The Attorney Marketing Blog

If you own or manage a small law firm, have you ever looked at search engine results in your area and wondered why “Big Law” was not plastered all over the first page of Google for search terms related to your practice area?

After all, they certainly have bigger marketing budgets than you, right?

Yet, you rarely ever see Big Law dominate - it’s always the solo and small firms that do.

Here’s an example - if you did a search for “new york injury lawyer” you’d find only one firm (Stark & Stark) shown in the top 10 natural search results that I would consider “Big Law” - and they’re down the page at #8 which is not a premium position.

Nine of the ten are websites or blogs owned by solos or small firms.  That’s amazing, given how how many times that search term is typed in each month (almost 10,000 times) and how lucrative it is.

So the question is, why doesn’t Big Law show up?

The reason is simple - many of them rely on Content Management Systems (CMS), which are complex, database-driven web sites.

That is the complete opposite of solos and small firms which utilize static html, asp or php sites - or blogging platforms like Wordpress.

So why do small firms have an advantage by using these types of systems?

Because the systems they use are designed to be search engine friendly, while many of the CMS offerings that Big Law uses are:

• Not Search Engine Friendly (or Management does not know how to make them that way). Examples would be dynamic URL’s that look like this (http://www.biglaw.com/practice.php?categoryid=1&productid=10) which the search engines can choke on, and duplicate meta tags or tags that are not search engine friendly;
• Managed by outside vendors that don’t have usability or SEO experts on staff.
• Paralyzed by fear because of the huge investment they’ve made and are unsure of what to do.

So while solos and small firms keep adding search engine friendly content to their sites or regularly post to their blog, Big Law keeps spinning their wheels.

My advice to the solos and small firms - keep on adding content and posting to your blog.

Because unless Big Law ‘”gets it” in the very near term, it will be extremely difficult for them to catch you in the search results…never mind leapfrogging ahead of you.

I’ve posted numerous times about the value of Google’s Local Business Listings.  For those of you unfamiliar with this Google product, it’s the map and 10 business names that appear at the top of a Google search results page when someone uses a geo-term - like Los Angeles or Tampa - along with a request for a product or service.

These listings can be very, very lucrative - so much so, that some law firms are paying consultants up to $10,000 for about 11 hours of work (ed’s note - I don’t charge anywhere near that) to get their business listings to show up when potential clients search for legal assistance in their town or city.

This past weekend, Google began showing definitive signs of expanding the capabilities of their local search product by initiating what I’ll call a beta-test of the new Google Local Business search.

Take look at the video below to see what Google is testing….and how it’s going to change the way your potential clients find you.
(if you have trouble viewing this video, click here to see it)

Michael Stelzner, of whitepapersource.com has authored a new report, “Social Media Marketing Industry Report: How Marketers Are Using Social Media to Grow Their Businesses.”

It’s probably one of the best reports I’ve seen to date about the use of Social Media tools like Blogs, Twitter, LinkedIn, Facebook, etc., for your marketing efforts.

What I didn’t see is this….Can a businesses gain an increase in revenue by using all these social media tools.

The report has a number of  statistics that lend credence to the benefits of using social media tools, but like most reports about this hot topic, there’s no hard numbers.

We all know that blogs lead to an increase in revenue.  But what about Twitter?  What can that do for the small business.  Does it work for them?

Until I have Law Firm Clients tell me that the hours-and-hours they’re spending on Twitter is fattening their wallet….I will continue to say….if a marketing effort is not working - cease doing it.

I know that law firms get an incredible amount of marketing material mailed to their offices - and phone calls galore from sales reps pushing the next “big” idea that will help your online marketing efforts.

And most of the material and content of their sales pitch…is nothing more than jargon-filled drivel.

Well, if you’ve ever wondered where they get all of their useless jargon, I’ve discovered the source!

Go to the Web Economy Bullshit Generator - and have a good chuckle.

I just recently noticed a new feature added to the search results on Google…and it has me a little concerned.

This new feature doesn’t appear every time you do a search so it appears that Google is testing it.

Take a look and see what you think.

Today, I have a guest blogger.  Gail Jordan, a legal advertising consultant based in the Greater Cincinnati area.

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Recently, I’ve seen many telephone directory publishers actually paying advertisers to participate in their Internet Yellow Pages (IYP).  Yes, it’s true.  No, they do not send you a check.

But they are lowering (many times significantly) the fee for their print telephone directories if you participate in their local paid online product. It’s no secret that Yellow Page print most often will cost more if you do not let them (directory companies) do what they want with YOUR business information – like placing it on their IYP product.  Could this be viewed as coercion?

I don’t know about you, but I am extremely uncomfortable with how they are approaching the transition from print to online.

