Legal Marketing Blog

Getting the legal work completed. Getting those billable hours in. Important, of course. However, because you are busy is no excuse for not getting out there face-to-face with clients and referrals sources to ensure that work continues to flow into the law firm.

Not enough time is often cited as the reason lawyers don’t do more marketing and business development. But that may not be the whole story. There is a pretty good article that stresses the need for lawyers to have more face time to develop business on Dolan Media Company’s web site.

The article points out several reasons that may be at the root of the problem. Many lawyers are introverted, not comfortable networking and although very disciplined when it comes to a client’s matter, not so much when it comes to marketing in order to maintain their business.

Here’s eight keys to business development success gleaned from the article, and which I have also preached about many times:

1. Get out from behind your desk, and raise your profile by being more visible;
2. Cultivate desirable relationships;
3. Attend events where your clients and potential clients are likely to be;
4. Schedule lunch or breakfast dates;
5. Ask clients what keeps them up at night, then listen to them;
6. Visit your key clients (off the clock) to learn more about their business;
7. Ask for feedback, specifically ask what the firm could do better; and
8. Look for opportunities to write and speak to your intended audience.

Excuses won’t bring in more business.

The good news is that some firms are doing client feedback programs; the bad news is that they aren’t really getting the feedback they need. That is, the feedback questions are superficial, and don’t really offer the kinds of return that will actually benefit the firm in retaining the client over the long haul.

An article posted on the BrandThinking blog by Sue Allison contends that a firm’s feedback program may not actually “lead to satisfied clients.”

The Problem. Although 64% of the marketers in AmLaw 200 firms would like to conduct meaningful feedback programs in 2010, according to Allison “they’re having trouble selling the concept to attorneys and firm leaders who already believe they are doing client feedback.” (emphasis mine) But are they?

What a Feedback Program Is Not:

• Conducting just 12 client interviews (one per month) over a year;
• Fluid in terms of what questions are asked vs. structured questions to get at any in-depth problems with the relationship; and
• Thinking that by merely keeping in touch with a client, that will assure that the lawyer will “know if there were a problem.”

What is Needed:

• A “Continuous Client Value Program” that assures that “your clients feel your firm is really listening and acting to solidify the relationship,” and
• Conducted by an in-house staff person or lawyer not involved with a client’s matters, or an outside third party in order to increase the likelihood of getting candid feedback.

Law firm’s need to ensure that their client feedback program is one that really works, and not come across to clients as lame or insincere.

Cold calling as a marketing tool is not one of my favorite techniques. Not to be wishy-washy, let me put this way, I am dead set against it when it comes to personal services marketing, especially for lawyers. It also raises serious ethical issues with most bar associations that have the prohibition patterned after the ABA Model Rule 7.3 (Direct Contact With Prospective Clients). Direct mail is only slightly more effective in my mind, although it certainly has its proponents.

Then comes emails. As long time readers know, I hate emails because I get too many of them – unsolicitated ones and spam being the most egregious among them. But, I also love emails when then serve the purpose of quick, efficient and effective communications in getting things done. But, I discourage clients from using emails as a marketing tool, especially when directed toward people they do not know.

Then along comes Carolyn Elefant. The well-known (okay, actually a bona fide guru) author of MyShingle blog and Nolo’s Legal Marketing Blawg has a post on the latter site talking about “The Three Es of Cold E-mails” that is worth reading.  She is not totally against their use, if they aren’t “canned”, but customized and tie into a legitimate connection with the recipient.

Her 3 “E’s” include:

• Ethics. To avoid “running afoul” of the rules, she suggests limiting such emails to other lawyers and service providers;
• Effectiveness. Provide information about you, the reason for email, a connection to recipient, and your website/blog URL;
• Etiguette. Try to avoid the extra annoyance caused by typos, and the appearance that you “haven't taken twenty seconds to learn about the recipient.”

So, should cold e-mails be part of your business development arsenal? Carolyn apparently thinks they could have their place.

By this I don’t mean to put down technology and social media as ways to develop business, because we know they can and are effective at some level. But, it is still important to not forget those old fashion means of developing business that include face to face meetings, and my point of the day – handwritten “Thank You” notes.

Remember those times your mother drove you nuts with “have you thanked Aunt Betsy for that knitted sweater yet?” Maybe that is the cause for many people to have an aversion to thanking people for…..whatever. Or, they may thank them, but in the quickest and least painful manner possible. Unfortunately, they are passing up one of the most effective means of producing a real, favorable impact on their business.

I ran across an article on ProfitAdvisors.com on “How to Build Your Business with Thank You Notes” by accountant Michael Gray dated January 1999 (I luv that old stuff). His main points in my view:

“Customers want to feel important and appreciated. A key to build customer loyalty is to build a relationship with customers/clients/patients where they feel important and appreciated!

“In any business, but especially a business where there is contact with a customer and a representative of the company either in person or on the telephone, the best way I know to cement that relationship is through personal notes – thank you notes!”

He goes on to add that the envelope should be hand-addressed, and you should use a real postage stamp (vs. firm’s postage meter); and finally, if your handwriting is just horrible, at least sign the typed note in blue ink. All good points.

Gray learned all that at his mother’s knee, I’ll bet. So, pay attention to that maternal lesson when you thank clients for their business, or a referral source for sending same, or for the myriad of kindnesses extended by others.

Remember, do it the old fashion way, just like your mother taught you.

A couple of years ago I had the opportunity to speak to a trial lawyers’ bar association. Not having a lot of experience on the plaintiffs’ side of marketing, I decided the best approach would be to get some insight into what the organization was hoping to learn about marketing. Accordingly, I asked my contact if I could speak to several of the groups' members to get a better idea of what their expectations were, and what specifically they would like me to address during my speech. I did and got some very good ideas prior to my appearance. Actually, that is a good approach to any workshop or seminar presentation.

John Jantsch over at Duct Tape Marketing has a post he calls "A Workshop Secret Weapon" in which he points out the advantages of this strategy. They include:

• your presentation is more likely to be well received,
• you will gain "some great insight in what you need to present," and
• you will already have developed a connection with some of your audience, and can use part of the earlier conversations in your presentation.

So, prior to your next speaking engagement, take the opportunity to use this not so secret tactic to increase the impact of your presentation.

In good times and in bad, getting noticed is obviously a critical factor in developing business. But especially in these economic times, it is even more crucial to be doing the kinds of things that allows your firm to stand out from the crowd.

In a post entitled "Getting Noticed" my friend Thom Singer over at Some Assembly Required points out one simple way to do that. As he says "I mean so simple it is nutty." The key according to Thom is to "Help other people."

Whether it is clients, referral sources or prospects from whom you are trying to attract work, the best way is to give before you get. You do that by finding out what is important in the other person's life, and then try to help them reach their goals in any way you can. I agree that you can't help everyone; but, if you become known as a person who is a magnet for success of others, more people will want to get closer to you and help you in turn.

Thom reminds us of the famous Zig Ziglar quote: "you will get everything in life that you want if you just help enough other people get what they want."

So, do unto others to help yourself and your firm.

When I was in-house as the first marketing person in the mid-80’s, I had no staff to speak of – as in none, except for a great secretary I shared with a lawyer. You can imagine how much of her time I got. I quickly learned to utilize any staff person - librarian, copy room people, paralegals, etc. I could con…………err sweet talk into helping me on various projects.

The important lesson I learned is that the staff of law firms are bright and talented. And they can be extremely helpful, if they are given the respect they deserve. In this month’s issue of the ABA’s Law Practice Today there is an article about managing relationships with your staff by Sheila Blackford, who is the practice management advisor for the Oregon State Bar Professional Liability Fund.

Her “staff relationship checklist” includes:

• Is your firm’s mission shared with and instilled in your staff?
• Does your staff look at their position as a job or a career?
• Do you support the staff’s professional growth?
• Is your staff’s security also built into your long-term plans?
• Do you know the staff’s strengths and weaknesses, and utilize them most effectively?

Respecting, committing to and building on staff relationships can turn an untapped resource into a real law firm asset. Those who look at working at the firm as a career vs. a job, can become roving marketing ambassadors for the firm.

A lot of mistakes made by lawyers when it comes to marketing and business development are pretty simple, and simple to overcome. They just must be recognized and dealt with. A reader sent along an email, which led me to an article by Kenneth Hardison of the Personal Injury Lawyers Marketing and Managing Association (PILMMA) that was short, to the point and worth sharing.

His 7 mistakes include:

1. Failure to differentiate (your ads from all the rest),
2. Failure to differentiate (your firm from others);
3. Lack of consistency (in the look, feel and message in your marketing materials);
4. No marketing plan (tied to specific, identified strategies and a budget);
5. Not tracking marketing results (i.e., determining where your clients are coming from and why, and doing more of that);
6. Procrastination (due to a fear of failure or whatever. I agree with Hardison’s suggestion that getting a partner, business colleague, or a coach will help overcome this); and
7. Lack of buy-in by everyone (lawyers and staff) to the marketing strategy.

These mistakes are pretty basic, but can be killers that can undermine any firm’s marketing and business development efforts.

According to a feature article in this month's InsideCounsel one consultant who helps clients structure alternative fee arrangements "estimates that only about 2% of total legal billings currently are being done on alternative basis - but he contends it’s an increasing trend." That certainly isn’t a surprise.

He goes on to say "I’d expect that almost 20% of all billings would be on alternative billing in eight to 10 years…" According to the article, 35% of respondents to Fulbright & Jaworski's Litigation Trends survey said that the down economy has pushed them "to increase their use of alternative fees.”

Based on that, I guess I'm just surprised to hear that it's going to take close to a decade for alternative fees to get up to 20% of billings. I'm just not sure I buy that. I believe that there will be quite a bit more than that by then.

InsideCounsel reports we'll hear from law firms in Part II of the article next month. If you don't want to wait that long, and want a more in-depth viewpoint from law firms, get a copy of my colleague Jim Hassett’s survey report of his interviews with more than 1/3 of the AmLaw 100 law firm leaders. It was released recently, and only costs $395 (no, I don’t get a penny of that). Find out more about it on Jim’s Legal Business Development blog .

So, if it does take awhile for alternative fees to hit main street, it still gives small and medium-sized firms plenty of time to make inroads into the world of larger companies by offering alternative fees now, especially in the current economy.

Niche practices can be marketed more effectively and cheaper than a general practice in my opinion. Law firms that promote their niche practices will easily standout from the crowd; and can charge more for the practice, if they do.

Two of my posts on niche marketing that come to mind from a few years back include "Narrow Your Niche for More Effective Marketing" and "Do You Have a Niche and What Are You Doing about It?" Take a look, because there is a hot new niche that just came on the market. And there ain’t going to be a recall any time soon.

Thanks to the United States Supreme Court’s recent decision in Citizens United v. FEC (No. 08-205), January 21, 2010. I’m sure many firms will be adding a niche practice representing plaintiffs or defending corporations/unions over their respective political contributions.Some shareholders and/or union members may be vehemently oppose to the particular political choices made by the corporation or union.  Could get to be messy out there, and those with a early lead in marketing such a niche might just win big.It could be a sub-niche to existing Shareholders’ Rights Practices, or stand-alones called something like “Shareholders’ Political Rights Practice” and “Union Workers’ Political Rights Practice.”

The point is that you should jump right in if you think there is anything to this, and you too believe in the value of niche practices. Get out there ahead of the competition, and don’t forget to grab that domain name for your area while you're at it.

A comment to a recent post of mine led me to a book about overcoming America’s No. 1 Fear – public speaking. The title of the book Stage Fright: 40 Stars Tell You How They Beat America's #1 Fear by Mick Berry and Michael Edelstein got my attention. It isn’t the same as “writer’s block” or in my case “Blog Fright,” as in I’m suppose-to-do-a-blog-post-today, and haven’t done it.

There isn’t anything that compares to the pure terror experienced by some people when they have to get up to speak before an audience, especially a bunch of strangers. I love public speaking, but I remember my fears when I first started doing it – very, very stressful to say the least. And I learned over the years that if I don’t experience some trepidation before I get up to speak, I usually fall flat.

Although I don’t usually promote other people’s products here, the book sounded interesting enough to mention. If you don’t want to spring for $10 (or even less) on Amazon, here are sources of some free tips that may help overcome stage fright for those that experience it.

They include:

• Fear Busters – 10 Tips To Overcome Stag Fright
• Top 7 Practical Tips For Overcoming Stage Fright
• How to Overcome Stage Fright
• How To Get Rid Of Stage Fright

Those lawyers who are serious about marketing and business development need to throw away their iPhone and stop with that social media stuff, and get back to basics.

Okay, now that I have your attention, and before you “Baker Act” me (here in Florida people suspected of having mental problems can be incarcerated by the courts for up to 72 hours for a mental examination based on the recommendation of certain officials. And, I ain’t saying which officials. So, forget it.)

But, I digress.

The fact is that Renee Berman, a Connecticut sole practitioner, makes a pretty good case in an article on Law.com’s Small Firm Business for returning to the days of yesteryear for marketing your practice. As she puts it:

“The goal of marketing is to keep yourself and your business in the forefront of the minds of potential clients and peers so that they think of you and only you when they need an attorney to retain or refer a matter…”

She goes on to point out:

“Technology has weakened the building and maintaining of relationships. Face-to-face meetings, phone calls and handwritten notes are slowly fading, and the quickest (and unknowingly least effective) approach is becoming the norm. Making eye contact while you explain to your client the consequences of his conduct is always more effective than an e-mail where tone cannot be determined and often is misinterpreted. Likewise, when you communicate solely through your keypad, important relationships wane and you fail to make new connections -- not just contacts, but rather lasting connections.”

So there you have it. Step back from all this modern technology and methods, so you can market your practice the old fashion way with face-to-face contact.

Just kidding!

Obviously, Renee and I are not really suggesting that you don’t use the modern, technological forms of marketing, BUT don’t rely on them to the exclusion of the basic, personal, face-to-face methods of old.

Your practice will benefit from reading her article, and taking the advice to heart.

If you don’t know, shame on you. The most important element in marketing and business development is assuring the most solid, close, concrete, rock-solid, meaningful, close up, personal, etc., etc. (you get the drift) client relationships possible. If that is NOT your main focus, double shame.

Yesterday’s (today’s is below) “marketing meditation” from my good friend Larry Smith and his colleague Richard Levick at Levick Strategic Communications is:

“What keeps your clients up at night? This is the bulls eye (emphasis mine) of marketing. If you don’t know the answer, you are not marketing. You’re just busy.”

HMMM!

Knowing your clients business and his/her concerns relating thereto should be your apex. If you don’t understand that, you are really missing the boat.

Oh yeah, today’s missive from 365 Marketing Meditations: Daily Lessons For Marketing & Communications Professionals by Larry and Richard is:

“Law is about precedents, accounting is about rules, banking is about old relationships. But marketing is about being first” (again, emphasis is mine)

… in client relationships, I might add.

Meditations are good for the soul, and for developing business it would appear.

From a marketing standpoint, I put involvement in organizations as No. 10 on my top ten marketing list of best practices for developing business. And, which organizations and what your “involvement” consists of are very important.

Jaimie Field had post on her blog yesterday entitled “Rainmaking Recommendation #2 – Join and Join In” that speaks to those points. By that she means join the right organizations and be active. She suggests that you should be “consistently networking, conversing and developing relationships with the business people who are directly involved in the industry” or industries you are interested in representing. Also, she recommends asking clients what organizations they belong to.

Basically, you should belong to those organizations that are most likely to have the kinds of clients that you want to get business from. For some, such as criminal defense attorneys, bankruptcy, or other specialized niche practices, that is still the bar association where lawyers will refer work they do not handle. Those trying to obtain work directly from clients would be wise to seek out and join trade organizations made up of their target clients.

Joining the right organizations, and becoming a doer (vs. just a joiner) will certainly produce results.

There are many who say when it comes to speeches, as for a lot of things in life, less is more. I'm not sure whether that's based on lousy speeches, or by keeping it short, it's easier to get your point(s) across more effectively.

Whatever is the case I think brief is better when my priest gives a short homily; and although you may think it's because I want to get out of church quicker, that is actually not the case. I actually think he is a much more dynamic speaker and I remember his points better, when he doesn't try to cover too much. 

So, when I ran across Ernie the Attorney's post yesterday about this thing called Ignite I had to take a look, since Ernie is truly one of the earliest and most respected pioneers in the legal blogosphere. It appears that this Ignite movement, which involves people giving speeches no longer or shorter than five minutes in length and with 20 slides advancing every 15 seconds, is gaining in popularity. A chapter has formed in Ernie's hometown of New Orleans.

My head is still spinning from the dizzying video highlighted on the Ignite site. But it is entertaining to say the least. My only concern about the upcoming Ignite event in New Orleans that Ernie mentions is that the multiple presentations are scheduled from eight to 10 PM (after a cocktail party starting at 7 PM) is how dizzyingly these presentations will come across.

The important point of all that is is to think about how to make your next speech short, simple, and memorable. Maybe the principle behind Ignite might help set a fire under your audience.  

Everyone knows today that it is a buyers' market when it comes to legal services. One only has to pay attention to the surveys reporting  that clients are dropping law firms that no longer meet their needs in terms of responsiveness, costs, communications, and otherwise fail to meet their expectations.

I ran across an article by Kimberly Alfred Rice over on the Law Practice Matters blog that identifies six ways that a law firm can chase clients away.

They include failure to:

1. Provide "insights and wisdom" about he problem, not just technical legal answers;
2. maintain trust, as in neglecting to provide the "complete and utter truth about a matter;"
3. communicate often and effectively;
4. produce timely advice to meet client needs;
5. use common sense when it comes to billing, and invoicing for every "instant" spent on a clients matter (I agree with Rice that it's a good idea to include time spent, but not billed for, on the invoice); and
6. always look for opportunities to add value to a client relationship, by way of "various marketing and communications tools" such as CLE seminars, newsletters, law alerts, etc.

Obviously, these are just some of the ways to lose clients. So, let the word to the wise be sufficient.

I just hated it when my mother used that phrase. But I guarantee you, mother was usually right.

Now is a good time to consider gearing up your business development efforts. One way to do that is to hire a coach. And a post over on Jamie Field - Enlightened Rainmaking mentions six reasons for doing so:

1. Even superstars have coaches, certainly all pro golfers do, as well as CEOs and other top producers (as I have mentioned before);
2. good coaches provide valuable feedback and help keep you on the right track;
3. coaches help strategize and develop action plans for you;
4. keep you on target by ensuring focus and avoiding distractions;
5. hold you accountable, (or what I like to refer to as friendly nagging);
6. be both a cheerleader and booster, as needed.

Actually, there is a seventh reason for hiring a coach:

         7. I could use a few more good clients (oops, sorry about that).

There are many good coaches out there, and the most critical factors to take into consider in hiring a coach include:

• what is their experience in dealing with lawyers,
• do they understand your area (s) of practice,
• what do the references say about their services, and
• most importantly, is the chemistry right between you.

Some lawyers prefer that their coach meet with them in person, while others find that coaching sessions by telephone work just fine. Each lawyer should determine what would work best for them.

The important thing is that a coach can help you focus, plan and provide valuable support in your business development efforts. Give it some thought.

As I alluded to in my last post, now that the holidays are over, it's time to kick it into gear. As Tom Singer puts it in his post of Tuesday, "The Time For Excuses Is Over:"

“Businesses (large and small) have realized that they cannot wait on the sidelines if they want success. They need to get in the game. After 18 months of not spending money on things like sales meetings and customer/industry conferences, I am hearing from companies that the time has come to invest in education and motivation for everyone.

“The same thing is true for individuals. The only way to make things happen is to make things happen. Take action. Do something. Be a self-imposed catalyst and stop looking for excuses.”

So, here are a couple of quick thoughts on what you might do to put an end to that procrastination of yours:

• Call a client and set up a visit,
• Take your best referral source (s) to lunch,
• Ask a local business reporter to lunch also,
• Call/e-mail a business group and inquire about speaking opportunities,
• Write an Op Ed piece on a hot topic for your local newspaper, and
• Seek feedback from a key client on your recent services.

Pick one and do it today. Okay, but no later than tomorrow!

No more excuses.

Okay, the holidays are over. Time to focus on business. And the best source of new business is from existing clients (either in the form of new matters or referrals), and other referral sources. I have talked about this several times before. But don't just take my word for it.

Paula Black had a post on her blog In Black & White earlier last month that I thought was too important to get lost in the holidays. So, I made a note to cover it early in the new year. She talks about two marketing strategies relating to referrals that individual lawyers and law firms should consider.

She conducted a survey of her readers, and learned that 65% of referrals came from "existing clients or other attorneys." Actually, if you include referrals from former clients, the percentage jumps to eighty; which matches exactly the number I was able to track at two of my firms when I was an in-house marketer.

Paula's two strategies are both basic and simple to implement:

• Work on generating more referrals by building up client relationships by improving listening, responding quickly, communicating more often and effectively, sending information of interest, and making (key) relationships more personal; and
• Respond appropriately when receiving a referral by making sure to thank the referrer with a telephone call, a card (with handwritten note) and/or a small gift, and remembering to reciprocate.

Pretty basic I'd say -- work harder at your client and referral relationships. Remember to thank all who make referrals, and send referrals in return. This will assure your getting more of them in 2010.

There is still time to make a few resolutions for the New Year before the ball comes down on Times Square. My friend Trey Ryder suggests eight resolutions for 2010 in an article in his recent newsletter, primarily aimed at prospects. Most of his comments are applicable to clients and referral sources as well.

Here are just a few of his suggestions: (take a look at his article for the others)

• Compile a mailing list of clients, referral sources, and prospects. Send information or articles of interest at least every 90 days (or more frequently);
• Author an "educational handout" that contains helpful tips for your intended audience. His examples include:
  • “11 Secrets of (your subject)
  • "5 Steps to (your subject)
  • "14 Costly Misconceptions about (your subject)
  • "7 Mistakes to Avoid When You (your subject)"
• Present a seminar monthly (at least quarterly) in front of a target audience, such as the Chamber of Commerce, Rotary, Kiwanis or a trade organization. I like his idea that you "select a topic that solves a problem for prospects";
• Respond quickly to all inquiries from prospects (I totally agree you'd be "hard-pressed to find anything that impresses prospects more than a quick response," as I have personally experienced).

It is hoped that you will find something here that you resolve to undertake in the coming year.

Happy New Year to all!

Another encore post:

December 4, 2005 Posted By Tom Kane 

Ignore Your Friends At The "Business" Holiday Party

Hey, you can get together with your friends anytime. From a lawyer marketing standpoint, you don't want to waste a networking opportunity talking to your friends passing up the chance to meet or be referred to your next client. Save that for your personal and family gatherings during the iesholidays.

But, at the business holiday function, try to move on to those you don't know. I don't really mean to "ignore" your friends and colleagues, but limit your time to saying hello and promising to get together in the new year. At this event your purpose is different, or at least it should be. It's difficult I know, since most people like to stay within their comfort zone; and that means gathering near the bar with friends, sitting with them while eating, etc. Heck, I've done it myself plenty of times. However, from a legal marketing standpoint that is a big mistake.

So, try a different approach this year, and you might just see the business development benefits flow from it early in 2006! 

The same applies to 2010!

Happy Holidays!

Due to a death in the family, I’ll be doing encore posts from earlier years for the next couple of weeks that some of you may not have seen.

July 5, 2006 Posted By Tom Kane 
Comments / Questions (1)

Kane'sTop Ten Marketing Tips

It’s been awhile since I posted my top ten legal marketing tips, and I’ve never done so in a single post before. So, here goes in the reverse order of near-term effectiveness and how I posted them (with links to where you can read my earlier post on each):
No. 10 – Be Active In Organizations 
No. 9 – Networking With Super-Connectors 
No. 8 – Take A Reporter To Lunch 
No. 7 – Write Articles of Interest 
No. 6 – Talk It Up With More Speeches 
No. 5 – Communicate Often 
No. 4 – Offer To Make Proposal 
No. 3 – Seek Client Feedback Often 
No. 2 – Entertain Your Client 
No. 1 – Visit Your Clients 

Hope they are helpful to you and your firm.

Due to a death in the family, I’ll be doing encore posts for the next couple of weeks that some of you may not have seen from earlier years.

November 20, 2007 Posted By Tom Kane 
Comments / Questions (1)

Build On Your Relationships During The Holidays

With the holidays fast approaching, don’t miss out on the opportunity to building on your client relationships. Bob Weiss has an article entitled “Keep Your Top Clients in 2008” that appears in this month’s Law Practice Today. 

Not sure that by just sending a holiday card and a gift (to your top clients) will guarantee that you won’t lose a client in 2008, since there needs to be a whole lot more involved with your client relationships. But, remembering clients on special occasions can’t hurt; and, in fact, can help cement and even enhance an existing relationship. And don’t forget your referral sources.

Bob’s suggestions are quite simple:

• First, create a list of your top clients, top potential clients and key referral sources,
• Then, send each a holiday card:

·         Sign the card – and not an “auto-pen” version either, (see my post of last December entitled “Sign the Damn Holiday Card!”) 

·         Include a note relevant to the relationship – as least say something like “Jane – Hope you have a great holiday season – Joe”

As to gifts, it depends on your budget, of course, but you should certainly remember your top sources of your livelihood (clients and referral sources) in some manner. 

You don’t have to be told that this all takes time. It could take a day, or even more to extend the  appropriate holiday greetings for your various contacts. So what? As Bob mentions in his post, theJournal of Consumer Research concludes that what you do must“reflect the recipient’s perceived value of (the) relationship.”

Accordingly, if you value the relationships that produce your revenues, you shouldn’t give it a second thought as to whether you will make your remembrance of the holidays both personal and meaningful, as opposed to just going through the motions.

It’s not too late. There are still a few weeks of the holiday season to go, before the doldrums of January set in. Go visit your key clients (okay at least those that are local) and referral sources to thank them for their business/referrals, and take them to lunch or dinner.

Also, take along an appropriate gift. Or send one at least.  Sorry, don’t have a bunch of new ideas this year, but you can look over my “holiday gifts” posts of prior years. I still like most of them.

Also, send a holiday card. Yes, a holiday card. Quickly. But make sure you sign it personally, and include a short note, such as “hope you have a terrific holiday season” or whatever. Write something to show you care enough not to just send the firm’s unsigned, impersonal card. Here’s another post of mine on this topic.

You may be surprised what comes of all this in 2010, if not sooner. 

I’m reminded during this busy time of the year how important it is for lawyers and firms to start organizing their marketing planning for next year. The same theme is covered by Trey Ryder in an article in his current newsletter.

Then I realized that both of us covered the same topic over 15 months ago when I reference his advice in a post at that time. After rereading my post, I decided that an encore was in order so here it is:

September 4, 2008 
Too Busy For Marketing? Or Just Unfocused?

Often one hears from lawyers “I’m just to busy to be marketing.” Maybe they are just focusing on the wrong stuff? Reasons might include they're too busy with:

• Administrative tasks best left to others, or
• Working on files they wish they didn’t have, or
• Representing clients they don’t like working for.

Marketing is not only healthy for one’s law practice (as in keeping the family fed), but can also lead to doing the kind of work one enjoys doing for clients the lawyer enjoys working for. Granted it takes focus, planning and perseverance to ensure that business development efforts get the results that will bring enjoyment to one’s legal practice.

My friend Trey Ryder has a great article in his current newsletter (sign up for free) that endorses the points raised above. He states:

“When I ask busy lawyers what they're busy doing, they often grumble about handling cases they don't want, dealing with the hassles of running an office, and so on."

Trey goes on to tell the story about a client, who almost hired him a couple of years earlier. When he asked why he was hiring him now, the lawyer said that he never got a marketing program going and "is no further ahead than he was then."

I have the same questions that Trey asked in his article:

• "Are you bringing in the cases you want?
• "Are you spending time in ways you find enjoyable?
• "Are you investing your time in the most profitable ways?
• "Are you delegating or referring out cases you don't want?"

Most lawyers have the best intentions when it comes to undertaking a marketing and business development program. But many lawyers are too busy doing things that keep them from undertaking those activities that will produce desirable results.

So, don't let two years pass before you realize that although you're busy, you may be too "busy" on the wrong stuff.

---------
Making a New Year’s resolution to work harder at getting more focused and organized will definitely help your marketing and business development efforts in 2010.

Some lawyers not trained in business still miss the distinction between various terms used in conjunction with the general term “marketing.” Marketing is a process not an activity. It consists of many things that together make up marketing – including public relations and advertising, which simply put are tools of marketing.

The main difference between “PR” and “advertising” is that the former is free advertising (except for the PR agency costs involved, if any) in the form of publicity (being quoted in articles, part of a feature articles, etc.) and are usually written by someone else. Advertising, on the other hand, is paid for publicity in the form of ads. Clearly, the former is more valuable and credible than the latter.

Marsha Friedman, CEO of EMSI, a public relations firm, has an article on her web site, that I came across via LinkedIn that futher clarifies the distinctions between these terms. Take a look. 

Since this is officially “Thankful” week in the United States, let’s not forget all those great clients and contacts who help sustain our law firms and businesses.

I got to thinking about how people forget to thank others based on a personal experience last week. It happened early one day when I was contacted by a freelance writer for a big city daily who wanted permission to use some of my stuff for a story, and apparently was on a tight deadline. I responded by email within ten minutes. Then, silence.

At the end of the day, I got to thinking – having had occasional email problems myself – maybe she didn’t get my email. So, I asked. Her response:

“Yes -- thank you for the info! I will include it. Thanks for letting me use the quote -- I think the article turned out great.”

I then asked for a copy of the article, and received a link to it the next day.

My point, obviously, is that I shouldn’t have had to ask for a thank you or the article. Thanking people for what they do for you needs to be automatic and immediate, whenever possible ( unless of course you’re on deadline). Then again, it only takes slightly more than a nanosecond to reply to an email with “Thanks.”

Have I ever forgotten to thank someone? Nah, you know better than ask such a silly question.

