So what?

March 16, 2022 by
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How much do your readers, followers, or audience already know about the law and other things you write or speak about?

That’s not the right question.

The question isn’t, do they know? It’s, “are they doing anything with that information?”

Information abounds. Your audience can find it in a book or video or on hundreds of websites. Countless other lawyers, writers, and other experts provide that information. You’ve probably provided that same information to them many times before.

So what? You’re not in the information delivery business. You’re in the “solving problems” and “delivering solutions” business. It’s up to you to show people the significance of the information and persuade them and guide them to do something with it.

Help them understand what the information means in their world. Tell them what could happen next, tell them the options they have available, and convince them to take action.

Use the information to scare them or inspire them and get them to make the right decision.

You’re an advocate, so advocate. Use the information as your evidence, your witnesses, and your arguments. Present the evidence, tell them what to do, and why.

Because if they do nothing with the information, and they need to, you’re not going to get the verdict you seek.

If you’re ready to take your practice to the next level, this is what you need

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Filed Under: Content creation, Marketing legal services, Newsletters, Presentations, Writing

I know you won’t read this

March 8, 2022 by
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Most people don’t have time to read your blog posts and articles. That includes mine. At best, they’ll give you a few seconds and skim.

But that’s enough.

It’s enough to give them a nugget or two of information they can tuck away in their minds or their notes. It’s enough to show them you know what you’re doing and deserve a return visit. It’s enough to let them know you’ve helped others like them and you can help them, too.

It’s enough, but only if you do a few things.

First, avoid the “wall of text”. Make your article look inviting and easy to scan:

  • Headlines that get attention and pique curiosity
  • Short articles that look like they can be consumed in a few minutes
  • Short paragraphs and sentences
  • Bullet points, numbered lists, sub-heads
  • Bold, CAPS, indents, and other visual cues
  • Images, graphics, simple charts or tables
  • Minimal citations/hyperlinks, if any

Second, make it interesting to read and relevant to your reader:

  • Get to the point—and stay there
  • Ask questions, to draw them in, make them think, and keep them reading to find out the answer
  • Include surprising statements, statistics, inside information, opinions
  • Stories about people like your reader
  • Quotes from clients, experts, influential people
  • Imagery—show what happened or what will happen
  • Conversational tone; active voice
  • Repetition to clarify and sell your points
  • Simple language, vocabulary; even for a sophisticated audience
  • Point out the risks but be mostly positive
  • A light touch, where appropriate
  • Share contrasting views, arguments, stories
  • Involvement—ask them to do something (while reading)
  • Call to action—ask them to do something (when they’re done)

There’s more you can do to make your articles interesting (and easy to skim) but if you do only some of the above, you’ll find more people consuming your articles and eager to hear more.

How to write a newsletter that brings in clients

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Filed Under: Blogging, Newsletters, Writing

19 ideas for your blog or newsletter

February 28, 2022 by
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Looking for something to write about? Here are a few ideas to prime your pump:

Share the good news

Talk about good things happening in your world, for you, your firm, and your clients. Awards, settlements or judgements, new hires, new offices, being quoted in a news story, anniversaries or milestones (subscribers, followers), exciting new projects.

Business changes your clients need to know about

Are you modifying your billing practices? Changing office hours, opening a new office, adding technology, expanding into a new practice area or market, or doing anything new that clients need to know about?

Monthly recap

Tell folks what you’ve done and what you plan to do or focus on in the coming weeks or months. Are you writing a book? Creating a series of videos? What have you done? What are you planning to do?

Upcoming dates people need to know

Deadlines, reminders (e.g., to update documents), upcoming changes to law and procedure, holiday closings, and other dates clients and prospects need to be aware of.

New content

Anytime you create new content——articles, reports, checklists, forms, videos—alert your readers and followers, tell them how to access it, and how they will benefit from consuming it.

Success stories, testimonials, endorsements, reviews, mentions

What positive things are people saying about you? Don’t keep them a secret.

Tip of the day/week/month

What do your readers need to know? What do you recommend? How can readers do something better or faster, save time or money?

Recommended resources

Your content can simply be a recommendation and link to other content: websites, software, tools, businesses, professionals, productivity methods, books, videos, channels, courses. . .

