What do you do when the case is over?

July 9, 2012 by
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Think of a file you closed in the last thirty days. The work was done, the client was paid or got their final papers, there’s no more work left to do.

What now? What’s your plan?

If you think in terms of “cases” or “files” or “work,” probably not much. You finished what you were hired to do and you were paid. Gotta go find someone else who needs you.

If you think in terms of “clients” and “repeat business” and “referrals,” you’re just getting started.

Your clients are worth far more to you than what they paid you to handle their case or file. Over time, they may be worth 50 times that amount. But if you leave it up to them to come back when they need you again, or refer someone who needs you, you’re making a big mistake.

It’s up to you to stay in touch with your clients, now, at the end of their case, and forever–until you retire or one of you dies.

It’s called “lifetime value,” and many attorneys never see it because once the work is done, so are they.

Call your client: “Do you have any questions?”

Mail to your client: “Thank you for the opportunity to serve you. Please fill out this survey and tell us how we did.”

Mail something every month: “Here’s something I thought you would like.”

Most of tomorrow’s business should come from the clients you have right now. Even if those clients never hire you again and never refer a single client, they can help you by sending traffic to your web site, promoting your seminar, or distributing your report or video.

So, when the case file is closed, open another file for the client. You have more work to do.

You need to stay in touch with your clients and let them know you appreciate them. Remind them about the (other) services you offer. Ask them what you can do to help them with anything of a legal nature, or anything else. And once in awhile, ask them to help you by liking your page or forwarding your email to someone they care about.

The work is not difficult and it pays extremely well.

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Filed Under: Client loyalty, Client relations, Marketing legal services, Referrals, Relationship marketing, Thank you letters, Web traffic Tagged With: , ,

Engage your clients and prospects by explaining the news

June 29, 2012 by
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So we have some health care news. Now what?

Your clients and prospects are wondering what it all means. What do they have to know? What do they have to do? What will it cost them? What’s next?

This is a great opportunity to provide some answers. Leverage news events like these to add value to the lives of the people who follow you. They will appreciate you for sorting it out for them and the next time you write, tweet, post, or otherwise open your mouth, they will be more likely to pay attention.

If you don’t know what to make of everything yourself, there’s plenty of help available. Here’s an article that explains, “How Will the New Health Care Law Affect Me?” Here’s one about, “How Your Business Will Be Affected.” You can use articles like these as a starting point to write your own summary.

You don’t need to write a comprehensive legal analysis (unless your clients are in the health care field or are affected more than most). Give them the who, what, where, when, and why.

But be careful with the why. If you get political, you may alienate a lot of people who put food on your table.

Show people they can trust you. Give them the facts. Help them understand.

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Filed Under: Blogging, Client loyalty, Client relations, Communication, Image, News, Newsletters Tagged With: ,

Why you should create an “inner circle” for your clients

June 13, 2012 by
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An attorney liked my post about the magic of practicing law and asked how we can “capitalize on the mystery, the magic, and the utility of the work we lawyers do?”

In other words, how can we use this mystique about what lawyers do to bring in more clients?

Yesterday’s post provides one answer: eliminate the mystique. By educating prospects and clients about what you do, they see that what you do isn’t magic at all. It’s years of study, the scars of many battles, and hard work, harder than they ever imagined. By removing the veil of mystique surrounding what you do, clients are more likely to appreciate what you do.

For most attorneys this is the best way to capitalize on the mystery of practicing law. It’s easy to do and it works. And since most attorneys don’t do this, you can easily stand out when you do.

Another way to capitalize on the mystique is to add to it. Continue to educate prospects (blog readers, newsletter subscribers, etc.) about what you do but let it be known that you have a lot more that you share only with your clients. If your public information is good, anyone who is considering you for their attorney may tip the scale in your favor to get access to your best information.

Let it be known that your clients get “private” information, not just about your practice area, but on other topics: tax savings, consumer advice, strategies for improving credit, business building ideas, and so on, supplied by you and other professionals you know and work with.

But don’t stop with information. Promote the fact that your clients get other benefits as a member of your “inner circle”. They get discounts from local merchants you have negotiated with on their behalf, access to free seminars, gift certificates, and other benefits. You might have “client only” luncheons, picnics or retreats, or other activities exclusively for your clients.

And talk about those activities. Blog about them, show pictures from them, get quotes from your clients about how much they learned or how much they enjoyed bowling and pizza night.

When someone hires another attorney, they get the work done. When they hire you, they get to belong to a private club. Members of that club get far more than the basic services any attorney provides. They get specialized information, valuable benefits, and access to fun activities.

