Don’t ignore the bad news but don’t dwell on it, either

June 13, 2016 by
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There is evil in the world and we must acknowledge it. But we shouldn’t let it destroy our quality of life.

So let’s change the subject. I have a question for you that I was thinking about this morning:

If you had to, could you run your practice without computers and the smart devices in your pocket? Could you do everything with just pen and paper?

When I started practicing, some lawyers had computers but most did not. Very few had mobile phones. And there was no Internet.

My office had paper files, real law books, and a land line. I did have electronic typewriters, and a copy machine, but no fax.

And we did fine.

But then we didn’t know what we were missing.

We had what we needed to do our work, and we didn’t know what the future might bring. We felt good about what we had and what we could do.

Today, we can practice law from a device that fits in our pocket. We depend on this tech and if we had to give it up and use pen and paper, knowing what we were missing, it would be difficult. And sad.

But unless we get hit with an EMP or there is a zombie apocalypse, we won’t have to give it up. God willing, we never will.

And for that, we should be thankful. We should be thankful for all of the good things in our lives, because there are a lot of them, and there are more to come.

Don’t ignore the bad news, but don’t dwell on it. Because you get what you think about, think about the good things in your life and get excited about the good things to come.

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Filed Under: Personal development

Selling ice to eskimos

June 10, 2016 by
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I took a speech class in college. When it was time to deliver my presentation, I talked about insurance and retirement planning. Yep, to a bunch of 18-year olds.

A friend was selling insurance and provided me with information I could use in the presentation. I made the case for buying insurance when you’re young and the insurance is cheap. I told them I had purchased a policy for that reason and encouraged them to do the same. I offered to introduce them to my friend who could tell them more.

As you might have guessed, despite doing a good presentation (according to my teacher), there were no takers.

I had a good message (arguably) but delivered it to the wrong audience.

If my audience had been a group of newly married young people or young couples who had just had a child, I might have gotten better results.

There are many elements that go into crafting a marketing message but none is more important than your audience. If your audience doesn’t have the legal problem you’re talking about, for example, and believes they are unlikely to ever have it, your message will fall on deaf ears.

A well-crafted message with a crazy-good offer heard by the wrong audience will fail. A mediocre message and offer delivered to the right audience, however, might do just fine.

Before you do any presentation, write a blog post or article, record a video, send mail or email to a list, or run an ad, the first question you must ask is, “Who is the audience?”

If you have the wrong audience for your message, you either need to change the audience or change the message.

If you’re a personal injury lawyer and you’re addressing a group of people who have never been in an accident, don’t talk to them about how to get the highest settlement, talk to them about what to do when they do have an accident.

Sales people pre-qualify prospects and leads before talking to them, and you should, too. Find out if your audience needs what you’re selling and if they can afford to buy it. If they don’t need it or can’t afford it, go talk to someone else.

Get your website to pre-sell your services to visitors. Click here

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Filed Under: Copywriting, Marketing legal services, Presentations

What would happen if you stopped marketing?

June 9, 2016 by
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What do you think would happen to your practice if you suddenly stopped marketing? If you pulled your ads, stopped networking, never wrote another blog post or article, and never gave another presentation–what would happen?

Henry Ford said, “Without advertising a terrible thing happens–nothing.” He meant, of course, that if a business doesn’t continually keep its name and wares in front of the marketplace, the business will eventually die.

Lawyers don’t have to advertise but if they stopped marketing in all forms, will their practice eventually die?

Maybe not.

If a lawyer has been around for awhile and has a base of a few hundred current and former clients, most lawyers could continue to bring in repeat business and referrals, probably enough to sustain and grow the practice in perpetuity.

But they need a mechanism for staying in touch with their client base and. . . they have to do it. They have to regularly send emails and/or letters, at the very least reminding their clients that they still exist and can still help them and the people they know.

I assume that the lawyer is well-practiced in, and fully committed to, client relations (customer service). When you treat clients like they are kings and queens, when you deliver more value and service than they expect, how could they not come back? How could they not tell others?

