Showing posts with label legal marketing. Show all posts
Showing posts with label legal marketing. Show all posts

Saturday 31 January 2015

New Year Resolutions for Solicitors - Marketing Plans broken already?

I haven't sent an email to my list this month because did you know that by Jan 31st, 95% of the people who have made a New Year’s Resolution have broken it already? Most people don't even make resolutions because they get disappointed year after year that they don't follow through. That's because resolutions are just “wish lists”. In the New Year, people want a fresh start. They want to make things better and be happier. But they lack the motivation to do something about it. Or don't know how to find the time. If this is you then maybe you'll like the handout that I have attached. It's helped me to act. You might also like this from me - it's a mixed bag but there might just be a nugget in there that's worth its weight in gold; http://www.greatlegalmarketing.co.uk/sitedata/files/The%20Best%20of%20the%20Best.pdf

Read more...

Tuesday 7 December 2010

Personal Injury Marketing News of the World Style for Solicitors

I revisited one of
my old contacts who has a couple
of lead generation websites this week.

And boy are they different to most solicitors
websites that market.


Read more...

Wednesday 10 November 2010

Employment Solicitors Use Facebook Stories To Get New Business

Here's another story to repurpose
if you are an employment solicitor.

http://goo.gl/BMSUJ

Remember you can swipe news stories
and repurpose them in many ways...

Your website/press release/email to clients
newspaper/ radio/direct mail/audio/video

Read more...

Sunday 24 October 2010

Do People Like You Enough To Buy From Your Law Firm?

When you asked your significant other half out on a first date
what was the most important thing?

Was it whether they liked you?

Or whether they trusted you?

And how about your prospective clients?

To read more and maybe review the way you sell?

http://www.greatlegalmarketing.co.uk/sitedata/Misc/Do-People-Like-You.pdf

Read more...

Tuesday 12 October 2010

Co-operation not Competition works for Law firms

Just put an idea about making more from conveyancing.
(For conveyancing solicitors it's here http://www.greatlegalmarketing.co.uk/free_legal_marketing_ideas

My daughter came home from school (she's 4 and a half)
upset she hadn't won a prize in a drawing competition.

In her words, she had lost.

And it's not just 4 year olds that are made to feel like losers when
they don't get something.

"Why should I bust a gut, I'm not a legal partner
so I ain't gonna earn more out of doing this!"

That's something you hear in all firms.

It made me think of the "up or out" system within law firms.

If you are good enough you make partner and share in the success.

If not, you're part of the "rest".

At least that's how it seems to many people that work as lawyers or as
support.

If there's a “them and us” culture in your firm it means that people are not co-operating.
It's more likely that they are competing.

Many people assume wrongly that competition brings out the best in people.

And the Darwinian "survival of the fittest" is often
used as a scientific justification of this type of approach.

But does competition really help your law firm internally?

When someone wins - someone loses.

And 99% of people have been taught they
if they are not winners they are losers.

And if you lose how does it affect you and your staff?

If the answer is negatively then you are duty bound to find an alternative.

And that is co-operation.

* Co-operation is win/win.
* It's coaching staff so that you can transfer knowledge
* It's finding best practise and disseminating it,
* It's scheduling work so that everyone gets interesting things to work on.
* It's not having favourites
* It's saying someone is different not better,
* It's helping not hindering.

Think about how Amazon allows co-operation between store owners and buyers.
Or how Linux allows programmers to co-operate on open source software.
Or how Betfair lets punters bet against each other.

There's an old football saying that there is no i in team.
So if you aren't referring internally, working with business as partners
or simply taking the time to help each other
then you are probably over-competing.

Try a bit of un-learning.
Try a bit more co-operation in your law firm.

Put on your next management meeting the words...

How Can We Co-operate More In Our Firm
And Externally With Partners To Make Our Business Win Win?

And make sure you invite all staff to contribute with
their ideas as to how you can market your solicitors firm better.

PS It is not the case that Darwin coined the term "survival of the fittest".

When you think about it, his theories demonstrated that by co-operating
in distinct niches animals had the best chance of surviving.

It was the exploitation of these niches that was observed.

What co-operative niches can you law firm thrive in?

Read more...

