Hate your law practice? Here are 7 ways to fix that

July 22, 2020 by
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Contrary to popular belief, you don’t have to love what you do to be successful. You just can’t hate it.

If you hate what you do, every day is a burden. Not only does your work suffer, so does every other aspect of your life because our work is a big part of who we are.

If you’ve got the law practice blues, you don’t have to sit and suffer. You do have options:

(1) Increase your income

Yesterday’s post was about this very subject. No, money isn’t everything, but when you have enough of it, things tend to look a lot brighter.

When I started practicing, every month was a struggle to pay rent. I was in survival mode and really didn’t like what I was doing.

Everything changed when I finally started earning a good income and could focus on growth instead of survival.

(2) Reduce your work hours

Once I had money coming in regularly, I started looking for ways to work smarter, not harder. Eventually, I went from working 6 days a week to 3 days a week (about 5 hours per day).

I had a lot more time and energy to focus on marketing and growing my practice, and time for family and fun.

One thing I did was to document every aspect of my work process and create forms and checklists for everything. This allowed me to work more quickly and efficiently.

I also hired more help and delegated as much of the work as possible.

Other options: taking a partner, outsourcing, or associating with a firm.

(3) Change your practice areas

I started with a general practice but couldn’t keep up with everything. The day I decided to specialize and eliminate everything that wasn’t in my wheelhouse, was the day I was liberated.

I enjoyed the work I was doing and referred out everything else. Specializing attracted more clients and allowed me to get “good” in my field.

(4) Change your clients

You may like the work itself but if you don’t like your clients, “fire” them and replace them.

Choose a different target market. Re-define your ideal client. And get some people you enjoy working with. It can make a world of difference.

(5) Change your business model

Practicing law and running a law practice can be overwhelming. If you can’t keep up with everything, consider remodeling your practice.

Join a firm or merge with another firm. Hire more people or hire fewer. Go out on your own or go in-house.

There are other ways to use that sheepskin.

(6) Do something on the side

Start a side business. Invest. Write, paint, play music.

Do something you love and let your practice finance it.

When you find fulfillment after hours, you might see your practice in a more favorable light.

(7) Get out

If you’re still not happy, change your career. Start a business. Get a sales job. Write, consult, teach.

I know, you invested years building your legal career. Being a lawyer is part of your identity.

It may be hard to give that up, but if hate practicing, do yourself a favor and move on.

If you’d like to talk to someone who has done most of the above, hit me up and let’s talk.

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Filed Under: Career satisfaction, Law office management, Marketing legal services, success

5 ways to increase your income

July 21, 2020 by
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You probably know (most of) this, but you may not be doing most of it. Sometimes, it helps to have a list in front of you, so here you go:

1. Increase your fees

Many lawyers don’t charge what the market will bear. Increasing your fees is one of the simplest ways to increase your income. 

You may lose some clients along the way. If you don’t, you may not be increasing your fees enough.

The point isn’t how many clients you retain, however, it is how much you earn from the ones who stay and the new ones who come along who don’t know what you used to charge.

2. Increase your average “sale”

Raising your fees does this, of course. You can also do it by increasing the percentage of clients who hire you again, how frequently they do that, and by increasing the number of services the average client “buys”. 

You can also do this by bringing in bigger cases.

3. Bring in more new clients

Improving your marketing, increasing your ad spend, doing more marketing in more channels, will all help you bring more new clients to your door. 

If you also improve your website, follow-up processes, offers, sales skills, and the frequency with which you stay in touch with prospective clients, you will sign up more of them. 

4. Bring in better clients

You want clients who hire you more often, have lots of contacts they can refer or introduce you to, pay their bills on time, and let you do your work without micromanaging. 

How do you attract them? By targeting better target markets and/or ideal clients. Then, once you have them on board, getting them to refer people they know, who are likely to be a lot like themselves.

5. Decrease your overhead/marketing expenses

Building a referral-based practice will do this. So will lowering your cost per lead. You can also do it by improving your productivity, so you get more work done in less time and at lower cost. 

Which of these do you like best? Which ones will you work on first?

This can help you sort everything out

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Filed Under: Increase your income, Marketing legal services

How to get free publicity–even if you don’t play the flute

July 20, 2020 by
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Legendary rock group, Jethro Tull, is lending it’s name to a new hand sanitizer. We’re told it’s reasonably priced, at a time when there’s a lot of price gouging, and all proceeds go to charity.

Nice.

I’m not sure if Ian Anderson stands on one leg to promote this but the radio spots I’ve heard do feature a lick or two of him wailing on flute.

Anyway, can you do something like this? Promote a product, service, or cause with a charitable tie in? Even if you’re not legendary?

Why not?

It’s good to do good, and you’ll look good while you’re doing it.

When your clients and prospects hear what you’re doing, they’ll likely see you in a favorable light, and tell others about what you’re doing. The cause (and you) get more exposure, more traffic to your website, and more good will.

As you get publicity, your name will get mentioned, meaning you get publicity, too.

