David M. Ward – Page 86

Why you should tell people about your sick cat

November 8, 2021 by David M. Ward

I spoke with an attorney over the weekend about marketing his practice. We were scheduled to talk last week, but he was at the vet with a sick cat who didn’t want to take his pill and we rescheduled.

I’ve had cats and told him we used to swaddle our fur babies in towels when they didn’t want to take their pills. He told me he saw a video about that, something about making a “cat burrito”.

So, when we spoke, before we talked marketing, we talked about his little one, who is doing better.

And now, I’m telling you about it, to remind you to talk about things like this, not just with clients and others you speak to, but in your newsletter.

Yes, it’s okay to write about things like this in a newsletter, even though they are “off topic”. In fact, it’s more than okay. It’s recommended.

It’s recommended because it shows your readers that you’re like them. Human, vulnerable, busy taking care of sick cats or kids or cars that need to be taken to the shop.

And similarity is one of the key factors in likability.

When your readers and followers learn something about your personal life and recognize things they have in common with you, they are more likely to see you favorably, that is, to like you.

Which means they’re more likely to hire you and tell others about you. You’re not just an arm’s length professional they read, you’ve taken a step closer to being a friend.

If you’re making notes right now, you might want to add “me too” as a way to remember this concept.

This doesn’t mean you need to open up your entire personal life to your readers or followers. I’m sure you don’t want to do that and frankly, nobody wants you to.

Share bits and pieces here and there, like a color commentator on a baseball broadcast. Just enough, but not too much.

By the way, I told my wife about the “cat burrito” video and she agreed it was an apt description for what we used to go through.

Coincidentally, she made burritos for dinner last night. Call me crazy, but they were a bit spicier than usual.

Email Marketing for Attorneys

Filed Under: Newsletters, Writing

Do you speak your clients’ language?

November 5, 2021 by David M. Ward

I just read an article about working with clients who aren’t proficient in English. There were some good tips, but no surprises.

For most of my legal career, I maintained offices targeting non-English speaking clients. So I was surprised to see that the article didn’t mention hiring staff that speak those languages, which is what I have always done.

No, you can’t do that for every language. You also have to be ready to use one of the other options mentioned, e.g., hiring interpreters and using translation services.

But having full-time staff who spoke the languages spoken by a preponderance of the people in my target market not only made sense, it also gave me a competitive advantage over offices that didn’t.

When people in the community heard about me or saw my ads in their language, they felt more comfortable coming to me and referring their friends, customers, or clients. Even if they were fluent in English, I know they appreciated the effort we made to accommodate others who weren’t.

Niche marketing isn’t just about providing foreign language capabilities, however. Every niche has its own lexicon, its own fabric of experiences, and targeting niche markets allows you to show them you speak their “language”.

You can create content and marketing messages that are more relevant to that market. You can use their buzzwords and provide examples and stories that reflect their world. You can talk about niche-specific issues, quote influential people they recognize, and be seen as an advocate for their causes.

And thus show them you understand their market, care about it, and have experience in helping the people in it.

Word of mouth is strong in niche markets. Which means if you do things right, you can usually build a practice more quickly in a niche market than you can outside of it.

But only if you speak their language.

How to choose your niche market

Filed Under: Marketing legal services Tagged With: Niche marketing

Don’t want to blog? Do this.

November 4, 2021 by David M. Ward

If you don’t want to set up a blog but you’d like to use your knowledge to bring traffic to your website, guest blogging is a viable alternative.

Basically, that means offering your content to blogs that target your niche or market in return for a link to your website.

This allows you to write content when and if you feel like it, instead of sticking to a schedule.

But the biggest benefit is that this gives you the ability to leverage the traffic that visits those blogs.

And, by appearing on authority blogs, you also gain their implied endorsement; sometimes, their actual endorsement if they add some kind words about you.

You get traffic, build your authority, and get a lot of eyeballs looking at what you do when they arrive at your website.

If your website includes an opt-in feature, you can also build your email list this way.

You can even this with just a one-page website.

Start by searching for blogs in your niche that accept guest posts. Review their guidelines. Read several posts to get a sense of what they publish (subjects, length, slant). If some posts have a lot of comments or shares, see if you can figure out why.

And then, contact the publisher to offer your first post.

Blogs like to publish content written by authorities, and as an attorney, you certainly tick that box. You need to show the publisher or editor a subject they think is appropriate for and of interest to their readers, and you need to show them you can write.

As for your writing chops, link to articles you’ve published online, or send a sample or two.

Note, most blogs that publish guest posts will link to your website (or social media), but some may not be willing to do that. I once wrote a post for the ABA and they wouldn’t provide a link to my site. I wrote it anyway because it’s a nice credit, but I probably wouldn’t do that for other publications.