Monday 6 September 2010

Solicitor Marketing - There's Riches in Niches

It's always great to see a law firm
targeting a niche and understanding
that the more you give the more you get when it
comes to legal marketing.

Take a look at this lawyer in the US.
http://www.bedsorefaq.com/bed-sore-resource-center/

He focuses on care home negligence.

One of the specialities he has is
bed sore claims.

This web site is a fantastically detailed resource
for anyone that wants to know about bedsores.

Who are you going to use to make your
claim if you have a relative that has suffered
from bedsores?

Someone that knows their stuff or an amateur?

If I were a civil litigation solicitor or personal
injury solicitor I'd be tempted to register
pressuresore.org and do the same with a UK
website...

And I'd be looking at niches you can exploit because
if you have two clients of any one kind, i.e. charities,
schools, Supremely affluents etc then you
can create your own legitimate niche.

As Shaw Taylor (Police 5) said..

"Keep 'em peeled"

Read more...

Friday 27 August 2010

Turn Negatives Into Your Positives For Solicitor Marketing

I was away for five weeks and
I only managed to get stung by a jellyfish once.

Now I have a free souvenir of my time in France.

I like to turn negatives into positives. It works well
away from the beach too.

Here's your new scenario....

It uses the law of Compare and Contrast.

It goes like this...a prospect has picked you out
of Google Local (he's searched conveyancing in Bristol)

"Hello just checking on Conveyancing Mr Smith, I've been
recommended to use Countrywide Lawyers by my Estate Agent
but I wanted another option. Could you tell me what you do.?"

"Sure, but first let me send you this link to the Countrywide reviews...http://www.ciao.co.uk/Reviews/Countrywide_Property_Lawyers__5658256

And here's a link to our videos.....

And by the way....we're independent of the estate agent
which means we work Exclusively FOR you."

Now let me tell you 3 things about us which make us unique...."

Do your staff answer the phone like this?

Remember....

To get someone to buy your conveyancing team you only have
to do the following;

Get someone to like you.
Be positive. Be friendly. Be Enthusiastic.

Get them to trust you.
Give them overwhelming proof, video, audio, written testimonials.

Help them understand what they'll get.
Explain clearly, give them guides and videos. Make
your service understandable.

Ensure they know it's a fair price.
Tell them everything you do for them, don't leave
anything out, even if everyone else does it, you've
got to tell 'em because they don't know.

Remember these are the reasons that people buy.

I like the seller

I understand what I am buying

I perceive a difference with this company

I believe the seller

I have confidence in him

I trust him

I feel comfortable

The price seems fair

I perceive this product will work for me.

I believe this sales person wants to help me so he can build his business.


Work your script around making someone feel great
about these things and you'll convert 50% more leads.

Read more...

Tuesday 17 August 2010

How can Law Firms Come Up With New Ideas?

New ideas are a great way to compete.

New ideas are not about money. They are about innovation. And no-one has the patent on innovation.

Most of the business concepts we have are handed down.This means we are limited in our ideas by tradition.

But anyone can create a new world. It’s all in your imagination.

Let’s imagine you are going to be making a presentation about handling a large University property account.

You believe that you will have a good chance of winning the business if you really know what the client is thinking so that you can handle any objections. So you decide to use a prop that ensures the buyers WILL tell you what they are thinking.

You give the panel gavels that they can bang down whenever they have an objection or question.

You say to them, “You be the judge, if you have an objection or question, bang the gavel!”

* You get a clear signal that you have to communicate better or more or prove what you are saying.
* The audience don’t feel embarrassed about asking.
* They get a clear understanding and banish their doubts.
* They enjoy the process.
* They buy.

You can probably think of a hundred different analogies you can use in your law firm like this.

You don’t have to use all the ideas, (pick the best,) but the more you have, the better those you choose to implement.

Here's an example.

Imagine if all estate agents in your town would give a free will to all buyers and sellers written by your firm.

This free will is offered when the buyer/seller gets a conveyancing quote from you.

It’s promoted in every advert that the estate agent places and in every communication with buyers/sellers.

The solicitor gets more conveyancing, gets a relationship with the buyer/seller, sells more family law services via a marketing sequence and gets publicity paid for by the estate agent.

