Seth Godin talks about making your (practice)Â indispensable:
Attorneys can benefit from a unique selling proposition
July 15, 2008 by
A few years ago, Progressive Insurance ran TV commercials touting that they assign a dedicated claims specialist claimants their policyholders can count on for the life of their claim. The benefit is that you can always call "your" representative and never have to worry about what’s going on with your claim. Policyholders want to be able to talk to the same person each time they call, someone who understands their claim and is staying on top of it "for them".
Now, most other insurance companies probably do the same thing. But because those companies aren’t saying they do it, when Progressive says it, they virtually OWN that benefit.
You can do the same thing. You can promise prospective clients that they will have a dedicated member of your firm assigned to their claim, so that they don’t have to worry about who to ask for when they call. They’ll feel better just knowing that someone is assigned to their case and that it’s not lost in the shuffle.
The fact that most lawyers do the same thing is not important. If you say it and they don’t, or you say it FIRST, you can effectively "own" that benefit and preempt other lawyers in your market from using it. It can become your "Unique Selling Proposition" (USP), the competitive advantage that sets you apart from other lawyers in the minds of clients and prospects.
In marketing, perception is everything. If you appear to offer a unique advantage, people will see a benefit to hiring you instead of your competition.
Your USP can be about any meaningful benefit you offer. What do you do faster, better, or more thoroughly? What do you do that you know clients like?
A great way to find a powerful USP is to learn what your clients DON’T like about lawyers in your field, and promise them the opposite. If clients consistently complain that lawyers who do what you do take to long to do it, for example, your promise to do it quickly would likely be seen as valuable and desirable to those who can hire you.
The number one complaint received by state bar associations is lack of communication by their lawyer. Many lawyers have difficulty, it seems, keeping their clients informed about the progress of their legal matter. Even worse, many complaints involve lawyers who don’t return phone calls. Something this common, and this easy to fix, would seem to be a great USP for lawyers in many practice areas.
If you’re bad at keeping clients informed (or returning calls), resolve to get better. In fact, I’d suggest a goal to become not just better but the best. Make a promise to yourself to return calls within 24 hours, for example. Raise the bar. It’s so easy to do and it will have a profound impact on your practice. Fewer unhappy clients, more repeat clients and referrals.
Then, proclaim it to your clients and everyone else. Let them know of your commitment. Make it your unique selling proposition.
If you’re already good at keeping clients informed and returning calls, the odds are you don’t tell people this, or you don’t tell them enough. Consider doing so before some other attorney decides to make it her unique selling proposition.
A good slogan (tagline) can be worth its weight in gold
March 11, 2008 by
Most slogans I hear fail to accomplish their purpose: to communicate a cogent, benefit-rich, memorable marketing message. Although attorneys usually don’t use slogans, the ones I’ve heard have almost always been bad. An attorney in Los Angeles has a slogan that works, however. Miles Berman, the self-proclaimed “Top Gun Dui†attorney, uses the following slogan as the tagline for his frequent radio commercials: “Because friends don’t let friends plead guilty.â€
Why does this work? First, it plays on the familiar public service slogan used to promote the use of a designated driver, “Because friends don’t let friends drive drunkâ€. Berman’s version is tied to something that has been drilled into our heads by millions of dollars in public service advertising, and is thus familiar. In addition to being familiar, it’s relevant. Both slogans deal with different aspects of the same issue. And because it is familiar and relevant, it is memorable, the ideal of any slogan. Finally, the slogan does what few slogans ever do, it promises a benefit. In telling the listener not to plead guilty, it suggests that there are alternative solutions, and all they have to do to get them is to call the “Top Gun Dui Defense†attorney. Very effective.
Eric Swartz is a consultant who bills himself as “The Tagline Guru.” His web site presents the benefits of a good tagline and advice on how to create one. He also has a list of “The 100 Most Influential Taglines Since 1948.” I remember most of these, and you will, too. Good examples of taglines that have created household brands.
You don’t need a tagline, but if you use one, use one that works.
Two-headed client gets whiplash reading lawyer’s retainer agreement!