Yes, this takes more work. But it gives you something unique that you can use to build a culture of clients who would never think of hiring anyone else.

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Filed Under: Client loyalty, Client relations, Communication, Marketing legal services, Relationship marketing Tagged With:

Why clients don’t appreciate their attorneys (and what to do about it)

June 12, 2012 by
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An attorney mentioned to me that clients often don’t appreciate what attorneys do for them. He said, “. . .[B]ecause they can’t see what we do or because they believe that it’s just templates and forms, [they think our] fees should be low and that we don’t really do much for our fees.”

We shouldn’t be surprised that clients feel this way. After all, we sell an intangible service, something you can’t look at or hold in your hands. We deal in ideas and paper and much of the hard work goes on in our brains.

And attorneys are expensive. When the client earns $30 an hour and you’re billing $300 an hour, or when you get $3,000.00 for “a few letters and phone calls,” you can see why they don’t appreciate what we do.

A detailed accounting of your work helps them see how much effort you put into their case or matter. But this can backfire if they don’t understand why you had to do what you did.

The solution is to teach your prospects and clients as much as possible about what you do. Educate them about the law and procedure. Teach them about their options, the risks and the contingencies. Show them the process and the paperwork.

The more they know, the more they will appreciate what you do for them.

Write articles and blog posts. Tell war stories that illustrate what can go wrong. Provide interviews, Q and A’s, and FAQ’s.

Record videos that walk them through the documents in a typical file or a pile of depo transcripts, tabbed and notated. Give them copies of the full opinions you quoted in your motion, highlighted and with your notes in the margins. Give them copies of everything that comes into, or out of your file.

And explain everything. What is obvious to you is not obvious to them. What you do every day is something they’ve never seen before.

Tell them why you choose A instead of B. Explain why you used to do C (which is what other attorneys do) and why you no longer do it that way.

Don’t hold back. Teach them enough so that they could do all of it, or parts of it, themselves. They won’t even want to try and they will begin to appreciate how hard you job really is.

They won’t understand everything and they don’t have to. They simply need to see that what you do is a lot more than they thought it was.

Educating prospects and clients is also one of your most potent marketing strategies.

When you teach people about what you do, and other attorneys don’t, you have an advantage. All of that information positions you as knowledgeable and experienced. It also positions you as generous. “If he gives away all of this information free, I can only imagine how much he does for his paying clients!”

Educate the market. Provide lots of information. Teach them what they need to know about their legal matter and about what you do. More often than not, they’ll choose you as their attorney and instead of questioning your fees they’ll thank their lucky stars you agreed to represent them.

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Filed Under: Blogging, Client loyalty, Client relations, Communication, Fees and Billing, Marketing legal services, Newsletters Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

How to get prospective clients to see you as the ONLY attorney to choose

June 11, 2012 by
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Imagine you are looking for a new accountant. You’ve collected information about several candidates, but you haven’t spoken to any. You’ve narrowed your list to three accountants you plan to contact.

You call the office of the first accountant and tell the receptionist you want to talk to Mr. Roberts about possibly hiring him. You are told that you will need an appointment and you set one up for the following week.

You have a similar conversation with the second accountant’s office, but in this case, you are transferred immediately to Mr. Green. He tells you about his background and practice. He’s friendly and open and you schedule an appointment to meet with him as well.

You call the third accountant, Mr. Jones, and are transferred to his personal assistant, Sally. She asks you some questions and also sets up an appointment with Mr. Jones.

So far so good. Three decent candidates. You’ll meet all three in person within the next ten days and you hope you can choose the right one. You start making a list of questions you will ask when you meet.

You check your email. There’s a message from Sally, Mr. Jones’ personal assistant, thanking you for your call and confirming your appointment. Attached are some documents for you to review before you meet:

  • A letter confirming your appointment, directions, and parking instructions.
  • A F.A.Q. brochure about Mr. Jones, his firm and staff, fees, payment options and other basics a prospective client would want to know
  • Three articles by Mr. Jones, one about saving time and money with bookkeeping, one on how to minimize taxes, and one published in a bar journal about tax issues lawyers need to know that will help with do a better job for their business clients.
  • Another article, an interview of Mr. Jones that was published by a prominent CPA Journal
  • Three back issues of Mr. Jones’ newsletter
  • A booklet of testimonials from Mr. Jones’ clients, including several attorneys, and endorsements from other CPAs, financial planners, and a professor of taxation
  • Mr. Jones’ CV listing his education, experience, awards and honors
  • A two-page questionnaire to be filled out in preparation for your appointment, about your practice and your tax and accounting needs

Every page includes links to Mr. Jones’ web site. There you find additional information, articles, blog posts, white papers, and back issues of his newsletter. There is also a link to subscribe to his ezine via email and links to connect with him on social media. You follow several links and see he is connected to many attorneys, including many whose names you recognize.

