Affirmations don’t work (unless you do this)

September 16, 2019 by
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Have you ever used affirmations–to lose weight or increase your income or improve a condition of some kind?

Many people have tried affirmations and nearly everyone has given up when they didn’t work.

Including me.

Years ago, when I first started walking and wanted to lose weight, I used to affirm that I was “thin”. I told myself that, over and over again, because that’s what I wanted.

But, despite all that walking and affirming I didn’t get thin.

Years later, I found out why.

I found out that by affirming something I didn’t believe (that I was thin), all I was doing was perpetuating what I did believe–that I needed to lose weight.

I was telling my subconscious mind, over and over again and with feeling, that I needed to lose weight so it obediently made sure I continued to be overweight.

Because that’s how our minds work.

So now, when I choose an affirmation or a goal, I make sure to choose something I believe.

Things like, “I enjoy walking,” “I like knowing I can take small steps toward improving my health,” “It feels good to know I’m on my way towards being lean and strong and healthy”.

And, this time around, walking has served me well. I’ve lost weight and feel stronger and healthier.

Yeah, this is a bit airy-fairy, but why not give it a try? What have you got to lose (besides some unweighted weight)?

Choose something you want and believe and affirm it or journal about it or meditate on it, and let your subconscious mind do what it does best.

I just got back from my walk and thought I’d tell you.

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Filed Under: Personal development Tagged With: ,

Marketing is like riding the bus

September 13, 2019 by
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Marketing is very forgiving. If you miss something or mess up something, you’ll have plenty of opportunities to make it right.

If you miss your bus, another one will be along soon.

You wrote an article or post that didn’t bring good results? Write another.

You went to a networking event and didn’t connect with anyone? Go again or try a different event.

Your ad didn’t pull? Your presentation didn’t score any appointments? You met with a prospective client and they didn’t sign up?

Don’t worry. Keep going. And don’t dwell on things that go wrong.

When I was starting my practice I tried something and lost a bunch of money I couldn’t afford to lose. A friend reminded me that I was doing well overall, losses are part of business and I shouldn’t focus on them.

He was right.

Think about the long term and the big picture, not the bumps in the road.

Keep publishing, keep mailing, keep trying new ideas, and you’ll get where you want to go. Because there’s always another bus coming.

Want a simple marketing plan? This will help

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Filed Under: Inspiration, Marketing legal services

Real ID is a real pain

September 12, 2019 by
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October 1, 2020, the new “Real ID” law goes into effect. After that date, you’ll need a Real ID card or other federally approved documents such as a passport or military ID to get on an airplane or enter a secure federal facility.

Did you know?

I didn’t until my wife renewed her driver’s license recently and found out about it. Later today, we’re headed to the DMV to submit our applications and supporting documents.

We hope we have everything we need. I say that because there are a lot of rules about which documents to bring, and if you get it wrong, “No soup for you!”

Do yourself a favor and find out what you need to do–and do it. As we get closer to the deadline and more people find out about this, you can be sure the lines are going to get longer.

Once you have a handle on what to do, give a heads up to your clients and prospects. Give them the link to get the details, apply online (if available in your state), and gather the required documents.

They’ll need a certified copy of their birth certificate, for example, and may need time to send for it.

Your clients will be glad you told them, glad they have you as their attorney.

Post a summary on your website. You might invite your clients to call your office if they have any questions.

Consider blogging about it, making a video or two, and posting on social.

You’ll generate some goodwill and get more people coming to your website where they will learn about the (paid) services you offer.

Your website can help you make the phone ring

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Filed Under: Marketing legal services, Online Marketing

The ten-second newsletter

September 11, 2019 by
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How long does it take to write a newsletter? Not long. A few minutes or even a few seconds.

A few seconds? How is that possible?

It’s possible if you re-define the meaning and purpose of a newsletter.

Your newsletter doesn’t need to be all about news or about the law. It can be a few sentences you think might prove interesting or of value to your readers.

A thought, a tip, a link to a helpful resource, a quick story, or a few words about what’s going on in your life. That’s all you need because your newsletter is merely a mechanism for staying in touch, reminding people that you’re still around and still care about them.

If your readers need more information, direct them to your website or tell them to contact you. Like I do every time you hear from me.

If you want to see examples of ten-second newsletters, and a lot more, head on over to my email marketing course so you can start using email to build your practice.

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Filed Under: Email, Newsletters

Why newsletters don’t work

September 10, 2019 by
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You say you’ve tried a newsletter but it didn’t work. It didn’t bring in business, it took too much time, or you ran out of things to write.

Or, you’ve thought about starting a newsletter but are worried about the aforesaid.

I see a lot of lawyer’s newsletters and there are three primary reasons why they don’t work:

(1) Too much information.