Market news

What’s happening locally or in your niche your readers might like to know? Is there a new business in town? Is something shutting down? Expanding? Adding new products or services? New laws or regs? Petitions to be signed? Meetings, networking events, opportunities to socialize?

Great deals

Are any of your business clients or referral sources offering a discount or special offer? Any new loyalty programs? Spread the word.

Promote their event

Do you have a client or referral source who will be speaking, signing books, or conducting a webinar? Share the details with your list and encourage them to watch, listen, or attend.

A survey or poll, or results thereof

It doesn’t have to be your survey or poll, just something that might interest or affect your clients and readers. Invite them to give their opinion, vote for their preferred choice, or see what their colleagues or neighbors have to say.

Statistics

How many do, how many don’t, what are the trends, and what does it mean? Could be for your practice, your state or county, or your field. it could be your own findings or re-posting from another source.

Social media updates

Have you added or removed any channels? Changed your bio, or added new photos? Are you planning to do a “live”? Did you interview anyone notable? Were you interviewed? Is there someone you suggest your followers follow?

A roundup of your most popular articles or posts

Give readers a chance to consume content they might not know about. Let them know what others are clicking on, commenting on, or sharing.

Get personal

Share your opinion about world events, changes in the law, trends in your target market’s industry. What’s going on in your practice or personal life readers might be curious about?

Answers to FAQs

What do clients and prospects and new clients ask you? What does your audience ask you when you speak?

Case studies

Problem, action, solution. What did a client want or need? What did you do? How did it turn out?

Where will you be?

Announce your upcoming speaking engagements, networking events, panel discussions, webinars. Promote the event, encourage readers to attend and to tell others.

Save this list, add to it, and use it when you need ideas.

For even more ideas, go here

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Filed Under: Blogging, Newsletters

When you don’t feel like writing anything, do this

February 9, 2022 by
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What do you do when you don’t feel like writing anything on your blog or in your newsletter?

Most people will tell you to suck it up and write it anyway, because you made a commitment to your subscribers or followers and they’re expecting to hear from you, and because you don’t want to break the chain.

“Figure it out,“ they tell you. So you scramble to find an idea and force yourself to get it done.

And all is right with the world.

But sometimes, you just can’t. You’re fresh out of ideas, you’re ill or recovering from surgery, you’re slammed with work, or you’re having a sad and need a day off.

Take it. Take the day off.

It’s your blog. Your newsletter. Your channel. The world won’t end if you miss a day.

If you don’t feel like writing or have nothing to say, say nothing. That’s why God created sick days and snow days and bad hair days. If you need some personal time, take it.

Or. . . go to Plan B.

Plan B is to write a very short post. Instead of hundreds of words, you write a paragraph or two.

Yes, you can.

Seth Godin does it. So do many others. Why not you?

Something else. If you still can’t think of anything to say, go ahead and post something someone else said.

You can do that, too.

A passage from a book or article. A pithy quote. Or an intriguing question you saw that’s got you thinking.

Note to self: set up a file and start collecting this kind of stuff.

If you don’t feel well, you can post this “as is” and go back to bed.

But you might find, as I often do, that a short passage or quote you dig out of your notes gets your juices flowing and you find yourself writing a “regular-sized” post.

Many of my posts start that way. I grab something I found interesting and see what I have to say about it.

In fact, that’s how I wrote this post.

Email Marketing for Attorneys

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Filed Under: Email, Newsletters, Writing

Choosing your topic

February 3, 2022 by
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“What should I write about?” asks many an attorney.

“That’s simple,” comes the answer. “Write what you know.“

Here’s the thing. What’s obvious and basic to you is obscure and complicated to your readers. They don’t know what you know. If they did, they wouldn’t be reading you or hiring you.

Write about something that’s obvious to you, because it’s not obvious to them.

Unless you’re writing to other lawyers, of course.

In which case, write about the kinds of things you would talk to them about if you were speaking to them. Shop talk—strategy, interesting cases, new laws, or your thoughts about something that might interest them because it interests you.

But if you’re writing to lay people, however sophisticated and intelligent they may be, you don’t need to give it much thought. Write about something you know well, something you could rattle off the top of your head in less time than it takes to ask, “What should I write about?”

You know this stuff, remember?

