Word of mouth referrals

September 16, 2013 by
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I saw a movie last weekend about an ethnic restaurant on the brink of bankruptcy. The manager met a quirky man, driving a taxi, who claimed to have been a great chef in the old country. Desperate to turn things around, he hired the man and crossed his fingers.

Turns out the chef really was good and business started to pick up.

One customer, an older woman, told the manager she loved the food and would tell everyone about the restaurant. Her husband added, “. . .and she knows everyone”.

Apparently, the woman did know everyone because the restaurant suddenly got very busy. When a food critic gave the place a glowing review, there were lines around the block, two hours before the place opened.

The woman was a connector. She was influential. And because she knew a lot of other influential people, if she thought you were good, the world would quickly hear about it.

What if you had a client like that, a connector who really loved what you did for them? Before you knew it, word of mouth referrals would bring you a waiting room full of new clients.

The thing is, people don’t wear a sign to identify themselves as a connector. It could be anyone. It could be that unassuming older lady sitting in your waiting room right now. If she likes you, your practice is made.

Okay, you may never have a client like that. Or, you may have someone next week. So you do a great job for everyone, because you never know who they are.

Yes, I know you would do that anyway. Because it’s the right thing to do and because it’s who you are. You don’t treat big shots any differently than regular folks.

Here’s the thing. Regular folks can also bring you a lot of business. They may not be connectors who can tell the world about you, but they can refer you a new client, and that client can do the same.

I often took small, unprofitable cases. I didn’t make any money on those cases but my business model was based on serving clients, it was not based on the viability of any one case. I helped my clients with small cases and they came back with big ones.

In a sense, every client is a connector. You may never get a five star review, there may never be a two hour line to get into your waiting room, but treat everyone right and you will have a never ending supply of new business.

Get more clients. Get The Attorney Marketing Formula.

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Filed Under: Client loyalty, Client relations, Marketing legal services, Referrals Tagged With: , , ,

How often should I write to my clients and prospects?

September 13, 2013 by
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When it comes to writing clients and prospects, many lawyers are worried about writing too often. Instead, they should be worried about not writing often enough.

You need to stay in touch with people on your lists, to remind them that you are still around, and still available to solve legal problems. They need to continually see your name and think nice thoughts about you, so that when they have a legal problem, or know someone who does, you’ll be “in their minds and in their mailboxes”.

The more often you write, the more business you’ll get.

Is there such a thing as too much or too often?

Sure. If you write boring, self-serving crappola, once is too much.

On the other hand, if you send interesting, helpful information that your clients and prospects want to read, you almost can’t write too often.

Let’s not make this more complicated than it needs to be. Make a vow to send high quality information, interesting stories, and valuable resources to the people on your list. Then, pick a schedule and stick to it.

Write often. It doesn’t have to be long. A few paragraphs is enough if that’s all you have to say. Link to an article or video you thought they would like to see and tell them why. Tell them about a change in the law that might affect them. Give them a few tips.

Instead of a monthly newsletter with several articles, send one article once a week. That gives you four opportunities to connect, and shorter articles probably have a better chance of being read instead of set aside “for later” and never opened.

Actually, it really doesn’t matter if they read what you write. What’s important is that they see your name. Better once a week than once in awhile.

If you want hundreds of ideas for articles, blogs posts, and emails, get this.

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Filed Under: Blogging, Client loyalty, Communication, Email, Marketing legal services, Newsletters, Online Marketing, Referrals Tagged With: , ,

How to get more business clients

September 5, 2013 by
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An article in Entrepreneur, “Hiring a Lawyer: Five Mistakes to Avoid,” tells startups what to do to save money and avoid getting hurt when hiring a lawyer. If you want to get more business clients, you might want to know what kind of advice they are listening to.

Here are the “five mistakes,” followed by my thoughts on how you can use this information:

1. Hiring a lawyer too soon.

Summary: Some startups hire a lawyer before they know what they want and need. See if there is a pro bono legal clinic at a law school where you can learn about the issues and process. Consider “hiring” them to do some basic work.

DW: What can you do? How about offering free information that does the same thing? Educate your target market about the issues, process, risks, and options. How about holding your own “clinic” where startups and young companies can come and learn (and network) and maybe even get some basic work done free?

You might get endorsed by a business school or community organization, perhaps the chamber of commerce, and get some publicity for your good work in helping the community.