Of course, we all have. However, I do try to instinctively thank anyone who has been helpful to me ASAP. You should too. Otherwise, people might just stop being helpful in the future.

Happy Thanksgiving!!

P.S. If interested in a couple of other posts about thanking referral sources and developing a “Thank You” system…

Paul Lippe of Legal OnRamp has an excellent piece in yesterday’s The AmLaw Daily which supports what I wrote about last week on the subject (I love it when really smart people confirm one of my viewpoints – notice I only said “one”).

Paul points out that ratings will happen whether law firms like it or not, and, in fact, always have (albeit less formalized) in the form of word-of-mouth ratings. And, just because the ACC Value Index evaluations can be negative, and not just positive (like Martindale-Hubbell, Super Lawyers, Chambers, Best Lawyers in America, et al.) doesn’t change a thing. If a rating system is an “effective” rating system, such will “provide clients and firms with information that helps them (both) do their job better,” according to Paul.

As I mentioned in my earlier post:

”The solution to all of this is quite simple. Talk to your clients. Ask them how you're doing. Correct any problems. Then the evaluations will take care of themselves."

Or as Paul puts it:

“If firms are worried about negative, but anonymous, assessments, they should be getting the feedback directly from clients before the ACC does.”

Take a look at his article where he lays out nine suggestions on what a “trusted rating system” might look like. If ratings are based on many of those, maybe the “fussing” will go away – certainly that would be the case for those law firms that get it and are talking with their clients now. 

A survey by The BTI Consulting Group for Hellerman Baretz Communications LLC released today provides insight into how to distinguish yourself from other firms in landing new clients. According to the survey, which involved interviews with the “top legal executives” at 28% of Fortune 1000 and 15% of Global 500 companies, the best activities fall into 3 main categories: Personal Knowledge, Credentialing, and Awareness type of activities.

The top two activities are in the area of personal knowledge:

1. Peer referrals are the most effective way to get hired (57% of respondents would consider hiring a lawyer after just one peer referral) , and
2. Introduction via in-person scheduled meetings (it normally takes 8 telephone calls to get such a meeting, and 90% of attorneys give up after the first call ends in rejection, according to the survey).

The next most effective set of activities involves “credentialing” and include:

• Being quoted as an expert in the media (interestingly, 3 such quotes equates to the single peer referral in terms of getting hired),
• Educating in small seminar settings,
• Practicing at a “well-regarded” firm, and
• Publishing an article in a trade journal.

Rounding out the top 10 mentioned activities (and scoring less than 5 out of 10 in effectiveness) include: speaking at a prominent event, being featured in a media article, advertising, and a casual in-person meeting.

In planning your 2010 business development activities, this survey of the top ways to land new clients is at least worth a look.

Don’t get left behind. My colleague Jim Hassett has talked extensively about alternative fees over on his Legal Business Development blog for months. Jim conducted interviews this year between June and September with many high level people at 37 of the AmLaw 100 law firms. He will publish his survey report next month. You can learn more about his survey, its modest cost and how you can get a copy by reading his post of yesterday.

I have seen a Preview Edition of the report and one statement struck me as quite interesting:

“Some large firms are aggressively pursuing the development of alternative billing, while others are taking a much more conservative approach.”

That led me to consider the advantage that small and mid-sized law firms still have over those taking the “conservative approach.”  Smaller firms are still  in an excellent position to make in-roads into larger corporations by offering alternative fees while many of the larger firms are still contemplating their navels.

Since many BigLaw firms have a real hard time adapting to a changing environment, more efficient, flexible small and mid-sized firms have a real opportunity to pick up work traditionally “belonging” to larger firms.

You might just want to pick up a copy of Jim’s survey report when it comes out next month. In the meantime start planning to let your corporate contacts know just how adaptable your firm is to these changing times.

As reported in today's The AmLaw Daily some "Law Firms Cautious About ACC Ranking System." You may recall that the Association of Corporate Counsel announced their Value Index at last month’s annual meeting in Boston; and that it involves ranking outside law firms "based on evaluations from in-house lawyers." Apparently a number of firms aren't too happy about that, and the anonymous nature of the evaluations.

Is it because they won't see the evaluations, or because they're being evaluated in the first place, that their unhappy?

Two thoughts come to mind. The chance that these evaluations will not be seen by outside law firms is nil. Even in-house counsel think that the outside law firms will get their hands on their evaluations. Why else would two thirds of them ask that their evals remain anonymous? So, it's a foregone conclusion that law firms we'll get to see their evaluations. Guaranteed. All they will need is one friendly in-house counsel.

Thus, it seems clear to me what firms may not like is the fact that they are being evaluated in the first place; and they may not like the evaluations, and the fact they don't know who made them. Some consultants have even suggested that law firms “get even” by starting their own value index of in-house counsel. What bloody nonsense. I hope they were kidding. Just what a law firm needs, getting into a pissing match with the sources of its business.

The solution to all of this is quite simple. Talk to your clients. Ask them how you're doing. Correct any problems. Then the evaluations will take care of themselves.

O-K-A-Y, I know it isn’t quite that simple. But, too few law firms even seek client feedback, and they should be very concerned about the evaluations they’ll receive. They could make a huge step toward favorable evals, if they institutionalized a client satisfaction program. End of fuss.

In case you missed “50 Ways to Market Your Practice” in the October 2007 issue of the ABA Journal’s Law News Now it is certainly worth looking at, especially by solo’s and small firms. Although you might think that some of the ideas are hokey, or would not fit your personal style or your particular practice, it still merits a quick read.

So, take 5 minutes to look over the 50 tips, highlight those that strike your fancy, and then go back later to reflect on your selections more thoroughly. Then, implement those you do like. There is certainly something there for every lawyer.

The list was compiled by Terry Berger, Esq. of Westminister, MD; and apparently many of them came from the ABA’s Solosez discussion group, which you might consider joining (you do not need to be an ABA member).

The Association of Corporate Counsel (ACC)’s Value Index was announced and shared with members at last month’s annual meeting in Boston. As reported in my earlier post, the criteria for measuring outside law firm’s performance is based on a grading system from 1 (poor) to 5 (excellent) relating to the following service areas:

1. Understands Objectives/Expectations
2. Legal Expertise
3. Efficiency/Process Management
4. Responsiveness/Communication
5. Predictable Cost/Budgeting Skills
6. Results Delivered/Execution

Joyce Smiley in her November issue of “Verbatim” relates that a key question is also part of the index; to wit: “Would you use this firm again?;” and the ACC encourages “law firms to adjust their client satisfaction criteria to match the Value Index.”

A wise move. Suffice it to say, every firm should ask at least their key clients how they stack up against those six criteria whether their in-house counsel belongs to ACC or not. And such inquiries should be made by the managing partner or an outside third party, but not the attorney(s) working on the clients’ matters. A firm is more likely to get honest answers that way.

Since the budget process is underway in many firms for 2010, I thought it was timely to talk about next year’s marketing budgets. Actually, I received a Google Alert last week about a post I did in the very first week I started blogging in January 2005. In re-reading that post, I decided to share it mainly because I wouldn’t change the gist of it, and newer readers may not have seen it:

January 12, 2005 Posted By Tom

Law Firm Marketing Budgets? You Want How Much?

A percentage of gross revenues is not what a marketing budget should be based on. The percentage approach – whether 1%, 2%, 4% or even more – was popular with a number of consultants and some in-house marketers for years. Comparisons to the accounting or architectural industries should not be used as the guide, as in “accounting firms spend X% of revenues on marketing, etc.” This approach is wrong on a couple of fronts.

It isn’t very original, and is the lazy person’s approach to budgeting for marketing. It doesn’t require any planning, which in turn means it is likely to be wasted and/or misdirected. I have been a proponent of zero-based budgeting, that requires thoughtful planning to arrive at what the firm, practice group or individual wants to undertake in order to reach the desired goals. Unfortunately, too many firms do not use such an approach.

If planning is done properly, which means it is goal oriented with specific measurable objectives, and action plans are designed to reach those goals and objectives, the budget can be relatively easy to arrive at and more likely to be approved...

[In that post I linked to an article by Kerry Randall, a consultant whose advice I very much admired, entitled “How Much Should I Invest in Marketing?,” but I cannot locate a live link to the article, and unfortunately Kerry passed away in 2005.]

In our fast-paced world, it seems like such availability is expected. Certainly, a partner at a BigLaw firm apparently thinks associates should, sorta. You can read about it on ABA Journal’s Law News Now and Above the Law. In a nutshell, a partner asked an associate to send a fax to a client before the latter left the office, but junior forgot to check his emails and never got the word.

My question to that partner is, “have you ever heard of the telephone?” If it was that important, why didn’t you pick up the damn phone and make sure it got done. Also, I don’t know about this guy, but I know I have failed to receive emails sent (or received them hours later – really) and others have not gotten some that I’ve sent.

But the issue is, do we really have to live our lives by the Blackberry or iPhone? Although in an earlier post I endorsed Dan Hull’s 12 Rules of client service, including “Be there for clients - 24/7,” I’m having second thoughts on the 24/7 part. Maybe it’s just because I’m getting tired of technology running my life.

Here's a couple of options (at least when it comes to clients):

• Set a time that you will read and respond to emails (maybe that research project shouldn’t be interrupted willy-nilly); and
• Tell clients that you will be checking and responding to emails at certain times during the day, but they should not hesitate to call if something is urgent.

Associates in BigLaw, you're on your own when it comes to firm emails.

There! I feel better, but I have to go. It’s approaching the hour, and I need to check my Blackberry.

During coaching sessions I always ask clients “did you thank (so and so) for that referral you just mentioned?” Sometimes the response is “oh yeah, I need to do that.” Thanking referral sources should not be something you have to remember to do. It should be automatic. Best if you have a system in place that kicks in when you get a referral.

Nancy Myrland has an article in this month’s ABA Law Practice Today entitled “A Seven-Step Referral Recognition Program.” As she so correctly points out “Referrals are timeless, critical and obtainable if you follow some simple steps to encourage them.” They are also the major source of business for any law firm.

Nancy’s seven steps:

1. Do great work so clients will want to refer others to your firm (some call them “raving fans”);
2. Let clients and other contacts know that your business relies on referrals (if you’re hesitant or shy in doing that, see my earlier post “Use ‘We’ vs. ‘I’ In Asking For Referrals”);
3. When referred a potential client, call or email acknowledgement and that you will keep them informed (I prefer a call or handwritten note thanking them for recommending your firm);
4. Within “two days, send whatever your Level One Referral Recognition gift is” to the person who referred (Nancy is obviously a generous person, and must have tons of dough, as I would thank the person, but hold the “gift” for when you land the potential client);
5. Schedule the meeting with the potential client, and let the referrer know about it and that you will keep them informed as to how it goes – thanking them again, of course;
6. If you are retained, send a Level Two Referral Recognition (or cheapo Kane’s “only level”) gift with another handwritten note of thanks; and
7. Once or twice a year, send special cards to all your referral sources thanking them for their previous support and how much it means to you.

Don’t be like a firm I heard about in New York that had received 10 referrals from another firm, and never bothered to thank them once. Think about how you would feel, and how long you would continue to refer work.

According to the recently released survey by the Association of Corporate Counsel and Serengeti Law, the top priority for CLO’s, for the first time in the survey’s eight years, is “controlling the costs spent on outside counsel,” as reported in today’s issue of The AmLaw Daily.

Further, the ACC Value Index will be released today at the ACC annual conference in Boston, and consists of evaluations of a number of factors on a scale of 1 (poor) to 5 (excellent), including:

• Understands Objectives/Expectations
• Legal Expertise
• Efficiency/Process Management
• Responsiveness/Communication
• Predictable Cost/Budgeting Skills
• Results Delivered/Execution

There is a wealth of information about the ACC Value Challenge (of which the Value Index is just a part) and what it means to outside law firms. Check out the following for some great insight into how your firm can become a player in the ACC Value Challenge:

• Information for law firms and Getting Involved 
• What is the Value Index?
• Resources, including “How To” Guides

What has this got to do with marketing and business development? Everything! As I have been preaching ad nauseam, there is a lot of potential work for small and mid-sized firms with ACC companies as a result of the current economy, and the high costs associated with BigLaw. Seriously.

In my early lawyering days as an assistant attorney general in North Carolina, I had the privilege of having one of the best, most efficient secretaries possible. (I even tried to get her fiancée a job in town, so they wouldn’t move out of state after the wedding. He “suggested” nicely that I mind my own business.) I had one problem with her, however. Whenever I would use the word “we”, she would kid me by saying something like “what do you mean we kimosabe? It’s your job, and I’m just here to do your typing” (on a real typewriter, if anyone remembers what they looked like).

I got that flashback when I saw the article over on Automatic Referrals suggesting the use of “we” over “I” when seeking referrals. Man, did old Silver rein in on that one.

The point is a good one, however, especially when I think about lawyers I know who are shy, and would hesitate to do anything so bold as to ask someone to refer work to them. The article states that a lot of professionals don’t ask for referrals because they don’t want to appear desperate for work, or unsuccessful, or needy.

So, the article suggests using “us”, “our” and “we” (as in your law firm can do or offer…) in ways that “takes the emphasis of the conversation off of you…”

But, “we” need to keep this to ourselves. I’d hate for my former secretary to think I didn’t learn my lesson after all these years.

In a down economy, more law firms are likely to fail for a number of reasons that might not cause their downfall in boom years. And the reasons can run from how the firm is managed to how it isn’t marketed.

Judd Kessler has an article in the October issue of the Texas Bar Journal in which he shares his “Six Simple Reasons Practices Fail.” Although the article is aimed at solo and small firm practices, the failures he addresses can easily be applicable to any size firm, just not as quickly. So, what are these “simple” reasons:

1. Poor planning and management of the firm’s finances,
2. Inadequate technology,
3. Ineffective leadership,
4. Poor management of staff and lawyers,
5. Lack of marketing planning and implementation, and
6. Inattention to client satisfaction.

Effective data systems can help resolve many of these issues according to Kessler, who is CEO of Abacus Data Systems, Inc.;  but, that doesn’t diminish one iota the value of his short article, and I commend it to your reading.

Of course, marketing and client service issues always seem to come last. Why is that I wonder? (but I digress). The value in effective marketing planning, according to Kessler lies in (a) “establishing a brand that builds awareness, loyalty, and trust;” and (b) differentiating your firm from the competition.

As to client service, I particularly like this comment:

“Clients don’t generally express their discontent. They often feel intimidated and avoid complaining directly. Yet dissatisfied clients are often the undoing of a healthy practice as repeat business declines, receivables go down, negative word of mouth swells, referrals fall, and most dangerously, ethics complaints are issued.”

The solution is so simple really. Successful firms communicate frequently, often, constantly, all the time…..you get the idea. And they do so by returning calls promptly and also keeping their clients abreast of what’s happening with their matter(s).

Avoiding these simple mistakes can go a long way in protecting a firm in these economic times.

We were taught in law school, especially as it relates to witnesses at trial or depositions, to not ask a question that we didn’t know the answer to. It’s a preparation thing - as in 90% preparation and 10% inspiration to take some liberty with an old adage. Unfortunately, some lawyers carry the concept over to their client relationships and marketing.

Not a good idea, as it is counterproductive in developing business and building client relationships. In addition, there is the “assumption-factor.” And that involves the thinking by too many of us that we can assume to know all there is to know about the clients’ businesses, concerns, values, and the clients’ knowledge about the firm. This is not only bad thinking, it is dangerous as well.

Both of these concepts are addressed by Janet Stanton in the current issue of Adam Smith, Esq.’s newsletter where she talks about “The Power of Asking.” She tells an interesting story of what Sloan-Kettering discovered when it sought a better “understanding of the real concerns of patients.” Like so many things in life, they learned among other things that communicating is key.

So should law firms. And the benefits of doing so are significant. Law firms could learn, whether by asking clients themselves or using an outside firm like Sloan-Kettering did, that clients are not reluctant – in my experience welcome – the opportunity to tell their lawyers what they need and value. As Stanton puts it, “you are likely to hear ways to increase your work, and high-value work at that… The important thing is to ask.”

Amen. 

In addition to the three mentioned last time there are seven other mistakes that Daniel Barnett covers in his free eBook “Top Ten Marketing Mistakes Lawyers Make…and What You Should Be Doing Instead.” I agree with all of them, but want to particularly call my readers attention to the next three, and leave the remainder for your reading.

Mistake #4 – Forgetting to talk to your clients…
This should probably be listed as Mistake #1 since talking with your clients and seeking feedback is so important. As Barnett says “feedback is not an optional extra.” Some lawyers false assumptions include:

• “Clients know all about my services”
• ‘If they have a question, they’ll call me”
• “They understand I’m busy” (and don’t mind my not responding quickly)

Bullfeathers! Staying in touch with clients is critical and should be done constantly. How? By encouraging lawyers to seek feedback, proactively checking in every four weeks about their matter, keeping them abreast of the budget, and by using an “external team for general surveys of the firm’s performance…for transparency.”

Mistake #5 – Reaching for the lowest common denominator…
Barnett is talking about the dangers associated with competing on price, or as he puts it, getting “carried away in a scrabble for the bottom.” It’s a loser. Rather compete by offering more value, upgrading your service or “upselling” so you can actually charge more, and by improving your services.

Mistake #6 – Staying glued to your desk…
Truly a terrible business development mistake. As I’ve often said myself, we’re in the personal service business. “People buy people” so get off your duff, and get out and about. If you don’t have your elevator speech perfected, and are afraid of tripping over your tongue, try having lunch with clients and referral sources with whom you feel comfortable. You have to eat anyway, so utilize the time effectively (even if it takes time away from the almighty billable hour). So, “Never Eat Alone,” and remember to listen 80% of the time, and talk only 20%.

As I suggested, check out Barnett’s other mistakes:

#7 – Ignoring social media…
#8 – Advertising just because everyone else does…
#9 – Using legalese and jargon…
#10 – Selling, not sharing…(nor educating to show expertise).

This is a free eBook worth reading to avoid all too common mistakes lawyers can make.
 

Daniel Barnett, a reader in the U.K. let me know about a 28-page eBook he co-authored entitled “Top Ten Marketing Mistakes Lawyers Make…and What You Should Be Doing Instead,” which he offers as a free download on his web site.

Barnett is a practicing employment barrister in the UK. After perusing the document, I realized that the stuff in this is better than what I see from a lot of consultants in this country who refer to themselves as gurus or experts. Although many of his examples relate to employment issues, the fact is that the mistakes are just as applicable to most areas of practice.

This is not fluff stuff, so I decided after reading the eBook that I couldn’t do it justice in a single post. Better than that, his writing style is quite good and it is an easy read (even with some British jargon). Here are his first three mistakes:

Mistake #1 – You don’t know who you’re talking to…
By this he means that you need to identify your market and “ideal client.” He thinks lawyers are not sure where to “channel their energies”, and thus are “afraid that defining a niche and doing what they enjoy most will cost them too much passing trade.”

“You will always have the most energy and deliver the best results when you’re being true to yourself and doing something you actually enjoy,” according to Barrett.

So, what should you do?

• Define your ideal clients;
• Identify those businesses and organizations that match that profile;
• Look at your prospects from their perspective (not yours), and ask how you can meet their expectations after analyzing your strengths and weaknesses; and
• Evaluate what your competitors are doing, and what you could do better (examples mentioned by some firms in a sidebar include: free initial consultations, being more accessible, providing additional benefits not offered by other firms, and putting yourself in the position of the client by asking what would be there wish if they had a “magic wand”).

Mistake #2 – You’re only talking about yourself…
The primary mistake here is the mixing of client needs with “what you do and who you are”. Put another way, the failure to separate features from benefits. His example of a fictitious firm’s web content (expressed both ways) helps understand the difference.

The point is to work on your unique selling proposition (USP) that highlights benefits, not features. You should talk about your firm/practice in language such as “we help clients...(citing benefits/goals that clients would value).”

Mistake #3 – You’re doing too many things at once…
Trying to do too many things at the same time is a mistake. Barrett suggests focusing on one strategy at a time. The idea is to “select the one strategy that emerges as most likely to build existing client relationships and establish new ones.”

He is not saying that other strategies such as a web site make over, or launching a client newsletter, or joining several networking organizations, or starting an advertising campaign are not other good strategies. His point is to focus now on the strategy most likely to produce the results mentioned in the paragraph above. The mistake is to try doing “everything at the same time.”

Next Time: More Mistakes. If you can’t wait and want to continue reading his eBook, click here.

Ran across the July/August issue of the ABA’s Law Practice magazine which contains an article by Linda Oligschlaeger with the The Missouri Bar. Although her advice to solos and small firm lawyers covers practice management generally, I was particularly taken by 7 of her 15 tips which relate to marketing in these (or any for that matter) economic times:

1. Develop a marketing and business development plan ASAP, if you don’t have one;
2. Rekindle relationships with other lawyers and business acquaintances (or any of your contacts) who might refer work to you;
3. Work on providing the best client service possible, and that includes every person (lawyer and staff) that has any contact with clients;
4. Consider refocusing your niche(s) to take advantage of new opportunities in the current climate;
5. Drop the billable hour (okay she doesn’t put it that strongly) in favor of alternative fees. As Linda puts it: “Many clients resist what they consider a ‘blank check’ billing method, especially in this economy;”
6. Offer assistance to civic or charitable organizations in your community which may pay off down the road; and
7. Visit your clients in their place of business (which just happens to be my No. 1 Top Marketing Tip) to show your support and build relationships.

Her other tips relating to broader practice management issues are definitely worth reading. Take a look.

A lot of law firms are into taglines. I’ve been involved with the practice when I was in-house. At times I like them, and other times I’m ambivalent. The important question, however, is: Do they help bring in business?

I was talking with a large well-known firm last week that has had a slogan for a number of years that I really like. I’ve seen it in print and on the Internet. It’s cool, and it places the firm well geographically. So, what is it? Won’t tell ya. It appears that the slogan is very controversial within the firm. Some powerful partners love it, and others DO NOT. The solution: two different letterheads. I’m kidding, right? Afraid not.

I remember being in the middle of a similar controversy over a logo in one of my firms earlier in my career. Solution: two letterheads and business cards. So, what happened. One day an associate and partner met with a representative of a Japanese automobile manufacturer in the hopes of landing some business. The partner hands the gentlemen a card sans logo, and the associate hands him a card with the logo. His response in a nutshell: HUH! They didn’t get the work, although I can’t say that was the reason.

If your firm is thinking about getting a tagline or has one that is controversial, the best way to solve the problem is to ask your clients whether they like it or not—or whether they even give a damn. With sufficient input from clients, a firm should be able to decide whether a tagline has any business development value for them.

Thanks to Mark Merenda for getting me thinking about this topic today with his reference to “101 Law Firm Taglines – 2009 Edition” by Steve Mathews over on Stem.

Take a look at these taglines and let me know what you think.

More importantly, are you serving others. I have always gotten a kick out of the British TV comedy by that name. My mother-in-law still watches it every chance she gets. If you want a laugh, check out some episodes on YouTube.

I thought about that show when I saw Thom Singer’s recent post on Some Assembly Required,
where he mentions the importance of helping others to help yourself. He quotes a famous line from Zig Ziglar, the super salesman, which goes: “You can have everything in life you want, if you will just help other people get what they want."

From a lawyer's perspective, the same should be your approach to clients and referral sources. Offer to help them in ways that are not necessarily related to a client’s matter or an incoming referral.

When coaching lawyers, I often suggest a variation of Ziglar’s adage, which is “give before you get,” especially when it comes to your networking approach. Then, you will get a reputation for being a person who serves others.

Isn’t the need self-evident? By that I mean, if you don’t plan what road your marketing should take, any frivolous (activity) path will get you there – to paraphrase the Cheshire cat in Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, which I’ve mentioned before.

If you are going to the grocery store or on vacation, don’t you at least “think” about how you will get there? Of course. So, why would you give your career, your livelihood, or how you will pay for your kids’ college education less thought? Unfortunately, that is the case for too many lawyers, who just believe the legal work will always be there, which is amazing in this day and age.

I ran across an article on planning on NewIncite.com that points out four good reasons for planning:

1. Marketing activities will be more strategic and tied to business plans;
2. Documenting a plan allows it to be shared with everyone in firm, who can all help sell the message (See  "Marketing Should Involve Everyone in a Law Firm");
3. Helps manage the budget and negotiate with vendors; and
4. Keeps everyone on tract when day-to-day “firefighting” (i.e., client demands) get in the way.

Although the article wasn’t talking about lawyers or law firms, the points are applicable to our industry nonetheless.

If you are still not convinced, let’s revisit the idea that the work will always be there. That’s just wrong for so many reasons, it too should be self-evident. Planning leads to a more focused and effective approach, which leads to more business generation, and that is job security. Believe it when I say that “Rainmakers Don’t Get Fired.” 

That alone is reason enough to plan your marketing and business development activities, rather than chasing your career down a rabbit hole.

Do you know the real answer or are you just guessing? Those of us who provide client feedback services, and have reported how favorable clients react to satisfaction surveys, have an obvious bias. But that makes it no less important to ask your clients how you are doing.  I have written a number of times on the topic (see Continue Reading below for some of them), and Aronson/Heintz Associates has a thoughtful piece on their web site. And, last week Joyce Smiley reported on an article in the August issue of The American Lawyer by Editor-in-Chief Aric Press quoting him as saying that “It’s time to talk to your clients…You can either be part of their (clients’) deliberations and process, or you can be surprised by their conclusions.”

Therein lays the rub. If you don’t ask your clients how you are doing, and they have issues, you won’t be part of the process. And you may never learn about possible problems, even after clients have “migrated” to another law firm. It just doesn’t make sense to not protect your most valuable assets – current clients – at least the key ones.

This is so important that I even wrote (to my own potential detriment) in “Of Counsel” last October that it made sense to hire someone in-house full time to do them, as four firms had done. (Unfortunately, two of the four firms no longer have someone in-house dedicated to that role.) Whether you pay a consultant to do the satisfaction surveys or do them in-house isn’t the important point. Doing them is.

Client satisfaction surveys are so simple and relatively inexpensive, when compared to overall marketing budgets in most firms, that it is a wonder that many firms still don’t do them. When one considers that 70%-80% of new business comes from current clients or referral sources (often clients themselves), it is baffling.

So again, why don’t more law firms ask their clients if they are satisfied with their services? I want to say I don’t have a clue, but unfortunately I do. Too many firms are afraid to ask, or think they already know what their clients think, thus negating the need to ask.

Unfortunately, both are wrong answers.

There is no longer a valid excuse to not make that marketing call to a client or referral source from your mobile phone just because you don’t have the number handy. Thanks to a heads up from Jim Calloway’s Law Practice Tips Blog , I learned about a post on ABAnet.org that describes three free 411 services you can use from your cell phone to find business (and in one case, personal) telephone numbers you need.

Not only can you save time while traveling to get those overdue business development calls made, but you’ll save money in the process. Check them out.

Thanks, Jim.

Well, okay to die for is a bit strong, but here is some software I really like.

• PersonalBrain 5.0 – the best and the most versatile database I’ve found to organize all your stuff. Check out the 3 min, 50 sec. demo below the banner on the home page. It’s neat and gives a very quick demonstration of how it works. You can attach URLs, Word docs, emails, to “thoughts” in your brain, and connect your thoughts to unlimited “child” thoughts below or “parent” thoughts above and so much more. There is a free version (good for practicing and playing with), but you will quickly go to the Pro version ($250) once you see what the software can do, and how limited the free version is. I haven’t got everything in there yet, but am working on it. Also, they have a bunch of video recordings on how to use it, and a Brain 101 free webinar every Friday at 1:00pm Eastern/10:00 a.m. Pacific time. Check it out.
   
• Mind Mapping - if you haven’t been into mind mapping, you’re missing something. The one I’ve been using for 5-plus years is MindManager. It is terrific for brainstorming ideas, and in meetings. I use it for my To Do lists, and it keeps me very organized. I’m still using version 7 and haven’t had a need to go to MM8 ($349). Check out this demo and download a free trial if you are interested. There are other brands and some free programs out there, for example FreeMind but I can’t attest to how good they are.

GyroQ (by Gyronix). It is one of my favorite tools. Basically, it is an immediate thought/idea/action item grabber. Unfortunately it currently is only available as an add-on ($50) to MindManager. Just click CTRL+Q no matter where you are in your computer, and a small window pops up so you can immediately record a quick thought, action items, etc. without interrupting what you are working on. Then, press ESC to close it. Later, with a click of the mouse, you can send your notes to MindManager. I use GyroQ constantly.

• Dragon Naturally Speaking 10 – I’ve been a speech to text user for at least ten years, and I’ve used DNS for at least 7 years, and didn’t do well with the earlier versions. But DNS Preferred 10 made quantum leaps in accuracy and functionality. You still should train the software for your voice and to both your wired headset and Bluetooth separately (if you use both), but 15 minutes or less of training will pretty much do it. You can use it for word processing, email and even navigating the Web, but that takes a bit more practice I’ve found. Although I use the “Preferred” edition ($200, but a lot cheaper on eBay), there is a “Legal Edition” (it’s a bit steep at $1200 for a single user). But, you may not need the legal version for general correspondence and non-legal dictation.

For a good text to voice reader, I like Natural Reader that you can purchase realistic sounding voices for. There is a free version, but the voice isn’t that good.

• Jott.com. This is a simple voice to text system that allows you to phone in a voice message to Jott and it is forwarded as a text message or email to yourself, any person or team you designate. It used to be free, but is still very reasonable, if such a system meets your needs. However, check out LifeHacker.com for supposedly free alternatives. I haven’t checked these out, and expect that Jott with its history is probably more sophisticated, but I don’t know for sure.

Finally, I’m a big fan of Gizmo. Okay, it is not software, but a web site with the best freeware out there. Check it out. 

From time to time I have thought about sharing some of my “toys” with my readers. Well, with the summer winding down, I thought I would take the opportunity to do just that.