It’s my opinion that they are conditioning you to continue the monthly-paying habit, so when print is someday ruled obsolete you will easily transition to their online product without a complaint.

In fact, I’ve seen several huge increases for renewal rates for online yellow page listings.  Will law firms soon be looking at fees for the local online product that are equal to the print product?  I don’t know, but I do know this.  The yellow page industry does have a survival battle plan.

So, if you’re a yellow page print customer, would you purchase space on the local online product if the yellow page print product was not discounted?  Many would not because the local IYP’s are still in their infancy.

And the local online products are relatively new so many are not sure of its significance or the impact it will have for local online searches.

Will the local online product become an effective marketing tool for attorneys like the print product has been in the past?  Perhaps.

But today, it’s a flip of the coin.

I’ve recently removed several law firms I work with from the local IYP product they were tied to.

The end result - none of them suffered any decline in business after removing them from the local online product.

Yet I have also had success with a national IYP (superpages.com) in NY.

My advice is this.  Be wary when your local yellow page rep calls.  IYP is not yet ready for prime time and you might get yourself in a long term contract you regret.

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If you need guidance with your yellow page marketing efforts - or marketing tactics and trends for attorneys, see her website at www.gjordanconsulting.com or call her at 513-519-4275.

I saw a bumper sticker on a car the other day.

It said….

The Shortest Distance Between Two People is a Good Story.

True statement, isn’t it.

We all enjoy stories….and so do your clients.

So, why not do yourself a favor and check the content on your website.

If it’s the typical boring effort that most web design firm’s slap on a website….change it….and tell a story.

Here’s a snippet from a web page for one of my newest clients - a PI attorney that has had some success in the past representing clients that were injured in accidents involving semi-trucks.

Several years ago, I was contacted by the paternal grandmother of a 6 year old boy whose mother, maternal grandmother and 2 year old brother had been killed after their car was struck by a semi-truck.

The truck driver had choked on hot coffee, lost consciousness, and crossed the median of I-75 in Northern Kentucky.

As you can imagine, she was extremely upset.  The reason she called me was that she was now the young boys’ guardian and really didn’t know what to do.

At a time in her life when she should be planning her retirement, a horrible accident meant that she would be raising this young child.

And as you would expect, she had many questions and concerns.

She wanted to know how she was going to care for her grandson.

What was she going to tell him when he asked “Where’s Mommy” or “When will I be able to see her”?

She was concerned about how she was going to going to pay for his education.

And her biggest fear - What would happen to her grandson….if something happened to her?  Who would take care of him?  What if Grandma couldn’t take care of herself and this young man had to do it as a teenager?  What would happen if Grandma was no longer around?…..

He then goes into a bit of detail on how he handled the situation and what he does for new clients.

So tell me….If a potential client looks at a couple of websites and see’s the typical content on law firm sites….and then see’s this guys, what do you think will happen?

I’ll tell you what happens….the other law firms don’t have a chance in hell at getting this client.

You have between 10 and 15 seconds to build some trust with your visitor….and by using a true story that targets the PC’s emotions and makes it crystal clear that you understand what’s going on in their life….you can do what none of your competition is doing.

So….tell a story.  Your bottom-line will thank you.

I spend a lot of time talking about getting new clients.  But the fact is, at least 50% of your revenue should be from past clients through new work - or the the referrals they send you.

In fact, after I’ve completed a client engagement, the next conversation I always have with the client is about how they are staying in contact with their past clients.  The answers I get are depressing.

Denny Hatch, with Target Marketing Mag tells a great story about this topic.  It was passed on to him by legendary direct marketer Bob Hemmings…and makes a handful-of great points about how important your past clients are.

The story goes like this.

More than half a century ago, Bob Hemming  worked for a jeweler in New York’s West 47th St. diamond district. There, merchants rent counters and window space in a kind of giant co-op.  Every evening, all the jewelers would dutifully take their diamonds out of the windows and showcases and lock them in the safe until the next morning.

All the jewelers, that is, except for Hemmings’s boss, who’d leave his diamonds out all night and put his customer list in the safe.

When asked his boss replied - “If I lose the diamonds, the insurance company will pay,”   “If I lose my customer list, I’m out of business.”

Your clients are just as important to you - today - as they were to Hemmings boss back in the early 1900’s.

So here are few gems that Denny passes along.

• The main business of business is acquiring customers and then doing your very best to continually delight them.
• Customers are the lifeblood of every business. If you don’t have customers, you don’t have a business.
• This truism holds in boom times and even better in bust times (like now).
• When a business is sold, the lion’s share of the price is for the customer base.
• Every new customer represents increase share of market.
• Once a new customer is in the fold, the next challenge is to increase “share of wallet”—make wonderful offers to that customer so more and more money is spent with you (and not with the competition).
• A basic rule of business: It costs five to 10 times as much to acquire a new customer as it does to sell services to an existing customer.