The next day, you get an email from Mr. Jones himself. He says he’s looking forward to meeting you the following week, encourages you to fill out the questionnaire, and says he has already visited your web site to get some preliminary information about your practice.

Mr. Jones invites you to send him additional information about your practice that you would like him to see, and any questions you would like him to address.

The next day, in the postal mail, a hand written note arrives, signed by Mr. Jones. It says, simply, “I’m looking forward to meeting you next Wednesday.”

Over the next few days, you get two more emails from Mr. Jones.

The first is an article written by one of his other clients, a lawyer who practices in the same field as you. The email says something nice about this lawyer and Mr. Jones says he thought you might like to read the article, that a lot of his clients have found it helpful.

The second email contains a checklist Mr. Jones gives to all of his clients and a report that shows how to use it to save time and better prepare for tax time. The email invites you to contact Mr. Jones if you have any questions. The email is signed “Bob”.

Next week rolls around and two days before your appointment, you get an email reminding you of the appointment and asking you to either send your questionnaire in advance or to bring it with you.

The next day, the day before the appointment, Mr. Jones’ assistant calls you with a courtesy reminder. She asks if you have any questions, reminds you that they have free parking, and says she and Mr. Jones are looking forward to seeing you.

You haven’t even met Mr. Jones but you already know: he’s the one. You will probably meet with the others, just to be sure, but unless Mr. Jones has two heads and a forked tongue (and maybe even if does), he will be your new accountant.

What can be learned about this experience?

  • Mr. Jones used a “shock and awe” campaign to overwhelm you with reasons for choosing him over any other accountant. Even if you never read the documents he sent you, you are impressed by his diligence and thoughtfulness and convinced he has the requisite experience.
  • The personal touches he adds to the process made you feel good about him. He treats you like a client before you became one. He shows you respect, like you are a valued individual, not a name on a file folder.
  • He provides social proof (articles, testimonials, endorsements) of his experience with and commitment to attorneys as a niche market for his practice. He makes you believe he understands what you do. He shows you that he has helped others like you, suggesting that he can do the same for you.
  • He uses content (articles, blog posts, etc.) to do the heavy lifting. It proves he is good at what he did, without him having to say so himself.
  • It doesn’t take a lot of time to do what he does because almost everything is written in advance and he and his staff obviously use a checklist to manage most of the process.
  • He doesn’t do anything you couldn’t do. You may not have all of the documents he has, but you can start with what you do have and add more later.

I’m sure you can imagine what Mr. Jones will do when you arrive at his office, during the appointment, and after the appointment. Marketing is actually very simple: Treat people like you would like to be treated.

Take some time to outline the process for communicating with a prospective client for your practice. What can you do to show them what they need to see and hear so that they fall in love with you?

Done right, they will “know, like, and trust” you before they even meet you. You won’t just be the best choice, you’ll be the only choice.

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Filed Under: Client relations, Closing the sale, Communication, Law office management, Marketing legal services, Marketing Plan, Social media, Specializing Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

The most important person in your law office

June 8, 2012 by
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The most important person in your law office is the person who answers the phone. What they do, or don’t do, is critical to your success.

That’s not an exaggeration. Your “receptionist” can be a major factor in the growth of your practice, or they can destroy it.

When a prospective client calls your office for the first time, they don’t know what to expect. Their legal situation is weighing on their minds and if they’ve never talked to an attorney, they’re probably nervous. They’re looking for solutions, sometimes desperately, and they want someone to comfort them and tell them everything will be okay.

How well does your receptionist do his or her job?

Have a friend call your office and pose as a prospective new client. You listen in. How are they treated? You may be surprised by what you hear.

I’ve talked to some excellent receptionists and I’ve talked to some awful ones. I can tell with surprising accuracy how successful the attorney is, or will be, within a minute or two of calling their office.

A professional receptionist will make the caller feel important. They listen carefully, ask appropriate questions, and explain what the caller needs to know. They don’t talk “at” people, they talk to them. They care about helping people, and it shows.

What are you paying the person who answers your phone? You should either fire them or give them a big raise. They are either making you a lot of money or costing you dearly.

What’s that? You don’t have a receptionist, you answer your own phone? Record yourself answering a few calls and then listen to those recordings. You may be surprised by what you hear.

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Filed Under: Client relations, Communication, Law office management Tagged With: , , , , , ,

Is marketing legal services hard work?