It might help to imagine you’re writing to a specific client, teaching him something about the law, procedure, or process. Or telling him about an interesting case you had (or heard about), explaining what happened and why it could be important to him.

You could give him a peek behind the curtain and show him what you do when you meet with a new client. What do you ask? What do you tell him? Do you fill out any forms? What’s on them? What do you do with the information?

Do you explain “what happens next?” Give him a quick rundown now so he can see what it will be like to work with you.

It doesn’t really matter what you write because your reader doesn’t know any of this and you know everything. He will see you as the expert and the solution to his problem, so make sure you also tell him what to do to get started.

How to write a newsletter that brings in business

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Filed Under: Blogging, Newsletters, Writing

Making friends isn’t required

January 13, 2022 by
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You can be massively successful in your practice without “getting to know” more people or “building stronger relationships” with the people you already know.

I’m not saying relationships aren’t valuable. They are incredibly valuable and if you are so inclined, you should regularly meet more people and strengthen your existing relationships.

But you don’t have to. You can bring in all the business you can handle, and then some, without it.

You don’t need to “do” social media. You don’t need to network or blog or podcast. You don’t need to create content or do any of the other things the cool kids are doing. You can get new clients and increase your income by simply doing a good job for your clients and treating them well.

The old fashioned ways still work.

However, if you go that route, I suggest you also employ two additional strategies. They are easy to do, don’t take a lot of time, and could multiply your results dramatically.

First on the list: stay in touch with the people you know.

You don’t have to see them in person or do anything other than contact them regularly. Email is the easiest way to do that but you could also use regular mail.

Each time they hear from you, they’ll think about you and what you do and be prompted to talk to you about new legal issues, and/or refer people to you who might need your help.

Of all the marketing strategies in existence, staying touch with people who already know, like, and trust you is about as simple (and effective) as it gets.

The second strategy is also simple, and also likely to pay huge dividends.

No matter how much you avoid seeking out new relationships, they will occur naturally. A client or contact will give you a lot of work or send you a lot of referrals, tell people about you, send traffic to your website, and otherwise do you a solid.

Give these folks more attention.

Contract them more often. Send them an article or link you think might interest them. If you have good chemistry with them, invite them to coffee or to do something with you off the clock.

They could help your practice not just grow but multiply.

Yes, I know I said you don’t have to do anything like this. You don’t need to make new friends. You don’t, but with friends like that, you might want to make an exception.

How to use email to stay in touch with people who can hire or refer you

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Filed Under: Marketing legal services, Newsletters, success

Law firm newsletter vs. individual newsletters

January 10, 2022 by
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Is it better for each lawyer in the firm to write their own newsletter or to have one newsletter for the firm with each lawyer contributing thereto?

Having one newsletter means each attorney has less writing to do. Once a week or once a month, each attorney contributes content. That doesn’t sound so bad until one or more attorneys are late and it throws off the entire schedule.

Someone has to coordinate everything and make sure the writing gets done on time. They also have to make sure the contributors don’t duplicate content or contradict each other.

When you do your own newsletter, you don’t have to wait for anyone or be concerned about what someone else says.

The bigger issue, however, is that a firm newsletter brands the firm, not the individual lawyers. That’s okay, but clients hire and refer clients to their lawyer, not the firm. When a client hands out your business card, they say, “Call my lawyer,” don’t they? Not “Call my law firm”.

Think about the purpose of a newsletter. Yes, it is to inform and to stay in touch with clients and prospective clients, referral sources, and others, but more than that, it is to build relationships with them.

You can do that more easily when it is your newsletter, not a group effort.

But that doesn’t necessarily mean you have to do all the writing.

You can ask other lawyers in the firm, or outside the firm, to contribute “guest posts,” or you can interview each other. You can also collaborate on longer articles.

A firm newsletter is a great idea, but if you’re inclined to publish one, do it in addition to individual newsletters, not in place of them.

One way to do both is to encourage the individual attorneys to write their own newsletters and periodically submit the “best of” their content for the firm’s newsletter. That way, each attorney can build their own following, while the firm showcases its talent and cross-promotes it to the readers of the firm’s newsletter.