February 25, 2008 by
Gary Halbert was one of the greatest copywriters of all time. He wrote some of the most successful headlines, ads, and sales letters in the history of direct marketing, earning millions for himself, and billions for his clients. The headline that brought you to this page is my homage to his talent (how can you NOT read this?), based on a fake headline he wrote for one of this clients.
Halbert, who passed away last year, believed that in advertising, the headline is everything. I agree. An ad with a bad headline but brilliant copy will never be read. A mediocre ad with a GREAT headline, however, will pull far greater response simply because more people are reading it.Â
Headlines are not just in ads. The title of your article or report is a headline. Same for your brochure. The title of your seminar is a headline. So is the opening line in your presentation. The “re” in your letter is a headline. And the “P.S.”
What goes at the top of your web page? That’s a headline. What’s the first thing you say when you call a potential referral source to introduce yourself? Yep, a headline.
Halbert, who styled himself, “The Prince of Print,” sometimes spent 80% of his time on a piece crafting the right headline. When you get the headline right, everything else seems to fall into place. Get it wrong, and nothing you do thereafter seems to work.
My love for copy writing began when I subscribed to The Gary Halbert Letter in the late 1980’s. I read and re-read every word he wrote. He was also the inspiration for the sales copy I wrote to promote Referral Magic marketing program and my own newsletter, The Attorney Marketing Letter. Copywriting is the highest paid skill in marketing, but I consider it essential for any kind of marketing, and that includes marketing professional services.
Copywriting can be learned. I used to write like a lawyer but I trained myself to write copy that sells. It is a skill that has earned me millions. One of the best investments you can make in your career is in studying and applying the lessons of the great masters of copywriting. There is, of course, no better place to start than by reading the back issues of Halbert’s newsletter. Fortunately, all of them are posted online at the web site that survives him, TheGaryHalbertLetter.com. I encourage you to spend some time reading through this treasure chest of brilliant lessons in copywriting. But I have to warn you: Don’t start unless you have several hours available, because once you start reading Gary Halbert, you won’t be able to stop.
Direct mail to lawyers, seeking referrals. Good or bad idea?
February 20, 2008 by
I received a letter from a probate lawyer who is seeking referrals from large PI/Med Mal firms who need guidance in wrongful death and minors’ compromise cases. He and his partners had compiled a list of law firms and written a letter they intended to “mass mail”. The letter introduced the probate firm, described their capabilities, and requested referrals. He asked for my opinion of this strategy and letter.
I liked the idea of targeting specific kinds of cases from specific firms, (assuming they had reason to believe those firms didn’t have in-house capability to handle those matters), but I didn’t think their plan to mass mail letters would be effective.
One-shot mailings like this are unlikely to generate any business. About the only chance you have is to reach someone at precisely the time when he or she has a case they need help with and they don’t have anyone else to refer it to. While that could happen, it makes more sense to begin to build relationships with lawyers (anyone) who DON’T need your services at the moment and do what you can to be the one they think of when they do.
Marketing, especially referral marketing, is a process, not an event.
Here are some of my additional comments and suggestions:
** If you’re going to contact a cold list, you need to do something to get a response so that you can continue to stay in touch with them and win their trust, over time. I’d recommend offering to send a “Free Report” that educates them on the issues they need to be aware of so that (a) they can do a better job for their clients and (b) be better able to avoid malpractice. This will be a benefit to them and position you as an expert. You can also offer a free phone review of their case. If the list is short enough, you could SEND the report and make a second offer to get them to respond (so you can stay in touch). The second offer could be a second report, a checklist, a form, or anything else.
** I’d suggest that you find people you already KNOW who can refer you to the people on your list, OR to people who may know them, OR to people who may know people who know them. Then, you can contact these lawyers with the name of a mutual contact. Much more effective.
** I’d also consider working towards having a colleague (in this case., another med mal lawyer) write (sign off on) a letter in which they endorse your services to their fellow practitioners. They’ve used you, they recommend you, they trust you, etc. This is the strongest kind of letter you can send.
** Letters do a have a place, but, I’d prefer to see you call. You want to build relationships with these potential referral sources, and to do that, you need to talk to them.