If you know anyone in your niche that runs a blog or other publication, start by querying them. If your practice area isn’t right for their audience, they can point you to other blogs that may be better suited, and possibly recommend you to them. They might also offer general advice about how to approach publishers.

Finally, if you know a blog that would be a good match for you but they don’t publish guest posts, contact them anyway. Yours may be their first.

How to use a blog to build your law practice

Filed Under: Blogging, Content creation, Newsletters, Online Marketing Tagged With: guest blogging

It takes as long as it takes

November 3, 2021 by David M. Ward

You’re writing a blog or a newsletter. You’re doing interviews, podcasts, videos, or presentations. You’re regularly posting on social, making new contacts, or advertising..

And it’s just not happening.

You’re not seeing a significant bump in clients. Nothing is happening, so why bother?

Well, maybe you shouldn’t bother. Maybe you should pull back on some of your “external” marketing, or stop doing it completely.

Or maybe the breakthrough is right around the corner.

Someone hears or reads you and becomes your next big client. Someone likes your face and your voice and starts referring their clients to you. Someone shares your blog post with someone with a big following and your subscriber list blows up, followed by your client list.

You never know what might happen, or when. One big case or client or opportunity might make everything you’ve done more than worth it.

So, think of this as a long-term investment. Because that’s what it is.

Along the way, in the short term, you might make enough money to cover your costs and your time. Maybe even earn a nice profit.

Or you might not. Let that be okay. It’s an investment.

Keep going, but don’t do it blindly. Look for ways to do it better or make your investment go further.

Keep going. As you become more skilled, more knowledgeable, and more confident, you’ll get better results. Things will happen more quickly.

Keep going, even though you may not see a lot of growth in the client or revenue department just yet, because those aren’t the only results that count.

There is tremendous value in the lists and relationships you’re building. Those lists and those relationships are your as yet unrealized future.

And they could be worth a fortune.

How to create a simple marketing plan that works for you

Filed Under: Inspiration, Marketing Plan

The best way to build your law practice

November 2, 2021 by David M. Ward

There are many strategies you can use to bring in new clients and increase your income. Which strategies are best for you?

I like to break down the options into two broad categories: internal and external.

INTERNAL MARKETING

Internal marketing generally focuses on client relations, to generate repeat business, the sale of additional services, and referrals.

It also includes staying in touch with existing business and professional contacts who can provide referrals, introductions, and cross-marketing opportunities.

Advantages:

Low or no cost
You already have a list and permission to contact
Existing trust means clients and their referrals are easier and quicker to close
Clients are usually willing to refer, introduce you, share your content, and provide positive reviews and testimonials
A client newsletter is a simple way to stay in touch with clients (and prospects and professional contacts)
You don’t need a lot of marketing experience
You don’t need to spend a lot of time
Repeat business and referrals are more profitable

Disadvantages:

Can be slower to scale
Your clients may not need repeat or additional services, and/or might have limited ability to refer

EXTERNAL MARKETING

External marketing involves lead generation, through advertising, direct mail, networking and speaking, blogging, articles, and other means, and following up with and closing those leads.

Advantages:

You can target any market or markets
You may be able to scale quickly
Some strategies (eg, advertising) don’t require a lot of time
Some strategies (e.g., networking, speaking, blogging) don’t require a lot of money
You can hire/outsource many activities

Disadvantages:

Some strategies (e.g., networking) may take a long time to bear fruit
Advertising requires money, expertise, and the risk of loss
Advertising requires a lot of testing to find the right (profitable) approach
Competition can be fierce in some markets and/or for some services
Longer closing process; leads are more price-resistant
Additional overhead (to work with leads)
Some strategies may be inappropriate for your image, style, or practice area
Bar rules are usually more restrictive

WHAT WORKS BEST FOR YOU?

Choosing the best strategies for you requires you to consider

The time and/or money you are willing to invest/risk
Your type of practice/clients/market
Restrictions (bar rules, your firm)
Your marketing experience and competitive factors
Your current staff and/or ability to hire more

MY ADVICE

Every lawyer should start with internal marketing and continue doing it as long as they are practicing.

Who doesn’t want repeat business and referrals?

For many lawyers, internal marketing strategies will be all they ever need.

Some lawyers or firms who want to grow bigger and faster should also consider external marketing strategies, when they have the resources and temperament to do so. But only after they have solid internal marketing strategies in place.

Are you ready to take a quantum leap in your practice?

Filed Under: Marketing legal services, Marketing Plan

You wouldn’t treat a client that way, would you?

November 1, 2021 by David M. Ward

You have a meeting with an important client.

Do you put it on your calendar?

Do you show up?

Would there have to be an emergency for you to cancel that meeting at the last minute?