The Estate Agent gives extra value to potential clients.

All the solicitor does is provide the marketing materials to the estate agent. (Got to do some work you know).

Remember your imagination needs nourishment. Stand back once in a while from your day to day work.

Here’s another way to come up with ideas.

Check out this page

Do you know Einstein imagined what it would feel like to be a light particle travelling through space? He came up with the theory of relativity based on his feelings and imagination.


PS, I’ve mentioned it before. Michael Michalko’s Book “Thinkertoys”
is a book that helps feed the imagination.
If you have children or an enquiring mind you will love iit.

Read more...

Monday 9 August 2010

Niches for Solicitors - Can you exploit yours?

It's always great to see a law firm
targeting a niche and understanding
that the more you give the more you get.

Take a look at this lawyer in the US.
http://www.bedsorefaq.com/bed-sore-resource-center/

He focuses on care home negligence.

One of the specialities he has is
bed sore claims.

This web site is a fantastically detailed resource
for anyone that wants to know about bedsores.

Who are you going to use to make your
claim if you have a relative that has suffered
from bedsores?

Someone that knows their stuff or an amateur?

If I were a civil litigation solicitor or personal
injury solicitor I'd be tempted to register
pressuresore.org and do the same with a UK
website...

And I'd be looking at niches you can exploit because
if you have two clients of any one kind, i.e. charities,
schools, Supremely affluents etc then you
can create your own legitimate niche.

As Shaw Taylor (Police 5) said..

"Keep 'em peeled".

Read more...

Wednesday 4 August 2010

Solicitors market to the theatre of the mind...

I love it when someone ACTS.

Not as in the thespian way, but in the
genius way.

Remember I talked about I-Sold (Tesco)
using handwritten postcards to target
house sellers?

(It's here)

One of the Great Legal Members
didn't do what I suggested (try the same
for conveyancing) but did do an alternative.

He's selling Wills by recognising that the
house seller is having a major life-change
and it's a good time to get a new/updated will.

Do you systematically market to people undergoing
major life changes?
Things like;marriage, divorce, kids, buying a house,
retirement, selling a business etc.

Most people are going through these at any one time.

So there's the opportunity to enter their "theatre of the mind".

This means that you enter the conversation that is
already going on in their heads.

It's much easier than butting in where you are not welcome.
Just make sure it's a laser targeted headline or
selling phrase you use when you engage them
by email on the phone.

It still amazes me that solicitors don't bundle a Will
with conveyancing EVERY TIME.

But maybe you do?

Read more...

Sunday 25 July 2010

Be Your Own Solicitor Firm Or Law Firm Marketing Consultant

One of my members went through my website and found
47 things he could do to improve his business.

Which is why one of the first things I teach lawyers
is to be their own consultant and give as
much as I can so that you can do this

You see hiring in a consultant to help with marketing can be
expensive.

Because not all of them are value for money.

So why pay someone when all you have to do
is put on a fresh pair of eyes and see your law firm as a
prospective client?

Sounds common sense.

But as Oscar Wilde said, “the trouble with
common sense is that it is not that common.”

But here are some easy things you can do that will
help you identify and make changes for the better.

* Go through my website www.GreatLegalMarketing.co.uk
* Do an audit on your firm by downloading this and using it
* Ask all your clients how you can improve
* Ask all your staff how you can improve
* Swipe the best ideas from companies you like dealing with
* Make a general enquiry by email to 10 law firms in your area and compare responses and follow up.

You'll probably get 100 ideas.

Pick those that are best.

And are free.

Implement them and measure the results.

Read more...

Tuesday 13 July 2010

Legal Services Subscriptions - Solicitors Kill Bill By Hour

I'm always on the lookout for
things you can swipe and deploy.

Here's one

http://www.boysandmaughan.co.uk/cms/document/EmployAssure_Flyer.pdf

It's simply a fixed fee employment law service
for small businesses.


Katie Marsh from Boys and Maughn who operate it told me,

"Each client proposal is bespoke and dependent upon factors such as their industry, length of trading and track record.