2. Hiring the wrong lawyer.

Summary: Avoid hiring someone who does not specialize in what you need. Get referrals and interview several attorneys before you choose.

DW: Clients prefer specialists (and articles recommend them). Specialists earn more, too. So if you don’t specialize, maybe you should. If you do specialize, start promoting the fact that you do and educate your market about why this is important to them.

3. Hiring a big firm when you don’t need to.

Summary: You will pay more and you may not need to. Many smaller firms have great lawyers, some of whom came from big firms.

DW: Educate your market about the advantages of hiring a smaller firm. Not just lower fees. Smaller firms usually give more personalized attention. Make sure clients know why this is a benefit to them.

4. Not haggling on fees.

Summary: Negotiate fees. Offer equity in partial payment.

DW: Never negotiate fees. You can be flexible about retainers, payment options, and offer alternatives to hourly billing, but never negotiate (reduce) your fees. If you do offer alternative fees, promote the heck out of it. Clients like them.

Take equity if you want to. You could hit a winner. But since most startups fail, don’t go “all in”.

5. Seeing a lawyer as just a lawyer.

Summary: If offering equity, you’re taking on a business partner. Make sure your lawyers have expertise in your field and can do other things for you, e.g., lead you to investors.

DW: Every business lawyer has a stake in it’s client’s business, even if they don’t own any stock. As the client grows, they have more legal work. There are more opportunities for referrals from partner companies, vendors and suppliers. You can grow with them, so help them grow.

Use your contacts and knowledge to help your clients get investors, better financing, new customers, and better suppliers. Look for opportunities for them. Make introductions. Send articles about their industry, marketing, and management. And make sure your prospective clients know that you provide this kind of help.

If you don’t have these connections and knowledge, start developing them. Because the world doesn’t need more lawyers who merely deliver competent legal work. It doesn’t need more lawyers who merely “protect and advise”. It needs more lawyers who can help their clients prosper.

Marketing is not difficult, when you know The Formula.

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Filed Under: Attorneys fees, Fees and Billing, Legal industry, Marketing legal services, Referrals, Specializing Tagged With: , ,

3 simple questions for managing your law practice

July 17, 2013 by
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Managing your law practice is anything but simple. There are a lot of moving parts. People, problems, deadlines. It’s easy to get lost.

If you find yourself busy but not achieving your goals, if you find yourself doing but not getting things done, I want to offer you a way to gain clarity and get back on track.

All you have to do is ask yourself 3 simple questions.

The first question is. . .

1. What do I want?

More clients? Better clients? Bigger cases?

Lower overhead? Less stress? Shorter hours?

Do you want to build a big practice or do you want to work towards retirement? Do you want to eliminate a problem or achieve a milestone?

Whatever it is, write it down, and be specific. You need to know what you want before you can work on getting it.

Let’s say the answer is “I want to get an average of two referrals every week.”

Nice. Now you know what you want. Now, answer the next question.

2. Why don’t I have it?

Why aren’t you getting an average of two referrals every week right now?

Are there any obstacles? Problems? Defects? Something you should do but aren’t? Something you are doing but aren’t doing enough? Something you are doing but aren’t doing well enough?

Be honest. There could be many reasons for not getting the referrals:

  • You don’t have enough referral sources
  • You don’t have enough former clients to provide enough referrals
  • Your existing and former clients don’t know enough people who need your services
  • Your clients don’t know you want their referrals; (you’re not asking for referrals or asking often enough)
  • Your fees are higher than other attorneys and you haven’t made it clear why you are worth more
  • Your fees are lower than other attorneys and people think there is a reason (i.e., you don’t have the experience, don’t get the results) and get scared off
  • You’re intimidating or have a reputation for being unapproachable
  • You haven’t made it easy for people to refer (i.e., told them what to do, what to say, etc.)
  • There aren’t enough cases or clients in your market
  • You don’t have a website (so referrals can’t “check you out”)
  • Your website isn’t good enough so when referrals check you out, they get scared off
  • Your competition gets the lion’s share of referrals because they [know someone, spend big money on advertising, etc. . .]

There are lots of reasons why you might not be getting the referrals you want. Write down everything you can think of. Ask your staff. Ask your colleagues.

You may not like some of the reasons, especially the ones that reveal your personal shortcomings. Those are probably the ones you need to pay the most attention to.

Okay, one more question to answer.

3. What can I do about it?

Once you know why you don’t have what you want, it’s time to focus on solutions.

