You can almost hear the death rattle.

Lawyers who are too thin, offering too many services to “anyone who can pay” instead of a focusing on what they do best and offering it the most profitable clients. Settling for leftovers when they could be enjoying a feast.

Forbes did a piece on why too many choices hurt a small business. (Replace “small business” with “law practice.”) When you offer too many options or otherwise spread yourself too thin, you have problems:

1. Focus. Trying to be all things to all people dilutes your efforts to become excellent. (One reason specialists earn more is that they focus on what they do best .)
2. Brand. You can’t build your reputation or stand out from the crowd when you do everything for everybody.
3. Delays. If you give customers too many choices, you make it harder for them to choose. (I don’t think this bedevils most attorneys, but we do need to keep things simple when presenting our services because “a confused mind chooses nothing.”)
4. Capital. The more products you offer, the more you have to invest in inventory. (The more practice areas you offer, the more you have to invest in maintaining your skills, library, procedural safeguards, and mental energy.)
5. Competition. You can’t compete with everybody. (Better to be a big fish in a modest sized pond than a guppy in an ocean.)

The author says that to be successful, small business owners should develop a niche expertise and I agree. Focus on what you do best. Offer it to the best clients. Let go of the rest.

Marketing is easier when you focus. More effective, too. Choose one or two strategies and master them. Spend an hour on one thing instead of a few minutes on ten things.

When it comes to your health, being thin may be in, but in building a law practice, fat is where its at.

Focus is one of the six keys in The Attorney Marketing Formula. Learn more here.