Lawyers who excel at client relations, and stay in touch with their clients, don’t have to rely on advertising or networking or other “reaching out” methods to sustain and build their practice.

Notice I said, “rely”. Reaching out to find new prospects and bring them into your marketing funnel is smart. It can help your practice grow faster. If you’re doing these things and they’re working, don’t stop.

But isn’t it nice to do those things because you want to, not because you have to?

Referrals from clients are the foundation of a healthy law practice

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Filed Under: Marketing legal services, Referrals

You could be in big trouble if you don’t read this

June 8, 2016 by
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AIDA is an advertising acronym that speaks to the elements of an effective ad or marketing message. The letters stand for “Attention, Interest, Desire, Action”. “Attention” is first because unless and until you have the reader’s or listener’s attention, there’s no point in presenting anything else.

One of the most effective ways to get the reader’s attention is to say something that speaks to their self-interest. Something they want or something they fear.

If you are a criminal defense attorney, for example, your ad’s headline might use words like, “handcuffs, jail, guilty, or sentencing”. Or about the charge itself, e.g., DUI.

It’s the same for email. You want to get the recipient’s attention and get them to open the email because if they don’t open it, you’re not going to get them interested in what you’re selling.

But email has some other considerations, as illustrated by an email I got this morning from The State Bar of California:

“Dear State Bar Member,

We have received numerous calls and emails alerting us to a fraudulent email being distributed with the following subject line: “The State Bar of California Complaint.”

Please be advised that this email is not from, or authorized by, the State Bar. If you receive one of these fraudulent emails, please do not respond or click on any attachments. Delete it immediately. These emails are NOT from the State Bar of California and may contain links to files that open malicious software.”

The subject line in the referenced email would get many lawyers to open it, wouldn’t it? It speaks to one of our greatest fears. That fear would override our knowledge that Bar complaints, like notices from the IRS, only arrive via regular mail.

So plus one for getting attention.

The spammer probably wasn’t selling anything but was looking to do harm, but suppose they were selling something like information on how to avoid ethics violations or services in the event of being so charged? Putting aside the fact that the email was unsolicited, we’d have to admit that the headline worked because it got us to open it.

The problem is that it was unsolicited email and there are some additional rules.

If instead of an email the same headline was used in a print ad, or in a letter sent by regular mail, we’d read it wouldn’t we? If there was a legitimate offer we probably wouldn’t complain to the state Bar. And we might be more likely to buy something because once the advertiser got our attention, however provocatively they did so, we saw that they offered a product or service we wanted to buy.

Context is crucial in marketing. It’s okay to be provocative and take risks. More than okay, it’s often a great way to get attention. Just make sure you don’t break the rules to do it.

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Filed Under: Advertising

Who fills out the paperwork in your office?

June 7, 2016 by
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In my practice, when I had a new client in the office I didn’t have them fill out any forms or paperwork in the waiting room and I didn’t have my staff do the initial intake–I filled out the paperwork myself.

One reason was that I wanted to talk to them about their case, get all the details, and ask follow-up questions my staff might not ask. I was able to do a better job for them as a result.

Another reason was that I didn’t want them fussing with paperwork when what they really wanted was to unburden their troubles on me and let me fix them. I thought they appreciated my making it easier for them to do that.

I could have had someone else do the initial information gathering before I saw them, and if I was pressed for time I sometimes did that. But I preferred to fill out the forms myself because it gave me an opportunity to spend a few more minutes with the client and get to know them.

I could ask about their kids, their job or business, and where they were going on vacation. I might tell them about a case I had that was similar to theirs. I could have some fun with them and lighten their load.

I often saw my clients only two times: at the first appointment and at the final appointment when I presented a settlement check and final paperwork. Those two visits were an opportunity to bond with them and I didn’t want anything to take away from that.

When clients like you, and think you like them, they come back to you and refer their friends.