If your inbox is like my inbox, you have no shortage of things to read. Your clients and prospects are no different. So, if you send them a newsletter filled to the brim with information and articles, most people won’t read it.

And, let’s face it, you don’t the time to write a newsletter like that so you procrastinate and before long, your newsletter is “out of business”.

What if your newsletter consisted of just a few paragraphs? Something you could write in a few minutes and your clients could read in a few minutes?

Kinda like what you’re reading right now.

(2) Too infrequent/too irregular.

A monthly newsletter isn’t often enough to gain traction with your readers. By the time your next issue arrives, they’ve forgotten what you said last time. Or worse, they’ve forgotten who you are and send your message to spam.

This is a simple fix. Rather than sending a big newsletter infrequently, break it up into smaller messages and send more often. And on a regular schedule.

When you stick to a regular schedule and people only need a few minutes to read your latest message, you get more people reading your messages. Which means more people hire you (again) and send you referrals.

Which is the point.

(3) Uninteresting.

Most lawyers’ newsletters are boring. And I’m a lawyer. If I’m not interested in what you say, you can bet most of your clients and prospects aren’t either.

You have to give people something interesting to read. To do that, you have to understand your clients and prospects beyond their legal problems.

Who are they? What do they do? What are their problems? What do they want in their business or personal life?

When you understand them, you can write about them, and they’ll read every word.

When I write to you, I talk about issues that are familiar and interesting to you. I use examples from my life or practice or from other lawyers I work with or have known.

I write about things you care about and present them in an interesting way.

I can do that because I understand you. Hell, I am you. But if I wasn’t, I’d make sure I studied you.

Which is what you need to do if you want to make your newsletter interesting for your clients and prospects.

It’s not difficult. You can learn a lot about your clients by reading what they read.

When you do, you’ll never run out of things to write about.

My email marketing course shows you everything you need to know. For all the details, go to

Email Marketing for Attorneys

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Filed Under: Email, Newsletters

Two ways to grow your business practice

September 9, 2019 by
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You want to grow your firm–bring on some major clients who provide status and billings and open doors to other clients of a similar ilk.

You don’t have family or business connections that can deliver those types of clients (or you would already have them). What can you do?

The usual strategy is to find ways to network with people who own, manage, or advise the kinds of clients you want to acquire. Promote their business or cause, introduce them to people who can help them, or otherwise add value to the relationship.

One of their existing attorneys may retire, screw up, or have a conflict, and you may get the nod.

Or, one of your new friends will introduce you to some of their contacts–smaller companies in their niche who need legal help, or people who know them.

You might offer these smaller clients a sweet deal because one of these companies may take off and you can grow with them. Plus, you’ll have your foot in the industry door.

Just being able to say you represent a certain company or you are on a board with some of the players in the industry may elevate your status enough to allow you to attract bigger clients.

All of this will be easier if you focus on a niche market. You’ll have an edge over other firms because of your specialized knowledge and connections. You’ll know the issues, the people, the trends, and you can provide more value to people in that niche.

So, that’s the usual way to do it. Hard work, provide value, bide your time.

But there is another way.

You can hire (or merge with) attorneys (or firms) that already have the types of clients you want.

Offer them a good deal because they can bring you more clients like their existing book of business.

This can help you choose your niche

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Filed Under: Networking, success

Study: email 40 times more effective than Facebook and Twitter combined

September 6, 2019 by
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I’ve been yapping about how email is more effective than social media and this study proves it. If email isn’t at least a part of your marketing mix, you’re missing out.

I know, it seems too complicated. So much to learn, so much to do.

But it isn’t. Unless you make it that way.

In case you have your doubts, let me give you a very simple way to start.

You have a database of clients, right? You have their email addresses on file?

Okay, fire up whatever you use to send emails and send your clients an email that says something like this:

“I’m updating my records and I want to make sure I have your current (and best) email address. Please hit reply and let me know you got this. Thank you.”

Simple, right? What’s next?

Send them one of the following:

  • Information: a link to an article you found online (or wrote): “I thought you might find this interesting.”
  • News: something your firm has done recently or is about to do
  • A legal tip: how to do something or avoid something
  • A consumer tip: how to save money or time or get better results
  • A reminder: to contact you to update their [document], to file their [document], or to call you if they have a question about [whatever]
  • A story: tell them a success story about one of your clients
  • An invitation: to your event, to watch your new video or read your new blog post, or to contact you for a free consultation
  • A thank you: thanks for being my client, thank you for all the comments on my last post, thank you for all the kind words when I broke my leg. . .

Before you know it, the holidays will be here. Not too difficult to send an email wishing them well.

Want to know the one email that gets the highest open rate (according to other studies)? Happy birthday, emails, of course. So add this to your list.

Here’s the key: send anything. It doesn’t really matter what. What matters is that you’re staying in touch with the people who put food on your table.