During the appointment, do you silence the phone and other devices so you can give the client your full attention?

I’ll bet you answered “yes” to each of these questions. Because your clients are important to you and you want to do your best for them.

Now, consider the same questions regarding an appointment with your most important client—yourself.

Many lawyers I talk to don’t have the same commitment to scheduling their marketing activities. They look at marketing as something to do when they think about it or they have some extra time.

What if you were as disciplined and committed to making and keeping appointments with yourself to work on marketing as you are to appointments with your clients?

Do you think this shift in your perspective would make a difference? Do you think changing the way you plan your schedule and prioritize your marketing activities would materially affect the growth of your practice and income?

I do, too.

Which is why I tell you to calendar a 15-minute daily “appointment” with yourself, dedicated solely to marketing, and to keep that appointment.

Because you really are your most important client.

The Attorney Marketing Plan shows you how to earn more without working more

Filed Under: Marketing legal services, success

I upped my fees. Up Yours.

October 29, 2021 by David M. Ward

Okay, it’s the punchline of an old joke, and a terribly transparent case of click bait. But it’s also offers some good advice.

Especially now.

On any day, most solos and self-employed lawyers charge less than they’re worth. That might not describe you, but I think I’m on safe ground when I say most.

Why? They may not be aware of how much they’re worth, or how much “the market” will bear. And they’re afraid that if they raise their fees, they’ll lose too many clients.

So they look at what other lawyers or firms charge and set “competitive” fees, instead of charging more than their competition and “leveling up” their services to justify higher fees.

But I’ve made this point many times before and I won’t belabor it today.

It’s your decision. But before you decide, I want to point out something you may not have considered.

Inflation.

It’s higher now than it’s been in a very long time and unlikely to come down to earth any time soon.

We’re all paying more for just about everything we buy. Our income doesn’t buy as much, which means we need to earn more just to break even.

Your clients and future clients are in the same boat, and they know it, because they’re also paying more for groceries and gas and everything else.

Which means they probably expect that at some point, they’re also going to pay you more.

You may not want to raise your fees right now. You may not want to “pile on,” especially when many people are having a tough time. You may want to keep your fees at the same level and try to ride out the current wave.

But at some point, you may need to reconsider.

You can’t be benevolent to your clients if you’re hurting. Yes, you may be hurting at a higher level, but that’s beside the point. You’ve got to take care of yourself before you can take care of others.

If (and when) you raise your fees, raise them. Don’t pussyfoot around with a 1 or 2% increase. Not when everyone (including you) is seeing their other expenses going up double digits.

You may lose some clients. But you’ll make up for those loses by the increased revenue derived from the clients who stay and from new clients who don’t know how much you used to charge.

I know, easy to say, not so easy to do. But if you want your reality to be one of abundance, not scarcity, you can’t be afraid to charge what you’re worth. And then some, to account for inflation.

How to write an invoice that gets paid

Filed Under: Fees and Billing

How to make it easier for readers to grok your content

October 28, 2021 by David M. Ward

Yesterday, I talked about the importance of making it easier for folks to access your content. Today, I want to elaborate on this subject, and share a few ways to make the content they read more readable.

But not just readable, effective. Meaning readers (and listeners) not only understand your message, they relate to it, and to you.

This isn’t difficult. Just different from what most people do. And that’s what makes it effective.

Come to them, don’t make them come to you. Unless you have a good reason to do otherwise, send your email or article to them, so they can read it immediately, instead of asking them to click and come to your website to do that.
Don’t send “a newsletter,” send an email. It’s more personal and conversational, and more inviting to read.
Keep it simple: one subject, one “lesson,” one offer, one call to action.
Keep it short. They’ll give you a minute or two. If you have more to say, save it for next time (as I’m doing here).
Make it LOOK easy to read. Short paragraphs and sentences, bullet points, CAPS and bold and other visual elements.
Help them or entertain them. Tell them something they can use, and/or tell them something interesting.
Facts tell, stories sell. More stories make your content more readable, relatable, and persuasive.
Lighten up. Use warnings and cautionary tales sparingly. You want to inspire readers and give them hope for a better future, not crush them with despair.
Don’t tell them everything. Tell them enough to frame the problem and possible solutions. Make them come to you to find out more.
Talk to your readers, not at them. Ask them questions to get them thinking or to make your point, and ask them to reply and/or ask you questions.

I see a lot of lawyers’ content that does a great job of “posturing,” that is, showing readers they know what they’re doing and they are very busy doing it. We all need to do that to some extent.

But there’s something to be said for showing readers that besides being “hard to get,” we are also “good to know”.

How to use email to build your law practice

Filed Under: Content creation, Email, Newsletters, Writing

Why your readers aren’t reading

October 27, 2021 by David M. Ward

You work hard to produce good content. Intelligent, thoughtful, interesting articles and posts. You share valuable ideas in your newsletter or your website or content management system.