First, I’ll cover three “gadgets” I’ve found helpful. Next time, I’ll cover some software I like, and that you may find useful in your marketing efforts. Of course, I would love to hear from you as to the electronic toys and software that you are willing to share.

• Pulse Smartpen. Simply put, this “pen” is phenomenal. While writing, it is recording what is being said at that moment. You have to use special paper (which can be printed free from their website if you have a color, laserjet printer). Then when you “tap” on any place in your notes, the pen plays back what was being said at that time. Incredible! The amazing thing is that the price is so cheap. A 1 GB pen is only $149.95 (2 GB pen -200 hours of recording - is $199.95). You can buy them at Costco, BJ’s, Target, etc. Here’s a brief video that shows you how it works. Here’s how a student could use it, and another video with more detail on how it works. Boy do I wish I had this when I was in school;
   
• Mini 10 Netbook. I got a refurbished Dell version for $335 on eBay (with double battery life) and a DVD for $36. HP has a couple of versions with one starting under $300. Verizon was giving them away with locally with new FIOS Internet/Phone/TV subscribers. My mini has a 120 GB hard drive, 3 USB ports, 1 GB of memory and a 92% keyboard (Actually the keys themselves are bigger than my $2000 Sony TZ150N keyboard, and I like the keyboard better). Not everyone is wild about the mini’s so check out what others think about them by doing a Google search, but I love it; and
   
• MagicJack for cheap telephone service. Check out this video that explains how it works. You can buy the device for $39.95 (at Best Buy or online) and get the first year of phone service free. Each year thereafter it’s $19.95 for the whole year. It has 911 service, call forwarding, call waiting, and voicemail. It’s different from VOIP. In most areas, you have the option of picking your area code and the first three digits of your desired phone number; it picks the last four. So, if there is reason you could use an extra line in your home or office, this is a pretty inexpensive way to get one. Again, MagicJack has its detractors, but my experience (both local and long distance) has been very good. Heck, the price is right. Oh, yeah, in case your MagicJack is disconnected, it’ll also send you an email message that you received a call and attaches a .wav file so you can listen to the message on your iPhone or Blackberry. Cool.

Now, tell me about your favorite gadgets that marketers can use.

Next Time: Some interesting software I’ve come across. 

Here’s an interesting idea worth trying. Tom Antion over on Great Public Speaking suggests making eye contact with individuals  in the audience and hold it for 4 seconds. I think that four seconds is a l-o-o-o-o-n-g time. So, maybe 2-3 seconds.

His point is that if you do so, you are more likely to make a personal connection that will get people to come up to talk with you after your speech. That’s a good thing, as a meaningful relationship may develop as a result. I can see how making eye contact with half a dozen people or so during your talk could have an impact on those people and make them feel special – if not overdone, of course.

Tom also suggests trying this out with your next five speeches. You should notice the difference in the reaction of your listeners by then. And let’s face it, if you do get people to take advantage of more one-on-one contact with you after your speech, the likelihood of your speech producing results sooner rather than later is very good.

For those who rushed out this past weekend to take advantage of the “Cash for Clunkers” program (like my son), now it is time to rush to offer fixed fees. According to a front page story in today’s Wall Street Journal the “’Billable Hour’ (is) Under Attack,” and more and more companies are demanding fixed fee arrangements from their outside law firms. BigLaw is beginning to get the message.

Additionally, my colleague Jim Hassett has written extensively about alternative fees on his blog, Legal Business Development. He is currently conducting a survey of the AmLaw 100 firms’ practices in this area, and the survey should be completed in the next few weeks. The results will undoubtedly shed light on the views regarding alternative fees among these firms.

Since smaller firms are more flexible in terms of changing their billing structure than are the more bureaucratic, large firms, there is still time for small to medium-sized firms to take advantage. So, don’t wait.

Time is of the essence as they say. Call your key clients now to let them know you are willing to discuss flat fees before you get left behind. It won’t be long before the big guys get that huge tanker turned around.

If you are interested in reading some of my posts on alternative fees over the past 4 years…

Establishing good relations with reporters and editors is always a good thing. It is also one of my top ten best practices (check out No. 8 – “Take a Reporter to Lunch”). Press coverage increases your credibility and is free vs. advertising, which both requires out-of pocket costs, and by its nature is less credible because it’s you talking vs. a reporter quoting you.

In 365 Marketing Meditations: Daily Lessons for Marketing & Communications Professionals by Richard S. Levick and Larry Smith of Levick Strategic Communications, the meditations for today and tomorrow contain two excellent points in dealing with reporters:

August 20: “Don’t ever promise an exclusive without delivering;” and

August 21: “Don’t snub reporters because you’ve never heard of their publications. They have a funny way of eventually landing at The Wall Street Journal.”

Good advice if you want to build solid relationships with reporters.

It’s easy! Listen to and communicate with your clients.

Not only will it cut down on malpractice claims according an ABA article on avoiding such claims. In this month’s issue of Law Practice Today the article highlights Mark Goulston, M.D., who states that lawyers can improve their communications with clients by doing one thing: “listening.” As we all know, listening is a critical element of communication. By letting the client talk and if “you listen to their real concerns…They feel gratified. The challenge for professionals is that they fear…the clients will waste their time with venting. But the opposite is true,” according to Dr. Goulston, a clinical psychiatrist.

Further, the article refers to the most recent Profile of Legal Malpractice Claims published by the ABA last fall. The startling statistic is that only slightly more than 10% of claims filed against lawyers actually involve possible malpractice. The remaining 88% of complaints involve lawyers’ failure to communicate with clients.

That’s where marketing comes in. If clients are unhappy because of a lawyer’s lack of communication, what are the chances that they will refer someone else to that lawyer. Does zilch come quickly to your mind. It should.  The failure to take every opportunity to communicate with clients is just plain dumb marketing – or even worse, marketing malpractice.

P.S. In a sidebar, the article contains the “Top 12 Ways of Avoiding Malpractice Claims.” Several of them, are also smart marketing tips.  

In March I wrote a post about a client of mine who admitted being timid when it came to asking clients for work (or friends as I recall). There are also many lawyers who are shy when it comes to asking for referrals. One reason is that they don’t want to appear “pushy” or come across as a snake oil salesperson.

Today I ran across a post on Automatic Referrals that mentions the “no-pressure referrals” that Judith Cane talks about on Advisor Radio  (unfortunately, not being a financial professional, I couldn’t figure out how to register free as the post suggests – hey, I was on vacation last week and my mind hasn’t fully reengaged). Notwithstanding, I wanted to make a point about asking for no-pressure referrals without scaring off the referral source.

One option involves offering educational opportunities for potential clients to learn more about the dangers in your area of the law. On these occasions, you can outline the benefits to them by getting professional help without directly asking for their business. This can be done via newsletters or seminars.

So, let your referral sources know about the availability of such resources; and ask them if they know of anyone that might benefit from such information. In effect, this is an indirect referral since your contact is only providing the name of a “potential” client who may or may not benefit from information you are willing to share.

Some years ago at a seminar, I heard a story (likely just anecdotal) about the lawyer whose client called, but because he was busy and “knew” what the client was calling about, he did not return the call. As the story goes, the client eventually called and retained another lawyer after reporting that she was seriously injured by a Coca Cola truck that ran a red light.

Recently, I was sent a copy of Dangerous Law Practice Myths, Lies and Stupidity by Judd Kessler, Gunter Enz, et al. The 94-page book looks like a fun read, although I have only just skimmed parts of it. Myth #34 reminded me of the above story and is sub-titled “Potential clients will wait for a great lawyer to call them back.”

NOT!

In today’s world, it’s about rapid (if not instant) gratification. The book features parables by Arthur Simon, Esq. (a fictional law practice guru). So, what does he have to say about this issue?:

“Simon says: In our fast-paced high-tech society, clients seek instant gratification. If you don't take the opportunity to be the first lawyer to talk with the prospect (or a client), your competitor will, and there's better than a 90% chance that (the) prospect will become his client….”

Every lawyer should put a system in place to ensure that all calls are returned ASAP.

More and more it seems that in-house counsel are expecting their law firms to ask for their feedback. Even though “most general counsel and consultants say those law firms (seeking client feedback) are still in the minority and there isn’t nearly enough of this type of dialogue going on” according to an article on Law.com’s In-House Counsel.  I realize this is an old saw of mine, but it does appear that, with the growing popularity of the Association of Corporate Counsel’s Value Challenge, it will become the norm.

Dan DiLucco of Altman Weil relates that when the attorneys at one of its clients were asked whether their “largest client was forced to cut” its legal budget this year, no one had a clue. As DiLucco put it:

“So what does that tell you… And that…is reflective of where a lot of firms are. They don’t have these discussions. I don’t know what they are thinking.”

The managing partner of one firm mentioned in the article, that has sought feedback through a client panel, said that “reaching out to clients in a proactive way shows a firm cares about their opinions, isn’t afraid to hear them and isn’t going to wait for the clients to take the first step.”

A wise model to follow, I would say, for those firms that want to be out there ahead of the curve. Not only do clients want to provide feedback, they don’t want to have to initiate the discussion.

The jury is still out on social media’s contribution to my bottom line. And tracking the tweets, updates, etc., on LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook, and Plaxo can be time consuming. Accordingly, I’ve dipped my toes in (to mix metaphors with my jury), but clearly not convinced as to value…yet.

Reading a post by Bruce Allen over on Marketing Catalyst from last week, he at least addresses part of my problem (the time part). He deals with it in a way that actually makes some sense… if one is disciplined as much as Bruce apparently is.

First, he addresses the fact that you can reach many more people through social media vs. networking in-person. Then he tells us how much time he spends attending to his online networking each day and how many people he reaches:

• Facebook – 15 minutes/140 people
• LinkedIn – 10 minutes/300
• Twitter – 20 minutes/100

Obviously, he reads faster than me. But, that is a lot of people, if they all read his updates, of course. Moreover, Bruce is not saying that you shouldn’t still network in-person, and he relates a story about running into person that follows him online. Take a read. 

Clearly the social net is a very big “room.” It may just be one we all could benefit from working.

Time for another marketing moment from 365 Marketing Meditations from Levick Strategic Communications for July 22:

“Publish. Gain internal credibility by first getting external imprimatur. Professionals will believe you’re important if someone else thinks you are.”

Let’s take a look at this for a second. I can’t resist, of course.

What this pithy observation is saying is that by publishing in the “right” places, e.g., the ones that your target clients read, you will gain credibility with the publication's readers. The fact that the magazine or journal (print or online) allows you to address their subscribers, gives you credibility with that audience, and others that hear about it or see it.

The same applies to public speaking. By picking an organization that has the audience that you desire to represent, the organization's credibility among its members will be transferred to you by the fact that you have been allowed to address them.

That is why speaking and writing are still excellent business development tools. Of course, you could lose that "free" gift by delivering a boring speech – both content-wise or with a poor delivery – or a poorly written article.

Basically, you’ve been given a free lunch, that you best be grateful for by doing an excellent job in delivering meaningful content.
 

A new survey by The BTI Consulting Group, as reported in Law.com’s In-House Counsel, tells us that corporations are reducing the number of secondary law firms they use, not just to save costs, but to save administrative time in managing outside law firms.

Survey data show the following breakdown of the reduction (and intended drop) in the number of outside firms used:

• 2007 – 2/10/40 (primary law firms/secondary/other firms)
• 2008 – 2/9/32
• 2012 – 2/6/23

Okay, the data are telling but not conclusive, and 2012 is a long way off. Further, the “new legal model” (whatever that means) could be very different by then. What might this mean for medium to smaller firms, when they are not one of the client’s “primary” law firms.

The survey also shows that corporate counsel are reluctant “to work with firms that aren’t flexible in billing, staffing matters and communicating with the client,” according to Michael B. Rynowecer, president of BTI. Moreover, in spite of the reduction, it showed “the same companies making a marked migration to smaller firms.”

So, what’s up? Well, it seems that non-BigLaw firms that demonstrate billing and staffing flexibility, and effectively communicate with the client are very much in play even as the number of overall firms is reduced.

One suggestion, along the communication line, would be to ask corporate counsel how your firm can help in reducing the administrative time (and costs) of managing their outside matters. 

As mentioned on several blogs, and in an ABA Journal online article, a recent survey of CLO’s made clear that in-house counsel aren’t buying the concept of a “new legal model.” It isn’t that they don’t want one, it’s just that 75% gave their firms a 0 to 4 (out of ten), “indicating that firms have little or no interest in change;” that is, delivering greater value for the services provided. According to Dan DiLucchio in a press release issued by Altman Weil, which conducted the 2009 Chief Legal Officer Survey, “[T]his is a dramatic vote of no confidence from chief legal officers.”

What that means for the more flexible, responsive medium- to small-sized law firms, is that they could make serious inroads into the once exclusive large firm domain. How? Some of the ways might include:

• Increasing value in terms of pricing products and how the services are delivered;
• Offering alternative fees, including flat fees;
• Improving responsiveness and timeliness of services;
• Seeking more client input and feedback;
• Offering freebies, including CLE seminars, short phone calls, emails, etc.;
• Stopping the nickel and diming of clients relating to overhead costs;
• Avoiding surprises and providing regular updates at no charge; and
• Taking time to really understand the client’s business off the clock.

A simple way learn what clients want in terms of value is to ask them what they would like to see in that regard. Not only will these firms learn what will make their existing clients happy and raving fans, but what would likely sell to those CLO’s that don’t believe their current firms are serious about a new legal model.

If it doesn't, it needs one. I've enjoyed Patrick Lamb's posts over the years at In Search of Perfect Client Service; and have been remiss in not linking to them more recently. He had a post last month that I missed at the time, but I'm glad I ran across it.

Patrick states that for marketing to be effective it must both have a point, and not insult its audience. He cites an example of a national accounting firm's NPR “ad" proclaiming that they "are dedicated to providing our clients with thoughtful answers." (Emphasis mine) Is there another kind? Or as Patrick puts it "is there some large cadre of accounting firms that provide thoughtless answers?"

So the question is, what is their point? If it isn't obvious, it's likely a waste of money. Further, statements like these really can insult the listener or viewer. Thus, the need for a "quality control element to everything a firm does to present itself to the public."

A marketing cop (a.k.a. marketing director or CMO) needs to ensure that the messages going out to the world are neither pointless nor insulting. 

We all know that content is still king, right? I discussed this in a recent post,  however I didn't talk about specific ways to improve your content. My friend Trey Ryder, as is so often the case, provides some really good ideas in his current newsletter. One of his feature articles by Tom Trush deals with how to pack your website with the content that clients are looking for.

I want to focus on just one of his suggestions, which I really like (the others are referenced below). The tool is Wordtracker Labs’ Keyword Questions feature. The idea is that you enter a keyword, for example, “employment law." It will come up with a number of questions that people have asked about that. Then you ensure that your content addresses those specific questions, phrases, terms, etc. It's as simple as that.

I didn't know about this feature and I think it's great!

The other tools (which you can read more about in Trush's article) to improve your content include:

• Twitter.com (insert the applicable term(s) relative to your practice in the search box, and read the posts for language to use on your site);
• Amazon.com (I like his suggestion of looking at the TOC of books relative to your practice and ensuring you cover the same topics within your content); and
• Your site's statistics (“you’ll see the exact terms people” used to land on your site, so ensure that you use those exact terms on your site).

Now, there is no excuse for not making your website content better.

Being totally honest, when I first saw the title of Jeff Berman’s post on AttorneySync about Billy Mays, who recently died suddenly, I thought it was a bit insensitive in its timing. But, as I started reading “6 Things We Can Learn From Billy Mays About Lawyer Marketing” (and before I saw his cite to one of my posts -- honest), I realized I had rushed to judgment. Not only was Jeff sensitive to the great “pitchman’s” passing, but his points were right on target relative to lawyer marketing.

Since Billy Mays was local to my area, his passing was extensively covered in the local papers, as well as online. I learned a lot from those who knew and loved him. Most importantly, he loved what he was doing, and he never pushed products he didn’t believe in. That is Jeff’s overall point, I believe.

So, here are his six pointers:

1. Use the “WOW” factor. He, nor I, don’t mean “wow” in any unprofessional sense, but rather by demonstrating your niche and expertise after better understanding the issues and building some trust (this is best done by listening to the client more than 50% of the time - a WOW factor in itself);
2. Enjoy your practice. Here Jeff refers to my recent post and the reference to David Maister’s survey about too many lawyers don’t enjoy their work or the clients they do it for;
3. Undertake services you really believe in. If you do not believe in the value of the services you provide, you simply cannot do as good a job as you would if you “offered good value and solved a problem for people” with heart like Mays did;
4. Provide quality presentations. Ensure that your presentation – whether in a formal speech, elevator pitch, or in casual conversation is “professional, unique, & polished;”
5. Know your audience and whom you trying to reach. In order to effectively develop business, lawyers too need to know their market and target clients; and
6. Network effectively. Networking with “strong professional connections,” again like Mays did, will improve your success in developing business.

Thanks, Jeff.

It should be no secret that web site content continues to be king for purposes of search engines. Keywords, title tags, etc. are just additional jewels on the crown. So, keeping your web site fresh in terms of new content, fresh tags and keywords is important.

Further, according to SEO expert Tom O’Leary at The Attorney Marketing Blog in a post today, smaller firms have an advantage over BigLaw when it comes to search engines. It isn’t that they couldn’t overpower the smaller firms with their extra people power, it’s just that they don’t.

According to Tom, solo’s and small firms dominate search engine results in various markets and categories. He says it has something to do with BigLaw’s “complex, database-driven web sites,” which are not search engine friendly, managed by outside vendors without SEO experts, and burdened by fear of change due to their “huge investment” in their current site. And, too few large firms have blogs (although individual lawyers in some of these firms have very good ones), which search engines do like.

Tom’s advice to smaller firms: “keep adding content and posting to your blog.” This will give you a competitive advantage when it comes to Internet marketing. 

Unfortunately, too many lawyers don't enjoy either. What a shame!

I remember in David Maister's book True Professionalism where he recounts that 75% to 80% of lawyers he has surveyed merely tolerated or disliked the work they did in the past year or so. And 65% to 70% had similar reactions when asked about the client 's they had done the work for. Truly sad!

Again, I have to give credit to Larry Smith and Richard Levick of Levick Strategic Communications and their 365 Marketing Meditations: Daily Lessons for Marketing and Communications Professionals for the timing of this post. Their meditation for today states "don't work with people you don't like."

The solution: spend your marketing and business development efforts and resources seeking the legal work and clients you do enjoy. Don't waste your marketing time or dollars on the rest.

Entertaining clients and referral sources will not, by itself, result in new client work or a new matter. However, taking a client out to a ballgame or to the opera can enhance a relationship and help build a friendship. It can also help maintain long-term clients and referrals.

As I was searching for a blog idea, I ran across yesterday's "meditation" by Richard S. Levick and Larry Smith of Levick Strategic Communications from their little handbook entitled 365 Marketing Meditations: Daily Lessons For Marketing & Communications Professionals. It reads:

"Do not count on entertaining clients as a way to get their business. That is only a first step. Some executives go out of their way not to hire people who take them to ballgames."

I have no personal knowledge that executives would resent being entertained, but I can see that it is possible, without a pre-existing relationship of some sort, that such an invitation may be taken the wrong way. And I'm not sure that entertaining is necessarily the "first" step, when in fact it could be the 10th; but, the overall message is valid.

We need to keep in mind that we are in the relationship building business, and that entertaining is just one tool in developing business from clients and referral sources. But standing alone, it isn't enough.

Every lawyer should have a good referral system in place, since at least 71% of new work comes from referrals, as mentioned in an earlier post. As that post noted, “giving vs. getting” is a very important element of any system. And every lawyer should check to insure his/her outgoing referral – whether to another lawyer, accountant, banker, etc. – was satisfactory to those being referred.

Bob Weiss has an item in the current issue of ABA’s Law Practice Today that points out the importance of checking on referrals you make to assure that the person was well served. A bad referral is worse than no referral. Bob suggests:

“Calling the person you referred soon after making the referral. Make sure the call was taken, or that the email sent or voice mail left was responded to timely. Eventually, find out how well the matter was handled, if the results attained were satisfactory and if the fees charged were fair.”

Then, provide feedback to the professional involved. He also recommends, when making a referral, to provide “three names,” so the client can make up their own mind after talking with each. Of course, let each referral contact know that you gave their name to a client. 

My friend Stacy West Clark has 25 suggestions for adding value to your relationship with “current clients, referral sources and potential clients,” which are for the most part “free.” And I agree that by following her suggestions, “you will get business” as well.

Stacy’s article appeared in both The Legal Intelligencer and on Law.com’s Small Firm Business. Here are a few of her suggestions that I especially like, and have discussed at one time or another myself:

• Visit your clients off the clock;
• Ask for client feedback;
• Buy your clients products and services, where possible;
• Send them customers or clients;
• Support your client’s charity(ies) of choice;
• Offer free CLE programs for their legal department;
• Attend board meetings free;
• Nominate your client for an award;
• Give the client’s kids tickets to events, theme parks, and such;
• Entertain clients;
• Ask client to join a panel with you; and one of my favorites
• Befriend your clients. 

Whatever moves you, do something that will add value to your client relationships.

Some may think that I have schizophrenic tendencies for saying "Surprise Your Clients!" in one recent post and "Clients Abhor Surprises” in an earlier one. Well, let me make this perfectly clear. That doesn't prove a thing. Although it does, it doesn't. Oops.

In a recent article by Amy Miller in The AmLaw Daily a number of In-house counsel, who attended E. I. du Pont de Nemour's recent legal network meeting, made it clear that it is "okay to spoil the ending" and "to be boring." In other words, the message from “In-House Lawyers to Outside Counsel: No Surprises, Please.” 

They pointed out that predictability, "maybe even more than alternative-billing arrangements," is what they want. Additionally, they:

• Don't want their lawyers to be strangers,
• "Be budget friendly," and
• Look for early resolutions to their cases.

Nonetheless, I would venture to say that in-house counsel would not mind pleasant surprises, such as outside lawyers that beat their own deadlines, understood their business, seek feedback and let clients determine the value of a matter. Those are just some of the good surprises that were mentioned in my post "Surprise Your Clients!" In fact, if outside lawyers were to make those "surprises" routine, then they wouldn't really be surprises and my schizophrenia would disappear. That’s a good.

The important point is to avoid bad surprises and emphasize the good ones in your client relationships.

A client reminded me this past week, as we’re about to begin another coaching group, that I should emphasize to the lawyers that business development is not a single event but rather an ongoing process. As he put it, the lawyers need to realize that the coaching program is not about hitting home runs, but rather getting singles.

Sara Holtz over at Women Rainmakers bLAWg also reports on some good advice she received from a client along the same vein. She referred to it as “baby steps,” and relates how she started walking to relieve stress, then running and finally working herself up to a half-marathon not having that goal in mind when she started. Goals are a good thing, but a dose of realism when starting out is even better.

I agree with Holtz that “this business development stuff is like the running” or like playing baseball. Both analogies work when it comes to developing legal business. Lawyers should not expect that by starting to jog that they will make the Olympic team in the same year, or go from the minors to the major leagues and win MVP in the next All Star game.

The process of developing business takes a lot of work over time. And we both agree that you start "small with low hanging fruit" such as with existing clients, friends and referral sources. Expectations need to be realistic, and lawyers need to be in it for the long haul.

It’s nice when clients understand that.

Many years ago when I moved to Columbus, Ohio, I needed a brake job on my car. I went to the dealer, and also a small shop I heard about. The mechanic’s quote was actually higher than the dealer, but I decided to use him anyway since his reasoning was sound. However, when I went to pick up my car, the cost of the repairs was nearly 25% cheaper than he had quoted because the brake shoes were less than he thought.

Okay, I’m never going back to that guy, right? Huh! I probably sent him 15 customers in the next several years (he should have paid me a commission), and I never asked again for an estimate of repairs in advance.

What brought this story to mind is an article in Trey Ryder’s recent newsletter suggesting that if lawyers instilled similar loyalty in their clients, they “would not even think about hiring another lawyer.” His story is also about his car and the value his dealer added to their relationship. Trey’s ideas for lawyers involve adding value to the client’s experience by “how fast you respond to clients, how accessible you are, the services you offer, and your staffing and client resources.”

Getting back to my mechanic story, consider this idea. Knock 10% to 15% off an invoice and let the client know you did so because the matter took longer than you thought it would or should? The client’s trust in you – and loyalty – might just grow exponentially. Do you think? 

In several posts over the last couple of months (see Continue Reading below for four of them), I have mentioned that now is the perfect time for smaller firms to approach in-house counsel at larger corporations for business. Some of those reasons include:

• Rates are more reasonable;
• In-house lawyers are more cost conscious;
• More flexibility when it comes to alternative fees;
• Greater value from partners vs. inexperienced associates in larger firms;
• Fewer conflicts of interest problems; and
• Some BigLaw partners are moving to smaller firms.

Okay, you may say, so what are the do's and don'ts in pitching corporate counsel? Here are a few things to keep in mind in approaching potential clients, according to Frank M. D'Amore, the founder of Attorney Career Catalysts, in an article that appears on Law.com's Small Firm Business. You should:

1. Differentiate yourself in a “significant way."
2. Do not oversell your lawyers' capabilities (in-house counsel can tell a lot by what is said and not said in a lawyer's bio);
3. Do not oversell your firm's capabilities (In-house counsel are not fooled by inflated claims about particular expertise on a law firm's web site);
4. Do ask the prospect, what specifically they are looking for in order that your proposal will be specific (and avoid seeking work when it is beyond the scope of your firm's core capabilities. The reason is pretty simple really. When given another opportunity to pitch the company for work where your firm is strong, your prior honesty will greatly enhance your chances of winning that work); and
5. Finally, don't overpower the potential client by sending too many lawyers, or sending the wrong lawyers; e.g., a lawyer for diversity purposes when they will have no role to play in the matter or a senior corporate lawyer for the “grey hair” affect for a litigation matter.

D'Amore points out that in-house lawyers are pretty savvy and have been pitched by many law firms. So, be specific and truthful as to the true capabilities and value your firm brings to the table.

In my last post, I talked about some simple, smart ideas from Reid Trautz that were pretty easy to implement. One of them involved lawyers “experiencing” what clients experience upon entering the firm’s office.

Building on that idea, I came across an interview of Gerry Riskin of Amazing Firms, Amazing Practices by Arnie Herz of Legal Sanity. Although there are consultants out there who openly refer to themselves as experts or gurus (no names of course), Gerry is not one of them, because he doesn’t have to, and because he is too classy. But, he is one. And I’ve been a fan of his for years.

In his exchange with Arnie, Gerry relates a simple tale of how a powerful, successful person he met on an airplane told him in response to a question that his “biggest complaint about a law firm” was his “reception area experience.” He was pretty much ignored by everyone, including partners, who traversed the area as he sat there. It was as if he didn't exist. I can sorta empathize with that person, except for the billionaire part.

Gerry points out that obviously this is not intentional behavior, but rather "blind spots, based on familiarity." He then goes on to say that what is needed is a fresh set of eyes, and "the best source of fresh eyes is your clients." And the way to get them is to ask your clients what they like and don't like about their experience with your firm, and what should be done differently.

Good client experiences = successful business development.

Reid Trautz, one of the blogosphere’s pioneers at Reid My Blog, has a helpful piece in the current issue of the ABA’s GPSOLO Magazine where he shares a “few management ideas that, through a small investment of time, can have the biggest impact on clients, office productivity, firm profitability, and your quality of life.” Many of them would apply no matter what size your firm.

His main point is that with all the pressures on lawyers today – billing, business development, family demands/desires, managing your practice, and personal self-time – some simple management ideas could keep the best of us from burning out.

Specifically, Trautz provides his ideas in five areas: Client Service, Financial Management, Marketing, Technology, and Office Systems and Processes. Although one can argue (as I often have) that everything a lawyer or firm does is related to marketing in one way or another, I will confine this post to his suggestions in the areas of client service and marketing specifically.

Client Service

• Enter your office and open your eyes to what clients see and how they “experience” it, starting with the look and feel, to the likely personal interactions they’ll encounter; then, draw up a “list of improvements;” (better yet, ask them in person);
• Prepare a client satisfaction survey (or use one of those he suggests) and put it online (better yet, ask them in person); and
• Review and revise your engagement letter to meet ethical standards (he suggestions many do not), and eliminate legal jargon (basically make it a positive, friendly document); and

Marketing

• Require that everyone in your office understand their role in marketing, and to buy-in to contributing in some way (and the firm should provide the necessary training where needed);
• Keep the marketing plan simple and short, but with meaningful, measurable action items that will develop the clients you want, in the practice areas you enjoy. Further, aim to gain more of the same (start with your current financial records to see where the said desirable work is currently coming from);
• Turn a seminar speech into an article for publication, and then send it to clients and to those you met at the seminar (what Trautz calls “four-for-one” marketing); and
• Improve your web site with testimonials (where ethical rules permit), and add a video to your site.

Not all marketing and business development ideas need to be difficult or stressful. Sometimes simple is smarter.

Emotion has everything to do with everything we do in life. Yet apparently, the B2B marketplace according to a Gallup Poll doesn’t reflect the importance of an emotional connection when it comes to business-to-business dealings. I guess I’m surprised by that, and would think that such is not the case when it comes to the legal industry. Since we are in the personal services business and oftentimes legal issues can get very emotional, it is hard to imagine that emotion doesn’t play an important role in the B2B legal world.

I’m not sure why any business, whether B2B or B2C wouldn’t think that emotion is an important element in any relationship. Yet, according to that Gallup poll, reported by Ed O’Boyle in the Gallup Management Journal, 65% of B2B customers are either not emotionally engaged or actively disengaged, while only 45% are emotionally attached or fully engaged. If those numbers are even closely mirrored in the legal community, then there are a lot of business clients that could be persuaded to “engage” another law firm.