More:

  • The charity may mention you in their newsletter and on their website. They may thank you publicly, too.
  • You can issue press releases and otherwise contact media outlets, which may mention your cause and book you for interviews.
  • You can use contact influential people in your target market, tell them what you’re doing, and ask them to join you by promoting the cause or offer to their list. In addition to helping the cause, this could lead you to marketing alliances, referrals, and introductions to others in the niche.
  • You (may be able to–check with the Bar) advertise the cause or promotion and get your name mentioned as a sponsor, without directly advertising your services

Sound like a plan?

Find a charity or cause you’d like to promote. If there is something about it that’s in the news, like the need for hand sanitizer, even better.

Talk to the company that makes the product or performs the service, and ask them what you can do to help them get the word out. See if they’ll provide you with a special offer to sweeten the deal.

And then promote it.

Let me know what you’re doing. I might mention it in a future post. If I really like it, I might bend over backwards to do it. Just don’t expect me to stand on one leg.

If you’re ready to take a quantum leap in your marketing, here you go

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Filed Under: Marketing legal services, Networking, Publicity

Should you market your firm or your services?

July 17, 2020 by
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Should you market your law firm or your individual services?

Both.

When someone searches for information about estate planning, filing a tort claim, or getting out of their lease, that’s what people want to know. You should provide them with information about those problems, and the solutions you offer via your services.

People also want to know about your firm–your experience with matters like theirs, the kinds of clients you represent, and why they should choose you instead of any other lawyer or firm.

They want to know why they should trust you, how much you charge, how long the work will take, and how to get started.

So, market both your firm’s capabilities and your services. But there’s something else you should market that’s even more important. In fact, it is the essence of all professional services marketing.

I’m talking about you.

Market yourself. Let people see you, hear you, get to know you. Let them see what it’s like to work with you, to have you advising them, advocating for them, and helping them solve their problems and achieve their goals.

Law firms are faceless, cold and impersonal. Legal services are technical, abstract, and boring.

And then there’s you. A complex, competent, and caring human being.

People want to talk to you, hear your words of wisdom, and cry on your shoulder. When they’re in trouble, they want you by their side.

Market your services and your firm, but more than anything else, market yourself. Because people buy you before they buy your services.

The Attorney Marketing Formula

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Filed Under: Marketing legal services

If it’s free, it’s me

July 16, 2020 by
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If a prospective client balks at paying your fees, here’s a question you might ask them:

“If my services were free, would you hire me?”

If they say anything but an enthusiastic “yes,” you know there’s something else holding them back. That’s your cue to ask questions and find out what it is.

Because if you don’t know what they object to, you can’t address it.

Now, if they “yes,” they’d hire you if it was free, you know a few things:

  1. You know they know they need the help of an attorney,
  2. You know they see you as capable of helping them, and
  3. You know that your fee really is what’s stopping them.

If it’s the latter, you can then consider other solutions, e.g., a payment plan, a lower-priced service so they can get started, or offering to refer them to another attorney who doesn’t charge as much as you do (which might make them decide they want you after all).

Make sense?

Okay, as long as we’re talking about free, I just learned that Aweber, one of the two email service providers I have used and recommend, just announced the creation of a free plan.

If you’ve been thinking about starting an email newsletter and/or using an autoreponder to stay in touch with clients and prospects, you can do that without paying a single shekel.

The free plan allows a list size of 500, which is plenty for people starting out. If you have a bigger list, their paid plans are reasonably priced.

To learn more, check out this page.

Yes, that’s an affiliate link, because who knows, you might upgrade someday.

Here’s the link again

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Filed Under: Email, Fees and Billing

Do what you can’t do

July 15, 2020 by
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What’s holding you back? Why haven’t you achieved your goals?

The answer is inside your head.

You haven’t achieved your goals because you don’t believe you can have what you want.

There’s a voice in your head that says you don’t deserve what you want. You aren’t smart enough, talented enough, or hungry enough.

That voice is your fear talking. It’s trying to protect you by causing you to play it safe.

You have three options.

The first option is to listen to that voice and learn from it. It might be right. Hear it out so you can fix what it says needs fixing.

If it says you don’t have enough skills or experience, make those your priority. Do what you have to do to get good enough, and say “thank you” to the voice for being honest with you and pointing the way forward.

The second option is to confront the voice and challenge it.

If the voice says you don’t have enough talent, look for evidence to the contrary. Think about your accomplishments in similar situations and remind yourself of just how capable you are.

Let the voice know you’re not picking up what it’s laying down.

The third option is to ignore the voice and do what it says you can’t do. Go ahead and prove it wrong.

As Vincent van Gogh once said, ‘If you hear a voice within you say “You cannot paint,” then by all means paint, and that voice will be silenced.’

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Filed Under: Inspiration

How to get more clients without advertising

July 14, 2020 by
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One of the simplest ways to get more clients is to work with professionals, business owners, bloggers, and other influential people in your niche.–people with clients, customers, or subscribers who might need your services or know someone who does.

Typically, you meet and network with them and eventually get some referrals.

That works, but there’s a faster way.

Step One: Find people in your niche who don’t compete with you and who have a following–a blog, a newsletter, a channel, a podcast, an active social media platform, or other list of people who know, like and trust them.