When you’re ready to take things to the next level, get my Email Marketing for Attorneys course.

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Filed Under: Email, Newsletters

Getting referrals from people you don’t know well

September 5, 2019 by
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Yesterday, we talked about using email to reach out to strangers, to see if there’s a basis for initiating a relationship.

But don’t forget the people you already know.

Friends, clients, colleagues, people you’ve worked with–your close contacts can and will send you business, so stay in touch with them, too. An email newsletter is a simple way to do that.

And. . . don’t ignore your casual contacts. Professionals you’ve met once or twice, vendors, consultants, bloggers, and others who sell to or advise people in your target market, can open a lot of doors for you.

These so-called “weak ties” may be a great source of referrals and other opportunities.

Charles Duhigg, author of The Power of Habit: Why We Do What We Do in Life and Business, said:

“In fact, in landing a job, Granovetter discovered, weak-tie acquaintances were often more important than strong-tie friends because weak ties give us access to social networks where we don’t otherwise belong. Many of the people Granovetter studied had learned about new job opportunities through weak ties, rather than from close friends, which makes sense because we talk to our closest friends all the time, or work alongside them or read the same blogs. By the time they have heard about a new opportunity, we probably know about it, as well. On the other hand, our weak-tie acquaintances— the people we bump into every six months— are the ones who tell us about jobs we would otherwise never hear about.”

Schedule time each week to check-in with a few casual contacts. Send an email, ask what they’re working on, give them some news, or share an article or video you found that might interest them.

Some of these casual contacts will bear fruit, merely because they heard from you and were reminded about what you do and how you can help them or their clients.

But don’t leave it at that.

When the time is right, tell them what you’re looking for. Ask for information or an introduction. Or ask for advice.

Because your casual contacts can open a lot of doors for you, some of which you didn’t know even existed.

Email marketing for attorneys

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Filed Under: Email, Networking, Newsletters, Referrals

How to approach a stranger

September 4, 2019 by
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I got an email today from someone I don’t know, offering me his services. It said:

“I am reaching out to make you aware of my availability as an [type of] expert witness for case review, consulting and testimony. I also will spend an hour of time at my cost to assist you in evaluating a potential case if you are looking for feedback.”

He then offers to send his CV or I can see it online.

If you’re in southern California, maybe you got the same email. Check your spam folder. That’s where I found it.

Okay, what do you think? Is this a viable approach? What might improve it? Or this is terrible posture and something you would never consider?

I’ll tell you what I think.

There’s nothing wrong with contacting strangers by email. And, if you do it right (and follow your Bar rules) it can lead to work. But. . .

Don’t send a “form letter” to a large list. That’s how it winds up in spam.

Do your homework. Find a few prospective clients or referral sources who are likely to need or want something you provide or know someone who might.

Personalize your message. Tell them where you got their name, show them you know what they do, that you’ve looked at their website (and liked something) or you know someone they might know.

Then, don’t be so quick to ask for a date.

Don’t offer your services, even a free consultation or one-hour free review as this fellow did. You’re asking for too much too soon.

They don’t know you or trust you. You have a ways to go to earn that.

Instead, offer them information. Not about you, about something that might be useful or interesting to someone who does what they do.

Information that will help them do a better job for their clients or customers, for example, or help them save time or money or get better results.

Follow-up in a few days, see if they got your first email and offer the information again.

There are other ways to approach a stranger but this is about as simple as it gets. If you use some common sense and provide decent information, it can bring you some business.

Some recipients will read your report or article, see that you know your stuff and be open to learning more about you. Make sure your report tells them how to do that.

And, once you have a few candidates who have expressed interest in learning more, stay in touch with them, get to know them and help them get to know you.

Networking 101, with email.

How to use email to build your practice

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Filed Under: Email, Marketing legal services

Had enough?

September 3, 2019 by
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Maybe you feel like you can’t do any more than you’re already doing.

You’ve given it everything you’ve got and you have no more to give.

The odds are you can do more. A lot more.

The Navy SEALs have something they call ‘the 40% rule’. It says that when you’ve hit the wall and are physically or mentally exhausted and are ready to quit, you’ve really only reached 40% of your true capacity.

They teach recruits that when they feel the urge to quit, to see it as a signal that they’ve got a lot more in them and they just need to push past that point.

If they do, they’ll find they have a lot more gas in their tank.

There’s been some research to validate the science behind this. But I have to wonder how much of this is our minds.

In the film, “Facing the Giants,” a football coach has his players perform something called ‘The Death Crawl’, to teach them they can do a lot more than they think.

Take 5 minutes to watch this inspiring scene.

The next time you think you don’t have any more to give, think again. Your gas tank may look empty but there’s always more in reserve.

Are you ready for your practice to take a Quantum Leap?

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Filed Under: Inspiration
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