Thanks to Mike O’Horo at SalesResults for his discussion of this in his May 19 issue of Results Mail. It got me thinking about a 2005 post of mine where I talked about the "emotion factor" and how any client relationship should contain large doses of making the client feel good about what you and your firm did for them. You might find it worth another (or initial) read.

In this economy, a little love will go a long way in retaining key clients.

Not only is client feedback important, but in past posts I have sung the praises for in-house client feedback programs that demonstrate to clients the firm's management is sincere in determining whether the client is satisfied with the law firm's services.

An article in last month's Strategies, the journal of the Legal Marketing Association by Joyce Smiley wrote about providing real value to clients with satisfaction surveys. Her article covered two points that I agree with. First, the firm should conduct client feedback surveys, and secondly, that law firms need to develop a “complete program” after a few initial successes.

Smiley mentions three surveys, two by The American Lawyer. One late last year where only "2% of the responding firms made the effort in 2008 to meet with their top 20 billing clients. The other survey was of in-house counsel members of the networking site Legal OnRamp who "reported that their outside firms don't even bother with client satisfaction surveys." The third survey was of LMA’s members that showed that in 2008 client feedback was “respondents’ lowest (budget) priority.”

Okay, so the message is clear. Client satisfaction checking wasn’t a big deal in 2008. And based on this year’s marketing budgets, you can be certain that they ain’t lookin a whole lot better for 2009.

The bright side is that a few firms are taking a longer term view by actually establishing in-house feedback programs, as I reported in an Of Counsel article last October. One firm I mentioned, Duane Morris (who unfortunately let their “client interviewer” go with a round of staff layoffs just before the article went to press), was also highlighted by Smiley. It’s good to hear that DM’s program is still ongoing.

Whether the firm has an in-house program or uses outside consultants for their client satisfaction surveys, they need to be careful that the feedback programs are not perceived by clients as just another marketing fad. Smiley reports in her article on how one in-house counsel, who was asked to be part of a client panel at a law firm, felt that the discussion was really about marketing, rather than client satisfaction. Moreover, this in-house counsel stated “we’re going to do (performance reviews) internally,” since the law firms weren’t serious about doing them themselves.

• Lesson One: Conduct client satisfaction surveys (whether using an in-house program or an outside 3rd party) or you can be certain that the client will be riding that horse; and
• Lesson Two: Be sincere (make sure your efforts come across as truly seeking feedback and relationship building), and the marketing will take care of itself.

If there is one thing I have preached over the years is to NEVER surprise your clients. In conducting client interviews over the years, I have consistently heard from law firm clients that they HATE surprises. So, what’s up with the title to this post? Have I gone mad? I’ll leave that to others.

By way of explanation, I ran across an interview by Dan Schawbel at Personal Branding Blog with Andy Nulman, author of a book about profiting from the power of surprise when it comes to developing your brand. What I gather that Nulman is talking about is standing out from the crowd, being distinctive…yes even shocking to your target audience.

It got me thinking about what kinds of surprises by law firms would actually “shock”clients in a good way. What immediately came to mind includes:

• Not just meeting deadlines, producing your work product early;
• Returning calls promptly, like almost immediately;
• Discounting a bill without being asked;
• Raising billing rates only after discussing it with the client;
• Understanding – really understanding – their business;
• Letting clients determine the value of a project; and
• Seeking feedback, and then acting on what you hear.

Maybe surprises are not always a bad thing. And undoubtedly some firms actually get it and have surprised their clients in some of these ways.

So, yes, surprise your clients… but pleasantly in ways that matter.

A litigator with 57 years of experience was recently quoted in an article on Law.com’s Small Firm Business on the art of attracting clients.

One might think that someone who started practicing law in 1952 might be a bit long in the tooth when it comes to developing business in this day and age. The world is different today after all. Well, maybe it is and maybe it isn’t.

Frank Love, Jr., formerly with Powell, Goldstein, Frazer & Murphy (now part of Bryan Cave), gives some very sound advice that is just as valid today as it was in the “days of old.” Some of his sagacity: (with my usual comments in parenthesis)

• “When the economy is bad, litigation explodes. And when the economy is good, litigation goes down and corporate goes up;”
• What hasn’t changed in this world is “the need to attract clients;”
• And you “have to do something…,” Love says. “If people don’t know you, they’re not going to hire you, and if lawyers don’t know you (including in your own firm, I might add), they are not going to refer business to you;”
• Ask clients for work (I have clients you have told me they are afraid to ask). If you don’t, “they won’t think of it,” according to Love.
• “Happy clients are a good source of business” (so find out if they are, and correct what makes them unhappy); and
• Take clients “out now and then,” and don’t eat “lunch on your desk.”

And maybe his sagest advice of all involves the use of the telephone:

"One of the big problems I have with all this electronic communication. Instead of picking up the phone and talking to the client, you send e-mail. There are two things wrong with that. One, it creates a record of whatever you said that is difficult to get rid of. And two, it's not personal. You don't get a personal response. You get another e-mail in response. And oftentimes they're misconstrued."

Now there is some old fashion advice worth paying attention to. According to French author Andre Maurois (July 26, 1885 – October 9, 1967) “Growing old is no more than a bad habit which a busy person has no time to form.”

So, follow Love's and Maurois' sage advice. Get busy and crank up that marketing.

In yesterday’s online issue of AmericanLawyer.com, there was more talk about corporations, who have traditionally utilized BigLaw, switching to smaller law firms. Companies like Nouveau Elevator Industries, SAIC, Cisco Systems, HCA, and 3M Company are among those cited in the article “The Big Squeeze” (free registration required) as switching at least some of their business to smaller firms. Others are being told “how many associates can be on a case, how many depositions they can take, and to settle cases sooner,” according to the article.

Some of the firms adversely impacted apparently include Wilson Elser Moskowitz Edelman & Dicker (750-plus lawyers), Cooley Godward Kronish (600-plus), Fried, Frank, Harris, Shriver & Jacobson (675), Latham & Watkins (2300-plus) and Simpson Thatcher & Bartlett (860-plus).

Some of the firms gaining work include: Munger Tolles & Olson (192 lawyers), Morrison Cohen (95 lawyers), Fitzpatrick, Cella, Harper & Scinto (150 lawyers), O’Connor, O’Connor, Hintz & Deveney (18 lawyers), and Frenkel Lambert Weiss Weisman & Gordon (28 lawyers).

Nouveau in explaining their reasoning for parting ways with Wilson Elser said: : “If you can conserve capital in any way, you do,” says Timothy McEnaney, Nouveau’s general counsel. “And if the quality of service is as good or better – and in this case it’s better (ouch!) – then it’s foolish not to make the change.”

The opportune time is now to let BigCorp know that you have quality talent and are cheaper to boot. So, don’t wait until your BigLaw competitors become SmallLaw competitors (what with the shedding of associates, staff and slashing those first year salaries and all), you never know when those large firms might just be your size again.

In the meantime, crank up those business development efforts aimed at BigCorp.

Over the past several weeks, I have been emphasizing during my client coaching calls how easy it is to set up Google Alerts for their business development targets (i.e., clients, referral sources and prospects). Then when they pick up tidbits of information about these targets, they can use it as an opportunity to make contact (borrowing from the real estate industry, the most important factor in personal services marketing is: contact, contact, contact) to build on an existing or desired relationship. Or use the Alerts to learn more about your competitors.

It should take you about 10 seconds to set up an Alert. You enter the name (put multiple words in quotes “ABC Corporation” or “Jane Doe”), leave “comprehensive” as is, select how often, and insert your email address. That’s it. You’re done.

As for Google Profiles, I ran across a post by John Jantsch today pointing to the value of creating your own Google Profile. It seems that if someone were to do a Google search for you, by having your own profile, you would “own as much of the real estate that pops up under you(r) name on page one” of the search results.

That is a good reason to create your profile today. I’m in the process of doing just that myself. And don’t forget to set up your Alerts also.

Happy googling.

It has been a couple of years since I looked at 365 Marketing Meditations: Daily Lessons for Marketing & Communications Professionals. This handbook of snippets produced by Richard Levick and Larry Smith of Levick Strategic Communications, is a goldmine of useful, pithy sayings useful to the legal marketing community.

I picked it up today for an idea for a post (okay, okay, I’m having writer’s block). Today’s meditation is:

“Observe a small need and fill it. If a client complains mildly about how his phone wire is always getting tangled up, send him a phone line detangler! He’ll think of you every time he makes a call.”

Irrespective of the fact that the world is mostly wireless these days, and the fact that I don’t have a clue what a “detangler” is, the advice is still valuable. 

So, what does/do your top client(s) need? You don’t know? Hmmm.

Do your competitors’ know? Could they find out? Hmmm.

Visit and talk with (i.e., listen to) your clients. Today, April 23^rd is a great day to start.

We’ve talked about (here and here) several reasons why small and mid-sized regional law firms are picking up corporate work that has traditionally been done by larger law firms. The reasons include:

• Lower hourly rates,
• Alternative fees,
• Tighter in-house budgets,
• BigLaw partners departing for smaller firms to retain clients,
• Unsustainable associate salaries in large firms,

Now comes another reason I hadn’t thought about. According to a post by Rees Morrison, whose blog focuses on in-house legal departments, “it will cost less per hour for some companies to use outside lawyers than inside lawyers.” Again, more opportunities for smaller, more economical law firms to pick up work usually left to larger law firms.

The reasons, according to Morrison, include:

1. Legal departments are shedding junior lawyers, just like large law firms, in favor of senior, more expensive lawyers;
2. Switching to “smaller or less-expensive firms is gaining traction” as billing rates “are more modest”; and
3. Routine discounts, fixed fees and other “techniques further reduce the effective billing rates.”

So, Morrison’s point is that “inside lawyer costs will sometimes match or exceed rates of outside lawyers. Thus, more opportunities would seem obvious for such firms that let in-house counsel know about their capabilities and talent – oh yeah, and their more reasonable fees also. 

Go for it.

Back in February I wrote the post Your Personal Brand is Important For Your Success. In it, I said:

“Your personal brand impacts whether clients hire you or not. I believe that how you act in public, treat your staff, dress, contribute to the community, talk to strangers, act with your clients, etc. etc., is all part of selling yourself to clients, referral sources, and potential clients.”

But, is that enough from a business development perspective? Not if you are the owner of a business that you want to survive you. Your personal brand is very important, but so too is your business’ brand.

What got me thinking about both brands was a post by John Jantsch over at Duct Tape Marketing, that puts the greater weight on the business brand vs. the personal brand. Of course, he is not talking about personal services, such as legal and accounting services. And he has a point about building a business brand when growing a consumer based business, particularly if it is a business the founders want to outlive them or if the owner wants to sell the business. Then, the personal brand is not as important.

However, in the case of legal services both the personal and business brand are very significant. Since most clients hire lawyers not law firms, the personal brand is incredibly important. But, so too is the firm’ s brand, especially if the firm plans to continue when the senior attorneys retire.

So, when it comes to developing legal business, don’t forget that both brands play an important role.

Last week a client asked me for ideas on how to begin his CLE presentation before a state bar group. We talked about humor as an ice breaker, if he was comfortable with that. After that call, I ran across a post by Tom Antion at Great Public Speaking blog about showing up early and listening to the other speakers who are presenting ahead of you. 

Antion was suggesting this tactic as a way to avoid embarrassment and being able to play off of other speakers at the conference. You don’t want to end up talking about a subject that has already been covered or at least touched upon, and you come across as being clueless as to what has already transpired at the event. That’s a bad.

And by referring to something that one or more speakers said before you shows that you’re connected to the conference, as well as to the other speakers. That’s a good.

By doing that, Antion gives us an example of how he was able to turn an earlier speaker’s comments into a humorous ice breaker for himself. Here’s what he wrote:

“Example: Superstar speaker Ted Nicholas said that advances in health care and longevity would soon allow people to live to be 120 years old. He said he was going to throw a $10,000.00 seminar on his 120th birthday. I came on and said that not only was I going to throw a $10,000.00 seminar on my 120th birthday, but that I was going to give the audience members a big discount if they gave me a deposit today. -- Everyone cracked up.”

According to general counsel Paul Newton of Bupa, the large U.K. based international health insurance company with 8 million customers in 190 countries, “some of these savings have got to find their way into clients’ pockets, not just partners’ pockets.” His comments appeared in an article on the U.K.’s legalweek.com entitled “Time To Focus On Clients’ Health.”

As he put it, he and others are obviously aware of the “cost cutting at law firms of late – and, unsurprisingly, in-house lawyers are asking where the savings will go.” Clearly, he won’t be happy if some of these savings are not shared with his company.

I don’t mean to be cynical, but I expect many large law firms are primarily cutting associates and staff to ensure that the partners make more money.  If in-house lawyers in the U.K. are looking to share in such cost savings, are their U.S. counterparts far behind. Newton informs us that he was able to reduce the rates of one of his regional law firms by 50%. “It is amazing what you can achieve when you start introducing a bit of competition,” he is quoted as saying.

I’m not proposing that BigLaw clients here at home hold their breath until they get their share of these savings, quite the contrary. This presents another solid reason why they should consider utilizing the legal services of small to mid-sized firms instead.

Just one more business development opportunity that presents itself to smaller, more cost efficient law firms.

Law departments in large corporations and some law firms are definitely re-evaluating their relationships, according to an article in the March issue of Inside Counsel magazine. The article <"Feeling the Pinch: How the economic crisis could change your law firm relationships” sets forth succinctly the realities of today’s world.

Even though in-house lawyers in large corporations generally come from large outside law firms, and thus are comfortable with (1) the relationship with BigLaw, and (2) the hourly billing structure. Yet, the downturn in the economy is forcing “change in [this] dysfunctional, even codependent relationship.”

The change won’t come easily, but change will happen because it is being forced upon in-house lawyers via their budgets, and some outside law firms have removed their heads from the sand; albeit too few. Therein, lie the opportunities for smaller firms.

Said opportunities exist because:

• Too few firms are re-evaluating their client relationships. Although a few (approximately 60 out of 500 or so) law firms that service Fortune 1000 companies have improved “relationships with their clients as a result of the downturn,” not enough are doing so;

• Mid-sized firms are well positioned to provide greater value. First, these smaller firms charge for an experienced partner what some large firms charge for a junior associates. Secondly, partners in large firms are departing because they realize they might lose clients due to their firm’s high costs, whereas they can “service the same clients at a more reasonable rate” at a smaller firm;

• Alternative fees are coming into vogue. Although some large firms are finally looking more seriously at such billing alternatives as fixed fees, too many are still reluctant to use them. Why? Because they are “notoriously bad” at managing themselves effectively, which is critical when not charging by the hour;

• High associates salaries are unsustainable. Except in the very top firms, “$160,000 or even $200,000” for new associates is unaffordable for the majority of law firms. Yet, many law firms continue to pay (if they are hiring at all) these high salaries. That is just not sustainable. Maybe that explains why thousands of associates (and staff) have been put out into the cold; and

• Not enough benchmarking. The article reports that some firms are embracing metrics, but again, too few are benchmarking “net effective hourly rate” or “their client satisfaction performance.” These are some of the “proven indicators” looked at in other industries. Many large firms are reluctant to talk with their clients during these difficult times because of fear of what they may hear, smaller firms have the advantage of being naturally closer to their clients, and better able to talk with them about the real world.

So, again I’ll ask the same question I asked in my last post: What are you waiting for? Crank up the marketing. Opportunities should be abundant.

It was reported in Law.com’s In-House Counsel back in 2007 that small firms were using flat fees to gain an edge in taking corporate clients from larger firms.

That is still the case. As reported in a post on the Desert Law Blog citing the now famous New York Times article quoting Evan Chesler of Cravath, Swaine & Moore denouncing the billable hour, small firms are still ahead of large firms in going to flat fees. In fact, the post points out how difficult it will be for large firms to make the shift to alternative fees in spite of Chesler’s comments.

Now there seems to a new twist. In light of the economic realities of 2009, smaller firms are not only taking clients from larger firms, but their taking BigLaw’s lawyers too. A recent article by Lynne Marek in The National Law Journal that appears on Law.com’s Small Firm Business entitled “Big-Firm Partners Go Small to Keep and Attract Frugal Clients” points out that over the past four months partners from “DLA Piper, K&L Gates, Katten Muchin Rosenman and Jenner & Block” have made the move to smaller firms. It is not clear whether this movement is due primarily to the frugality of clients, or that the lawyers themselves want to offer clients lower fees and fewer conflicts of interest.  Does it really matter which?

So, my real question to small and medium-sized firms is very simple: what are you waiting for? Crank up that marketing. Let Corporate America know of the talent you already have to handle their matters at lower, alternative fees.

Your web site, as with all your marketing materials should be consistent and reflect your brand, which hopefully echoes the value you bring to clients who hire the firm. Too few firms do a good job at that. Now, don’t get mad at me. Although I agree with the statement, it really comes from someone who knows and has received dozens of awards for web sites his company has designed over the years.

In an article on branding that appears in the current ABA Journal online, Burkey Belser of Greenfield/Belser Ltd. relates what is wrong with most web sites he has seen. He then shares the three attributes that are present on Baker Hostetler’s site, and should be reflected on any “effective site.” 

They are:

“1) Have a purpose. What do you want the reader to do?
“2) Create a dialogue with the reader.
“3) Position yourself as important, confident and a leader.”

Burkey points out that Baker’s site isn’t perfect, but it is “an exemplar of effective brand­ing.”   What does your web site say about your brand?

A client of mine during one of our weekly coaching sessions last week told me that she was not comfortable asking clients for work. At first, I was taken aback, since I’m thinking that it isn’t as tough as asking a prospect for work. I mean for goodness sake, it is a client that already knows and uses you. Then, I realized she was really saying that she was afraid of rejection or possibly just shy. We talked through the problem, and she became more comfortable with an approach (one idea: ask the client how they would ask their customer/client for work).

Interestingly, an article on this very topic by Allan Colman in Small Firm Business came into my inbox yesterday morning. He raises some good points in his article “Why Do Attorneys Have Trouble Asking Clients for Work?” Although he may be a touch harsh in attributing arrogance in some as the reason for not asking for work, he may be right. In any event, he cites three reasons lawyers don’t ask clients for work.  They are:

• Don’t know how;
• Think it is “beneath them to ask” (or their credentials should speak for themselves); and
• Afraid of rejection.

His suggestions to overcome the above are (in order):

1. Demystify the process, and educate the lawyers that it is an educational, relationship building process that requires time; however, not with interminable lunches/dinners without advances toward a close;
2. Qualifications alone, such as where the lawyer went to school, how long s/he has been practicing, etc., are not enough – although I would take issue with Colman that “past successes” don’t matter. (Clearly they‘re an indication of how successful the lawyer might be with a similar matter.)  Further, there does seem to be solid evidence that less qualified lawyers have landed business because they did ask, and marketed themselves more effectively; and
3. Treat rejection as a new beginning, not the end. It could lead to another opportunity with the same client by continuing to grow the relationship.

It is important to ask for work. Although we were taught in law school that failure isn’t an option, when it comes to marketing, failure is going to happen and that is okay. So, don’t be timid, ask for goodness sake.

Certainly you know of someone who is looking for a job during these tough economic times, whether in our legal community or not. It appears that social media sites may be able to help

I’m learning more each day about the benefits of social media, and don’t pretend to have a full grasp of all its implications. It certainly has tremendous potential from a networking angle, although as I mentioned in my last post I still believe face-to-face networking is more effective.

But, clearly, it has the advantage of reaching a larger audience faster. Thus, thanks to my friend Ford Harding for steering me to Charles Brown at web marketing coach and his post on “7 Great Social Media Resources For Job Seekers.”

Here are some of the resources he talks about:

• A Social Media Strategy For Job Seekers - Part One by Charles Brown.
  
• How I Got My Job Through Twitter by Ann Handley.
  
• "Unemployed (or Preparing to Be)? These Sites Could Be Your Best Friends" by Bill Hurlbut.
• "7 Secrets to Getting Your Next Job Using Social Media," by Dan Schawbel.
  
• "Basic Facebook Strategy | 5 simple steps."
  
• "Twitter - The Second Most Important Social Network"
• Twitter Tips

If you are looking for a job or know someone who is, Brown’s post and the resources listed above are a must read.

According to a guest post on Duct Tape Marketing by Susan Wilson Solovic, CEO and co-founder of SBTV.com (as in Small Business TV), she prefers to network “the old fashion way.” Her post probes the issue whether anyone really knows what networking means anymore.

Before I turn off my LinkedIn, Facebook and Twitter friends, let me quickly say that of course social media is, and will be even more so in the future, a great networking source. And Susan is an active participant on those networks as well.

Her point is that “[r]eal networking is about real people and real relationships. So she says, "let’s get back to the basics and best practices of networking.”  Here are her “three rules for effective networking – the old fashioned way”:

1. Be Committed. Don’t be looking for Instant gratification. It isn’t in the cards. Rather building a “solid foundation of relationships” is what it will take over time. Spend time listening, asking probing questions and finding things you have in common. Susan suggests an opening question like “Tell me about yourself;”
2. Develop a Relationship. Tons of business cards (or “follows” online) isn’t the answer. After an event, she suggests sending an email (ugh, handwritten note is much better) with a copy of an article or link to information about a topic you talked about.  Then, of course, more follow up after more follow up should continue; and
3. Give, give, give. Think of ways to help someone before asking for referrals or otherwise seeking something from them. By being willing to help the other person first, you will become known as the go-to person, and your network will become very strong in the process. So, ask the question “How can I help you?,” Susan suggests.

Okay, okay. I can hear a thousand of you lawyers out there (Susan is a lawyer, BTW) saying “wait a minute, you can do those things via social media too.” True, but can you do them as well? Or is social media the best way to network? IMHO, whenever or wherever possible, the best networking is still face-to-face interaction. It is not as easy for some for sure. But having a million online acquaintances, by itself, is not the answer.

So, don’t hide in front of your computer monitor. Get out there and network in person…after tweeting your heart away, of course.

Focusing on prospects in a down economy – or any economy for that matter – is far down my list of suggested marketing priorities. On a scale of 1 to 10, I’d rank it a 15. Business development activities should be focused on existing clients and referral sources 99.9% of the time in my opinion. There are a few exceptions, but not many.

An aside: I had a partner one time, when I was in-house, who told me – no ordered me – to focus on bringing in new clients, and “stop wasting our time on existing clients we already have.” Putting a high priority on retaining existing clients, and trying to get more work or referrals from said clients was not on his radar screen. He was a bit long in the tooth, so his radar was WWII vintage, and we can pardon him for his lack of marketing sophistication.

Today, there is no such excuse. This past Wednesday, I had the privilege of listening to a free webinar hosted by John Jantsch of Duct Tape Marketing blog fame. His panelists consisted of three highly respected experts in the field of referral marketing – Ivan Misner, Bill Cates and Bob Burg. I thought I pretty much understood the value of referrals. Now, the word “clueless” comes to mind. To say the least, I learned a few things (and I expect I can learn a whole lot more) listening to these guys.

Here are a few of their pointers:

• Key elements for a referral foundation: Visibility, Credibility, Profitability (includes reciprocal referrals);
• Being referable – i.e., potential referrers know you (and what you really do), like you and trust you;
• Common mistakes – not prepared, no system, no script, not collaborative and don’t ask for referrals;
• Focus on giving vs. getting – add value by sending referrals first;
• Develop trust – it is “the ultimate root and source of referrals;”
• Over 71% of new business comes from referrals;
• Women give two to three times more referrals than men;
• Sources of referrals: clients, personal networks and strategic partners; and
• “Referrals are King” in current economic climate – “More important than ever.”

That’s just part of what was covered in the webinar. You may want to buy one or all of their books to learn more. I intend to.

Thanks, John.

Doing a good job for your clients, keeping them informed, not overlawyering or overbilling, treating them with respect, and visiting your clients off the clock are just a few of the ways you can bring value to your client relationships.

Jim Durham, formerly CMO at Ropes & Gray in Boston, spoke to the Delaware Valley Law Firm Marketing Group recently and equated the phrase “Listen to Your Clients, Stupid” with the KISS truism.

Not only is listening to clients simple, it is vital IMHO.

Jim’s speech, as recounted by Julie Meyer on Law.com’s Small Firm Business, addressed successful marketing principles AKA listening to clients by providing value and seeking feedback.

Some of Jim’s suggestions included:

• Asking clients for input to your business plans,
• Communicating effectively,
• Seeking and responding to client feedback,
• Listening to clients (at least 50% of the time, I might add),
• Showing clients you care, and
• Offering alternative fee options.

Retaining clients basically boils down to whether they value your services, and that may equate to whether they had a good experience in dealing with your firm.

Jim also highlighted two signs where clients may not have had a good value experience:

1. When a firm is asked to respond to a client’s RFP, and
2. A client mentions the name of an attorney with another firm in response to the “Who is the best lawyer” you have ever worked with?

So again, how would your clients value your services?

We should all be well way beyond any objections, offense, or ego over whether lawyers are salespeople or not. As I have said before each of us has been a salesperson since birth – when we all started with our pitch to get our mother's attention. And, of course, we were still in training through our teenage years when we almost put our parents over the edge with the wrong pitches.

Chuck Newton at Rides The Third Wave talks about both -- the fact that lawyers sell all the time (to judges, juries, partners, clients, and through ads, brochures, emails, etc.); and often times make the wrong pitch as well.

He is referring to lawyers selling their practice or process, when they should be selling the result. I don't mean the "result" in terms of guaranteeing the outcome in violation of the ethics code. Rather, Chuck is referring to selling the benefits of your service.

Examples:

• Not selling bankruptcy, but financial freedom
• Not a divorce, but peace in life or personal freedom
• Not litigation, but to write a wrong or defend a false claim

I enjoyed his non-legal examples as well, which makes his post worth the read.

Since all lawyers are selling in some form or another, it is best to focus your selling on the goal or benefit that clients are looking for; rather than the process or procedures learned in law school.

There has been an interesting discussion over on the Law Marketing Listserv (subscription required) on the pros and cons of associate origination. The conversation has been very interesting. While there is an increase in associate marketing training and interest in some firms, others (especially MegaFirms) still don’t want their associates unchained from the almighty billable clock.

Such firms are not worried about the gap in the associates’ education, because they don’t ever expect them to bring in clients. Rather, after they have milked them for all the income they can produce, and burned them out (or tossed them out), they’ll just hire more newbies to replace them. It all came back to me this week after reading Grisham’s new book The Associate.  But I digress.

The main reason associates need to learn how to market (or really sell) themselves, is so they will survive the long term. No lawyer can afford to ignore the realities of the Business of Law 101. On a more personal level, associates can’t afford to retain the outmoded thinking that the work will always be there. Heck, I know some partners who, until recently, still thought that.

The reality is that lawyers, who rely on others in their firm to feed them work, will find that at some point in their career they will become too expensive for those other lawyers to do that. As their billable hour rate rises (along with their compensation), eventually they will become too expensive. Then, those internal referrals will go to younger and less expensive associates.

I am not saying that associates need to be concerned about this gap in their education on day one at the firm, since their first goal is to learn to become good, real world lawyers; but, within a year or so, they need to become aware of the need to develop business in the long term to help sustain the law firm and their practice.

Short of that, they better be buying a lot of lottery tickets.

Although I have preached about the need to increase not decrease marketing budgets on this blog over the past month or more, let’s be realistic – I say to myself – not every firm will follow that advice. Some have or will cut budgets no matter what. So, what’s a poor rainmaker suppose to do.

Try to do more with your shrinking budget dollars Michael Fleischner at The Marketing Blog tells us.

How, you may ask? A few things Fleischer suggests include:

• Leverage your client contacts by asking about their other needs, and “pain points”(especially in the current economy);
• Ask for referrals (it is amazing how few lawyers do this), and ask how you might help them with referrals;
• Communicate often and oftener (work at getting more face time or “touch points” with clients and referral sources), and
• Try “new marketing methods or ideas” (this one I might take issue with, and suggest that it’s better to stick with those business development things that have worked in the past IMHO, especially since money is tight).

These actions don’t have to cost a lot of money, and can be accomplished even if your marketing budget is limited.

This is a similar theme to my post last week about not abandoning your niche in a down economy. It is related in the sense that by turning down work that you do not want, don’t usually handled, and is outside your niche is the right move – at any time – but especially now.

Fellow blogger Bruce Allen over at Marketing Catalyst in a post a couple of days ago makes the point that your marketing can be more profitable in the long run by turning down work that is:

• Less profitable and desirable
• Distracts you from spending time with your best clients
• Causes you to procrastinate and not put forth your best effort
• Resulting in creating your own “negative referral network”

He sums it up best:

“Even when we feel the desire to panic our best action is to focus even harder on what we do best and turn down anything and everything outside that envelope. That is where profit lives and our success is ensured.”

Makes pretty good sense to me.

Every lawyer is different from every other lawyer, just as every case is different in some way. Too many clients or potential clients don’t know that. In fact, many think lawyers are pretty much all alike.

Thus, it is very important that when it comes to marketing that you set yourself apart from the crowd. To do this, you need to identify those characteristics, talents, processes, experiences, etc. that are uniquely you, and make sure that you let your existing clients, referral sources, and prospects know what those are, and why they are important.

Thanks to my friend Trey Ryder for his article in his recent newsletter that suggests several ideas that a lawyer can consider to identify their individual traits in three primary areas, to wit:

• Qualifications
• Experience and successes
• How they provide legal services

Take a look at Trey's "only" statements (i.e., I am the only lawyer/law firm that....etc.) and see if they help you uncover your distinctiveness, and then make sure your marketing efforts – i.e., written materials, elevator speech, biography, business development pitch, etc., reflect that uniqueness.

It is very tempting to take whatever legal business comes over the transom in a down economy. Heck, if the firm’s normal business is slow, some lawyers might be tempted to take whatever work comes along. Wrong!

It is the worst time to start diluting your brand. Better to crank up the marketing to get more visibility in the industry or practice area you are known for. Otherwise, it will take longer and cost more to restore your niche when things start turning around.