What can you do to remove obstacles? Fix problems? Make improvements?

Write a “can do” list–a list of what you can do.

If you’re not getting enough referrals because you don’t have enough referral sources, that’s something you can work on. Write it down. You can get more referral sources.

On the other hand, if you’re not getting enough referrals because you don’t have enough former clients to make those referrals, you can’t do anything about that right now. That’s not something you “can do”.

There may be items on your “can do” list that you choose not to do. That’s okay. Write them down anyway because you may decide to do them later or they might give you ideas for other solutions.

For example, if your market isn’t big enough to supply you with the referrals you want, you can move, open a second office in another town, or take on another practice area. All things you can do, but you might choose not to do any.

However, although you might not want to open a second office right now, or ever, writing it down as a “can do” might prompt you to find an attorney in another town and establish mutual “of counsel” arrangements. Now you can promote your “other office” to your clients and contacts and start getting referrals in that other town.

A “can do” list shows you what’s possible. Instead of dwelling on problems, you will focus on solutions and be on your way to getting what you want.

Does your website need work? I can help. Let me show you how to Make the Phone Ring.

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Filed Under: Career satisfaction, Law office management, Marketing legal services, Marketing Plan, Personal development, Referrals Tagged With: , , , ,

Your marketing questions answered in free webinar

June 25, 2013 by
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Tomorrow, attorney Mitch Jackson and I are the guests on a free webinar where we’ll discuss marketing and productivity. Please join us.

The webinar is scheduled for Wednesday, June 26, 2013 12:30 PM – 1:30 PM EDT. You can register here.

The subject is “Trial Attorneys: Dilemmas and Solutions,” but is open to, and appropriate for, attorneys of all kinds. We’ll be speaking about marketing online and offline, referrals, social media, and more. Bring your questions on any marketing topic and, time permitting, we’ll get them answered.

Mitch is a very successful trial attorney (2013 California Trial Attorney of the Year), social media expert, and host of his own video podcast program. I’m excited to be sharing the microphone with him.

The webinar is hosted by Draft n Craft, a legal outsourcing company, and will be approximately 60 minutes. It will be recorded (technology permitting) so get registered even if you can’t make it live and I’m sure they will notify you when the replay is available.

There are no products for sale and no agenda other than helping you. I look forward to seeing you on the webinar.

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Filed Under: Marketing legal services, News, Online Marketing, Referrals Tagged With: ,

How do I get more referrals from other professionals?

June 11, 2013 by
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Attorneys often ask me, “How do I get more referrals from other professionals?”

Their clients may be willing to refer but not know many people who need their services. Their professional contacts, on the other hand, know lots of prospective clients but may not (yet) be willing to refer.

Here’s what I suggest.

Make a list of every professional you know who has referred at least one client to you in the last three years or has said they are willing to do so.

Let’s say you’ve got 30 names on the first list. Nine professionals sent you one or two clients. One sent you eight clients.

You know from yesterday’s post about how to get more referrals that one of the keys to getting more referrals is to give first. Give them referrals or find other ways to help them. But you have only so many referrals to give and only so much time you can spend helping others.

What do you do?

Do you focus on the 20 who said they would send business but haven’t? If you can get each one to send you just one client, that would be a nice bump.

Do you focus on the nine who sent you one or two clients, to see if you can encourage them to send you more?

What about the one professional who sent you eight referrals? It seems like they don’t need much encouragement. They are a proven source of business and you should probably spend your time finding more like them, right?

The answer is to spend MOST of your time with (and send most of your referrals to) the professional who sent you eight referrals.

When you find a spark, pour gasoline on it and build it into a raging bonfire. Pay attention to this individual. Give them your time and attention. Give them every referral you can.

When someone has demonstrated their willingness and ability to send you business, that’s who you want to focus on. You want to keep their referrals flowing. You want them to introduce you to their counterparts. You want them to promote your seminars and send traffic to your website.

Build your practice by helping them build theirs.

Next, turn your attention to the nine who sent you one or two clients. They have also proven their willingness to refer. Give them some love and see if you can increase their numbers.

How about the 20 who didn’t send you any? Well, don’t ignore them. Stay in touch with them. See what you can do to help them. They may waiting to see if you are serious about helping them before they “spend” their referrals on you. A referral or two from you may turn on the spigot.

