Marketing JMARTIN, PC

Words from The Wench

About Marketing in General Education Based Marketing; An Overview Available tools What next? Supplemental material on individual

marketing pieces

Agenda Items

To be effective, it takes 5-10% of your time on a consistent basis

YOU own and control it YOU guide it in a direction

◦ An area of the business you want to grow?◦ Upgrading your clientele?◦ Increase referrals?◦ Make yourself more visible?◦ Provide even better service?

Payoff is very SLOW; be patient

About Marketing in General

Position yourself as a dignified, low-keyed consultant – not a salesperson

Provide free, useful information Create targeted, meaningful & effective

communications designed to:◦ Increase name recognition & awareness◦ Generate new business◦ Better serve potential and existing clients

Education-Based Marketing: The Concept

It is NOT about creating ‘things’ It’s about developing trust and furthering

relationships with clients or referral sources Every ‘marketing piece’ is an opening

gesture; giving something useful for free In a subtle way, each ‘says’:

◦ We know what we’re doing◦ You can trust us to help

The Bottom Line

Marketing Pieces The Phone Traditional Advertising – Yellow Pages, etc. The Website Tiny Topical Videos Handouts and (E-) Mailings Other Downloadable materials (checklists) Targeted ‘Talks’ or Seminars Articles in Publications Social Networking - Facebook EACH ‘PIECE’ POINTS TO AND

WORKS WITH THE OTHERS

Reduce fear of dealing with the issue and with lawyers

Offer useful info and food for thought Demystify how the system works and what

to expect Save time and money by helping them

prepare for the consultation

How New ‘Pieces’ Help Clients

• Keep ‘Talking’ to potential clients while they consider coming in

• Remind clients what you said or didn’t get a chance to say

• May reduce the number of personal interactions needed to schedule consultation

• Bring clients into the office better educated and better prepared

How New ‘Pieces’ Support Staff

A discussion of individual marketing pieces follows

Click to fast forward

A closer look

Clients ‘surf’ to find services as often as they look at the Yellow Pages

The website provides:◦ A shop window to peek in without being seen◦ A way to start a dialog before the client comes

in◦ A source of help and information that’s open

24/7

Cornerstone: The Website

Let potential clients know who you are Establish credibility and encourage

trust Contents genuinely useful to clients Help the staff in daily phone work Deliver a unified message:

Quality personal legal services delivered by caring professionals at a reasonable price

Goals for the Website

Sits on the website and contains:◦ Unusual cases and stories from your practice

i.e. Third party takes custody from Unfit Grandfather General interest – child goes from unfit parent >

grandfather > third party; microcosm of social problems Story for other lawyers on how you prepared for this?

◦ Stories about your extracurricular activities Promise and other worthwhile things at church Your adventures as a missionary construction worker

◦ Articles that can be used as handouts cited earlier

Items of Interest Page

Cover topics in printed pieces or in downloadable files, i.e.:

7 Ways to Reduce Pain and Expense in a Divorce/Dissolution How Probate Works Common misconceptions about ‘X’ (Mediation, Restraint

Orders) Checklist for Estate Planning; for Probate; for Wills, etc.

Offer on phone & (e)mail; identify places to distribute them (i.e. ‘Guardianship’ at Care Facilities)

Each references other materials and offers more, including a list of other handouts and the option to have you send copies to others

Handouts/Downloadables

Establish yourself as a ‘local expert’ on hot topic (elders, new business start up?)

Encourage ‘word-of-mouth’ advertising Develop local contacts (other professionals;

groups) Provide CHEAP marketing/advertisement

Targeted ‘Talks’

•Venue may be free, at a reduced cost or split with other speakers• Newspaper and radio publicity for community service announcements is free•At the event, distribute contact information & Bio

•In talk, offer to send other info (handouts, links to website, etc)•On attendee sign-in sheet, collect email/postal addresses from people who would like info

Identify a publication or website potential clients are likely to read

Offer editor to write a ‘How-to” or ‘How it works’ or ‘what it means’ article or info on a popular topic

Get a by-line & a short blurb about your practice

In article, offer to send more information if they call or write

Reprint the article with publication reference and convert to ‘handouts’

Articles

Groups & Professional Associations◦ Use your contacts to distribute info, provide an

audience or a free hall for a talk Social Media - Facebook

◦ As friends ‘like’ the Practice’s Page, FB will cascade your material to friends of friends

◦ Use as if it were a Newsletter to: Link to articles on other websites or mention

written publications and books Post news about the practice or community service

activities, etc. Highlight items of interest on your website and

provide a link

Networking Pieces

Using The Pieces Together

Can be via

f acebook

Did you see our checklist? Or article?Can I send you a link?

Creating a Continual Improvement Loop

f

How did you hear about us?

Did you find that information useful?

THINK TO LINK ◦ Find a ‘piece’ to show every client: a specific part of

the website, a checklist, a handout◦ Ask for addresses – Can I send you a link? Can I

mail a copy of this to anyone else for you?KEEP IT UP◦ Remain a visible and valuable resource by adding

new pieces whenever possibleKNOW WHAT WORKS◦ Pay attention to how

people heard about you◦ Ask if things are useful

The Program Only Works if YOU:

Get to know what is in the website◦ Navigation

Side links go to subsections of the current page Links at page bottom go to major subsections of web Areas of Practice lists legal topics Sitemap lists everything

Help identify “WHAT’S MISSING?”◦ Why is your firm the better choice in certain types

of cases? Where should we mention it?◦ What additional material would be useful for

clients with a particular concern? How can we provide it?

What next?

Complete website pages ‘under construction’◦ Business section◦ FAQ page◦ Grandparents’ rights◦ Contempt of court

Review or create checklists/questionnaires◦ Make them useful or throw them away ◦ See list of potential checklists and Questionnaires under

“Areas of Practice”◦ Questionnaires can be food for thought to help

determine if reader is ready for a lawyer (See ‘Domestic Violence”)

Write an article or create a handout

What next?

Find out where you get the most bang for your marketing buck

Track: ◦ How callers find you◦ How many appointments come from each

source◦ How many actual clients from each source

(How many Yellow book callers actually became clients?)

What next?

THINK and talk together about how to incorporate ‘pieces’ into your daily phone work

Provide updates and feedback to The Wench

What next?

Lovely materials are meaningless if you don’t THINK TO USE THEM

(e)Mailing lists and Facebook Friends lists will help keep the conversation going with prospective clients to encourage them to come in

Make the ‘pieces’ high quality and you offer something of value that clients will be glad to get

Summary