Sara Holtz agrees in her post “Don’t be tempted to abandon your niche” on her Women Rainmakers bLAWg. According to Sara, if you broaden your marketing efforts because times are tough, it will hurt you in several ways:

• Diffuses your message
• Spreads your resources thinner, and
• Just creates more competition in the broader marketplace.

It is smarter to stick with your niche strategy, rather than diluting it just because the economy is down.

If you believe, as I do, that business development (aka selling) is everything you do as a lawyer, then a recent article by Shai Littlejohn that appeared in The National Law Journal and on Small Firm Business about the importance of your personal brand may be of interest.

Your personal brand impacts whether clients hire you or not. I believe that how you act in public, treat your staff, dress, contribute to the community, talk to strangers, act with your clients, etc. etc., is all part of selling yourself to clients, referral sources, and potential clients. Littlejohn’s points are interesting and support that belief.  They include:

• Your personal brand is how others perceive you, including “work history, reputation, involvement, initiative and personal values”;
• Whether people think you are “competent, committed, available and willing to offer counseling, sometimes for free”; and
• Decision-makers are looking for strong personal brands that include “responsiveness, accuracy, discretion, political savvy, family and participation in lofty priorities beyond day-to-day work.”

Some pretty important personal branding elements right there, I’d say.

Law firm clients often complain that their lawyers do not understand their business. It frustrates them to have to educate their outside lawyers about the issues they deal with, and which their attorneys need to understand, to represent them properly.

And that is only part of the relationship a law firm should seek with their clients. At a client meeting last week, I emphasized to a group of lawyers the importance of making friends with their clients. My point was that if the lawyer and client have a true friendship, there is no reason to worry about another law firm taking the client away.

In addition to knowing a client’s business, lawyers can build on a friendship by helping their clients prosper in their business. Ed Roach over at Small Business Branding discusses a number of ways to do that in his article “Feel the Love”, or what I might suggest shows that you’re a real friend by:

• Talking them up to others, when the opportunity presents itself,
• Referring potential customers to them and let them know about it,
• “Be(ing) honest” and admit when you make a mistake (helps avoid malpractice suits),
• Buying their products, if at all possible,
• Supporting their favorite charities, and interests,
• Treating everyone in their organization with respect,
• Increasing your face time with the client (see my No. 1 Marketing Tip), and
• Of course, delivering your best effort every time.

I met with the managing partner of an 80-lawyer firm on Monday, and was somewhat surprised to hear that the firm has not laid off anyone, not lawyers, not staff. Later the same day, I met with the executive director of a 110-lawyer firm who told me the same thing. What was even more amazing, the latter firm is actually in a hiring mode for lawyers, not because they have too much work for their current staffing level, but because they realize they can pick up some really good talent right now from those BIgLaw firms that are busily shedding terrific talent. With the firm’s reputation for security (they have never laid off lawyers in their nearly hundred year history), they figure they won’t lose this talent when things turn around. Furthermore, the firm is looking to add to their marketing staff also.

Yet, both firms realize their clients are hurting in this current economy, and although these firms are not cutting people, both are cutting the clients some slack in terms of their invoices, mostly by setting up payment schedules that the clients can live with.

That appears to be the consensus of a number of smaller firms (which by definition have more flexibility than large firms) mentioned in an article in the The Connecticut Law Tribune and in Small Firm Business about the need for flexibility and patience in collecting fees these days. 

Obviously, law firms need to be very attentive to collections, especially if they are to avoid having to lay off lawyers and staff. BUT, being flexible and working with clients when it comes to collections in a down economy is very smart marketing, because it will increase the chances for more solid long term relationships.

Now is not the time to panic. Panic can take several forms in today’s economic climate; most notably in the firing of lawyers and staff, hounding clients for payment (not smart marketing for the long term), and cutting costs excessively. That is part of the message garnered by LawPRO magazine from a panel of knowledgeable folks and reported in an article entitled “Surviving the slide: what firms should (and shouldn’t) do to ride out the economic storm.”

The panel, consisting of Ed Flitton, Karen McKay, Gerry Riskin, and Merrilyn Tarlton, provided insight on such topics as: Leadership; Human capital; Employee relations, engagement & morale; Client relationships; Marketing; Finances; Firm compensation; Operations: costs, expenses, budget; and Technology. All of the topics are obviously important and the panelists’ comments on each are worthy of a read.

For my purposes, a few of their comments specifically on marketing and client relationships warrant a mention here. Among other things it is very important to get close to your existing clients. It is vital that you know what they are going through, and determine if you can be more efficient and economical in serving them.

One interesting idea put forth by Tarlton involves putting associates in client offices for training (getting to know the client’s business better) and relationship building purposes. Also, developing creative fee structures, and conducting joint recession planning sessions with clients are additional ways to help each other get through the tough times.

Riskin advises firms to

“…do more marketing, but you (should) focus more on existing clients. Firms generally are reluctant to talk to clients in bad times… Get over that and call… It's a time to get close to these people.”

One way to do that according to McKay is to

“[c]hange your focus to one-on-one. Pick up the phone and call your clients, go and visit them on your way into the office … but make sure they know that the visit is off the timesheet."

Again, there is a lot of good advice that the panel shares with law firms on how to survive the current downturn, and every firm will pick up valuable nuggets by reading this article.

P.S. Thanks to Mark Beese over on Leadership for Lawyers blog for the heads up on this panel and other resources contained in his post “Advice on Weathering the Storm.”

After reading for months about tons of layoffs of both lawyers and staff by BigLaw firms, one may think that the legal business is in trouble in this down economy. Not so fast. An article to the contrary by Thomas Adcock appears in the recent issue of Law.com’s Small Firm Business.

Adcock points to a number of small law firms that are doing just fine, thank you very much. The reasons are varied and include:

• Lower fee structures
• More litigation, generally
• White-collar defense
• Business restructuring, as well as mergers and acquisitions
• Professional liability
• Insurance coverage issues

Moreover, there were a couple of things mentioned in the article that particularly ran true for me (and are applicable to any size firm). The first was a comment by David E. Danovitch of 21-lawyer Gersten Savage that clients will “stick with you through thick and thin so long as they’re happy with your work.” The other was something consultant Ari Kaplan mentioned about “becoming business partners…rather than just problem solvers” for your clients.

So, both of these latter points relate to solid client relationships, which is the key to client retention even in tough economic times; and small and medium-sized firms have a real advantage IMHO.

Evan Chesler, presiding partner at Cravath, Swaine & Moore shocked a lot of people within the legal community with his recent opinion piece on Forbes.com advocating the death of the billable hour.

Basically, he states that the billable hour “makes no sense.” Making more money by dragging out a matter (or in his analogy, making more money by getting “bogged down a land war in Asia”) is “frankly nuts.” Pretty strong words from a firm that doesn’t really have to worry about clients questioning their bills, I wouldn’t expect.

Even though tons of folks (too many people to mention here) in blogosphere, including yours truly, have long advocated doing away with the billable hour, Chesler’s comments, one could argue, clearly takes the debate to a higher level. Not many would expect such a position from a BigLaw firm of Cravath’s stature. Now maybe the concept of alternative fees, although not new, will take on a bit more momentum.

Although there have been many different suggestions for alternative fee arrangements (see Continue Reading below for a few of my posts on the topic), I found a couple of ideas from a named partner in a 10-lawyer Philadelphia area firm worth considering.  Gary Lentz of Bochetto & Lentz wrote an article published in The Legal Intelligencer and on Small Firm Business suggesting a couple of approaches that could attract new clients and enhance fee opportunities  in this down economy.

The following two variations on the same theme are worth consideration by firms of all sizes:

• Multi-phased Fee Agreements
  • Phase I - an initial flat fee to evaluate the case, develop strategy, negotiate and “prompt resolution” (with a potential for a bonus) and drafting complaint, if necessary;
  • Phase II – a mix hourly, fixed fee and/or contingency, if necessary to file and pursue the matter in court.
• Blended Contingency Fee Agreements - an initial flat fee to cover the evaluation of the case and drafting the complaint, followed with a contingency fee based on outcome of the matter.

Take a look. They may just work for your firm, particularly with clients who are encountering their own uncertainties in the current economy.

Meeting client expectations has been a recurring theme of mine, and one I have discussed a number of times in the past. (See Continue Reading below for links to several of them.) But, those posts dealt mostly with meeting client “service” expectations. What about the “outcome” or “results” side of a client engagement.

Chuck Newton’s Rides The Third Wave blog has a post about the dangers relating to client expectations that fall into that category.

Happy clients are the ones whose expectations have been met, and more work or referrals from that client group are a direct result of said happy clients. It makes tremendous sense to make sure you have done a great job of communicating with your clients as to what they can expect not only in how their matter and engagement will be handled, but how realistic their expectations are as to the outcome as well.

It isn’t easy to talk about potential negatives when attempting to sell your services to a potential client. But, the more straight forward a lawyer is in explaining what the client should expect, in both how their matter will be handled and the potential options as to outcome, the better the long term reputation of that lawyer will be.

So, make sure that you ask and understand the expectations of your clients in both areas. That is smart marketing.

If you really want to make a difference so that clients remember you and send you referrals, then a story Trey Ryder tells about a doctor may help. As the story goes, Trey was talking with a small business owner who told him that 15 years earlier his wife’s doctor called on a Saturday to check on how she was doing.

There are two impressive aspects to the story. One, that a doctor called on a Saturday to check on how a patient was doing after surgery; and second that the patient’s husband was still telling the story 15 years later.

Now that’s some awesome word-of-mouth marketing. Funny thing is that same thing happened to me. I still talk about the call I got a few years back from my doctor at 6:00 p.m. on a Saturday. He was calling because he had just gotten back from vacation, and wanted me to know right away that my blood tests came out fine. (Of course, I didn’t mention to him that my blood pressure nearly went through the roof by the very fact that he called on Saturday evening – but why ruin a good story.) I’m not sure how many patients I have sent him since, but heaven knows I have sure recommended him enough times.

So, why not do the same. Pick up the phone and call your client after a matter is completed and ask how they are doing, how you did, and is there anything else you could assist them with. In fact, why not call a client when it’s least expected and bring them up to date on a current matter?

As Trey concludes:

“… when YOU pick up the phone, and YOU take time from your schedule to call your client, that's significant! That's what your client remembers. And that's another reason your client will return in the future -- and send referrals.”

Do you want more traffic coming to your website? Who doesn’t?

Tom O’Leary, a true SEO guru, has a post on leveraging the combined Justia and Cornell University directory listings over on The Attorney Marketing Blog.  He informs us on how you can get the search engines to pay more attention to your web site and/or blog (Tom has done some SEO work on my blog, and I have been very, very pleased).

The directory listings are free and Tom lays out step-by-step instructions on just how to take advantage of them for your law firm or practice. The process he lays out, particularly for smaller population centers vs. mega-cities, can result in multiple search results on the first page of Google.

First, go to Justia.com (under “Lawyers” at the top, enter your last name – especially if you go by “T. Edward Smith” as you may be in the directory as Thomas Edward Smith).

Then, click on “View Profile”, then “Claim and Update your profile” and “Claim by Phone.” What happens next is cool. Your listed telephone number is called immediately to verify that it's you trying to access the profile (so make sure the phone number is correct – if not, “Claim by fax”).

Finally, as Tom mentions, take advantage of the opportunity to enter as much information as possible. The more data you include, the better the search engines will like you. He reports that one firm ended up with 6 of the 10 results on the first page of Google after doing the above.

This is GREAT stuff, Tom. Thanks.

An article that appears in Small Firm Business reports that 55-lawyer Birmingham firm of Lightfoot, Franklin & White received the highest marks in client satisfaction according to a recent Altman Weil survey. Yet, the article “Firm Avoids Marketing, Gets High Client Satisfaction Marks” indicates that the firm is NOT doing marketing (or business development, if you will). Rather, according to the article:

“It's pretty simple, says managing partner Adam Peck. The firm sells itself primarily by not trying so hard to sell itself. Instead of beating the bushes looking for new clients, attorneys focus on their existing clients and rely primarily on referrals for new business."

E-X-C-U-U-U-U-U-S-S-S-S-E     M-E!!!!!!! Not selling themselves? That is exactly what they are doing. They are just doing it the right way:

• Focusing on satisfied clients to bring in more business, and
• Not doing some of the wasteful and questionable things too many law firms do in the name of marketing.

And, doing it well, if one is to believe the survey results. The author apparently only meant that the firm doesn’t have “a full-service marketing and business development department.” The title notwithstanding, it is clear that the firm is in a full-fledged business development mode – however subtle they think they are being.

The important thing to remember is that the most effective way to develop clients is to ensure that the clients you already have are very happy with your firm. As with the Lightfoot firm, you should have engrained within your firm the “idea that client satisfaction is a top priority.”

What you call it is immaterial, the important thing is that “A Rose is a Rose…” and it will result in more business for your firm, especially in these times.

In a post last month, I mentioned one Texas law firm that actually admitted it was increasing its budget for marketing, rather than decreasing it. Definitely not the trend, I can tell ya. But smart.

Now we hear about a number of firms in the Philadelphia area that will be refocusing, and possibly redirecting their business development efforts, but will not likely be cutting their marketing budgets either, according to an article that appears online in the New York Lawyer (free subscription required).

The comments of Stephen Madva, chairman of Montgomery McCracken Walker & Rhoads, particularly got my attention, and not just because my wife worked at the firm a few years back. What he had to say was that his firm is “absolutely not” going to cut back on marketing, and actually plans to increase it, according to the article.

He said “This is not the time, in my mind, to cut back on marketing…we have to stay top-of-mind with our clients and be out in the community and represent markets as much as possible.” He concluded, “This is not the time to hunker down, it’s time to get our visibility out there.”

Double “amen” to that!

Reid Trautz is a pioneer and one of the most respected among legal bloggers.  Although I am officially taking this week off, Reid's post of yesterday is too serious to wait, and I commend it to your reading at the earliest opportunity.

Happy New Year to all!
 

Since it may have implications on the ethics rules relating to marketing in many other states, and having covered Opinion 39 of the NJ Committee on Attorney Advertising here in several posts, I'm happy to report that the New Jersey Supreme Court struck down the ban on attorneys advertising their selection and listing in “Super Lawyers” or “Best Lawyers in America” last Thursday.

Basically, the Court vacated and remanded the matter for reconsideration (more about that in a minute) finding that such advertising was not “inherently” misleading, and “an absolute prohibition is not permitted.” Supporting the Special Master’s finding that lawyer advertising is protected commercial speech, the Court endorsed the idea that a “requirement of a disclaimer or explanation” of the ad is preferable to an outright ban.

So, the matter goes back for some more work, and here comes the fun part. The Court referred the matter to (1) the Advisory Committee on Attorney Advertising, (2) the Advisory Committee on Professional Ethics, and (3) the Professional Responsibility Rules Committee “for their concurrent consideration of a redrafted Rule…”; and they may seek “such other sources and information the Committees, acting jointly, may deem necessary and proper.”

WOW! That’s going to be a lot of fun, don’t you think? I see one terrific camel in the making myself. As the maxim goes, “A camel is a horse designed by committee.” Can you just imagine what three committees are likely to come up with. I can’t wait.

In the meantime sanity has returned to New Jersey, albeit if only temporarily, on this issue.

Happy Holidays everyone!! Back in January.

The American Bar Association recently asked lawyers to predict the future. Over 14,300 lawyers responded, and yesterday the ABA issued an early summary of the survey results to those who had participated. Some results:

• 19% of lawyers expect to lose their jobs,
• 78% anticipate that "everyone" will be affected in some way by the recession,
• 59% agreed that the profession will be "rocky for awhile," and
• The majority held that the legal business won't improve until 2010.

Based on these early results, it seems clear that it's time to crank up your marketing going forward. The reasons are pretty straightforward:

1. Take a look at my January 2005 post "Rainmakers Don’t Get Fired!," and
2. “Plan to Crank up Marketing Budget in 2009. Huh?,” because many firms are likely to be cutting their budgets next year, and that means it is a great time to get out ahead of the competition.

So, now is the time to increase, not decrease the firm's business development efforts.

Yep! While a number of large law firms are cutting lawyers and staff, it is no secret that budgets, including marketing budgets, are being trimmed for the coming year. Unfortunately that is shortsighted. In fact, it may reduce the amount of new business harvested in the coming year.

If business development is good for law firms in good times, spending dollars on marketing in a down economy makes even better sense. Why? Because while others are cutting back, there will be less marketing “noise” out in the marketplace and more chances to be noticed.

In an article in Law.com’s Small Firm Business that discusses the impact of the economy on marketing budgets, I was impressed with what the managing partner of a 108-lawyer Houston-based firm said:

“We’re expanding our marketing,” says Wayne A. Risoli (of Chamberlain, Hrdlicka, White, et al.). “We believe this is an appropriate time to let all Fortune 500 companies know that our rates are so good that we can handle your work for a very good value.”

So, it's time to crank it up.  You need to let prospects know, as well as remind clients and referral sources, about your firm’s “good value.”

That is not to say that it isn’t important to scrutinize what your marketing dollars are being spent on.  A firm should focus on those business development activities that are likely to produce the best and quickest return on investment.

Nonetheless, it will be a hard sell at some firms. But, those firms that resist cutting back – in fact, increase their marketing budgets in those areas that will maximize ROI – will most likely reap a more bountiful harvest in 2009. 

For those last minute shoppers (like yours truly), I appreciate suggestions from any quarter on solving my gift-giving problems.

I found the list compiled by Patrick Johansen over on the LawMarketing Portal to be helpful. It consists of a wide array of suggestions from a number of folks in the legal business, so it is definitely worth a look for ideas that might strike your fancy.

You might also take a look at my gift suggestions from prior year posts linked below, which after reviewing are still relevant this year.  Some duplication does occur, but what the heck, if you were to sending me a gift I'd spend the time to remove the dups just for you.

Holiday Gift Ideas – 2007

Holiday Gift Ideas (from 2006)

Great Holiday Gifts! (2005) (a number of gifts ideas have been added by this vendor since then)

Happy shopping!!
 

It’s not too late for holiday cards, but if you do send ‘em this year (and I think you should) remember to do it with feeling. That is, Sign The Damn Holiday Card, and include a brief, personal, handwritten note. Oh yeah, hand address the envelope also.

I know I just lost a bunch of folks on that last one. But, think about it at least. What better way to show that you will go the extra mile, that you really care about your clients and those referral sources. I don’t buy the argument that it’s a waste of time to hand address the envelope because secretaries only throw them away. Not when the envelope is hand written in my experience.

Throughout the year, lawyers try to come up with ways to get closer to their clients, “bullet proofing” (Edge International) them as it were, and turning them into “raving fans” (Ken Blanchard and Sheldon Bowles). So, why not utilize one simple technique that so demonstratively shows that you took extra time during a hectic time of year (with holiday and year-end pressures) because you really do care about them.

In planning for the New Year, especially since it is fast approaching, apply vision toward the kind of work and clients you really want to represent; rather than following the traditional approach of taking whatever comes in the door.

That’s the advice shared by Daniel Scocco over on DailyBlogTips in his article “Have a Vision Instead of Acting Opportunistically.” Not only does that apply to the types of clients one should seek, but the legal marketing strategies that a firm applies toward gaining those clients. As Daniel tells us, don’t “jump from project to project” – nor should you jump from marketing idea or fad of the month to the next as you try to develop business.

And this “vision” doesn’t require deep intellectual thought or lengthy strategic analysis, in my opinion. Nor is it difficult to determine. How you say? Simply take a hard look at your current client base and related revenues to ascertain what your “good foundation” is, and build your vision upon it. That analysis will tell you where your strengths lie, and in most cases the direction your vision should lead your firm’s business development efforts.

If you like most of your current clients and the type of legal work you do, then your vision should be pretty simple. Get more of the same. If not, then you need to concentrate on what part of your existing clients and work you do like, and to apply your vision more narrowly to focus on getting more of them and weaning the firm off the rest.

A number of companies (such as Burger King and AT&T) are scrutinizing the billable hour due the pressure to reduce legal costs, especially  in light of the down economy. Accordingly, they are looking at alternative billing methods they, including fee caps, blended rates, discounts, fixed fees, monthly retainers, success fees, and contingency fees.

This is discussed in an article entitled "Billing Gets Creative in Souring Economy" that appeared in The National Law Journal and on law.com.

Further, the article reports:

“In recent years, groups such as the American Bar Association, the Association of Corporate Counsel, various corporate executives and even U.S. Supreme Court justices have called for the demise of the billable hour, saying it breeds inefficiency and is driving up legal costs.”

I can’t personally say I know all that to be true, but I do believe the billable hour is doomed as the favored method of billing, as I have addressed in a number of earlier posts (click Continue Reading below, if you are interested in reading five of them), because it is like cost-plus government work (the more time you put in, the more you make), and billing by the hour has very little to do with the value clients’ receive for the legal services provided.

But unbelievably too many large firms still resist alternatives to the billable hour, which is why the door is wide open for smaller, more flexible law firms (a number of which are mentioned in the article) to barge into the gap.

So, if your firm is willing to share more of the risk through alternative pricing schemes that reward efficiency and success, you have a real opportunity to take work away from larger law firms in the current economy. 

Thanks to John Moore at Brand Autopsy for the alert to Neal Stewart’s YouCan’tBuyThat.com blog, and especially his post “Recession Marketing Strategies.” Both John and I particularly liked Neal’s strategy when it comes to existing customers (read clients):

"Find ways to engage in conversation with your heavy users and fanatical consumers. More than ever, your brand’s stalkers (again, read clients who could make referrals) are going to help you spread the word."

Neal’s other strategies which I also liked include:

• Invest in good people, as they’ll figure out to get the job done even in the bad times,
• “All hands on deck,” meaning that everyone in the organization should have a “sales mentality,” and
• Remain consistent, since you don’t want others (clients, referral sources, vendors, or anyone for that matter) to get a whiff of panic emanating from the firm.

But, the key to remember is focusing on existing clients. John’s conclusion really says it all: “As we marketers know, it is far less expensive to market to current customers than it is to acquire new customers ... especially during this dismal economy.”
 

The ABA Journal is surveying lawyers about the job market and the current state of the economy. Since I’ve had several posts on this blog about the down economy and its relationship to marketing, I’m thinking my readers might want to see how they compare to other lawyers out there in the legal marketplace.

Although the ABA Survey does not deal with marketing issues per se, it may give you and your firm some intelligence that may bear on your marketing efforts. Obviously, the more lawyers that respond to the survey, the better the results. The Journal will post the results on their web site the last week in December, I am told; and I'll report them here as well.

It only takes a couple of minutes, literally. I did a test run. So, give it shot here.
 

Although we lawyers were taught in law school that we could do brain surgery – if only the light was right, please don’t utilize a surgical knife when scrutinizing your coming year’s marketing budget.

As many investment advisors (oh yeah, we were taught we could do that too in our sleep) are telling their clients, now is a time to buy not sell. Well, for firms that want to take advantage of their competition, now is the time to avoid major surgery or selling short when it comes to the marketing budget.

Unfortunately, too many firms look at marketing as an expense, rather than as an investment in the firm’s future. Having said that, the budgeting process, if not well underway in your firm, undoubtedly will begin as year-end approaches. Michelle Golden has a few posts dealing with marketing budgets that are worth looking at:

• What’s In A Plan? Marketing Plan & Budget Development
• Plan Your Marketing Budget
• Marketing Spending on the Rise in Small Firms

The important point is to not amputate marketing from your firm’s budget at a time when your competitors are; rather, invest in your firm’s future now and let them try to catch up later.
 

In commenting on my last post about involving staff in marketing, Dan Hull over on What About Clients? blog goes one step further. He reminds us that all employees and shareholders must take both marketing and client service seriously. Actually, they are inseparable. Both are critical to a firm’s long term health.

He again emphasized how every person in his a law firm must realize that clients are the main event, which is Rule 3 of his famous 12 Rules of Client Service. The rules are contained in his firm’s Practice Guide, which is now required reading for everyone at the firm.
 

Here again are Dan’s twelve rules:

1. Represent only clients you like.
2. The client is the main event.
3. Make sure everyone in your firm knows the client is the main event.
4. Deliver legal work that changes the way clients think about lawyers.
5. Over-communicate: bombard, copy and confirm.
6. When you work, you are marketing.
7. Know the client.
8. Think like the client--help control costs.
9. Be there for clients--24/7.
10. Be accurate, thorough and timely--but not perfect.
11. Treat each co-worker like he or she is your best client.
12. Have fun.

Marketing and client service are not just for the lawyers. They are for everyone. As Dan puts it at his firm “buy into it or leave.”
 

As I mentioned in my last post about making the non-marketing staff a part of the firm’s business development efforts, Stacy West Clark’s article on that point gives some suggestions on how to accomplish that with at least two groups of staffers.

But first, the lawyer’s role. Educate those who work for you as to:

• How you want clients treated and informed (getting to know them, phone procedures, what to say when you are unavailable, and reaching out to key clients),
• Tracking Google alerts for info about specific clients,
• Remembering important client facts and dates (wedding date, birthdays, etc.),
• Scheduling marketing activities,
• Keeping mailing lists up to date, and
• Encouraging questions about cases, referrals sources and the like.

Legal assistant’s role:
Carrying out all of the above per your lawyers’ instructions. Additionally, be proactive in asking your lawyers about marketing goals, important cases; and staying abreast of the firm’s web site, your attorneys’ bios, and important information about existing clients and referral sources, and most importantly, developing (professional) friendships with clients.

Receptionist's role:
I facetiously said in one of my earlier posts, and have suggested in my speeches for years, that tellers should be the highest paid people in banks, since they have the most direct contact with the money people (customers). Likewise, a law firm receptionist should be the highest paid staff person, because he/she has the most contact with clients (by phone) and with visitors of all kinds. As such, the receptionist can have a profound influence on how the firm is perceived. Put another way, a receptionist person can have an extremely positive or negative impact on the firm’s brand. I can (and do) tell horror stories in this area.

Just some of the important attributes of a good receptionist include:

• Professional attire and grooming,
• Enthusiastic and warm in answering the phone and greeting visitors,
• Remembering and addressing clients by name, and
• Caring about the firm’s clients and showing it.

All staff members can play an important role in a firm’s business development efforts. Just think of the many ways they come in contact with clients and the world outside the firm. Each is an opportunity to advance the firm’s brand or to damage it.

For some of my other posts on staff involvement in marketing.... 

It continues to amaze me how few law firms engage their non-marketing staff in the firm’s business development efforts. The funny part is that these staff members are involved in marketing your firm in one way or another, if they deal with clients, potential clients or the public at-large. These contacts, whether intended or not, can end up being for the good or bad of the law firm.

So, why not train and focus these staff encounters for the best possible results? It’s not that difficult.

My friend Stacy West Clark has a terrific article on empowering your staff to help increase client business  in The Legal Intelligencer and on Law.com’s Small Firm Business online. In fact, there is so much good stuff there that, for the sake of brevity, I’m going to cover the article in two posts.

Today, I’ll cover her initial advice, and next time how the lawyers, their assistants and even the receptionist can contribute to the firm’s marketing.

Her opening paragraph is one of the more succinct recipes for great client relationship building I have heard:

“The components of great service include understanding the client’s business, being incredibly responsive, communicative and accessible and looking for opportunities to make the client’s life and business world better.”

Stacy then points out that the lawyers do not have to do this alone. The team includes your “secretary, messenger, file clerk, receptionist, human resources manager, office manager, librarian,” et al.

And she states:

“The sooner you empower your staff to deliver outstanding client service, the sooner your revenues will grow. Staff who are involved in and educated about the marketing effort have higher morale and lower turnover and treat clients better.”

Amen!

Next time: Stacy’s ideas for starters on how to get staff members involved.
 

As odd as it may seem, the chase and the capture of a new client ends marketing for some professionals. They get so caught up with gaining a new client that they forget that marketing does not end with obtaining a new matter, it is only the beginning.

Since marketing is everything you do as a lawyer, how you handle the relationship after you land the new matter will really determine your long term success. Client relationships are what marketing and business development it is all about. Focusing on building those relationships is extremely important. And that should happen from Day One.

Michael Fleischner on The Marketing Blog has three suggestions on how to do that in his article “Focus on Renewals After the Sale.” Although his suggestions are not directed toward lawyers, they are just as applicable to our industry. They include:

• Frequent communications (whether that involves newsletters, law alerts, an article of interest, or any form of communication that assures constant contact);
• Client feedback in the form of surveys (preferably in-person, but at least by telephone); and
• “Share best practices” (let clients know what experiences have worked for other clients in similar circumstances or industries, and do so in whatever way works best for them).

So, keep in mind that business development activities do not end when you get a new client. They need to continue for the life of the engagement …and beyond.
 

Recently, I did a post on how important it is to stay close to your clients in these troubling economic times. Well, it seems that the idea is supported by Hildebrandt’s “Special Client Advisory: Fall 2008.”  

The special advisory suggests nine steps for firms to consider in weathering the storm; and includes such things as concentrating on collections early vs. end of year, work on next year’s credit line now, scrutinize vendor support expenses (even consider hiring an outside vendor contract negotiator like my client, Mattern & Associates), review under-performers and excess capacity, and consider shedding undesirable practice areas, while reassuring key partners and associates who may be anxious.

The one step mentioned that is closest to my heart has to do with marketing and client relations. The advisory states:

“… stay in close touch with your clients, especially those key clients that are important to the firm’s future.  Now is not the time to save money by cutting back on productive marketing expenses.  Your clients are experiencing the same anxieties and uncertainties as the firm itself, and ramping up communication to them will stand the firm in good stead when economic conditions improve.  Lawyers have time on their hands, so put it to good use with increased focus on client development, client teams, and appropriate business development training.”

As I mentioned in that earlier post, in times like these stay close to your family, and closer to your clients.  But, don’t just take my word for it.