Many professionals are able to refer but don’t because they already have another lawyer they are committed to. Others don’t because you have not yet earned their trust. But over time, things change. Nurture this crop of potential referral sources. One day, they may bear fruit.

Allocate your time as follows:

Spend 80% of your time with the professionals who have already sent you business, and twenty percent of your time with the ones who have not. Spend 80% of that 80% on the professional who sent you eight referrals, and twenty percent on the other nine.

If you want to get more referrals, give first. Give more to the ones who give back.

Ask me how I can help you get more referrals. 

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Filed Under: Marketing legal services, Referral sources, Referrals, Relationship marketing, Time Management Tagged With: , ,

How to get more referrals

June 10, 2013 by
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Every attorney wants to know how to get more referrals. We love ’em, don’t we? They are good for our egos as well as our bank accounts. No matter how many referrals we get we always want more.

So, how do you get more referrals? Mostly, by focusing on three fundamental concepts:

1. Give first

You can get referrals simply because you are good at what you do. Someone needs your help, someone else knows what you do, and the next thing you know, a new client is referred to you. It happens every day.

If you want to get even more referrals, however, you should develop the habit of giving clients more value than they expect or have paid for. Truly serve them. Smother them with attention. Thrill and delight them.

When you do, you invoke the law of reciprocity. Your clients will feel psychologically compelled to reciprocate. That means that not only will they be willing to refer clients, they will often go out of their way to look for them. They owe you. They NEED to reciprocate. And they will.

The same goes for your professional contacts. If you want their referrals, give them referrals first. And look for other ways you can help them. Provide information. Make introductions. Help them solve their problems and achieve their objectives. They too will reciprocate.

But here’s the thing. You cannot give with the expectation of return. You have to give because it is a part of who you are, not the first step in a quid pro quo exchange.

Yes, there will be clients and professional contacts who don’t reciprocate. That’s okay. The more you give, the more you will get, just not necessarily from the people to whom you give.

Call it Karma or The Law of Attraction. When you give, freely and generously, because it makes you feel good to do so, you will attract more referrals. But you will be doubly blessed because you will also experience the joy of giving.

2. Tell people what you want

Make sure your clients and professional contacts know who would be a good referral for you. Educate them about your “ideal client”.

Post articles that describe your ideal client on your website. Link to them in your emails. Print copies and put them in your “new client kit” and in your waiting room.

Be specific about the legal issues and other characteristics of your ideal clients. Describe them by occupation, industry, or background. The more specific you are, the easier it will be for your clients and contacts to recognize a good referral.

Share stories about your ideal clients. Let clients see, in their mind’s eye, what your best clients look like. Every time you share a client success story or case study, not only will people be reminded about the kinds of problems you solve, they will also be reminded to be on the lookout for people like the clients in your stories.

3. Ask for help

Many studies have shown that professionals who ask for referrals, get more referrals.

You can ask directly or indirectly.

Asking directly means speaking to a client or contact and asking, “Who do you know who. . .?” followed by a description of your ideal client. Or, describing your ideal client first and asking people to keep you in mind if they meet someone who fits that description.

Asking indirectly means having someone in your office asking those questions, or, posting that information on your website, in your emails, and in other marketing collateral.

But you don’t have to ask specifically for referrals in order to get referrals. You can ask for other kinds of help.

Ask your clients to refer people to your website, where they can get lots of information about their legal issues and available solutions. Ask them to Like or mention your page, effectively referring that page to their friends and followers. Ask them to forward your report to people they know. Or ask them to invite people to your webinar or seminar.

Ask people to help you, and they will. Especially if you have helped them first.

The Attorney Marketing Formula will help you create a profile of your ideal client. Get the details here.

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Filed Under: Client relations, Marketing legal services, Referral sources, Referrals, Relationship marketing Tagged With: , , , ,

Yep, size does matter

May 28, 2013 by
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We used to say, “you can judge the success of a man by the size of his Rolodex.” Of course today we would say, “you can judge the success of a person by the size of his or her list”.

It’s true. The more people you know, the more conduits you have to clients, referrals, introductions, and information. As the currently running ATT commercial says, “more is better”.

However, while the size of your list is important, even more important is the quality of that list.

You may do pro bono work at a legal clinic and know 1000 indigent people. From a networking standpoint, the five people you know on the clinic’s board are probably more valuable to you.

Who you know is more important than how many.

A small list of high quality contacts will almost always beat a much bigger list of weaker contacts.