May 22, 2012 by
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It’s just work. Marketing, that is. And it’s not hard, really. Compared to the rest of what you do, how hard is it to make a few calls or write a few emails?

It’s not hard to write an article or outline a talk. It’s not hard to invite someone for coffee. It’s not hard to hand write a thank you note to your new clients.

It’s not hard to do these things. It’s just work. But you have to do it.

I heard from an attorney yesterday who has a friend who always seems to have plenty of new clients, yet he doesn’t “do” any marketing. Trust me, he does. If he has a big enough base of clients, which he does after twenty years of practice, marketing for him means little more than saying please and thank you and staying in touch with his former clients. He did the “hard work” years ago when he had no clients. Now, marketing is so easy for him it appears like he isn’t doing any.

The hard part for many attorneys isn’t the work, it’s the ego. If you believe you “shouldn’t have to do this,” you’re going to resent doing it and it will be unpleasant for you. If instead, you believe that marketing is part of the job, not beneath you and really not that difficult, you might actually enjoy it.

You’ve got to get your ego out of the way and just do the work. Schedule time on your calendar every day for marketing and keep the appointment with yourself. Even 15 minutes a day will help you make progress, if you do it every day.

It’s just work.

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Filed Under: Career satisfaction, Client relations, Marketing legal services, Personal development, Thank you letters Tagged With: , , , , , , ,

The best way to open and close your emails and letters

May 11, 2012 by
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“Dear Reader:”

Doesn’t make you feel all warm and fuzzy, does it?

“Dear Friend,”

A little better. And note that a comma is less formal than a colon.

“Dear George,”

Much better. Speaking to an individual. Nothing sweeter than the sound of one’s own name. But “Dear” is a bit old fashioned in an email.

“George,”

Arguably the best way to open an email. Much better than “Hey!” although it’s okay to use something like that for informal messages with people you know really well. Of course if you know the recipient really well, you could skip the salutation altogether and just get right to the message. Perfectly acceptable in email today.

What if you’re mailing to a big list of people? A lot of cc’s or bcc’s or your email newsletter?

Of course you must consider to whom you are writing and the context of the message. You don’t want to be unprofessional, but email is generally considered a less formal medium so a less formal greeting is almost always appropriate. If you don’t know which salutation to use, consider omitting it. You’ll probably be just fine.

What about signing off? “Very truly yours,” or “Regards”? “Sincerely,” or “All the best,”?

I usually sign my emails with “All the best,” followed by just my first name. Friendly, personal, informal. Or I just put my name with no close. With people I email to a lot, I often put my initials (just to be different) or no close at all.

Your emails should be a natural extension of who you are, but also reflect the context of your relationship with the recipient. Use whatever feels right to you, but lean towards informal. Formal messages put distance between you and the reader, and you generally want to bring them closer.

Snail mail is more formal than email, of course, but a personal salutation and warm closing will go a long way towards reaching out and connecting with your reader. “Dear Mr. Jones,” or “Dear Joe,” is much better than, “Dear Client:”.

If you’re sending something to opposing counsel and you want to be businesslike and maintain posture (and a little distance), you’ll probably continue using whatever you use now. With clients and prospects and colleagues, anyone with whom you have or want to have a closer relationship, a less formal and warmer approach is warranted.

Finding the right salutations and closings begins with greater awareness. Over the next few days, take a few minutes to review the emails and letters you send and receive. What do others do? How do they make you feel? What do you do and what affect do you think they have on your readers?

Chances are you won’t make many changes with letters and emails sent to counsel or insurance carriers, nor do you really need to. But there’s probably a lot you can do with letters to clients and friends.

What salutations and closings do you use in your emails and letters? Have you considered any alternatives?

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Filed Under: Client relations, Communication, Email, Newsletters, Writing Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

If I were starting my law practice today, here’s what I would do to bring in clients

May 7, 2012 by
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If I were opening a law practice today, my “marketing plan” would be very different than it was when I opened my office thirty-plus years ago.

The Internet changes everything.

So. . . here’s what I would do:

I would start by setting up a web site to showcase what I do. It would be my online brochure as well as a mechanism for networking and lead generation. It would be an information hub, the center of all of my marketing activities.

My web site would be a self-hosted WordPress blog so I could update it without depending on anyone else. I would spend less than $10/yr. for a domain, and less than $10/mo. for hosting.

I would keep things simple, with a clean, professional look. I would favor quality content over bells and whistles. The look would say, “competent, confident, accomplished and approachable,” because that’s what I would want if I was looking for an attorney.