While some may be in denial, Warren Buffett writes in an Op-Ed piece in The New York Times (free registration required) that the “financial world is a mess”… but that he is now “buying American stocks.” He’s talking about his personal account (not his Bershire Hathaway holdings) which traditionally has been entirely in U.S. Government bonds.

His reason for buying stocks now is based on a "simple rule":

“Be fearful when others are greedy, and be greedy when others are fearful.”

That got me thinking. The same underlying principle could be applied to legal marketing; to wit:

When other law firms are cutting marketing budgets and staff because of economic fears, become greedy about making a meaningful impact in your marketplace by increasing your marketing and business development eforts. 

The time to make a difference is when others are folding their tents.

And Wayne’s advice from the same article: “I skate to where the puck is going to be, not to where it has been.”

Where does your firm want its marketing to be?

By providing additional services to clients at no charge is, of course, an excellent business development strategy. One example of such services might include inviting your clients to your internal CLE seminars. This isn’t a new idea, and some firms have been doing this for years.

Ken Adams, a contract writing consultant, has a post on his AdamsDrafting blog about using CLE as client development tool, and how one firm, Dorsey & Whitney, has been in utilizing this technique with, what appears to be, great success.

When law firms add value to their services (and - as in this case – free), clients are more likely to be grateful and remain loyal, which in turn enhances client relationships. And that is what marketing and business development is all about.

It is important, particularly in the current, dismal economic climate to communicate well, especially with clients. Our message needs to be clearly, concisely and competently conveyed (how about that alliteration, huh? - yeah, you’re probably right).

Well, Garrett Saunders over at the New Marketing Rules blog apparently knows the devil. Because he informs us that he has “developed the following sins” that he relates in his article “5 Deadly Sins of Marketing Communication.” – whether they are used in promotional communications or marketing communications in the broader sense.

The sins include:

1. Failure to come to a point of what you really stand for,
2. Using passive vs. active communication,
3. Employing a vocabulary that confuses your audience (boy, can we lawyers do a number with legalese),
4. Difficult verb tenses vs. present tense, and
5. Lecturing instead of telling a story that is interesting.

So, “originality and surprise creates stopping power” according Saunders, but it’s important not to commit marketing communication sins by projecting messages that are complicated, confusing, convoluted, complex … (I know there I go again), but you get my drift.

 Some law firms will feel the pinch more than others during the current downturn. But all firms will feel it one way or another. Whether it is less work, losing clients because of mergers/acquisitions, or because of difficulty in collecting fees from financially stressed clients. When it comes to making payroll or paying your lawyers, what do you think clients will do?

Thus, it is very important for firms to do everything they can to minimize the impact of what certainly will not be a smooth road for the foreseeable future and beyond. One way is to work very hard at “bullet proofing” (as Gerry Riskin advises) your existing clients (or in Gerry’s words “crown jewels”) as much as you can. 

And as Thom Singer at Some Assembly Required accurately tells us in an article that applies to any company that it is the “relationships with those (with) whom you do business that…(leads) to beating the competitor in good times and in bad times." Those relationships are even more important in a down economy, because business is just that - “down”- and competition definitely gets more intense when times are tough.

So, how are your client relationships these days? Does everyone in the firm realize the importance of their interaction with clients, referral sources and prospects? From the receptionist to the firm couriers, to the associates and partners, everyone has a role in developing and enhancing client relationships – and avoiding damaging those relationships.

Two ways to improve client relationships are: by visiting your key clients, and seeking client feedback. Both will help reduce the adverse impacts of a recession on your firm.

Smaller law firms are usually in a better position to make a marketing decision than larger firms. It’s a numbers game. Often in BigLaw too many people are involved, which not only means the process takes longer, but a decision can become so diluted as to lessen the effectiveness of any business development program.

On this, Trey Ryder and I agree. His current newsletter has a short article encouraging firms to“Choose One Quarterback To Call Your Marketing Plays.” The analogy fits.

“Marketing is like football. The quarterback makes a decision, sees how far the team advances, makes another decision, then reviews the team's progress. Decisions can be made quickly because they are made by only one person. Can you imagine how long it would take if the entire football team offered input and then everyone had to agree before they could make the next play?”

He has an interesting formula that makes the case against more than one person calling the plays, from both a delay perspective and how watered down the decision will become. Take a look, it's interesting.

Also, he tells a great story about David Ogilvy, founder of Ogilvy and Mather ad agency. The ad man entered a room of 12 executives and was told by the company’s chairman that he had 15 minutes to make his pitch; at which point a bell would ring and “he was to stop.” Ogilvy first asked how many of the people present would be making the marketing decision, and was told all 12 of them. With that he advised the chairman “Please, sir, ring the bell” and left.

Trey concludes:

“If you aren't happy with your marketing quarterback, choose someone else. But don't fall into the trap of allowing more than one person to call the plays.”

I get heartburn just thinking about the stories I could tell on this subject.

A panel of general counsel at the September meeting of Legal Marketing Association’s Metro Philadelphia Chapter told the audience that they REALLY crave better communications and efficiency from outside counsel.

As reported on Law.com’s Small Firm Business by reporter Zack Needles, the GCs:

Don’t Like:

• “centralized attorney structure” (where client must go through a senior lawyer not working on the matter, rather than just dealing directly with lawyers who are);
• Relationship partner being too involved (thus, creating less efficiency in handling their matter);
• Glossy advertisements, “trumpeting “firm accomplishments, which have “little bearing on (the) opinion of a firm”;
• Formal RFPs (although apparently one or more have used them), and especially where firm sends big guns (who won’t be working on matter) to the presentation; and
• The firm adding new attorneys to a matter, and finding out about it on the bill.

Do Like:

• High-level partners staffing a matter properly, but being available to answer “a particular question”;
• “(W)illingness and ability to build trusting relationships”;
• Web sites with greater emphasis on qualifications and accomplishments of individual lawyers, rather than the law firm;
• E-mail alerts (vs. chatty newsletters) with “substantive law updates” relevant to their company (“No. 1 marketing tool” according to one GC);
• Keeping GC informed of what’s going on by providing regular status updates; and
• “Detailed progress updates” on bills (vs. just work effort).

It is no surprise that in-house counsel what better communications and efficiencies from their outside counsel; and it behooves law firms to do a better job of both, particularly in a down economy.

Oops. That note to a referral source might be a bit tardy, but a late “Thank You” is better than no thank you according to Thom Singer on Some Assembly Required, and I agree completely.

Further, I’m a big fan of handwritten notes, since they are used so infrequently these days. Especially with email and cell phones, it’s much easier and quicker to thank someone by such means, if one takes the time to show appreciation at all. But, that is why the handwritten communication means so much more.

But when is it too late to thank someone for a kindness, a referral, a meeting, a lunch or a whatever? NEVER. That’s Thom’s and my message. Of course one should express their gratitude as soon as possible, but heck we’re only human and we forget things. Just ask my wife.

So, if you are woefully late, just own up to your tardiness, apologize profusely, and thank the person for what they did for you. As Thom says:

"Your best way to get future favors is to say "thank you".  Even late, a Thank You Note is amazingly powerful."

And more so if it is handwritten.

I’ve been doing client interviews since 1990, and I know they do two things well. One, they can save clients before they leave the law firm for another (I really have a dynamite story on that point, but it will take too long to relate it here, so call me if you want to hear it). Second, it leads to new work (first, because they didn’t leave you for that other firm; and because clients have problems sitting on their desk or nearby that they’ve been procrastinating on just like everyone else).

Bruce Allen’s recent article over on Marketing Catalyst hits the nail right on the head as to why client feedback works:

"Do not ever forget -- in any relationship, professional or personal, the best thing you can accomplish as often as possible is to remind someone that they matter."

Clients want to know that they matter. Furthermore, I have found they want to be asked what their opinions are on the legal services provided, and the relationship in general.

In my experience, the reason most often cited for not conducting client satisfaction surveys is that partners will argue that if the client has a problem, they would let the lawyer know about it. As Bruce states, that is just plain "silly." I might go a step further and say hogwash. Rather, since most humans tend to avoid conflict whenever possible, they'll just take their work to another law firm.

Bruce goes on to cite a blog post that my friend and colleague Jim Hassett did a couple of years ago over at Legal Business Development. I would concur that it is a good place to start, if a firm is interested in "getting (its) act together” about seeking client feedback.

To borrow from the quote by J. Wallace Day about keeping friends close and enemies closer, I might suggest that in a down economy, one should keep their family close and their clients closer. 

My colleague Jim Hassett over at Legal Business Development blog talks about some scary stuff that is occurring to law firms in the current economic climate . He recounts layoffs of lawyers and staff in NLJ 250 law firms, the large and well-known firms that have closed in recent years, how it is harder to become an equity partner, and so on.

Not all firms are hurting, and with the state of the financial world, there will be plenty of litigation for sure. But, there will be plenty of pain to go around as well, and the legal industry will not be spared.

His point: stay close to your clients and colleagues, and one way to do that is to “set up a free meeting with a top client or referral source.” I would include all key clients in a “client visitation” program, since it is the single most effective business development tool, as I have mentioned before. And, I would do so whether your firm is experiencing pain in the current economic downturn or not.

The e-mail question is:

"To what extent can you substitute emails for telephone calls and face-to-face meetings when maintaining and developing relationships with clients and other key market contacts?”

My answer: You can’t. Period.

W-E-L-L, maybe that is a bit strong.

It is no secret that I hate e-mail. It doesn’t mean that I don’t use it like everyone else every day. But, I still hate it, because it has become an annoying and too frequent intrusion into my personal and business life. Moreover, too much of it is spam (yes, I have anti-spam software), unsolicited e-newsletters, or jokes and political commentary – even from people I know – that is unwelcome. Enough already!

I do see the effectiveness of welcomed e-mails in handling a client’s matter (assuming, of course, that it is a client's approved means of communication) and otherwise conducting operational business functions. It undoubtedly can be efficient and effective when used properly and when it isn't intrusive.

However, when it is used as a tool in business development and relationship building, it is the least  effective in my opinion, particularly in the case of law firms.  We are in the personal services business, and there is nothing more impersonal and overused than email. Partially because it so easy to shoot off an e-mail, without much thought, some may think that any contact is better than nothing. I would respectfully disagree.

The best and most successful marketing is face-to-face. Yes, it is more expensive and time consuming, but clearly more effective. Telephone calls would come next out of the three in terms of effectiveness, and e-mail is dead last.   If the other two are used often, then an occasional meaningful use of email may be okay, if a relationship has already been well established. But clearly it is the absolute last and least meaningful choice for business development, IMHO. 

Unfortunately, what costs more and takes longer is often the more effective when it comes to marketing activities, but that is just the way it is. What is easy and cheap generally produces the least successful outcome.

So, the ultimate question is: How effective do you want your marketing efforts to be?

Check out the other viewpoints at:

·         Brian Carroll, specialist and noted author of generating leads for the complex sale;

·         Mark Buckshon, prodigious blogger and specialist on marketing and selling design and construction services; and

·         Ford Harding, student of selling professional services.

Have you noticed how some people during a pitch or while listening to a speech will be checking their iPhone (or whatever), instead of giving their undivided attention to the one talking? I’ll bet you’ve never done that, right? Careful, your nose is growing.

When I was in-house, I attended management meetings where partners did that to each other. However, the problem may not be rudeness, but rather boredom. And, if speakers or presenters are offended, it is possible they are not looking at the source of the problem. Themselves.

When making a presentation, one has an obligation to make it short, sweet and to the point. S/he should detail what they will cover and it better be interesting. Otherwise, the listeners will tune out and wish they were somewhere else.

When it comes to speeches, Joey Asher has an article that was published in the Fulton County Daily Report and on Law.com’s Small Firm Business that makes a similar point. He reminds us that audiences vote with their attention – and this was true long before the age of Blackberrys. 

So, what’s a speaker to do? Asher’s suggestions apply to both situations:

• Give those attending a strong “reason to pay attention” (i.e., what the benefit to them will be);
• Provide those attending a “clear road map” of what the topic or agenda will cover;
• Make the presentation interactive by engaging those attending (a pop quiz might help); and
• Show passion, or at least excitement, about your subject.

If you follow those simple rules, the chances are you’ll see business development efforts bear riper fruit, and a whole lot less inattention. People will listen, and possibly even put their Blackberry on silent mode.

Watch for the synchroblog next Monday, where four bloggers will answer the same question on the same day on their respective blog. And the question is:

"To what extent can you substitute emails for telephone calls and face-to-face meetings when maintaining and developing relationships with clients and other key market contacts?”

On September 22, four bloggers will post their answers simultaneously. They include:

1. Brian Carroll, specialist and noted author of generating leads for the complex sale;
2. Mark Buckshon, prodigious blogger and specialist on marketing and selling design and construction services;
3. Ford Harding, student of selling professional services; and
4. Yours Truly.

So, tune in on the 22^nd, it should be interesting to read the different perspectives.

My friend Dan Hull of What About Clients? blog and Hull McGuire PC law firm, has an extremely provocative post about the message he believes should be conveyed to associates in his firm and others. 

Here’s the message: 

We want you to provide such fabulous service to our clients, that they will think the world of you; and yes, if you were ever leave this firm, the client might go with you. If you are not prepared to provide that level of client service, we don't want you.

WHOA now. You’re kidding me, right Dan? Fact is I know you’re not, and I totally agree with you. Maybe we both should just agree to enter the same sanitarium where we could console each other as to how sane we really are. Certainly, no one else is likely to think so.

Too many firms don’t even want to train their associates in marketing and business development, because it takes them away from billable hours and let’s face it, client relationship building takes time and training; but also, some likely fear that the associates will get too close to the client and steal the client if they ever left the firm. 

So, instead of training and insisting that all their lawyers provide the absolute highest quality client service (not just work product) to clients that would actually benefit the firm and the lawyers in the long run, these firms just claim to be all about client service.

Also, think of the positive message it will send to clients and the associates. In other words, the firm is so into client service, which in turn will only make the firm more successful and profitable, we are willing to risk losing some clients in the process.  With such an approach the firm will be so wildly success that associates (and partners for that matter) wouldn't consider leaving the firm. Crazy thought, huh? 

I expect the majority of law firms would not be willing to follow Dan’s “outrageous” plan. Do ya think!! Too bad. But, if your firm is serious about client service and really means it, then you might want to consider Dan’s message to your associates.

Following up on my post of last week "Too Busy for Marketing? Or Just Unfocused?,”  I ran across a post by John Jantsch over on Duct Tape Marketing where he uses the “P” word. He apparently encounters small business owners (like some lawyers I meet), who say that they're too busy to market, and he takes issue with that. So do I.

As he says, "marketing is and must become a habitual activity in your business.” He goes on to say that "the only way to find time for marketing is to plan for it," and one way to do that is to "create a marketing theme for every month of the year, " and then carry it out on a daily or weekly basis. Anyone who reads this blog knows that I'm a big fan of John's, but in this case I’m not sure I agree with a theme-of-the-month approach. It reminds me too much of the chasing-the-latest-fad that law firms have done over the past couple of decades.

Rather, I would suggest that firms develop a plan that involves multiple activities that will all contribute to reaching the business development goals that firm hopes to achieve. That doesn’t mean that a lawyer can’t focus on a particular activity for a given month (like making a speech in September, writing an article in October, and visiting the client’s place of business in November, etc.) – and maybe that is what John means.

In any case, the important thing is to plan and undertake business development activities on a consistent basis, even in the throes of meeting deadlines for client work. Lawyers must make time for marketing. Failure to do so is preposterous – or do I really mean disastrous?

Watch for the upcoming synchroblog. A WHAT you might ask? It’s where four bloggers will answer the same question on the same day on their respective blog.  And the question is:

"To what extent can you substitute emails for telephone calls and face-to-face meetings when maintaining and developing relationships with clients and other key market contacts?”

On September 22, four bloggers will post their answers simultaneously. They include:

1. Brian Carroll, specialist and noted author of generating leads for the complex sale;
2. Mark Buckshon, prodigious blogger and specialist on marketing and selling design and construction services;
3. Ford Harding, student of selling professional services; and
4. Yours Truly.

So, tune in on the 22^nd, it should be interesting to read the different perspectives.

Often one hears from lawyers “I’m just to busy to be marketing.” Maybe they are just focusing on the wrong stuff?  Reasons might include they're too busy with:

• Administrative tasks best left to others, or
• Working on files they wish they didn’t have, or
• Representing clients they don’t like working for.

Marketing is not only healthy for one’s law practice (as in keeping the family fed), but can also lead to doing the kind of work one enjoys doing for clients the lawyer enjoys working for. Granted it takes focus, planning and perseverance to ensure that business development efforts get the results that will bring enjoyment to one’s legal practice.  

My friend Trey Ryder has a great article in his current newsletter (sign up for free) that endorses the points raised above.  He states:

“When I ask busy lawyers what they're busy doing, they often grumble about handling cases they don't want, dealing with the hassles of running an office, and so on."

Trey goes on to tell the story about a client, who almost hired him a couple of years earlier. When he asked why he was hiring him now, the lawyer said that he never got a marketing program going and "is no further ahead than he was then."

I have the same questions that Trey asked in his article:

"Are you bringing in the cases you want?

"Are you spending time in ways you find enjoyable?

"Are you investing your time in the most profitable ways?

"Are you delegating or referring out cases you don't want?"

Most lawyers have the best intentions when it comes to undertaking a marketing and business development program. But many lawyers are too busy doing things that keep them from undertaking those activities that will produce desirable results.

So, don't let two years pass before you realize that although you're busy, you may be too "busy" on the wrong stuff.

The two best sources of new business for lawyers are current clients and referral sources (also referred to as word-of-mouth). Having just finished an action plan last week for a relatively new, young lawyer who does not have his own client base, it became pretty obvious that the place for him to start in building a client base is with referrals.

That is why I found the post “It's Never Too Early to Pursue Referrals” by Miriam Lawrence on Automatic Referrals very timely. She shares three thoughts that “new advisors” (in our case, lawyers) should keep in mind to build a base of clients. She draws from points raised by her Automatic Referrals’ colleague Bob David:

1. Research supports the idea that “the most important factor in a new client choosing to do business” with you is not experience but “chemistry”;
2. Although you may not have a “track record” you do, as does everyone, have a story worth telling, and
3. Concentrate on your strengths – whether that be a particular niche, or ability to listen well (a skill many of us lawyers could use a lot more of), or whatever.

The important thing is that you have “strengths and knowledge to offer clients and their associates right now.”

So, a lack of a client base is no reason for anguish, just start developing business with a focus on referral sources – whether from existing contacts or new ones you develop through networking activities.

There has been an interesting discussion going on over on both the LMA (Legal Marketing Association)’s listserv and The LawMarketing Listserv (membership required for both) the past few days about what a small law firm should do when BigLaw moves into their marketplace.

My take: First of all sit down, relax and have a good laugh. Because, unless the mega firm is moving into town for reasons relating to an existing client or a local merger, they really aren't a threat in my opinion. I say that because:

• They're too expensive for most of your clients,
• They are an unknown quantity, unless they merge with a local firm (and that will only make your old/now larger competitor more expensive),
• Smart businesses will know that unless they are a large corporation themselves, they will just become a smaller fish in a bigger pond,
• Most of your clients don't know anything about the firm nor would have any reason to go to a larger firm, and
• Most importantly, BigLaw does not or is unlikely to have a relationship with your clients, and you do.

Secondly, over the years I've seen law firms move into different cities where my law firm was located, and where the new firm had no prior presence.  I've seen these firms struggle and I've seen some leave town after a few years. Moreover, I've been in a couple of large firms, where many of the lawyers were not particularly good marketers (not for lack of effort on the part of the marketing department, I might point out), but because they had no interest in marketing or were convinced that the work would always be there.

Finally, there really isn't anything to worry about, as long as you have excellent relationships with your important clients.

You do have terrific relationships with your clients don't you?  If not, stop laughing, because you may indeed have a problem.

But there is a solution.

Identify those clients that you would not like to lose. Let's call them your key clients. Immediately plan to visit these clients (off the clock), and seek feedback on how your firm is doing, and what you could do to be a better legal services provider. It’s pretty late to be doing this, but not too late.

So, I don't see a serious threat just because a large firm moves into your marketplace. Although they may be a gorilla, that doesn't mean they will be successful in luring your clients away. The only danger in my view is where your law firm has given your clients reasons to look to the new law firm for services. And that means you have failed in the client relationship department.

There is no wrong time to seek client feedback about your firm’s performance. Not only should law firms ask how they are doing on current matters, but how they have done in the past, and how they can provide better service in the future. Although nobody likes to get bad news, it is better to learn if a client has an issue or problem prior to their walking away and never using the firm again.

Ed Poll in a recent post on his LawBiz Blog recommends that a law firm send a short survey with the first bill to a client rather than at the end of the matter. He has a point. I would agree that if a matter was handled poorly, requesting feedback after the damage is done and matter concluded, may be too late.

So, I would say that asking for feedback during matter is a good idea. But it is also a good idea at the end of the matter as well. The damage, if there is any at all, may not be serious enough that the client won’t use the firm again. Further, it would show the firm's interest in how it did, and increase its credibility with the client for the next matter it might send to the law firm.

Moreover, in a recent roundtable discussion Ed tells us that the attending firms "concluded that it is very beneficial for the managing partner to periodically visit the top 10 clients of the firm."I agree. However, I would suggest that it is not enough. I would go further and interview all important clients. Further, I would suggest that it be done by someone other than the managing partner, who by definition has way too much on his or her plate.

In furtherance of that point, I would suggest setting up of an ongoing in-house client interview program, specifically for feedback. A few firms have started hiring full time in-house staff for that purpose, as I have mentioned. In this way, the program becomes institutionalized, and is not looked upon by clients as merely another law firm project.The important thing in all of this is that a law firm should be doing all it can to determine client satisfaction with its services, and how they can do things better in the future.

As Ed points out: "bottom line, we don't exist in a vacuum. We must understand and know the needs and wants of our clients... And what better way to find (out) than to ask, directly." He summed up his post by saying "this concept caused the managing partners (at the Roundtable) to vow to make changes in their firms."

For the sake of their firms. I hope that is true. Law firms should seek client feedback at all times.

As I was working today to finalize an action plan for a client, I realized how important networking was going to be for this young lawyer who is interested in building an immigration practice. 

Networking is not every lawyer's favorite thing, in fact, many attorneys are just not comfortable with it. Some because they don't think they're good at it, and others are not sure how best to do it. That's why I found Thom Singer's post of a couple of days ago on Some Assembly Required, which he calls "Yes, You CAN Network", right on target. First, Thom points out that "the best way to start is to want to see others succeed." I would agree that  if you help others develop their business, they will then want to help you succeed as well.

Then Thom gives three good suggestions:

• Start networking by asking a lot of questions about what others want to accomplish,
• Next, connect the dots by introducing people who might mutually benefit from a relationship, and
• When meeting new people, don't try to sell your services (rather listen at least 50% of the time while asking probing questions to uncover their interests and goals).

Thom sums it up very well when he says:

"Anyone can network, when they realized that networking involves more giving than getting. The good news, the getting does come for those who give. Patience is the key."

Good advice.

Most everyone who has heard about the Internet, or has a child capable of educating them, has heard about social networks like MySpace, LinkedIn, Facebook, Plaxo, etc. etc. etc. The “etc’s” are part of my point. There are new ones springing up almost every day. There is some question as to which one or two will be the ones most helpful to the legal profession for business development purposes. Time will only tell (now there’s a cliché my mother loved).

I haven’t been sold on the legal marketing ROI relative to these sites generally, nor have I heard that they currently produce serious amounts of work for law firms. Yet, I’m definitely coming around to the point of view that they will become one more important tool in the marketing toolbox. Not sold completely, but moving in that direction. 

One reason is that my blogmaster (Kevin O’Keefe and his gang at LexBlog) conducted a webinar for their clients recently, primarily focused on LinkedIn (but I understand a follow up broadcast will address others in more detail). It was enlightening for me to say the least, and so I’m working on beefing up my LinkedIn biography. I don’t know if it will be the leader for the profession, but it seems more lawyers are joining it than other networks these days, according to Kevin.

Also, John Jantsch over at Duct Tape Marketing concurs in the importance of social networks in reporting on a survey by Universal McCann that shows the popularity of social networks, RSS feeds and blogs. It does seem clear that a web site is no longer enough of an Internet presence. As John puts it “And that means if you’re not participating in social media, you’re not really online.”

It does appear that social networking is not just a craze, and will likely become an important tool in developing business for lawyers. Have you signed up yet?

Although I believe that law firms will gain more work from clients because they seek feedback on how they are doing, that cannot be the reason for undertaking such a program. The honest reason for seeking client feedback must be based on caring for the client and the relationship. All else will take care of itself.

Bruce Allen over at Marketing Catalyst has a post that spells out “The Wrong Reason for Client Satisfaction Programs.”  He advises firms to avoid conducting such programs simply to:

• Avoid losing a client,
• Keep up with competitors who are doing them,
• Stand out from competitors who aren’t,
• Keep clients from talking with competitors,
• Save money, since cheaper than trying to land new clients,
• Make firm look good, and
• Have firm help show the client that the lawyer cares.

In other words, client feedback programs need to be genuine and not solely based on self-interest. I know law firms and consultants who genuinely care about their clients, to the point of losing business. It may be rare but as Bruce tells us it should be ingrained into the fiber of a law firm. As he puts it:

“Sincere care for people (your clients) cannot be taught in schools or seminars. It's learned by example and mentoring. You have to teach it, evangelize it, tolerate nothing less -- the reward is the stuff of remarkable careers.”

Every firm should consider seeking feedback as a vital part of the client relationship. But, it should be done for the right reasons.

A recent survey spells out how innovation not only helps keeps certain law firms top-of-mind, but also more profitable.  My friend Stacey West Clark has another great article (her standard fair) that appears on Law.com’s Small Firm Business about BTI's Survey of National Market Awareness 2008.

Her article actually covers a speech by Marcie Shunk, a principal of BTI Consulting Group, who shared some of her insights about the aforementioned, said survey (sorry, the adjectives were just a flashback to my practicing days) before the Delaware Valley Law Firm Marketing Group.

The survey was based on 1,700 in-house counsel interviews (41% from Fortune 100 companies, and 17% from Global 500), and according to Stacey’s article:

“…one thing became statistically clear: If you have top of mind awareness with your clients and potential clients, you will beat out your competition and your revenues will be higher.”

The two things the survey showed about the most successful firms, according to Shunk:

1. Innovation is a “driving theme,” and includes:

• Leading research and white papers,
• Client service standards and strategies,
• Aggressive alternative billing arrangements,
• Client-driven technology, and
• Firm market growth strategies; and

2. Increasing brand awareness (focusing on the things that involve having a direct experience with the firm/lawyer):

• Service that really differentiates firm,
• Sales pitches that set firm apart (and demonstrate capabilities vs. claims),
• Highly professional behavior even with opponents, and
• Exceptional business development activities (seminars, networking, trade association involvement).

Not a lot of new ideas here. But if you are innovative, you can do them in ways that will differentiate your firm, which will result in top-of-mind awareness and more business.

Here’s a link to a free download of the survey’s Executive Summary.

Building on an earlier post of mine about avoiding paying lip service to client service.  Dan Hull over on What About Clients? blog has a very interesting post he calls “All Hat, No Cattle.”

I am a fan of Dan’s blog, and as the name implies he is BIG on client service. He states that “superior work alone won’t keep a good client…coming back.” And client service (CS) has to be engrained into the firm’s culture, so that everyone buys “into CS like a cult, like a religion, like an angry sermon that took them out of their pews at the Church of the Final Thunder.” I like that.

Dan, a practicing attorney and not a consultant, tells us that too many firms think they are providing good service, but he has two problems with that view:

• Law firms are in a self-deception mode, and
• More seriously, firms are deceiving clients by way of their web site or during the sales pitch.

Such “deception” won’t last. Firms that say they are providing quality client service but don’t are not going to fool the client for very long. Particularly as more and more firms start getting religion when it comes to true client service. 

And what's that exactly, you may ask?  Well, enter the term "client service" into Search box on this page and you can read dozens of my posts on the subject.

There probably isn’t any lawyer (who has heard about the Internet) who doesn’t know the importance of search engine rankings. Over last couple of years I’ve become a big believer in the importance of search engine placements, since this blog during that period has been ranked second on Google and Yahoo for legal marketing. So, there isn’t any question that optimizing your site for the maximum impact on search engines is an important business development strategy.

A couple of months ago, I mentioned the free tune-up offered by Tom O’Leary at The Attorney ATM to the winner of his SEO contest open to solos and small firms. The winner was solo Mike Kondoudis, a patent attorney in Washington, DC. As you can imagine, Mike probably has few competitors in that particular market with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office being located there and all.  

O’Leary takes us through his process of tuning-up Mike’s site in a series of posts on his blog The Attorney Marketing Blog. They start with Mike’s reading and putting into play (before he won the contest) some of Tom’s advice contained in his free downloadable e-Book  entitled “How To Dominate Google, Yahoo and MSN.” O’Leary tells us about that in his post “From Obscurity to 1^st Page on Google in 5 Business Days.”

AND this is before O’Leary started working on tuning up Mike’s site. He then tells us about more results with Mike’s site after he works on it in his posts “How Google, Yahoo and MSN Treat a Solo’s Website” (and includes actual search results) and “Google and Yahoo Reward Persistent Effort.”

I’ve read a lot of things about SEO consultants on various listservs, some good and some bad. I’m really impressed with what Tom has done and shared with us about SEO on his blog. In fact, I intend to ask him to see what he can do to move my blog up a notch.

Whether you are sending an email message from your Blackberry or desktop, don’t be too clever when it comes to business development communications with clients, referral sources or prospects. Leave such for your closest friends and family.

Why? Because it isn’t cute any more (I know, I know – old foggy-speak). And it could send a couple of undesirable messages: 

• you are in a hurry, lazy, too busy, etc. to type a clear message, or
• recipient isn’t important enough for the real thing.