However, the annual premium is rarely more than 1% of payroll"

And

"One other local firm offers a similar scheme, but they lock their clients in for a minimum 3 year contract. We are so confident in our scheme that we only ask clients to sign up for 1 year at a time. "

Small businesses have to deal with employees.
They don't really have the expertise or time or money
to do it properly. And this is their "take my headache away" solution.

It's easy to promote this service.

PR in the local paper (every paper has a business
section), small adverts in the classified trades
section, Federation of Small Business, Chamber
of Commerce, direct mail to local small businesses
with 10 employees or less, radio spot, on your own
website, via Business Banking managers, accountants,
financial advisers....the list is endless.

Why not record an audio CD with information
on your service, testimonials and some great advice
and give it to the local business banking manager.

Tell them you'll co - brand it if they give it
to all their business clients.

And the great thing is that you can offer almost
all the documentation small firms need on line
which makes offering a subscription very profitable
.

Even if you don't do employment law can you do
the same for other services by offering subscriptions?


Here's Tessa Shepperson's subscription site
for Landlord Law...
http://www.landlordlaw.co.uk/

How about Business Law, Property and even Family Law...

Is there a way you can do this?

Read more...

Thursday 8 July 2010

Conveyancing Solicitor Goes Football Crazy and Scores

Conveyancing Solicitor Marketing Again...

How can you get free publicity for your firm?

By making a boring subject a bit more interesting!

Thought YOU might like this story.

Here's the link...

http://www.cluttoncox.co.uk/site/ourservices/spurs_champions_league_.html

Those of you who have read Paul Hajek's profile will see that his ambition is for Spurs to win the Champions League within the Perpetuity Period ( a legal definition equivalent to 80 years)

I seem to remember he got publicity from the World Cup too.

Check it out here.

He just emailed the story to all the major news outlets in one email...job done.

Read more...

Tuesday 6 July 2010

Legal Marketing Partnerships with Schools

I met up with a CEO of a law firm
a couple of weeks ago
and we discussed partnerships to get more
business.

I particularly like partnerships for marketing
because someone else promotes your services
and you simply return a fee or gift (only if successful).

So it's really low risk. (SRA dictats apply!)

And if most of the marketing work is done by the
partner then how about the legal work
also being "backsourced".

It could make for a really efficient, low cost
option of legal service, being promoted for practically
nothing and instantly profitable.

Let's take an example..(one that is being explored by one law firm.
(And one that I exploited locally for a French Language company).

Imagine going to every school in your county.
Getting them all to put an advert on their bulletins.
That says something like...

Do You Know What Happens To Your Children If You Die Without A Will?

Find Out By Calling Our Free 24 hour Recorded Message on 0844 502 1631 or visit www.yourlawfirmwebsite.co.uk


and each school had a
trackable phone number.

The caller hears a recorded message
and leaves their contact details.


And these callers are then sent an email/text
inviting them to a website where they can
do an online Will.

And these Wills were sold and completed online.

And the price was £47.

And £17 went to the school.

And you built up a Will Bank of 1000 clients
(10 per school).


(And got your picture in the local paper and on radio
handing over cheques).

And these 1000 people bought

100 conveyancing
10 probate
10 divorce

services each year.

And you did it for 10 years.

1000 Conveyancing = 500,000
100 probate = 100,000
100 divorce = 100,000

That's 700,000 Pounds.

And each of those clients referred one
other person over 10 years...(I expect a lot more).

That's another 700,000 Pounds.

£1.4M

And all because it's easy to promote with direct online sales.

Where the client does the work.


As Danny Zuko (Grease) sang...

"I've got chills...they're multiplying..."

PS, You repeat this process with charities,
large employers, local authority etc.
Once you have a system in place
it's replicable. -

Want me to help you?
I will if you want to give this a go.

Read more...

Friday 2 July 2010

Swipe and Deploy Tesco marketing for legal marketing success

Can You Swipe And Deploy Tesco Marketing?

I live in Reading and Isold – the virtual estate agency from Tesco have started to market through the local newspapers.

They have taken a direct marketing approach that will work with some house sellers.

They have used handwritten-style notes to entice vendors to find out more.

The handwritten note is genius.

Not for the handwritten font...but the fact that they are doing it.

Because action is genius.

It's something you can copy.

The SRA ethics guys said it was ok to do...
(I phoned them).