I would add articles and other content to the site, to provide value to visitors and generate search engine traffic. I would continue to add content, seeking to make my site the most comprehensive in my practice area. When someone needed an answer, everyone would point them to my site.

I would make it easy for visitors to contact me through the site and I would encourage this. I want people to ask questions. My answers bring me one step closer to an appointment and a new client. Their questions and my answers would also give me fodder for new content.

I would add testminonials and success stories to the site, providing social proof of my capabilities and add a dramatic aspect to otherwise dry material.

I would set up a lead capture system, using an autoresponder to deliver an online newsletter. I would encourage visitors to subscribe so I could stay in touch with them. Over time, I know they will become clients, provide referrals, and generate even more traffic to my site through their social media channels.

Once my hub was set up, my focus would be to drive traffic to the site and grow my list. I would start by leveraging my existing contacts, telling them about my site and the benefits of visiting. I would ask them to spread the word to the people they know.

Every piece of printed collateral, including my business cards, would include a link to my web site. Every email I sent would link to the site. Every article I wrote would include a resource box and a link to my site.

I would become active in forums and on social media. I would do some networking and speaking to meet new contacts and to stay up to date with the news in my target market.

I would look for other professionals who target my market and propose writing for each other’s blogs and newsletters. If they were physically near me, I would meet them for coffee and explore other ways we could help each other.

I would regularly email to my list, notifying them of new content on the site and sending them other content I found that I thought they might like to see. I would stay in touch with them so that I would be “in their minds and their mailboxes” when they needed my services or encountered someone who did.

I would let people know I appreciate their referrals and thank those who have provided them in the past. I would suggest other ways they could help me, i.e., forwarding my emails to their friends and contacts, promoting my seminar or other event, or introducing me to people they know that I should meet.

I would look for ways to provide added value to my list and even more so to my clients. I would give them information and advice, but not necessarily in my practice area or even anything legal.

I would smother my clients with attention, exceeding their expectations in every way possible, because I know the best way to build a law practice is with referrals from satisfied clients and other people who know, like, and trust me.

Wait. . .  the Internet doesn’t change everything. Marketing is the same today as it was thirty years ago. The Internet just makes it easier, quicker, and less expensive.

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Filed Under: Client relations, Email, Image, List building, Marketing legal services, Marketing Plan, Newsletters, Online Marketing, Referrals, Social media marketing, Technology, Web traffic Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

How to be more persuasive in your writing and speaking

May 2, 2012 by
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When I was in law school I helped a friend with her divorce. I prepared the Petition (yes, under supervision) and served it.

In those days, even though there were no children or real property and the matter was uncontested, she had to appear in court. I went with her to the hearing in downtown Los Angeles and we waited in the hallway for the courtroom to open.

I’d never seen my friend so nervous. She had never been in a courtroom and was afraid she wouldn’t know what to say. I told her this was a very simple case, the judge would ask a few basic questions and everything would be over in a few minutes. I kept talking, trying to calm her down, but nothing seemed to work. She was visibly shaking and barely able to speak.

Finally, I said, “Oh, here comes the judge.” I was looking over her shoulder behind her. She turned to look. Coming towards us was a shabbily dressed old man with dirty, unruly hair and an unshaven face. It was not the judge of course but a homeless man and the sight of him shuffling down the hall made her laugh.

A good laugh was exactly what the doctor ordered. My friend was able to get through the hearing and soon, we were on our way home.

In the car, she thanked me for helping her and especially for helping her to calm down enough to get through the hearing. It meant a lot to her that I cared enough to do that. We are still very good friends today, more than thirty years later.

So, why did I tell you this story? I could have simply made the point that your clients want to know you care about them and really do appreciate the little things you say or do.

Telling you that story was a better way to make that point, don’t you think?

I talk a lot about using stories in your writing and presentations. You’ve often heard me say, “facts tell but stories sell” and I’ve explained why:

  • Stories have people in them and the reader or listener can relate to them and their experiences.
  • Stories have a dramatic theme; people want to know, “what happened next?”
  • Stories have verisimilitude; they “show” instead of “tell,” and are often more persuasive than a logical argument
  • Stories appeal to human emotion. When you make people feel something, you connect with them on a deeper level.
  • People remember stories long after the facts are forgotten.

As you read my story, I hope you were you able to see my friend and me in that hallway and you could relate to the experience of trying to comfort a nervous client. If you could, then my story did double duty–it made the point about showing clients you care and it showed you why you need to put more stories in your writing and presentations.

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Filed Under: Blogging, Client loyalty, Client relations, Communication, Copywriting, Marketing legal services, Presentations, Public Speaking, Salesmanship, Writing Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
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