With some people that’s okay, but in most biz – oops, business communications, in my humble opinion (or IMHO), I don’t think it is a good idea.

Well, Frank Reed  over at Marketing Pilgrim agrees with that (and he’s a lot younger than me). In a post yesterday he calls “R U 2 Casual w Your Biz Talk?” he refers to a Wall Street Journal post entitled “Thx for the IView! I Wud ♥ to Work 4 U!! ;)” about job seekers who used this new form of “shorthand” to their detriment. Both posts are definitely worth a read.

I don’t know about you, but after looking over the title of this post and the two others, I’m feeling slightly nauseated. How about you?  If not, let me quote from Frank’s post: “R U nuts?”

An article (available to Association of Corporate Counsel members) by Susan Jacobsen that appears in the April 2008 issue of ACC’s “Hands On” addresses some “Lessons for Law Firms” as a result of a GC panel discussion at the 15^th Annual Marketing Partner Forum this past January.

Fred Krebs, the president of ACC, was moderator of the panel and cited results from the 2007 ACC/Serengeti Managing Outside Counsel Survey, specifically

“…noting that half of the survey respondents terminated relationship with some of their outside counsel during the prior year, citing failure to perform according to client expectations, high costs, and poor work product or results.”

Krebs then asked the three panelists (GCs from General Electric Company, Royal Bank of Canada, and Hasbro, Inc.) to address a number of topics relating to outside law firms, including communications, cross-selling (two examples cited turned out to be disasters), conflicts, marketing activities, knowing the client’s business, satisfaction interviews, use of websites, views of $180,000 starting salaries, and loaning associates to clients.

The lessons learned (or should be) that particularly stood out for me relating to marketing and business development include:

• Constantly communicate with your clients (about their matters, problems, etc.),
• Learn all about their business (“More than anything,…the firms that stand out are the ones that know our business,” according to one GC),
• Seek client interviews to obtain feedback (all three GCs were in favor of doing this), and
• Higher associate salaries are not favored (“…the rise in associate salaries in the larger firms provided a good opportunity for smaller, regional firms to be positioned for the business”, according to Jacobsen).

Main Lesson: Don’t be one of the law firms that clients show the door. 

For Survey’s table of contents and benchmarks...

Can’t imagine anyone arguing with the statement that lawyers are happiest when they are doing the work they enjoy for clients they like. Although I have covered this topic more than a half-dozen times, it is worth mentioning again. Especially when you run across a succinct article that emphasizes the point so well.

Chuck Newton’s Ride The Third Wave blog has such an article about chasing cases and clients you don’t want. His point is that when you are working on cases you dislike, you’re missing opportunities to develop the business you do. Your attention is diverted, and you won’t do as well taking those “skanky cases” (I was sure he made the word "skanky" up, but lo and behold, one definition of it is “arousing aversion” which pretty much sums it up). He concludes:

“It is really a self-fulfilling prophesy.  You chase the other cases and clients because you are worried about not succeeding with the cases and clients you want, and as a result you do not succeed because you have diverted your attention and divided your efforts.

….

“So, stay focused. Niche it.”

Thanks, Chuck.

Too many of us, myself included sometimes, approach networking with first trepidation and then with resignation. Unfortunately, with that approach the results are usually less than satisfactory. One should not just attend a networking function and hope for the best. As in hoping that clients will gravitate to your presence, and you will leave the room with them hanging off your back just like those rainmakers you hear about.

Not a good game plan.

Ford Harding has a couple of posts on networking that got my attention and I thought I would share them with you. His ideas do require some planning, rather than just showing up. In any event here are two ideas I like. Both require a little “stalking” sort of:

1. If you haven’t been able to identify in advance those individuals you want to seek out, at least have general idea of the type of persons who will be attending and whom you would like to meet. Ford’s idea of walking around the table to get the seat you want by introducing yourself to everyone before you sit down. This allows you to get a look at nametags and identify a likely target you can then sit next to, and
2. Ask one of the organizers it a particular person you would like to meet is there, and find them before entering the dining area. Then position yourself (or “stalk” the person) so you are able to walk to the same table and grab the seat next to them.

Stalking in this fashion isn’t even a crime, and can turn networking events into a more meaningful and successful business development outing.

Ran across an interesting article by Glenn Ebersole that appears on EzineArticles.com that talks about the need for a strategic action plan during a recession.

Strategic planning is always a good idea, but sometimes we consultants can overcomplicate a process when a common sense approach is all we’re talking about. Although I may not precisely agree with all his points, Ebersole recommends 10 action items that are worth considering:

1. Never stop developing business (agreed that the pipeline for new business must be constantly fed);
2. Reconnect with past clients (good idea to touch base with any clients who have used your firm in the past);
3. Deliver superior service to clients (I totally agree with his advice to “WOW” your clients)
4. Make a list of 100 existing and prospective clients to aggressively market (no reason to list that many, but it’s a good idea to come up with a dozen or two upon whom to focus your business development efforts);
5. Implement a “Integrated Marketing Communications (IMC) Plan” (not sure what he means by this, but probably has something to do with his advertising and public relations services. Since these items take a lot longer to come to fruition in our business, I put these lower on my list);
6. Undertake a strategy of frequent contact with clients and prospects (also referral sources, in order to stay “top of mind” for potential new business);
7. Cross-sell clients (often not successful in our business, unless done in the context of client- or industry-based teams);
8. “NETWORK! NETWORK! NETWORK!” (I guess he feels strongly about this. I would agree that kicking one’s networking activities into a higher gear is a good idea);
9. Prepare a “yearlong marketing activity plan” (well, at least put a written plan in place for the next three to six months. It should get you started in the right direction); and
10. Evaluate constantly your business development strategies and actions (however, make sure to give them an opportunity to work and bear fruit before jumping to the next fad-of-the-month).

As I pointed out in a recent post on the down economy, and as Ebersole says, much of the business development activities suggested for economic downturns make just as much sense for “normal” times too. The important thing is to “Just Do It.”

Whether you are trying to build a relationship after landing a new client, or to enhance existing client relationships, there are effective things a lawyer can do to accomplish both.

A Q&A article by Frank D’Amore that appeared in The Legal Intelligencer a couple of days ago, and on Law.com’s Small Firm Business, provides some good advice on the topic. D’Amore suggests five things that you can do to build client relationships:

1. Get to know the client’s business and industry (the failure to do so is one of the biggest complaints that clients express about their outside counsel. One way to overcome that is to offer to spend time off the clock at the client’s place of business in a learning mode);
2. Constantly communicate (ask clients about their preferred method and frequency of contact with outside counsel);
3. Focus on making the client look good (recognize your contact’s personal, internal needs, and help them gain credit from your efforts);
4. Maintain contact during “lulls in the client relationship” (even if not currently working on a particular client’s matter, keep in touch – by sending articles, newspaper clippings, e-mails, and telephone calls – and through client visits and entertainment); and
5. Suggest networking opportunities and potential introductions to benefit your clients.

If you think of ways to add value to your client relationships, rather than just how to get more work from clients, you will find that it will provide long-term benefits to your business as well.

According to an article by Jamie Heller on the Wall Street Journal’s Law Blog, law firms are not going to have a good year. In fact, according to a Wachovia Wealth Management group that services law firms, firms are looking at a downturn of 5% - 6%. And that “is going to be a good year,” or as one of the group’s members put it, “flat’s the new up.”

The evidence, especially in firms over 300 attorneys, shows that firms are tapping credit lines significantly, cutting non-producers (“dead wood walking the halls”), and more closely scrutinizing claims of laterals, according to the article.

But, as rainmakers know, they have nothing to worry about, as I pointed out in a post 3 ½ years ago, “Rainmakers Don’t Get Fired.” Things have not changed. Billable hours are not the test here.

Effective business developer = rainmaker = job security.

Why?

Because clients, especially in-house counsel, continue to be concerned about the costs of outside legal services. As a result, both surveys tell us that corporate counsel are going to bring more legal work in-house and fire outside law firms:

• InsideCounsel’s 19^th Annual Survey of General Counsel (July 2008) reports that 61.2% anticipate bringing more work in-house, and 41.5% (up 8.5% from last year) have or plan to fire outside law firms in 2008.
• Altman Weil’s 2008 Chief Legal Officer Survey reports that 49% plan to hire additional in-house lawyers this year (up 9% over last year); and 48% of CLOs “are considering firing at least one” outside law firm this year (up from 32% last year).

Accordingly, it behooves (gosh can’t remember last time I used that word) firms to stay very close to clients, so they are not one of the firms impacted by such moves.

Maybe that is why more firms are hiring or have dedicated in-house persons focusing on seeking client feedback.  Best to know if there are issues that need to be addressed before your firm is one of those shown the door.

Okay, only if you are going on vacation today. The point is that if you plan to take a vacation this summer, truly take a v-a-c-a-t-i-o-n. It will allow you to come back – not only to your law practice, but your business development activities as well – with a fresh look and attitude.

We all need time off. Heck I’m thinking of taking the next six months off myself. I WISH!

At any rate, Bruce Allen at Marketing Catalyst has a post about taking time off, either by playing “hookie” for a day or two, or going on a summer vacation. He says to “[L]eave behind all of your electronic connections and just go enjoy.” Fat chance I’m sure, but think about it at least.

Most importantly RELAX and enjoy some time off with your family and friends.  Also, have a great 4th of July holiday!

======================

P.S. About a year ago I had a post on “What To Do On Your Summer ‘Vacation.’”  Well, the title is misleading.  I don’t suggest you follow the recommendations in that post while you are actually on vacation.  Rather, do some before and some after.

Anyone who has been developing business for awhile pretty much knows that certain things are not true, and can adversely impact their marketing efforts. But it doesn’t hurt to occasionally be reminded what some of them are.

Trey Ryder does just that in his current newsletter in an article he calls “11 Deadly Assumptions That Kill Your Marketing Program.” In summary his assumption no-no’s include:

1. Clients and prospects know what services I provide;
2. Referral sources will send me all the clients I need;
3. When clients or potential clients have a question, they’ll call;
4. My marketing materials don’t need my photo;
5. Interacting often with prospects is a waste of time;
6. Prospects will remember what I tell them, so I shouldn’t repeat myself;
7. Business clients and prospects understand legal jargon;
8. Certain marketing methods don’t work like they use to;
9. The more complicated my message, the more clients will feel they need my services;
10. Graphics in ads are less important than the message; and
11. People understand that I’m busy when I don’t return phone calls promptly.

Most lawyers know that such statements are false on their face. Ya think! Then, how come some lawyers act as if some of the assumptions are true?

The point is that the article got me thinking about how the principle works just as well for lawyers. Simply put, what works best for lawyers in a down economy, works just as well in good times – albeit less urgently.

Effective marketing and business developments works any time. That brings me back to my top 10 best marketing tips, which are:

No. 10 – Be Active In Organizations

No. 9 – Networking With Super-Connectors

No. 8 – Take A Reporter To Lunch

No. 7 – Write Articles of Interest

No. 6 – Talk It Up With More Speeches

No. 5 – Communicate Often

No. 4 – Offer To Make Proposal

No. 3 – Seek Client Feedback Often

No. 2 – Entertain Your Client

No. 1 – Visit Your Clients

Whether or not the current down economy is adversely impacting your law practice, these tips will help you develop more business.

After getting more work or referrals from clients, the next best source of new business is from referrals from other sources. Many of the same types of business development activities you undertake for clients are effective for referral sources as well. They include: visiting their offices, seeking feedback, sending them clients, sending information of interest and newsletters, etc. etc. However, will clients and other contacts actually refer work?

Seth Godin in “How to get referrals,” says that much has been written about how referrals “are the very best way to grow your business,” yet often they simply don’t happen. Why?

Three reasons in Seth’s view:

1. Not important to the referrer,
2. Referrer has a lot to lose (mostly credibility) by referring a friend, and
3. Recommending isn’t easy (as in bringing up the subject, I think he means).

So, what’s a lawyer to do?  Well actually, Seth isn’t referring (oops, sorry about that) to lawyers in the following five suggestions, but I thought I would:

• Make it easy for someone to bring up what you do (that is, let your contacts know something unique about your practice, your practice niche),
• Give clients something of real value to offer their friends (as in a dynamite, outstanding client service experience),
• Paying a person to refer rarely works (and could get a lawyer disbarred, but returning the favor would work);
• Low-risk referrals are easier than high-risk ones (so ask for referrals in a way that reduces the risk to the referrer); and
• “Be worthy” and known as such in marketplace (if you are not known by the referral source as offering value in eyes of the community, then it is much tougher to make the referral).

 Hope there is some food for thought for you and your firm there.

I have often preached at seminars and law firm retreats, that the key to successful legal marketing is to go out and befriend people. My formula goes something like this:

Make contacts, contacts, contacts

(to borrow a concept from my realtor friends),

+

Communicate constantly

+

Build upon relationships

+

Turn into friendships

=

Long Term Client Relationships

Of course, planning and focus are an important part of whom one should be making contact with in the first place.  And, assuming that a law firm knows the kind of ideal clients it wants, then time is not wasted on building the wrong or less desirable relationships.

An article by Lee Ann Bellon that appeared in the Fulton County Daily Report and on Law.com’s Small Firm Business emphasizes the friendship point.  She reports that a partner, in the 86-lawyer litigation firm of Carlock, Copeland, Semler & Stair in Atlanta, says that more than 75% of his clients are also his friends.  And she tells how he does it, and suggests five steps that firms can utilize to build friendships.

No rocket science here; but, reminders on some of the ways to go about befriending contacts who could become long term clients.

It certainly is no secret that a lot of general counsel are not exactly thrilled with their outside law firms these days. What with record profits by BigLaw (and one firm bragging about it), the cost of first year associates salaries and rising billing rates, the evidence is clear. But rising legal costs is only part of the story.

John Remsen’s latest Marketing Tip gives eight reminders of what is important to general counsel, and not all relate to the cost of legal services:

1. They hire lawyers, not firms (so why are firms spending so much on institutional marketing when face-to-face lawyer interaction - business development - will get better results);
2. Be available when I need you (be responsive and reachable – returning calls or emails the next day is no longer acceptable);
3. Keep your promises (deliver your services on deadline – actually, it is better marketing to beat your deadline, as in “under promise, and over deliver”);
4. Get to know me and my business (it is the best way to become a trusted advisor to your most important clients which in turn results in long term relationships);
5. Avoid surprises – always (not just when it involves bad news or invoices, but anything that the client is likely to be unhappy about);
6. Ensure that general counsel look good (their egos – and position within the company - are important, and relate directly to future business);
7. Don’t overlawyer (the money does matter, so don’t spend $100,000 on a $25,000 matter – assome firms have incredibly done); and
8. Be nice – to everyone (each person on the client’s team is important, so be nice to all staff people, as well as the lawyers).

It makes a lot of business development sense to listen to what general counsel have to say. The economic viability of your firm may depend on it.

Before I give a speech, I get nervous. I’ve learned over the years that that is a good thing. If I’m not nervous, it’s because I am overconfident, and then I usually bomb. So, I don’t dread being nervous, but I like to get over it pretty quickly after beginning my talk.

Therefore, I like to start with some humor. It helps relax me…when it gets the intended reaction from the audience, that is. Humor is a great thing, but it can be dangerous, if it comes across as inappropriate, demeaning, politically incorrect, etc., or just not funny.

Tom Antion, the Great Public Speaking guru, has a couple of recent posts dealing with both tips on opening comments, and speaker humor.

His suggestions on beginning your talk include:

• “Make points that folks agree on first. Never create controversy early, unless you are doing it for dramatic effect.
• “Never tell a long involved story unless it is HIGHLY TESTED. If it bombs, you will have a tough fight to win back the audience.
• “Never tell any story or joke that has a remote chance of offending someone. After you warm up the audience, you may be bolder.
• “Somewhere in your opening you must tell the audience why you are there. They need some selfish reason to listen to you.
• “Using humor in your opening tells the audience that yours is going to be a fun presentation. It tells them that they might actually enjoy it. Don't disappoint them by telling an opening joke and boring them the rest of the time.”

His humor post has more than a dozen funny lines from famous people. Take a look. You may find one that safely fits into the topic of your speech.

Most of all, when giving a speech, have fun.  Your audience will enjoy the experience more, and so will you.

A few years ago, I met a lawyer who sat on the grievance committee (Committee on Professional Standards, Appellate Divsion, New York State Supreme Court). She informed me that 80% of the grievances filed against lawyers in the state were due to inattention to a client’s matter and for failure to communicate, generally. It seems that I read a similar number in an ABA article somewhere. Moreover, she said that some of the grievances result in malpractice claims, when no actual malpractice took place.

In my speeches, I often point out that a failure to communicate often (as in constantly, frequently, persistently, regularly, all the time…… okay, okay, I agree, enough already) is not only foolish from a professional standpoint (as in discipline by the bar, keeping professional insurance premiums reasonable, and so forth), BUT it is just dumb marketing.  One could even say it is marketing malpractice.

So, why don’t lawyers communicate more often with clients? Their busy, don’t have the answer from the other side, from the court, or haven’t had a chance to work on that memo, or whatever. It matters not what the excuse may be, the fact is that the lawyer should communicate such information to the client nonetheless. The more communication that occurs, even if it is not always what the client wants to hear, the better the client will feel. Knowledge truly is power, and clients do not like being kept in the dark.

At least one solution might be to provide clients with a regular status report. Ed Poll offers to share a status report form he came across that might do the trick. E-mail him at edpoll@lawbiz.com for a copy. As Ed says, unhappy clients often don’t complain, they just don’t use the lawyer again.

What are your means of keeping clients informed?

Unfortunately, too many law firms do not provide quality client service. At least not the kind of service that clients want, if we can believe the results of surveys by the BTI Consulting Group and InsideCounsel magazine. I trust that many firms truly believe they are providing good client service. Regrettably, the surveys do not support that view.

An article “The Phenome of Client Service” by David Freeman on Law.com’s Small Firm Business should serve as a wakeup call for many law firms if they are serious about client service. David’s article is definitely worth a read.

First, David points out that the surveys tell us:

• In 2006, clients only gave 21% of their firms an A grade on performance, while 52% of law firms gave themselves an A (there was an even worse disparity in 2007, with 19% of clients and 62% of firms rendering an A) [InsideCounsel];
• Approximately 47% of corporate counsel “ousted their primary law firms in the prior 18 months;” and in 2006, 75%  of in-house counsel respondents were looking at “exceptional client focus” while only 12.5% were “swayed by legal skills” [BTI Consulting]; and
• In 2008 “The Survey of Client Service Performance for Law Firms: The BTI Client Service A-Team” reports that only 34.6% of clients “recommended their primary law firm.” [BTI Consulting].

So, client service is the name of the game. Or it should be.  And I agree with David that the way to excel at it is to: know your client’s business, be highly responsive, proactive, add value, and manage the relationship. In conclusion, he sums it up this way: “It should be the goal of every firm to move from the platitudes of lip service to the realities of extraordinary service.”

If you would like to take a quick look at his six steps for a more “robust approach” to client service …

I talk too much. I know a lot of people who talk more than they listen. That’s a bad.

The adage comes to mind that the “person who talks the most is the one who thinks the meeting was the most successful.” Can’t remember where I got that one, but believe it based on personal experience. So, if a lawyer wants a client or prospect to think a meeting was a success (and end up hiring them), doesn’t it make sense for the lawyer to listen more than 50% of the time. 

David Reich over on my 2 cents blog has a post on “Listening – The key component of Conversation.” He states:

“Listening is perhaps the most important part of conversation.  If you're not listening, then it's a one-way communication.  That's not good in everyday life, and it's certainly not good in marketing.”

….

“…The beauty of listening is that those who are listened to start to feel accepted, start taking their words more seriously and start discovering their true selves.”

More importantly,

“Listening is a form of spiritual hospitality by which you invite strangers to become friends…”

Clients hire lawyers they like and trust. All the more likely if you’re friends.

Be honest. Do you have a written marketing plan? Well, join the other 95% of lawyers who don’t – at least that is the percentage of business people that don’t have one according to Drew McLellan over at Small Business Branding. And I agree. Further, I concur with Drew that a “To Do List” doesn’t count.

His excellent post “What is your lack of planning costing you?” is short and sweet. First, he cites a number of anonymous sayings we can all agree with, which is why his point about the costs of failing to plan is right on target. Specifically:

• “If you fail to plan, you plan to fail.”
• “Measure twice, cut once.”
• “A good plan today is better than a perfect plan tomorrow.”
• “It wasn’t raining when Noah built the ark.”

What I liked most was his five reasons why a lack of planning is so costly:

1. Spend more money
2. Reach fewer of the right people
3. Be swayed by persuasive sales people rather than staying the course
4. Be less efficient
5. Grow your business more slowly, if at all

Finally, I couldn’t resist adding a couple of my favorite adages (authors unknown) when it comes to planning:

• “When all’s said and done, a lot more is said than done.”
• “Planning without action is futile, action without planning is fatal.”

If your web site is not attracting much traffic, it probably does. Tom O’Leary of The Attorneys ATM, who recently completed a site for a very happy client of mine (who picked up a significant matter one month after his new site went online), is offering a FREE “tune-up” to the winner of an SEO contest open to solos and small firms.

Some lucky winner is going get his or her web site “tuned-up” so it can do what it is supposed to do – attract new clients. Tom says he will work with the winner to optimize the site for the search phrases applicable to their practice, and in short order have the site sit on the first page of Google, Yahoo and MSN – all for free.

So, if your current web site's visibility is less than it should be, and you want it to help grow your practice, register here for the SEO contest.  He will be posting the results of the contest and follow-up on the winner's progress. 

Even if you don't win, Tom has a gift for you.  All those who enter will receive a free copy of his new eBook, “How to Dominate Google, Yahoo and MSN.” It’s a 77-page, step-by-step guide to top search engine rankings for:

• Those attorneys on a shoe-string budget that need a strong web site to attract new clients;
• Attorneys with a successful practice that simply enjoy working on their own site and want to make it a more effective marketing tool; and
• Successful attorneys who would like an inside peek at what is needed in order to have a successful web site - and use that knowledge when hiring a search engine optimization firm.

So, if your site appears somewhat inert and could use a tune-up, give it a shot. Nothing ventured, nothing…………..etc.

Following my post I heard from Ford Harding who sent me a copy of his book Rainmaking: Attract New Clients No Matter What Your Field, 2^nd Edition. The book includes a chapter “When You Lose a Sale,” which includes the following suggestions in seeking feedback:

• Encourage stark honesty, like a Dutch uncle;
• Try to set a separate meeting or at least phone call for the debriefing (not as part of the bad news call);
• Make sure you don’t come across as threatening or angry;
• Compile your questions in advance;
• Three general questions you should definitely ask:
  • “Why did you select the other firm?
  • “What did they do especially well during the sales process?
  • “Where could we have been better?”;
• Don’t be disagreeable or argue with anything you hear;
• Keep notes on what is said;
• Debrief as many people as is reasonably appropriate; and
• Send a personal (handwritten) thank you note.

Following this advice will more than likely improve your chances of winning the next time.

Now, stop yawning! This is not as boring a topic as you might think.

Thom Singer makes a great case for using this tool that some people think is mundane and “oh, so 60’s”. To those I say with all due respect – horsefeathers!! Nametags are very important in any networking situation. 

Heck, I was with a medium-sized law firm  recently that used permanent nametags (even for spouses/significant others) at their own retreat with only one or two outsiders.

As Thom points out there are important reasons for using them:

• Every event is a networking event,
• Everyone does not know everyone,
• Lack of “coolness” is irrelevant,
• They facilitate conversations,

And possibly most importantly,

• they help avoid embarrassing situations.

So, don’t let others talk you out of using nametags. They are an important tool.  

And if you are dying to read more about nametags, check out ole crazy (as in successful and probably rolling in it) “Hello, My Name is Scott” Ginsberg. I think he probably wears his nametag to bed, but I could be wrong about that.

Although not everyone accepts that the “R” word is actually occurring (of course “they” have six or seven figure incomes with little chance of encountering a foreclosure on their McMansion, nor being troubled by such mundane tasks as putting petroleum into their limousines – but I digress), but for those firms who do feel a bit of a pinch in the old institutional wallet these days, it may just be time to crank up the business development efforts a little.

An article by Les Altenberg of A.L.T. Legal Professionals Marketing Group on the subject, that appears in this week’s Law.com, talks about adjusting the four “P’s” (Product, Place, Promotion, Price) of marketing as one way to develop business in these troubled times. Specifically:

Product – Consider providing a mix of services most in need in such times, such as bankruptcy, loan restructuring, renegotiation of contracts, acquisitions of distressed businesses and, of course, litigation;

Place – whether services are delivered in the law office, clients office, over the telephone or Internet, the important part is to stay close to existing clients (and that in my mind includes visiting key clients in their workplace);

Promotion – a firm should focus its business development dollars on promoting the mix of services needed now, especially those things most likely to raise the firm’s profile relating to those services – speaking, writing, seeking feedback, entertaining and client visits (basically drawing from my Top Ten Marketing Tips list); and

Price – here, as a medium-sized or small firm, I would emphasize your normally lower rates compared to BigLaw, and offer alternative fee arrangements (such as fixed fees). As Les warns, be careful about reducing your fees in these times, as it will be extremely difficult to raise them when things turn around.

Whether you agree or not that the economy is in an actual recession, revisiting your marketing four P's is worth doing.

Bruce Allen has an intriguing post at Marketing Catalyst about restaurants in troubled times, and how one chef comes to the rescue.  We both believe there are valuable lessons in his story for law firms. Although Bruce brings up the tale in the context of a down economy, I believe the lesson is just as applicable whatever the state of the marketplace.

He mentions how Scottish Chef Gordon Ramsey on his TV show Kitchen Nightmares works at turning around failing restaurants. Bruce surmises that the establishments are failing because of “two key issues”:

• There are too many items on the menu, and
• The restaurant is not known as “the best place to go for ____.”

Now think law firm. Think brand.

No law firm is totally a one-stop shop. In fact, in most firms it is best to not even try. Due to the complexities associated with most legal areas today, a law firm – especially a medium to small firm – is better off limiting itself to niche practices. Not only will lawyers become more proficient in these areas of the law, but it’s easier and more efficient to focus the firm’s business development efforts on fewer practice areas.

Accordingly, law firms should consider reducing the size of their menu. It’s a good thing to be known for one or two niche areas, but, better to be recognized as “the best place to go for __________.”

My friend Dan Hull tells us a story on his What About Clients? blog about his childhood friend, who may be just a bit weird – with a sense of humor. His friend claims to have uncovered advice from some lawyer’s writings dated in 1836. I don’t know his friend, but like Dan, I expect he is full of manure as to his "discovery".

The “sage” advice includes:

1. “Be risk-averse at all times. Clients have come to expect this from their lawyers. It's tradition. Honor it.
2. "Tell the client only what it can't do. Business clients are run by business people who take risks. They need to be managed, guided, stopped. Don't encourage them.
3. “Whatever you do, don't take a stand, and don't make a recommendation. (You don't want to be wrong, do you?)
4. “Treat the client as a potential adversary at all times. Keep a distance.
5. “Cover yourself. Write a lot to the client. Craft lots of confirming letters which use clauses like "it is our understanding", "our analysis is limited to..." and "we do not express an opinion as to whether..."
6. “Churn up extra fees with extra letters and memoranda and tasks. Milk the engagement. (If you are going to be a weenie anyway, you might as well be a sneaky weenie.)
7. “As out-house counsel, you are American royalty. Never forget that.”

On the other hand, you may prefer to follow “The Ten Commandments of Good Client Relationships” developed by the Queensland Law Society of Australia instead: 

1. “Clients are the most important people in our practice — in person, by mail or by phone.
2. “Clients are not dependent on us. We are dependent on them.
3. “Clients are not an interruption of our work. They are the purpose of it.
4. “Clients do us a favor when they call. We are not doing them a favor by serving them.
5. “Clients are a part of our business. Do not treat them as outsiders.
6. “Clients are not “statistics.” They are flesh-and-blood human beings with feelings and emotions like our own.
7. “Clients are not people to argue with or match wits. Nobody ever won an argument with a client.
8. “Clients are people who bring us their wants. It is our job to meet those wants.
9. “Clients are the lifeblood of this practice.
10. “Clients are deserving of the most courteous and attentive treatment we can give them.”

Thanks to Jim Calloway’s Law Practice Tips Blog for bringing the commandments to my attention some time back.

Last week I had the privilege of presenting at a North Carolina 80-lawyer firm retreat. Normally, when I am hired by a firm to aid in the marketing effort, my challenge is to convince the firm of what they need to do to be successful at legal marketing and business development. That was not what happened in this case.

 I feel a little guilty charging the firm of Ward and Smith, P.A. for my services. The firm is so incredibly with it, that I’m still not sure why they felt they needed me in the first place. Let me explain.

The firm over the last couple of years had already undertaken SWOT analysis, followed by planning and implementation of their strategies (without the benefit of an outside consultant). Additionally, they have focused heavily on clients and relationship building in general. Finally, they have created a family atmosphere (reinforced by spouses and significant others who attended the retreat).

Not only does the firm hold a retreat each year at a resort with the better half attending, but spouses and others are invited to all substantive sessions, if they wish to attend. Other family functions are held during the year. Good internal marketing!

What struck me the most about what the firm is already doing includes:

Planning:

• All lawyers meet quarterly to thrash out and build on efforts initiated at the annual retreats;
• The firm has practice groups responsible for administrative, CLE, practice development purposes, and interdisciplinary client or industry teams for marketing and client development purposes; and
• Client teams meet monthly and report in writing on business development progress.

Client Relationships:

• A full-time, dedicated marketing partner who visits with clients seeking feedback and business development opportunities;
• Teams visit with clients off the clock; and
• Invite clients to “lunch and learn” or after hours cookouts, either at a firm location or at a clients' (even towing their own BBQ equipment along), and responding to questions from clients free of charge.