Step Two: Talk to them about “working together” for your mutual benefit.

That means using your respective lists to promote each other’s practice, newsletter, offer or event.

If you handle estate planning, for example, you might work with divorce attorneys and propose one or more of the following:

  • I’ll write about your practice, you write about mine
  • We do guest posts for each other
  • We interview each other
  • We mention each other’s offer in the P.S. of our newsletters
  • We promote each other’s upcoming events, book launch, or giveaway
  • And so on

You might close your newsletter with something like this:

“My friend Joe Lawyer has a successful family law practice and is offering a free report, ‘How to Lose Your Spouse Without Losing Your Shirt’. If you know anyone who might like a copy, give them this link: xxxx”

It doesn’t get any simpler than that.

Step Three: Rinse and repeat. Run more promotions with them and find others with whom you can do the same.

I show you everything you need to know in my Lawyer-to-Lawyer Referrals course. You can read all about it here.

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Filed Under: Marketing legal services, Referrals

How long did it take you to read this?

July 13, 2020 by
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I’ve seen a lot of attorney’s newsletters. Some provide excellent content. Many don’t.

Some are interesting and are well-written. Many aren’t.

Some reflect the personality of the writer. Most don’t. Especially the “store-bought” (canned) newsletters.

Some are written in html and look “pretty”. Some (like mine) are plain text and look ugly as hell.

But despite these differences, most of these newsletters share one trait that makes it much less likely anyone will read them: they’re too long.

They have too much information, too many links, too many calls-to-action. They ask you to read too much and do too much and most people who get these missives do none-of-the-above.

Most people (even now) are busy. They don’t have time to read a long newsletter, even if they’re interested in the subject(s). What do they do? The same thing you and I do when we don’t have time to read something, we save it for later (which almost never arrives) or we delete the sucker.

Yes, there is value in having people see that you wrote them, even if they don’t open the email. They see your name and are reminded that you’re still around. When and if they need your services, they’ll go find one of your archived emails and read it.

(So don’t stop emailing.)

But, let’s face it, having people read your newsletter is a ‘ho lot better. They get to know you and trust you and feel a kinship with you. They get to hear about how you’ve helped other clients. They find out about other matters you handle.

All of which results in more clients for you.

So, if you want people to read your emails, keep ’em short. Short enough that they can read them in a minute or two.

Like this one.

Want to know how to write emails that get read (and acted upon)? Get my Email Marketing for Attorneys video course.

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Filed Under: Email, Newsletters

How to get more referrals without mowing lawns

July 10, 2020 by
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Our new gardener is doing a great job. He shows up on time, does a thorough job–our yard has never looked better–and is very easy to work with.

Having gone through so many gardeners over the years, we’re happy campers.

My wife found him by posting a notice on a digital community bulletin board. Several neighbors chimed in and provided recommendations, and we hit pay dirt.

On that same board, my wife saw another neighbor asking for recommendations. My wife gave her our gardener’s name and number and told her how happy we were with him. She told the gardener to expect a call from Nancy; he was very appreciative.

Referrals rule.

The gardener got the referral by doing a great job for us. Is there anything else he could do to stimulate more referrals?

He could give his customers business cards or brochures to hand out to neighbors.

He could provide a few talking points about his services, explaining all the things he does, the neighborhoods he services, mentioning that he’s licensed and insured, etc.

And he could offer an incentive for protectively passing out his cards and talking about his services. Perhaps, “Refer a neighbor and get one month of service free”.

So, can you do these things?

Give your clients cards and brochures to hand out? Yes.

Give your clients talking points about you and your services. Yes again.

Offer incentives for referrals? Probably not, but you can do the next best thing by “rewarding” them after the fact.

If your clients own or manage a business or practice, you can reciprocate. Send them referrals. Feature their business in your newsletter or blog.

If your clients are consumers, you can send them a small gift (a plant, a book, a Starbucks coupon) to express your thanks.

And you can always show your appreciation by sending clients a thank you note or card.

When your clients know you appreciate their referrals, they’re more likely to send more of them.

My referral marketing course shows you how to create handouts and talking points that bring in more referrals. Details here.

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Filed Under: Referrals

The most important page on your website or blog

July 9, 2020 by
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When someone visits your website for the first time, statistics tell us they’ll probably click on and read your “About” page. What they see, or don’t see, often determines whether they stay on your site, or leave and never return.

That’s why your About (“About me,” “About us”) page is the most important page on your site.

Visitors are looking for information about you and your firm. They want to know what do you and for whom you do it. They want to know how you can help them and get a sense for what it would be like to work with you.

They also want to know something about you, the person.

Your About page is the portal visitors take into your world, and the first step towards getting to know, like, and trust you.

Your About page doesn’t need to be brilliant. It just has to present the important information visitors want to know, in a clear and compelling way.

If you want to see what a good About page looks like, check out this blog post: 29 Best About Us & About Me Pages (+ Why They’re So Good)

Use these examples for ideas and inspiration and then create or re-create your About page.

Learn more about the elements of an effective website here

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Filed Under: Blogging, Marketing legal services, Online Marketing Tagged With:
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