So, I ask you….what are you doing to keep in contact with your clients?

Price Shopping.  We do it when shopping for cars.  We do it when shopping for groceries.  Heck, we do it for almost everything we purchase or need.

And price shopping impacts your law practice as well.  Heck, you probably get calls weekly from someone wanting to know what you’ll charge - whether hourly or fixed fee, for your skills.

And for consumer based practices like bankruptcy and divorce, I would imagine the number of price shoppers they talk to on a yearly basis is staggering.

So how do you handle these type of PC’s.  Do you end the conversation as politely and quickly as possible.  Do you end the conversation quickly with a somewhat sharp tongue (I know several attorneys that do this)?

Or do you spend precious minutes trying to sell the PC on the value of your services?

Whatever method you use now, I’d like to introduce a way for you to take control of the conversation from the outset and  greatly increase the likelihood of securing the price shopper as a new client.

The next time one of these individuals calls, as soon as you know you have a price shopper on the line, politely interrupt and say this:

“What have you done so far?”

What you’ll get, or rather hear, is a moment of silence.  The caller really won’t know what you mean.  After 3 seconds of silence or a stuttering “uh” or “um” - you immediately ask this:

“I’m sorry, I meant who have you talked to so far?”

The rest of the conversation goes like so (with some observations thrown in):

Them: Well, I’ve talked to a couple of attorneys so far.
You: And how did that go?  What do they want to charge?
Them: Well one attorney wanted a $1,000 retainer and $175 an hour to handle my divorce (they always quote the lowest).
You: Wow, that’s pretty good. He must be new to have fees that low.  Do you know how many years he’s been handling divorce.
Them: No, he didn’t say.
You: Well, the average here in the city for a good divorce attorney is a $1,500 retainer and $250 an hour.  I’m guessing he’s only been out of law school for a couple of years - tops. Can I make a suggestion?
Them: Sure.
You: You know, your wife is certainly not going to hire an inexperienced attorney - and if you hire an inexperienced attorney, her attorney is going to clean his clock.  Does that makes sense? (Introducing a potential nasty outcome makes is so easy for them to understand)
Them: Yes.
You: Do you have a minute?
Them: Yes.
You: Tell me about what’s going on.

So, in less than 15 seconds, this attorney has turned the typical call from a price shopper 180 degrees. He took control of the conversation and increased the chance of converting this caller into a client.

How?  He turned into a salesperson.  And like or not, you are the salesperson for your practice.  And in this economy, many of you have to grab as many clients as you can.

So, to turn a price shopper into a client, you:

1. Take control of the conversation;
2. Introduce pain or hurt into the equation (i.e. what might happen if they go with the lowest fees);
3. Get them to open up (they then have an emotional tie with you);
   

It’s a very simple, pain-free way to sell your services to price shoppers….or for any other PC as well.

One of the most common questions I get when talking to a potential client is “How do I know if my website can compete in my market?”

It’s a great question…and I want to show you how to find out.

All you need to do is enter your town or city, your practice area and follow it up with lawyer and attorney.  For example, let’s say you are a criminal attorney that practices is Waco, Texas.

So you hop on the big G and enter ‘waco texas criminal lawyer’ and the top 10 results pop-up like so.

Now look up at the top right of the image of this image - it’s a cut-out of the top right of the Google search page results for his term.  See the ‘118,000 for waco texas criminal lawyer’.  That means that there are 118,000 web pages he’s competing with (by the way, Google will give you this info on every search you ever do - and the number changes every day).

Now that looks like a lot of competition, right?  Wrong.

If that number is less than 500,000, it’s a term you can compete for….and with a bit of effort and time - dominate the search engines for that particular term.

Now let’s say this attorney in Waco is ambitious and wants to target criminal searches for the entire State of Texas.  He plans on offering free consultations and pick and choose the cases he wants (Federal) and refer the rest out (which is smart).

So he hops back online and types in ‘texas criminal lawyer’ and sees 1,470,000 results for this term.  See the image below.

Damn, there goes his statewide plan.  Conventional thinking says the number is to big to challenge.

Not so fast.  There’s one more piece of information G will give us that will let us see how competitive this term really is.

So this attorney types in  ”texas criminal lawyer” - just like I show here with double quotes.

Now it shows 13,300 results.  See the image below - top right.

These results are web pages that have that EXACT TERM.  And this number is a more accurate figure of the actual number of competitors.

Anything less than 20,000….can be dominated as well.  Again, with a little time and effort. So go ahead and do a search in your neck-of-the-woods and see what the competition looks like.