Find a reason, and call. The reason could be because you want to interview them for an article, you’re doing a survey for your newsletter or blog, to invite them to your free seminar, to offer them a copy of your new report or a subscription to your newsletter. It could even be to simply introduce yourself and find out more about what they do.
You’ll hit it off with some of them and follow up with coffee or lunch. You only need a few good ones to start, then you can leverage those relationships to gain introductions and endorsements to others.
How to get a competitive advantage over other lawyers
January 31, 2008 by
A great way to stand out in a crowded field is to do something nobody else is doing. Nobody sends postal mail any more and that’s exactly why you should.
Everyone is moving online. Yes, you must have a presence online. In fact, that’s where you should concentrate most of your marketing muscle. But there are great fortunes to be had by those who use old fashioned paper and envelopes and stamps to communicate with clients and prospects and referral sources.
The volume of direct mail is way down. What that means is that your prospect’s mail box is emptier than a few years ago. As a result, when your client gets your newsletter in their mailbox, it won’t get lost in the clutter. Compare that to their email inbox, where they are inundated.
Your printed and mailed message means much more to them, too. They can hold it, they can sit in their favorite chair and listen to your words spoken from the page, or throw it in a briefcase to read on the train. Yes, they can do all that by printing your email or pdf, but it’s not the same. It lacks some of the warmth and personality of something actually delivered to their mailbox.
Just as there’s a big difference between an email that says "thanks" and a hand-written, personal thank you note sent by mail, you can get the essence of that difference with a printed newsletter or other message.
Also consider the retention factor. If you write a good newsletter or report and get it into the hands of clients and prospects, they’ll be more likely to hold onto it if they don’t have time to read it now. And, if they do read it now and it is good information, they’ll be more likely to hold onto it for future reference. By contrast, I’ve got emails I’ve saved in my inbox for years, but I’ll never find them.
What about "pass along"? Well, it’s easy for them to forward your email message to a large number of people, but what will those people do with the message? Probably not read it and probably not hold onto it, either.
There is a greater cost to putting things in the mail, and more labor, too. But the question isn’t the net cost of one medium of communication versus another, it’s net effectiveness. Return on investment.
Don’t stop sending email, but do consider starting (or re-starting if you have let lapse) a postal mail campaign to keep your name and message in front of the most important people in your business life. You’ve often heard me say, "They may not be able to hire or refer today, so stay in their minds and in their mailboxes until they do." Today, they have more than one mailbox and you should be in both.
Why people need lawyers (you) but don’t hire them (you)
January 9, 2008 by
Why is it that people who need your services don’t "buy" them? The answer is that people don’t buy what they need, they buy what they want. They may need your advice, but they won’t plunk down the cash unless they want to.
People buy what they want and what they want, ultimately, is a feeling. People buy on emotion, and then justify their decision with logic.
You need a car, you don’t need a Lexus (well, I do, but most people don’t). You buy the Lexus because of how it makes you feel driving it. You tell yourself Lexus is reliable and you will save on repairs and downtime, or that it’s good for business, and so on, but in the end, it’s the feeling you’re after.
People hire an attorney the same way. Any attorney can do the job, but they hire you because of how you make them feel (or how they think you will make them feel). And they’ll pay dearly for that feeling. You charge more, and they know it, but they’ll pay it and convince themselves that you’re worth it.
In your marketing, don’t just show people the logical reasons to hire you. Don’t just appeal to need. Touch them emotionally and help them to want your services.
And don’t hold back. Your marketing materials must make people feel something when they read them, and the same goes for when you speak in front of the room or conduct a free consultation. Touch that nerve. Make them nervous. Make them care.
One of the easiest (and best) ways to do that is by telling stories. Stories have people in them and people relate to other people. People want to know "what happened". They care about the outcome because they can imagine themselves in that situation and feel what it would be like. Become a master story teller. Facts tell, but stories. . . sell.
What to put in your new client welcome letter
November 13, 2007 by
There are many benefits to sending your new clients a "welcome" letter.