The cards and the story is here...

http://www.greatlegalmarketing.co.uk/free_legal_marketing_ideas

Read more...

Thursday 1 July 2010

Selling Legal Services online

I met up with someone yesterday and
we thought about partnerships to get more
business.

I particularly like partnerships for marketing
because someone else promotes your services
and you simply return a fee (only if successful).

So it's really low risk.

And if most of the marketing work is done by the
partner then how about the legal work
also being "backsourced" (a term coined by
Graham Cohen).

It could make for a really interesting, low cost
option of legal service, being promoted for practically
nothing and instantly profitable.

Let's take an example..(one that is being explored by one law firm.
(And one that I exploit for a French Language company).

Imagine going to every school in your county.
Getting them all to put an advert on their bulletins.
That says something like...

Your Children Can Be Put In To
Care If You Were To Die Today
Without A Will.

And each school had an affinity code
or trackable phone number.

And Wills were sold and completed online.

And the price was £47.

And £17 went to the school.

And you built up a Will Bank of 1000 clients
(10 per school).

And these 1000 people bought

100 conveyancing
10 probate
10 divorce

services each year.

And you did it for 10 years.

1000 Conveyancing = 500,000
100 probate = 100,000
100 divorce = 100,000

That's 700,000 Pounds.

And each of those clients referred one
other person over 10 years...

That's another 700,000 Pounds.

£1.4M

And all because it's easy to promote with direct online sales.

Where the client does the work.

As Danny Zuko sang...

"I've to chills...they're multiplying..."

PS, You repeat this process with charities,
large employers, local authority etc.
Once you have a system in place
it's replicable.

Read more...

Tuesday 29 June 2010

Be The Best Sales Person at Your Law Firm

I met with the CEO of a major law software company

last week. They are the company that allow

law firms to make money while they sleep.

(If you want to be introduced let me know).

The best thing that Grahame said to me was...


Boyd, you’re a salesman!”


On the way back from London on the train I thought

a lot about this comment and decided to share my thoughts.


It makes me proud to be a salesman.

Because until someone sells something, nothing in this commercial

world actually happens. There's no marketing, no finance,

no law firm!

How are you as a salesperson?

  • Do you enjoy it?
  • Do you study how to do it?
  • Or, like me, do you just try your best and then hope that people buy?

Because, being your best and hoping that people

buy isn’t such a crazy idea.

In striving to be your best you generally get smarter and better

than other people. Because most people really don’t reach

half of their potential.

  • You see they give up learning.
  • They give up studying.
  • They aren’t self motivated.

What I love about you is that you took the

time to sign up to this newsletter.

(And many have been with me for 12 months now - thank you.)


You demonstrated that you are motivated enough to learn.


So I want to share with a like-minded person my list of what

I do to be as great as I can be.

Here’s what I focus on.


Smart. – I try to be smart. Flexible enough to think on my feet

rather than trotting out the same old stuff as everyone else.


Self-motivated. Nobody has to tell me what to do.

I know what to do and why I am doing it. I work to learn and earn every day.


Great Attitude. How much of my success is attributable to attitude?

10% No. 40% No. 90% Yes. Everything starts with a positive attitude.



Excellent Communication. I want to be compelling.

I want to tell stories that resonate. I want to be believable, clear and concise.


Physically and Mentally Fit. I want to exercise my body and my brain.

I want both of them to be fit to take on the day whatever it’s going to bring.

Mental and physical press-ups are required to live to the full.


Computer Skilled. I can’t have the excuse that “It’s all too difficult to keep up”.

The Internet rules the economic world.

Ignore this fact and in 10 years you’ll be unemployable.


Goal Driven. Having a goal is basic to success.

Devising and persisting with a plan to get there is key to success.

Action is genius and I need to act on getting to my goal.


Dedicated to Success. I want to achieve something every day.

It keeps the momentum going. It keeps me dedicated to my goal

with visible progress.


Past Success. Every time I do something successfully I

imprint it on my memory by squeezing my left index finger.

Those memories give me confidence. I can access that

success feeling any time I want by pressing on my finger.


A Career, Not a Job. It’s not about how much I earn this

week or this month. It’s about how much return I get on what

I am investing in. Give me a pound and 50% commission rather

than £2 and 10% commission.