How to build your practice with a newsletter

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Filed Under: Newsletters

Milk it

December 16, 2021 by
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You like the idea of writing shorter emails and articles and using them to stay in touch with your subscribers and followers. You like being able to get your blog post or newsletter done in less than an hour.

You have time to do that. But what if you need to or want to write longer pieces?

Some content can take hours to write. Or days. You can’t do that every day or every week.

You don’t have to.

You can use all the research and writing you do to create a 5000 word article, report, podcast, or presentation to create additional content, the kind of content you can create in minutes because you’ve already done the heavy lifting.

The research is done. The writing is done. Go back to your original material and create new content:

  • A summary of the key issues or arguments
  • Profiles of the parties or stakeholders
  • Additional issues or cases related to your subject
  • A list of resources
  • Answers to FAQs
  • Additional comments by you or others
  • Additional cases or examples you didn’t use
  • Recommendations for readers in different niches
  • A PDF collection of your slides, notes, or case summaries
  • Transcripts of interviews from your research
  • And on and on

Each of these ancillary bits of content shouldn’t take you more than a few minutes to put together.

You might get a month or two of additional posts out your original post or presentation.

Each post gives you another opportunity to stay in touch with and provide value to your readers and followers. Each post gives you another opportunity to be found through search and social.

And, when you think you’ve milked your original content dry and there’s nothing left to write, write one more post summarizing and linking to all of your posts, for the people who came late to your party, and for those who will come next month and next year.

Email Marketing for Attorneys

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Filed Under: Blogging, Content creation, Email, Newsletters, Online Marketing

Plagiarizing for fun and profit

December 15, 2021 by
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Yesterday, I talked about finding blog posts and articles written by other lawyers and rewriting them, as an easy and effective way to create your content.

Today, I have an even easier method.

No, I’m not going to tell you to plagiarize their content—copy it and call it your own.

You can’t do that. But you can plagiarize your own content.

You can re-post or re-send something you’ve shared in the past.

Take one of your old posts and post it again. Without changing a word.

Can you really do that?

It’s your content. You can do whatever you want with it.

But should you?

Yes. Here’s why.

You’ve got new subscribers who didn’t see your article before. You’ve got readers who saw it months or years ago and won’t remember. You’ve got readers who read it before weren’t ready to do anything with the information. And readers who did something but need to be reminded to do it again.

Do you do everything I tell you to do? No, you don’t. Which is why you’ll hear me say it again.

Sometimes I re-write, update, shorten or lengthen my old posts. Sometimes, I write a new post on the same idea. But you don’t have to do any of that and if you don’t want to or you don’t have time, don’t bother.

Click and send that puppy and get on with your day.

Now for the best part.

You can take some of your better articles or posts, load them into your autoresponder, and schedule them to go out over the course of the next few weeks or months. When the cycle ends, you can reset it and let your best stuff get sent all over again.

Automate your self-plagiarism. For the win.

Email Marketing for Attorneys

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Filed Under: Blogging, Content creation, Email, Newsletters, Writing

You don’t get extra credit for originality

December 14, 2021 by
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Nobody reads your blog, your newsletter, or your other content, and compares what you wrote to your competitor’s content.

Nobody.

But even if they did, they wouldn’t favor you because you wrote something or offered something unique, or disfavor you because you wrote about the same topic other lawyers wrote about.

So don’t worry about coming up with original ideas. You don’t have to do anything original to pass this class.

Which means your content creation problems are solved. You’ll never stare at a blank page again.

All you have to do is find out what others are doing that’s working and do the same thing (but better).

If 27 other lawyers write about a case in the news today, you can too.

Put it in your own words, use your own examples and stories, and you’re good to go.

In fact, not only is this “okay,” it is a smart approach because all those other lawyers writing about that case is “proof of concept”. They’re writing about it because they know their readers want to know about it, which means your readers do too.

Want to test this?

Do a search on your top keywords or your practice area and find another lawyer’s blog or article. They don’t have to be local to you, anywhere will do.

Go to the first article or post that catches your eye. Copy it and re-write it. Change the title or headline, give your opinion, talk about a case or client of yours to illustrate, and you will have something ready to publish.

The good news is that even though you wrote about the same subject, your article will be original.

The bad news? No extra credit.

More: Email Marketing for Attorneys

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Filed Under: Blogging, Content creation, Newsletters, Writing
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