So who fills out the paperwork in your office? You? The client? Staff? Do you send them a form to fill out before they come in for their first appointment? Or do you use a combination of the above?

Every practice is different, of course, so I’m not going to tell you what you should or shouldn’t do. I’ve told you what I did, and why, but you need to decide what’s best for your practice.

What I can tell you is that while this may be a “little thing,” you should spend time thinking about it because when it comes to building relationships, and building a successful practice, little things mean a lot.

Do it right and your clients will send you more referrals

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Filed Under: Client loyalty, Client relations, Referrals Tagged With: , ,

Why I get high at work and you should, too

June 6, 2016 by
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Think about all of the projects you’ve started but didn’t finish. All of your unrealized goals and forgotten dreams. When you think about them, or look at the unfinished documents on your hard drive, it’s not a good feeling.

You failed. You weren’t good enough. You didn’t do what you said you would do.

Ugh.

Now, think about the things you did finish. The projects you completed. The cases you settled. The documents you pushed out into the world.

Different feeling, isn’t it?

It feels good to finish things because doing so validates your abilities and value. Getting things done might mean more revenue, or simply the affirmation of a job well done, but whatever it is, there’s no question that it is enjoyable.

One reason it feels good is that finishing causes the pleasure centers of your brain to experience a rush of chemicals that literally make you feel good. You get high on finishing, so you are compelled to do it. And start the next thing on your list so you can finish that and enjoy the feeling again.

It’s a positive addiction and I encourage you to become a junkie.

Give in to your cravings. Finish what you start and feel the rush.

You need to know when to abandon projects that don’t “pencil out,” of course, but when you do that, use the reclaimed time to start and finish something else.

Something else that feels good: referrals

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Filed Under: Personal development, Productivity

Being the best at what you do isn’t good enough

June 3, 2016 by
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Being good at what you do isn’t good enough. Even being “the best” isn’t good enough, according to the late Jerry Garcia who once said, “You don’t merely want to be considered the best at what you do. You want to be perceived as the only one who does what you do”.

The only one who does what you do. That’s your mission.

Tough assignment? Not really. The key word is “perceived”. It’s how the world sees you, not necessarily how you really are. It’s marketing, plain and simple. Packaging. Positioning.

On the other hand, maybe it’s not so difficult to literally be “the only one who does what you do”. You are a unique human being, after all. Others may have a similar set of skills. They may offer the same services and deliver the same benefits.

But they aren’t you.

Your task, then, is to take what you do and express it through the prism of your persona. Incorporate the unique essence of who you are into what you do.

Remember, clients buy “you” before they buy your services. Show them who you are and you will have no competition because there is no one like you.

The formula for creating your “unique selling proposition”

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Filed Under: Image, Marketing legal services

Is that the best you can do?

June 2, 2016 by
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Does it ever seem like there’s an invisible ceiling over your head that limits your ability to earn more income? Do you ever wonder if you’ve hit a plateau in your career?

Wonder no more, my friend. If you believe you’ve reached your peak, you have, because your beliefs determine your reality.

Your limitations are all in your head. They’ve probably been there a long time. Parental messages probably had something to do with it, and a whole bunch of other things. But what’s important isn’t how you developed your current beliefs but how you can change them.

Because if you don’t change your beliefs about yourself and about what’s possible, those beliefs are going to continue to hold you back.

How do you do it? How do you change your deep-seated, long-held beliefs?

Hypnosis? Therapy? Visiting a sweat lodge? Can you read your way to a new self-image? Take courses? Hire a coach?

To some extent, all of the above have some value because doing them, even thinking about doing them, signals your self-conscious mind that you want to change.

But I have another option for you: get some new friends.

Yep, one of the best things you can do to change your life is to spend time with different people. People who have done what you want to do and people who have what you want to have.

While you’re at it, spend less time with, or completely disassociate from, people who don’t.