I’m more interested in personal development and

success than money. I dedicate myself every day to becoming better.

As a result people value me more.


Lifelong Student: Accept I don’t know, then learn.

I know I don’t know everything. I accept it.

And I will never be someone that knows everything.

I am a "lifelong learner."


I love helping others. There’s nothing better than

helping someone become successful.

There’s probably something missing from the list.

Ah...Sales Skills.

But do you know what? It’s better to have a positive attitude

and brains than selling skills.


Because selling skills can be learnt.

Whereas being smart, happy and striving to be the best I can be is totally up to me.


Where do I get help to help me think?


Books. And I surround myself with positive people.


If you have never read anything about personal development try a couple of books

out and let me know how you get on. Take a look at these on Amazon.

Psycho-Cybernetics by Maxwell Maltz MD

The Strangest Secret by Earl Nightingale

Think And Grow Rich by Napoleon Hill

Power of Positive Thinking by Norman Vincent Peale


You can get all these books for £12 or so second hand.

Take them on holiday and read them. Read them instead

of watching TV. Read them on the train instead of trash

news.


I guarantee it's money and TIME well spent.


and for a taster of personal development books

try clicking here


http://www.greatlegalmarketing.co.uk/sitedata/Misc/01---The_7_Habits_of_Highl.pdf

Read more...

Recommendation Isn't Referring

Law Society research says 90% of people would recommend their solicitor
to a family member of friend. (IF ASKED BY A RESEARCHER).

Those are my capitals. Because it doesn't really matter what someone says to a researcher. What matters is what YOUR CLIENTS do.

Industry pats on the back don't do anything for your bottom line.

You can't spend researched recommendations at the bank.

And satisfaction is not loyalty.

The true test is loyalty.

How many of your clients will never leave you and
will defend you to the hilt?

Because loyal clients are the best referrers.

And the question is "How are you systematicallly asking
and getting referrals?"

Action on getting a systematic referral process
in place will do everything for you.

The research doesn't show how many referrals each
loyal client is giving you.

The research doesn't show how many each client could
give you.

The research doesn't show the value of each referral and what you should invest in getting referrals.

If you know how to get loyal, highly profitable clients and get them to refer
their best friends, clients and colleagues (i.e. people like them)
then you are on to a winner. But everyone already knows that don't they?

Still, how many people have a referral system in place?

Have you?

First admit you don’t know. Then learn. Then act.

Read more...

Wednesday 23 June 2010

Referral Partner System for Lawyers and Solicitors

Remember my last email where I talked
about getting a partner referral programme going?

(It's down below)

Well here's a letter format you can
swipe and deploy for your firm.

This is a real example being used by
my client.

http://www.greatlegalmarketing.co.uk/sitedata/Misc/Partner_offer_for_Rentals_.pdf

Send this letter out to the top 75 businesses
in each category listed.

Obviously change the words for your own (or ask me
to do it for you £££ ;-)
but use the same or a similar format.

Any questions, let me know.

Boyd

PS enjoy the match. An England win means
happy people. Happy people buy things.

PPS advance notice...I'm away for August...
so get any questions in before then...

-----Original Message-----
From: boyd@greatlegalmarketing.co.uk
Sent: Tuesday, 15 June, 2010 10:19am
To: boyd@greatlegalmarketing.co.uk
Subject: Great Legal Marketing Newsletter - How To Create A Referral Network.

Good morning...

Still on the the theme of referrals.

Did you know there are only 5 steps you have to take
to create a referral network.

But you have to take at least one step today.

And that's to open the PDF
I've put together for you.

It's right here

http://www.greatlegalmarketing.co.uk/sitedata/Misc/referral-networks-for-soli.pdf

I'll probably get a few emails after people read this.

So bear with me if it takes a couple of days to get
round to answering yours.

Read more...

Monday 14 June 2010

Do You Continually Test Your Prices for Your Legal Services?

Not the most professional.

Not the best.

But a very important
video

Here it is...

http://screenr.com/hZp



PS If you continually test your prices
and have no problems with getting
premium prices for your services you don't
waste time watching this...but one of my clients
doubled his prices after doing this and has
had 12 record months...

Read more...