What is a high quality contact? Someone who needs your services, has the authority to hire you and the ability to pay is a high quality contact. So is someone who is influential in your target market. They might not need your services themselves but if they can refer a lot of people who do (or who know people who do) they are a high quality contact.

But there is another equally important factor: your relationship with the people on that list.

You may know a lot of people who have the ability to hire you or the ability to refer clients to you but if they don’t yet know you well enough to hire you or send you referrals, their value to you is limited.

It’s not just who you know, it’s who knows you.

So you want a list of high quality contacts, people with the ability to hire you or refer lots of others and who know, like, and trust you enough to do so. Where do you find them?

You find them on your list of low quality and average quality contacts. Quantity leads to quality. The bigger your list of low quality and average quality contacts, the bigger will be your list of high quality contacts.

The man or woman with a big Rolodex or email list has lots of high quality contacts but they also have lots of low quality contacts.

So yes, size still does matter.

Want to grow your list online? Click here to learn how.

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Filed Under: Leverage, List building, Networking, Online Marketing, Referrals, Relationship marketing

Say these words, get more referrals

May 10, 2013 by
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If you’re doing a good job for your clients, most of them should be willing to send you referrals. But they won’t unless someone asks them for a referral (“What was the name of your divorce lawyer?”) or starts talking about their legal issue (“I think I’m leaving Joe.”)

Your clients are willing to send business. But they won’t unless someone asks.

Of course that someone could be you. You want to get more referrals, don’t you?

I know, you don’t like asking for referrals. (“Do you have any friends who are getting divorced?”) Fortunately, there is an alternative.

Here’s what you do (and say):

Step one: Write something your prospective clients would want to read. A report, article, or blog post. You could also do a video, webinar, or teleconference.

If you are a divorce lawyer, you would normally write something about the law for people who are considering a divorce, but not this time. (I’ll tell you why in a minute). This time, write something that would appeal to married people in your state. It might be a guide to property ownership for married people, or a legal guide for parents.

Step two: Send it (or a link) to your clients and ask them to read (or watch) it and let you know what they think.

Step three: Assuming you get positive feedback, ask your clients the following: “Would you do me a big favor? Would you forward that link to five or ten (married people/parents) you know? I would really appreciate it.”

You’re not asking them to deduce who they know who might be having marital problems. That would be uncomfortable for them and you would be uncomfortable asking. You’re simply asking them to share your information with married people or parents they know and if it’s good information, they will.

Of course some of the people they send it to will need your services. And if they don’t, that’s okay. At the end of your report or post, ask the people who read it to share it with married people or parents they know. Yep. Some of them will need your services.

Oh yeah, I almost forgot. When you ask your clients to refer people to your report or post, you’ll be reminding them to think about the people they know who might need your services and you’ll be one step closer to some referrals.

Ask your clients to refer your information, not your services.

I told you marketing was simple. Learn more here.

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Filed Under: List building, Marketing legal services, Online Marketing, Referrals, Relationship marketing Tagged With: , ,

Marketing your law practice one hour a week

May 9, 2013 by
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If you only have one hour a week for marketing your law practice, I would spend that time on the phone. Here’s how I would break it down:

  • Twenty minutes speaking to clients and former clients. I would call new clients to say thank you (in addition to sending them a thank you card) and current and former clients to see how they are doing. These people put food on your table and are your best source of new business. Speaking to them “off the clock” is a highly leveraged marketing activity.
  • Twenty minutes speaking to referral sources. I would call other professionals I work with, thank them for their recent referrals, look for ways I can do something to help them, and brainstorm ways we can work together to our mutual benefit.
  • Twenty minutes reaching out to other professionals. I would call people I don’t know, to introduce myself, find out what they do, and see if there is a way we could can work together to our mutual benefit.

A law practice is a people business. We talk to people to strengthen our relationships and cultivate new ones. If you can’t meet people face to face, the phone is the next best thing.

In some ways, the phone is even better than face to face because there is no travel time. So, with only one hour a week, I would smile and dial.

Of course if I had two hours a week for marketing, I would use the second hour to have lunch or coffee with people I know and people I want to know.

This shows you how to set up marketing joint ventures with other professionals. 

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Filed Under: Client loyalty, Client relations, Leverage, Marketing legal services, Marketing Plan, Networking, Referral sources, Referrals, Relationship marketing Tagged With:
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