Maybe you do videos, podcasts, or webinars. Maybe you regularly interview experts and authors and other smart people with something valuable to offer.

Unfortunately, your numbers tell you the folks aren’t reading or watching. Let alone contacting you to find out more about how you can help them.

Is content marketing a failed idea?

No.

Do you need to upgrade your research, writing, and content production skills? Get a better camera, microphone, or lighting set-up?

No.

Your subscribers and followers may not be reading or watching your content simply because you make it difficult for them to do that.

I get a lot of newsletters I’d like to read but don’t because I’d have to follow a link to a website, maybe log-in, maybe download something.

Sorry, I don’t want to bother.

Almost daily, I get emails that don’t share any ideas or information, but invite me to register for yet another webinar or “summit”.

Looks like it might be great, but I don’t have time for that.

I get sent links to a lot of videos. Five minutes, I might be your boy. 20 minutes, sorry, maybe another time.

I might like to read your pdf or ebook, but I’m in the middle of something else right now. Okay, I’ll download it and read it later, but let’s face it, later usually never happens.

And hey, I don’t want to give you my email address again. I’ve been your subscriber for years. And now I’m going to get two of everything from you? Thanks, but no thanks.

Like most folks, I decide to read or watch something in a second or two. If the next step is to start reading or watching, I might do it. If the next step requires me to register for something, put something on my calendar, invest an hour or two of my time, the odds are I won’t.

Sometimes I will. But not every time.

Bottom line: if I have to spend a lot of time to get to your content before I can consume it, on most days, the answer will be a hard no.

Love ya, but I’m busy and have to move on. You set up too many hoops for me to jump through, and I’m not in the mood.

So I never see much of your best content.

My advice to anyone who wants to build their business or practice with content of any kind: make it easy for people to access that content.

More readers, more leads. More leads, more clients.

How to use a simple email newsletter to build a law practice

Filed Under: Blogging, Content creation, Email, Marketing legal services, Newsletters

You can change your name, but not your stripes

October 26, 2021 by David M. Ward

Jimmy, the protagonist in Better Call Saul, couldn’t do it. Changing his name didn’t change who he was.

That’s true for all of us. How we think, what we do, who we are.

Our beliefs about ourselves and the world are the core of our “operating system”. And while we can change our beliefs, we can’t do it by changing our name.

Our beliefs determine our attitudes towards the choices we make, the things we do and how we do them. Our activities determine the results we get. And our results determine our success and lifestyle.

Look at how this works in the context of marketing and managing a law practice.

(1) Our beliefs determine our attitudes

If you believe that that nothing is achieved in life without hard work, that there are no shortcuts, no such thing as “working smarter,” you will no doubt be skeptical about strategies that suggest otherwise.

You would be reluctant to try these strategies because they are inconsistent with your core beliefs.

If you did try any of these strategies, you might do so with an attitude that says, “Those things never work” and you may seek to prove you’re right.

On the other hand, if you believe that some “working smarter” strategies can work, you’ll be open to learning more and giving some strategies an honest try

(2) Our attitudes affect our activities

If you believe working smarter is possible, that you can increase your income without working more hours (and even by working fewer hours), you’ll be willing and perhaps eager to explore strategies that promise that outcome.

Your attitude will be “let’s see” instead of “no way.” And if you try those strategies, you’ll look for ways to make them work instead of trying to prove they won’t.

You may have always used hourly billing in your practice, for example, but you may be willing to try flat fee billing. If you’ve tried it before, you may be willing to try it again.

You’ll at least be open to getting more information about ways to do it effectively and to see how other lawyers are doing it.

(3) Our activity determines our results

Your activities—what you do, how you do it, how much you do and for how long, determine the results you get.

Do more marketing activities, do them better, and you’ll bring in more clients. Try different billing methods and if you find one that allows you to earn more from the same work, you’ll increase your income without putting in more hours.

Maybe even by working fewer hours.

(4) Our results determine our success and lifestyle

If you are able to increase your income by working smarter instead of working harder, in the case of our example, by successfully implementing flat fee billing, you will earn more without working more.

You’ll be able to do that because you believed it was possible.

Our beliefs guide our attitudes, our attitudes affect our activities, our activities determine our results, and our results are how we measure success.

How does this explain the success of people who lie, cheat, and steal their way through life? Who believe that the way to succeed is to do whatever it takes, even if it’s wrong?

They may get away with it, but only for so long. Eventually, their nature catches up with them.

And changing their name, or the name of their company, won’t stop that.

Get the Check: Stress-Free Legal Billing and Collection

Filed Under: Fees and Billing, Increase your income, Law office management, Leverage, Personal development