- It allows you express appreciation by saying "thank you"
- It shows that you are organized, which reduces anxiety and inspires confidence
- It lets you assure clients of your commitment to helping them achieve their desired outcome
- It lets you tell them what to expect, avoiding surprises and allowing you to deliver more than they expect
- It orients them to office procedures (hours, whom to call, where to park, etc.), reducing confusion
- It allows you to encourage the client to ask questions or express concerns
- It can inform the client about your other practice areas (cross-selling)
- It can let them know that you appreciate referrals
- It let’s them know more about you, adding to your developing relationship
Your welcome letter should make the new client feel truly welcome, appreciated, and empowered. It should calm their fears, inspire their confidence, and innoculate them against negative consequences. They should conclude, upon reading it, that they absolutely made the right decision in choosing you as their attorney.
Welcome letters should be signed with an original signature, not a photocopy, or worse, left blank. Add a personal note, handwritten at the end of the letter, adding a comment about the client’s situation, family, or business, or an additional word of encouragement. Show the client that you took the time to personally ackowledge them, rather than asking your secretary to send out a form letter.
For a unique twist, consider an "audio letter". Simply record your welcome message and burn it onto a CD. You can add audio greetings from your partners and staff, too. If you really want to go crazy, you could record a video welcome letter onto a DVD. Take the client on a video tour of your office, introduce them to staff, show them your library, and so on. You should do this with them in person, of course, but this is nice added touch.
Is your welcome letter doing everything it could? If not, take the time to make it better. You won’t get another chance to make a first impression.
How to get people to read what you write
October 16, 2007 by
Headlines account for 80-90% of the effectiveness of any marketing document. Why? It’s simple. A good headline compels people to read the first sentence of the body of the piece. A bad headline doesn’t.
A great headline with mediocre copy will always pull better than a terrible headline (or no headline) with great copy. People are busy and inundated with reading material, and most will base their decision to read an article, ad, brochure, web page, or anything else on the basis of the headline.
You don’t have to take my word for it. As exhibit "A" I submit headlines from my dentist’s quarterly newsletter.
I realize how difficult it is to write headlines that make anyone want to read a dentist’s newsletter. But that’s no excuse for this collection of abominations:
My Wonderful National and
International Cadre of
Dentist Friends
International Cadre of
Dentist Friends
Divinely Designed. . .
and Faithfully Emulated
A Word About Diagnodent
Bio-Directed Joint by Nikken
The Road to Excellence is
Always Under Construction
The Cutting Edge. . . . .of
the Moving Wedge
Not only won’t anyone read the newsletter, I’m almost sure that 80-90% of his patients who have been receiving his newsletter for any length of time are throwing it away unopened.
Learn to write, or at least recognize, good headlines.
Don’t make this mistake in your communications
September 26, 2007 by
The language of the brain is pictures, sounds, and feelings. If I tell you I saw a pink turtle, your mind will process my statement by creating a mental picture of a pink turtle. However, if I tell you that I did NOT see a pink turtle, you will still see a pink turtle. That’s because the brain can only process positive information. You can’t make a mental picture of NOT seeing something because the brain can’t process negative pictures, sounds, or feelings.
If you tell your child, “Don’t run across the street,” the message their brain sees is “run across the street.” You have planted the visual image of them doing the very thing you don’t want them to do.
Sure, as adults we have the facility to translate the negation of a thought to its positive form, but the additional step involved in doing so means there is a lesser chance that the information you want to communicate will get through.
If you want to communicate more clearly, be conscious not to plant negative suggestions in others’ minds with the words you choose. Speak in the positive. Say “It’s a pleasure” instead of “no problem”. Use the words “Call me” instead of “Don’t hesitate to call.” Tell clients, “The trial will go smoothly,” and not, “Don’t worry about the trial.”
Tell people what you want rather than what you don’t want. Tell people what to do rather than what not to do. When you phrase things in the positive, you will communicate more clearly and you will get more of the results you seek.
There are exceptions, however, and you can use them to your advantage.
The title of this article (intentionally) tells you what NOT to do, and uses a negative, the word “mistake”. In this case, the title is meant to create curiosity or “mental tension” that can only be relieved by reading the article. The title doesn’t tell you what to do, the article does, and you are compelled to read it to find out.
Curiosity is a powerful motivator because our brains want to see what can’t be seen, to find the positive image it cannot see but knows is there.