The so-called “law of association” says that we become like the people we associate with most. If you hang out with people of one political persuasion, for example, the odds are you are on the same side. If they work hard, you probably do, too. If they exercise and eat well, you are more likely to do the same.

If your friends and business associates read a lot, you’re more likely to do that, and more likely to read what they’re reading. If they invest their money wisely, you are more likely to think twice before buying into the latest fad.

When we associate with people, we tend to adopt their way of looking at the world. We learn their “language”. We adopt their habits. We share many of the same beliefs. Those beliefs influence our attitude towards what we do and don’t do, and those activities determine our results.

And let’s not forget that the people we know can introduce us to other people like themselves, and open doors to new opportunities. If you want new opportunities, you need to know some new people.

Think about the people you spend the most time with right now. Your closest friends. Your colleagues. Your professional contacts. The odds are that your income and lifestyle are on a par with theirs. If you’re happy about that, great. If not, if you want to achieve more, you should probably find some new friends.

Here’s how to find and meet new professionals who can send you referrals

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Filed Under: Increase your income, Personal development, success Tagged With:

Too much on your plate? Get a smaller plate

June 1, 2016 by
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Nirvana. That’s what we all want, isn’t it? Maybe that’s why I was attracted to an app by that name several years ago when it was in beta.

Nirvana is built for GTD, with Next Actions, Waiting, Someday, and other “Getting Things Done” features. I liked it, but the developer was taking too long to get it out of beta and I eventually moved onto to other things.

The other day I heard that Nirvana had been updated and I decided to take another look. I played around with it, entering tasks and projects, adding tags, and taking the app for a test drive.

I’m using the free Basic version which limits you to 3 “Areas of Focus” (e.g., Work, Personal, etc.) and 5 Projects. I have more than one business, however, and could use more than 3 Areas of Focus. I also have many projects, both active and inactive, and could use a lot more than 5.

But here’s the thing.

As I struggled to shoehorn my busy life into the Basic version, I realized that while I may have 50 projects I could be working on, I can only work on a one or two at a time. I found myself thinking about what was important to me right now, and used these for my 5 projects. Any other projects (or standalone tasks) I can tag “Someday,” or schedule for a future date, which is what I did with a project I’m planning to work on next month.

If I had the unlimited Pro account, ( per year) and put every project on the project list, both active and inactive, I can see how things might get out of hand. Using the Basic version of Nirvana, or any app that limits you to a handful of “front and center” options, forces you to prioritize.

I can’t have too much on my plate because my “plate” only holds so much.

Of course an artificial limit of 5 projects is just that–artificial. I can still put “everything” in this or other apps and find them when I want to re-fill my list of 5.

I think I’ll play around with the limited version of Nirvana a bit longer. There’s something liberating about looking at a spartan interface with just a few things in front of me, seeing how close I am to being “Done”.

Check out Nirvana and see what you think

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Filed Under: Productivity Tagged With: , , ,

How to bring out the champion inside you

May 31, 2016 by
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Last night, The Warriors clinched a spot in the NBA finals by beating OKC. After being down three games to one, watching them come from behind to win the series was a beautiful thing to behold.

The message? Never give up. No matter how bad things look, champions never give up. That’s what makes them champions.

But there is another message.

After The Warriors won game six and evened the series, Charles Barkley said, “Your flaws show up under pressure”. That’s true. But what he might have also said is that it’s the pressure that makes you into a champion.

Whether it’s professional basketball, building a law practice, or doing anything else that requires skills and determination and hard work, it’s the struggle that allows us to reach our potential. If it was easy, there would be no growth and no greatness.

Don’t fear your problems, embrace them. Don’t lament your mistakes, learn from them.

Do you want more income and greater success? Solve bigger problems. Take bigger risks. Fight bigger battles.

Your flaws show up under pressure and show you where you need to improve. Every battle, every loss, every adversity you overcome makes you stronger and better.

Don’t hide from pressure, go look for more of it. It turns a lump of coal into a diamond and a rookie into a champion.

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Filed Under: Personal development, success
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