. So what? Why should I care?

You have to tell them why they should care.

The purpose of an email subject line is to “sell” the recipient of that email on opening it.

Make them curious. Entice them with benefits. Or both.

Don’t just send them an email. Tell them why they should open it.

If the recipient knows the sender, they may give them the benefit of the doubt and open the email. Will they do that week after week?

Who knows?

If they’re busy, if they’re a new subscriber and don’t yet know that you consistently deliver value, they may skip your email, assuming that (like so many other emails they receive) it’s nothing but a sales pitch.

Or they might save it to read later, but we know that “later” often never arrives.

The subject line of your email is the key to getting your email read. It is a headline. It must capture the attention of the recipient and convince them to stop scrolling and open your email.

And “New update. . .” isn’t going to get the job done.

If your email is meant to announce your new blog post and your blog post has a good title, the simplest thing to do is to put that title in the subject line of your email.

There are other options, but this works most of the time.

So, why doesn’t this experienced blogger do that? I don’t know. But don’t do what he does.

And don’t do what he does in the body of his emails, either.

The only content in his emails is a hyperlinked copy of the title of his blog post. Nothing else.

Why is this a mistake? Because while the title/headline might be enticing, it might not be enough to get subscribers to click the link.

And the goal isn’t to open the email, it’s to get subscribers to read your post.

You have two options for accomplishing this.

Option one is to use the body of the email to sell them on clicking the link. Tell them more about the benefits they get from your post, share how others have benefitted from this kind of information, say something about why you’re qualified to present this information, or otherwise prove that reading the post will be worth his time.

And yes, you could enclose the first few paragraphs of your blog post (and the link to continue reading).

Option two is to enclose the entire blog post in the body of your email.

That’s the way I do it.

When you get my email, you don’t have to click anything to read my latest post. You can read the post right there in your email inbox.

I know, by doing it this way, I get fewer people going to my blog. That would improve my traffic and engagement numbers, and make it more likely that when someone finishes reading the post, they’ll read something else on the blog.

But I think it’s worth it.

It’s worth it because by making it more convenient for you to read my post, you’ll be more likely to do it. And get the benefits thereof. And become interested in hiring me or buying something from me or contacting me to learn more.

Which you are less likely to do if you can’t read the post without going to my blog.

The goal is to get more people (1) to open your emails and (2) read your content. Because it is your content that convinces people to take the next step.

Email marketing for attorneys

Filed Under: Blogging, Email

The best marketing method for attorneys

February 9, 2023 by David M. Ward

Every other marketing method requires your time, your money, or both. They also require time (and money) learning how to implement, maintain, and scale that method.

Networking, advertising, blogging, social media, speaking, writing articles or books–you name it– all require you to do something and/or spend something.

There’s only one method that doesn’t.

You know its name. You hear me speak it enough. You know I built my practice primarily with this method.

Yes, I’m talking about referrals.

Getting referrals doesn’t require you to write anything, say anything, or do anything other than your job.

Do your work, do it well, and your clients will refer other clients. So will your professional contacts.

Just do your work and your practice will grow.

That doesn’t mean you shouldn’t do anything to make referrals more likely. There are a lot of things you can write or say or do, and you should consider them, but you don’t have to do them if you don’t want to.

Give your clients some extra business cards, or don’t. Tell your clients about your other practice areas or services they may not be aware of that their friends might need, or don’t.

Do your work, do it well, you’ll get referrals and your practice will grow.

But referrals don’t scale like an ad campaign or go viral like social media, you say?

Au contraire.

Referrals beget referrals. Referred clients are themselves more likely to provide referrals, so, as your practice grows, that growth compounds.

You might get more leads and prospective clients via advertising or other methods, but at what cost?

I’m not saying you should rely solely on referrals. Just that you could if you want to.

How to get more referrals from your client (if you want to)

Filed Under: Referrals