Considering how much I hear (and write) about what clients want from their outside lawyers (and aren’t getting), I know of only a few that begin to match what Ward and Smith is doing. I haven’t had a chance to meet any of their clients, but I’ll bet you $10 to a donut that they have a ton of satisfied clients who believe that their law firm really “gets it.”

Naturally, one might think every lawyer is responsible, or maybe the managing partner if it has to be brought down to a single individual. My initial reaction was the former, but after reading the article “The Power of One” by Marcie Borgal in The Complete Lawyer, I’ve come up with a different take on the issue. Marcie is a senior strategic analyst with The BTI Consulting Group in Wellesley, MA.

Her article starts with:

“A research study recently conducted (by BTI) … revealed a startling fact. Having a single individual accountable for firm-wide client service boosts per attorney profits by up to 41.2%”

I must admit I was startled by that myself. Marcie refers to these individuals as “client service executives.” Their job responsibilities include:

• “providing client-focused tools and programs,
• generating strategies to improve client service performance,
• delineating gaps between performance and client expectations, and
• regularly tracking and monitoring client satisfaction.”

Additionally, these individuals may conduct “annual interviews with key clients” to ascertain client service issues, as well as “clients’ goals and needs.”

Law firms “typically draw client service executives from the ranks of their most well-respected attorneys,” according to Marcie.  In most cases, I presume in most firms that person is likely to be the managing partner.   But, that may not always be the case.

For instance, Philadelphia’s Ballard Spahr has hired a full time in-house “Client Interviewer” and Seattle’s Stanislaw Ashbaugh has a Chief Results Officer on staff (with a prominent link from the firm’s home page).

It looks like some law firms are really taking client service issues – and, more importantly client satisfaction – seriously. As Marcie says, “[C]lients translate these approaches as an expression of interest and investment in them, their priorities and their concerns.” I think it is just smart legal marketing!

It certainly doesn’t hurt if, in addition to “happy-camper clients,” the firm’s profits increase by more than 40% in the bargain.

Thanks to Arnie Herz for the tip that led me to Marcie’s article.

Mid-sized and small law firms that specialize in “banking and finance litigation” have significant opportunities to pick up work that would normally go to large law firms. The reason is that BigLaw may be conflicted out of these cases according to an article in the New York Lawyer pointing out that “BigLaw Conflicts Give Smaller Firms Big Role in Market Crisis.” (free subscription required). The article also appears in Law.com's Small Firm Business.

A few of those smaller firms and who they represent include:

• Kobre & Kim (19 lawyers) – representing Deutsche Bank A.G., Fluxo-Cane Overseas Ltd (Brazilian cane exporter), Telinor Telefonia (Mexican telecom utility);
• Rich & Intelisano (4-lawyer plaintiffs’ firm) – claims related to Bear Stearns, and claims against Merrill Lynch & Co. and Morgan Stanley being arbitrated before FIRA; and
• Girard Gibbs (15 lawyers) - representing some German and French banks.

If your firm does some of this work, you might want to crank up your legal marketing efforts in that direction.

Too few business owners religiously track their financial numbers as a means of monitoring the health of their businesses, according to a post by Drew McLellan on the Small Business Branding blog. Although Drew brings this up in the context of management issues, the importance for marketing should not be overlooked.

And, so it should be for law firms. For instance, a client admitted recently that he doesn’t look enough at his firm’s numbers as a tool of marketing. He’s not alone. The fact is that a law firm’s financials provide a wealth of information that can save time in focusing a firm’s business development efforts.

By delving into the firm’s financials, a firm can uncover the strength of its practices. Further, by discovering which clients are the most profitable, and the industries they represent, the firm provides grist for its marketing focus. It just makes sense for a law firm to concentrate its primary lawyer marketing efforts on those type of clients and practices where the firm is already strong.  The numbers will tell you where your strengths are.

You can learn a lot either way. Thanks to Barbara Walters Price at Marketing U, I remembered a very important lesson I learned about business development competitions. Whether you win or lose, it is wise to conduct a post mortem to determine why. Barbara’s post led me to a post by Ford Harding on preparing for a sales presentation.  Stay with me now. 

Ford’s point was that it is “insane” to spend a lot of time working on a “leave-behind” rather than focusing on who will say what at the presentation itself.  He considers the leave-behind a waste of time. I would agree, but how he arrived at that conclusion leads me to my point.

He conducted a series of post mortems (learning that potential clients didn’t even remember what was left behind). It reminded me of how important follow up after a competition really is. Not only when you lose, but when you win as well. The latter because you may get a false idea of why you were successful. (I remember a time I found out that the competitor had done a better proposal, but sent the wrong person to the oral presentation. So, we won, but not because of our proposal. Learned a valuable lesson on that one.)   

Of course, the main reason for a post mortem is to learn what the competition did right and what your firm could do better in the future, no matter the outcome.

At the Legal Marketing Association annual meeting last month in LA, the chairperson and the general counsel of the Association of Corporate Counsel, along with two other members on their panel, let law firm marketers know how they felt about the increasing rates and associated legal costs of outside counsel.

According to a post by Mark Beese on his Leadership for Lawyers blog entitled “We’re Not Going to Take It,” the ACC reps laid out the realities in-house counsel are facing, specifically:

• Pressure to contain and predict legal costs,
• Frustration with double-digit rate increases,
• Off-the-scale associate salaries (and corresponding hourly rates); and
• Perceived unwillingness by law firms:
  • to discuss alternative fee arrangements, and
  • create lower cost methods for commodity work.

So, what's my point? Talk to the in-house counsel you know about your fee structures, and willingness to discuss alternatives to the traditional hourly rate. There’s a lot of work out there for medium-sized and smaller law firms because of their lower fee structure and flexibility. 

If large firms aren’t yet fearful as to how serious corporate counsel are about finding solutions to these pressure points, they will be soon enough. And just think how you can help them along by picking up more of their corporate work in the meantime.

Since I started interviewing law firm clients in 1990 (even used a film crew to capture five of them on a VHS tape – I’ll bet you remember what those are), I have never waivered from the belief that it is one of the most important things a firm can do to retain clients. And developing and enhancing client relationships is what marketing is all about. It is one of the reasons I put client feedback as No. 3 on my Top Ten Marketing Tips list.

Ballard Spahr in Philadelphia has made a major commitment to institutionalize its client feedback process. As reported on several blogs (Mark Beese on his Leadership by Lawyers, Larry Bodine’s Law Marketing Blog and Peter Darling's Business Development) over the past week, Ballard has hired a full time “client interviewer.” It is reported that the person has more than 30 years of experience as a journalist, so she should be conducting some serious interviews. I agree with Peter that it is a brilliant move.

Your firm may not be in a position to justify the cost of a full time in-house client interviewer (Ballard has 500 lawyers after all), but there is absolutely no reason why your managing partner, or an experienced outside third party, shouldn’t be doing client interviews for your firm. The purpose is to determine how the firm is doing in the relationship, inviting honest feedback on any problems, and to learn what the firm could do better.

It is better to find out if there are problems, that can be corrected, before your key clients decide to try another law firm for their next matter. There is no time to waste.

Writing and speaking as business development techniques have long been two of my favorites. They are No. 7 and No. 6 on my list of Top 10 Marketing Tips. The obvious purpose is to establish the lawyer’s position as an authority on a subject and encourage clients to retain her or him as a result.

My friend Trey Ryder has an article “How To Build Your Image As An Authority” in his recent newsletter; and writing and speaking play an important role in building that authority image:

• Write articles for publication,
• Appear as a guest on a radio talk show,
• Offer opinions and advice on the TV news,
• Present seminars to other lawyers,
• Present seminars for your prospects,
• Write and publish a newsletter,
• Write a book, and
• Host a web site (or blog).

Trey also offers five additional suggestions dealing with the trappings of authority for consideration from titles, and office status to the car you drive. Take a look.

Darren Rowse has a great article over at ProBlogger where he raises the question “Should I Change My Website Into a Blog?” He mentions six reasons to do so, while including five reasons you may not want to. Darren’s reasons include:

Reasons to do a blog:

1. “Blogs give Individuals, Companies and Brands ‘Voice’;
2. “Blogs are Conversational;
3. “Blogs build Trust;
4. “Blogs build Profile;
5. “Blogs are Immediate (meaning that you don’t have wait for your writings to be published); and
6. “Blogs are a doorway to Search Engines and Social Media.”

Reasons not to:

1. “Blogs Take Time to Mature (so don’t expect a quick return);
2. “Blogs Take Daily Work (not if you don’t post daily, two or three times a week can work);
3. “Blogs Take More than Writing (it can also involve monitoring comments, having a good design, marketing your site, etc.);
4. “Bloggers Can be Anti-Trust/Profile Building (meaning that depending on what you write and your tone, you could actually impact your reputation adversely); and
5. “Blogs Rely Upon YOU as a Conversation Starter.”

For higher visibility for your law practice, blogging may just be the answer. But if you aren’t going to make the commitment to sustain it, then maybe not. 

So, the question is: Do you want to increase your visibility, dialogue, and credibility with your intended audience? Blogging is one vehicle to consider as part of your business development mix, IMHO.

Check out Darren’s article for more, such as whether to turn your web site into a blog or start a new site, as well as some recommended reading.  You may also want to look over the 38 comments he got in response to his post to see what others think about the idea.

Okay, every lawyer knows that, right? It’s so basic, so common sense, so elemental, so essential, so basic (alright, I’ll stop with the synonyms). Why then are clients unsatisfied even when the result is good? Because some lawyers don’t:

• Understand clients’ businesses and/or personal situation,
• Return phone calls or emails promptly,
• Keep client informed so as to avoid surprises,
• Meet deadlines
• Treat client with respect,
• Meet client expectations as to how matter will be handled,
• Respect clients’ time by keeping them waiting without explanation,
• Keep clients informed as to the process or status of their matter, and
• Keep a handle on costs and fees.

The point is obvious. There is a lot more to client satisfaction that just getting a favorable result. And remember that satisfied clients are the best source of new business – in terms of follow on work and word-of-mouth referrals. Pretty basic isn’t it.

On Jim Calloway’s Law Practice Tips Blog there’s an ancient post (well, actually January 31) that I ran across, that refers to his presentation at the ABA TECHSHOW last year.  I meant to post about it earlier as I’m a big fan of Jim’s, so better late than never. He talked about client development in terms of satisfied clients. He boils it down to meeting client expectations, and his article has both good advice and refers to additional resources, such as:

• Careful screening of clients (with danger signals);
• Communicating with clients in the 21^st Century;
• Taming the Beast: Managing Client Expectations in a 24/7 World; and
• “Dealing with the Difficult Client” by Carole Curtis over at PracticePro (which by the way has a bunch of articles on various topics of interest to law firms.

A lot of good stuff thanks to Jim.

Lawyers are happier when they are doing the work they like for the clients they like working for. As my long time readers know, I have sung and preached that mantra many times (here, here, here, here, here, and here). Furthermore, your law firm marketing will be more efficient and cost effective, if you focus your business development efforts on narrow market niche(s) that set you apart from the competition.

But, if you are having trouble identifying the “ideal” clients for your law firm, think about this for a minute. Try using the reverse approach. By that I mean determine your ideal clients by deciding the clients you DON’T want. Some may say that is a negative approach, but what the heck if it works for you.

I can thank my friend (actually I’ve never met him, only spoke with him once or twice, but I really like his stuff, so maybe he’ll be my friend) John Jantsch over at Duct Tape Marketing for the idea on this approach.  He explains in his post “Who don’t you want as a customer?”:

“ It’s just human nature I guess, but we seem to have a much better grasp of what we don’t want in our life than what we do. So by first categorizing things like the types of customers that you can’t serve well, the kinds of people you don’t work well with, or the size of projects that don’t fit you may be on your way to better understanding your ideal customer.”

And…

“Now, while you are at this exercise you may discover that you are currently working some of these customers you now admit you don’t want. Do what you can to move them to someone who can serve them better and begin the process of narrowing your focus only to your ideal customer profile.”

Thanks, John.

The result: cutting where cutting shouldn’t occur. In my more than two decades of experience in this business, when the belt tightens one of the first areas to feel it is the marketing budget. That’s a BAD. My point is that now is the wrong time to be cutting back. Rather, now is the time to increase marketing and business development efforts.

Bruce Marcus of The Marcus Perspective agrees. He addresses the competitive advantages that a firm could have during a recession (yeah, sorry but that’s what we are in IMHO), if a firm first recognizes that marketing is integral to the practice of law. As Bruce puts it in his article “6 Steps For Being A Tougher Competitor In A Weak Economy” that appears on RainToday.com “now is not the time to save money – it’s the time to spend money wisely.”

His six steps to being a tougher competitor in a weak economy are:

1. Service the right market – you can’t be “all things to all clients,” so narrow your marketing focus to the firm’s more profitable emerging (not declining) markets;
2. Target your business development efforts – rather than aiming at a broad marketplace. I’d personally recommend focusing on existing clients over prospects, but if you do target prospects at least pick individual targets;
3. Look at your infrastructure – in order to become more productive. Your assessment should include management processes, technology, and skill sets, as well as the most effective (on an individual basis) business development techniques;
4. Modernize your firm – by sharpening your skills, particularly as it relates to: assessing your market, planning, communicating internally (and with clients), and selling (oops, I mean developing business);
5. Don’t market on the cheap – Bruce is right in saying that “do-it-yourself-marketing is expensive.” You can do it effectively if your lawyers have the skill sets, but “it is still not a game for amateurs.” Invest in help where you need it; and
6. Don’t wait – do it now. Learning to compete may be your firm’s best protection, especially in today’s market and economy.

I particularly like Bruce’s concluding paragraph:

“It’s true that when times are tough, it's easier to cut costs – including marketing costs – and to hunker down until it's over. But that's like drilling a hole in the bottom of a flooded boat to let the water out. For a professional firm in an economic crisis, there's no place to hide, so learn to fight back."

Law firms have asked me whether they should undertake an advertising or public relations campaign. My response can be both or neither. The reason is that until a firm has done the basics involving strategic marketing planning, either or both could be a total waste of money.

If a firm doesn’t know where it wants to end up, who its target audience should be, and what clients it really wants to serve, then any advertising or public relation campaign is premature.

Furthermore, firms need to understand the significant differences between advertising and PR. Paramjit Mahli, who may have a slight bias (as do I), addresses the distinction between the two on her Profiting With Public Relations blog, and is worth taking a look at.

As to which is better, my bias comes down on the side of PR; but advertising can also be useful, especially in raising a law firm’s profile with intended audiences. However, the latter does not make my Top 10 Marketing Tips for developing business. As I see it the three main differences include:

Whether one or the other, or both, is right for your law firm will depend, in my judgment, on where your firm is in terms of its marketing and business development program.

Okay, that’s another of my infamous generalizations. But stick with me a second. I really do believe that everything a lawyer does – at least as s/he interacts with another human being – is marketing.

I was reminded of this basic, fundamental principle when it comes to developing business in any personal services arena when I came across my friend Dan Hull’s post “When you work, you are marketing” over at What About Clients? blog wherein he refers to Rule 6 (his favorite) of his 12 Rules of marketing. It is definitely worth a read.

And here is an earlier post of mine on the same topic:

“Everything You Do as a Lawyer is Marketing”

Take a look.

Well, “secrets” may be a bit strong, since what makes small to medium size law firms successful isn’t exactly rocket science. Prosperous smaller firms have very successful lawyers who never practiced in BigLaw, as well as those who did, but left because they no longer cared for the environment or life style in larger firms.

So, what are the “secrets” that make smaller firms thrive?

There are many reasons, of course, but one article on the benefits of small firm practices by Zack Needles with The Legal Intelligencer that appears on this month’s Law.com’s Small Firm Business gives us clues as to what five Pennsylvania firms attribute their success to:

• Niche practice within boutique firm;
• Attracting talent with strong capabilities, and focusing on “exceptional service and competitive rates;”
• Focusing on maintaining a high profile as “best marketing technique;” and
• Developing “personal marketing plans” with individual lawyer budgets and accountability.

Seems fairly straight forward, and worth taking a look at.

Often I seek out ideas from the non-legal world that I think will be applicable to lawyers and law firms.  One of those sources that I have used before is Michael McLaughlin over at Guerrilla Consulting. Although his audience is primarily made up of consultants, his advice is regularly useful in our world.

In a recent article he offers up “What Clients Want: 4 Keys To Every Working Relationship” which was published on RainToday.com. His advice includes:

1. Determine Client’s Expectations – Find out what the client wants to accomplish (e.g., scorched earth vs. quickest resolution of issue), and make that your goal as well. As McLaughlin points out, a “client’s primary expectation is that you finish the work on time, on budget, and with a minimal disruption” and without last minute surprises;
2. “Cool It” With Your Expertise – Interesting concept. As a rule – let’s face it – we lawyers have a tendency to tout our expertise, and suggest that we have the solution in hand (no guarantee, of course). “Clients value consultants (read lawyers) whose minds are freed, not hamstrung, by their deep expertise,” according to Michael. What has worked in the past in similar situations may not be the right solution in the client's current situation.
3. Be Prepared to Back Off – Clients value lawyers who act as an “objective early warning system.” What the client may want you to do for them may not be what is best for the client. Further, the client’s team may not be ready for the solution, transaction, fight, etc. Granted, it is difficult to give up a bird in the hand by telling the client they should hold off, but in the long run clients will value “honest, objective opinions on the probability of success…” It’ll pay off in the long run.
4. Plan Your Exit Strategy – By that he means, deal with the client’s issue and “exit stage left.” Don’t try to stretch out the engagement or keep your involvement beyond the immediate issue (that doesn't mean you don't try to develop more business from that client after you've completed the current engagement). I remember when I interviewed the clients of a lawyer-client of mine, a couple of them were critical that the lawyer was always selling more of his services before he even resolved the matter he was working on. McLaughlin sums it up well: “Clients appreciate that your primary interest is in reaching their objectives, not building your business.”

Interesting stuff.

I’m not referring to keeping up with the Jones’ or with large firms for that matter. What I am referring to is whether your firm is keeping up with the needs of your marketplace in terms of marketing and business development. Times change and competition is increasing. Both should be taken into consideration when calculating what your budget should be for generating new business.

Thanks to Mark Beese for his recent post on his Leadership for Lawyers blog, that brought to my attention The BTI Consulting Group’s annual benchmark survey on marketing and business development strategies. The significance of Mark’s post, and obviously the survey, is the information relative to the “dramatic boosts” in AmLaw’s “Second Hundred” law firms’ budgets. They are “catching up” (percentage wise) with what the First Hundred are spending. Hmm, competition does have a price.

Important aspects of budgeting that the survey uncovered include:

• 52.5% of marketing budgets was spent on salaries and business development (sales, face-to-face meetings, personal encounters, whatever you want to call it);
• 30% of that goes to client relationship development (which I presume includes client feedback programs, increasing and improving client communications, etc.);
• Budgets are consuming 2.1% to 2.6% of gross revenues; and
• Mid-sized firms’ budgets are on the rise.

Moreover, the question is not only whether your firm is spending enough dollars on marketing and business development to keep up, but whether it is spending it on the right things?

As a follow up to my last post “PowerPoint: The Good, The Bad and The Awful,” I wanted to report on feedback from Peter Darling. It’s obvious he knows a lot more about these presentations since he teaches workshops on the subject. Thus, I wanted to share his post “How to Create a Powerpoint Presentation That Absolutely Kicks Ass,” and specifically his 7 principles that will ensure that you do so:

1. The listeners will remember no more than six things, so think “very carefully about what those six things are going to be;”
2. Your time is limited before your audience “mentally check(s) out.” According to Peter, you have “twenty minutes of free attention,” and you ‘d better capture them or you'll lose them for good;
3. Interact with your audience by getting them involved;
4. Remember Murphy’s Law, especially when it comes to PowerPoint presentations. Make sure you know how to get in touch with the IT guy, who can bail you out when something goes wrong, because it will at some point. (Also, get there at least an hour early to check out the audio/visual equipment, room setup, etc.);
5. Overcome stage fright by realizing that you know a lot more than your audience, or why else would they be there;
6. Make sure your listeners know how your talk will fit together. Peter’s reminds us of the adage I heard many years ago when it comes to public speaking: “tell them what you are going to tell them, then tell them, then tell them what you’ve told them;” and
7. What you have to say is why the audience is there, not to view your slides. They are merely “an accent, a decoration.” So, put the focus on your talk, not the PowerPoint slides.

Excellent food for thought in making your next presentation as memorable as a kick in the….

Last fall I made a presentation on lawyer marketing at a plaintiff’s bar association conference. I worked very hard at minimizing the number of PowerPoint slides I used and the number of words on each slide, because I really do believe that less is more. I shouldn’t have bothered, since my audience was obviously use to slides ad nauseam which contained WHOLE sections of the Code of Federal Regulations. Hopefully, my presentation offered some relief at least.

Being a big fan of Jim Calloway’s Law Practice Tips Blog, it was good to see his post “Power Point Tips and Resources.”

I particularly liked the link to the YouTube video by comedian Don McMillan on “Life After Death by PowerPoint” which brought back memories of last fall, and really lightened up my day. It runs just under four minutes, and definitely worth viewing. It’s a hoot – and educational at the same time.

Jim’s post contains links to some of the gurus when it comes to PowerPoint presentations. Check them out the next time you are putting a presentation together.

• Dave Swanner’s free CD ROM of 100 PowerPoint Presentations for Plaintiff Attorneys;
• Meryl’s Notes Blog's “70+ PowerPoint and Presentation Resources and Great Examples;”
• Garr Reynold’s Presentation Zen blog and specifically this post; and
• Cliff Atkinson’s books Beyond Bullet Points books and Beyond Bullets blog (which is transitioning to a subscription based blog at BBP Online).

I’ll be checking out these tools for my next presentation. Thanks Jim, as always.

I hate to exercise. I don’t care what anybody says. Maybe hate is a little strong, but I sure as heck don’t enjoy it. It ain’t fun.  It’s work. “They” do refer to it as “working out” after all, now don’t they.  If it was suppose to be enjoyable they would call it “playing out,” don’t you think? I rest my case.

But, I know I gotta do it for my health and general well being, so I do.

When it comes to business development the analogy fits. You gotta do it, whether you like it or not. I got on this track due to my friend John Remsen’s marketing tip of the month entitled “You Just Gotta Go” and his use of the exercise regimen analogy as to how lawyers need to approach their marketing efforts. I hate it when he is right (when it comes to the exercise thing), and totally agree that lawyers need to look at developing business in the same way.

I also agree with his six habits that will definitely help you in that regard:

1. Show How Much You Care – showing clients that you care about their goals and objectives, and their success is best done by showering them with attention; e.g., client site visits, lunch/breakfast meeting, sending information of interest, phone calls to catch up (off the clock of course), etc.
2. Always Return Your Phone Calls the Same Day – I’d go further and say within 4 hours, preferably within two (if you can’t physically pull that off, have someone on your staff return the call to explain that you are tied up, and when you will return the call).
3. Meet Your Deadlines – this falls into the “don’t over promise and under deliver” category. Much better to set a deadline and actually beat it by a day or two (It not only shows you’re efficient and good for your word, but you send the message that the client’s matter was a top priority for you).
4. Send Hand-Written Notes – I hate e-mail. There I’ve said it. Necessary and often efficient, yes. But, there is just too much of it, and I think people feel a sense of euphoria when they just delete the darn things. Think of how good you feel upon receiving a handwritten note from someone. I agree with John that it is “much more memorable and effective.” Spend time looking for opportunities to send a handwritten note.
5. Go to Breakfast or Lunch Once a Week – I don’t advocate that you Never Eat Alone. I agree with John that you should plan to have breakfast/lunch/dinner with a client, referral source, prospect or media person at least once a week. Start with those that, as he says, are on your “A” list. Not just once but 3 or 4 times per year – certainly with your top clients.
6. Get Active in One Key Organization – maybe two. John’s point is valid and why I suggest to clients that they join one or two organizations only and be very active in each, so they can give proper attention to the business development potential of each. Showing up at the monthly luncheon doesn’t get it. Volunteer or head up a committee. It’s all about visibility and credibility.

You gotta do it. So, which one are you going to work on first?

Thanks to a reader, I was alerted to an article entitled “Taming the Billable Beast” by David Gialanella in the February issue of the ABA Journal.  The article discusses how three firms are doing just that. How? you many ask:

1. Harrison & Ford out of Atlanta has eliminated the billable hour requirements for first year associates, AND doesn’t charge clients for their time on a matter. (If you want to read more about this, take a look at my post entitled “Is the Billable Hour Now Dead?” of last August);
2. Shepherd Law Group in Boston has done away with the billable hour completely “in favor of flat fees and fixed prices;” and
3. Strasburger & Price in Dallas has reduced the billable hour requirement for first-years by 320 hours, and increased hours for on the job training.  

It’s reported, and I would wholeheartedly believe, that clients and first-years love it, and it certainly should help with the perennial associate retention problem.

One troubling point mentioned in the article relating to the Shepherd firm. And that is the statement involving CEO Jay Shepherd that “he denies secretly keeping track of hours spent on each case.” If the firm doesn’t do so, IMHO, it is being foolhardy based on the following simple reasoning:

• You can’t make a profit on fixed fees unless you know what your costs are;
• You can’t know what your costs are unless you know how much time (and other dollars) are consumed by the matter; and
• There is no way to know how much time is being spent on matters if you don’t keep track of hours!

Duh! 

So, either they are guessing which means they don’t have a clue what their profit margin is either, or the firm has some other means of determining costs that I am unaware of.

In any event, I commend the firms for addressing the billable hour problem. I have long advocated dropping the billable hour (that doesn’t mean you don’t track working hours internally) for fixed fees as a legal marketing strategy. Moreover, it seems that reducing the billable requirements for new associates has benefits as well – in terms of training, associate and client retention, and business development. That’s a win-win-win all firms should consider.

Both maxims were included in the article “Kindness helps Win Legal Business” by Joey Asher that appeared in the Fulton County Daily Record, and also on Law.com’s Small Firm Business.

Asher relates several stories about how being nice lead to more business; and, how Cravath Swaine & Moore increased associate retention as a result of partners saying “thank you” to associates, which he attributes to a story in the The Wall Street Journal.

I agree with him that “[N]iceness really can be a business strategy.” Asher also tells us about the inspirational anecdotes he read in “The Power of Nice: How to Conquer the Business World With Kindness” by Linda Kaplan Thaler and Robin Koval, who run an advertising agency that attributes its success to being nice. One story involves how being kind led to the birth of the ice cream cone.

The article made me smile, which also happens to be one of the best ways of getting everyone you come in contact with to be nice. And that my law firm friends can lead to happy employees (from the receptionist to the copy room staff, not to mention associates), who will then treat clients with kindness, which leads to more business. Hmm, interesting concept.

Is niceness part of your firm's business development strategy?

So too, my friend Trey Ryder admits in an article in his recent newsletter entitled "Your Marketing Efforts Sink, Swim Or Soar Depending On How Well You Satisfy The Big 'C'" (by that he means “convenience”). He advises his readers that prospective clients are not unlike the rest of us in seeking the easy way. Therefore, lawyers should be smart by making it convenient for both clients and prospects to reach them when they have a need to do so.

He discusses what he calls 12 “smart ways” on how you can do just that. He suggests that you make sure:

1. prospects find it easy to learn about you (informative website or blog, and packet about firm you can send by email).
2. prospects find it easy to reach you (invite inquiries by a toll free number or by email that you that you respond to promptly).
3. clients find it easy to reach you (give clients your pager, cell phone and home numbers, where appropriate).
4. prospects find it easy to get to your office (give excellent directions, and even a map on your web site, and by email).
5. prospects find it easy to meet with you (offer night or weekend hours, visit their office or home if it's hard to get to your office and park, and have directions on your web site).
6. prospects find it easy to hire you (don’t require an office visit; fax or email the engagement letter, and can prospects hire you without a retainer? (hmmmm, not sure I’d offer that if I had a criminal defense practice)).
7. prospects find it easy to pay you (offer credit card payments, or payment plans, and send bills with a self-addressed stamped envelope).
8. prospects and clients find it easy to provide you with the information you need (send forms that are easy to fill out and fax/email back, offer prepaid self-addressed envelopes, and self-addressed UPS/FedEx labels).
9. prospects and clients find it easy to remember appointments and other important dates (do you remind them of scheduled appointments by letter, phone or email – heck doctors and dentists do so routinely).
10. clients know when to call you to update documents (again, remind them).
11. clients find it easy to refer their friends and colleagues (give clients copies of your brochure, offer free educational seminars, or offer free consultations).
12. clients find it easy to remember you (give out calendars, pens/pencils, refrigerator magnets, etc.; send newsletters, and other relevant information; and host client events).

Some of these ideas may not apply to your particular practice, but I’m sure there is a kernel or two in the above that should prove helpful.

Click here to download a copy of Trey’s article.

Carolyn Elefant, long time solo and blogging pioneer of MyShingle.com fame, has a book out entitled “Solo by Choice: How to Be the Lawyer You Always Wanted to Be.” Your library shouldn’t be without this tool.

Not only does she address the issue of deciding whether to go solo, but helps plan the “great escape.” Then, she writes about practice issues, such as dealing with clients, billing, generating cash flow, and the like.

Of course, near and dear to my heart, she has 48 pages devoted to practical, down-to-earth legal marketing ideas. Carolyn includes:

• An overview of lawyer marketing,
• Traditional marketing ideas (e.g., yellow pages, Martindale-Hubbell, elevator speech, sponsorships, trade groups, public relations, referrals, networking, speaking and writing, and putting on seminars),
  
• Internet marketing (and even references this blog, thank you very much), and
• “High-Impact” marketing, where she covers prospecting, organized networking, niche marketing, and “nontraditional consultations” (or what I would call providing quality service).

This is a must buy in my view. In fact, it would be valuable resource for individual lawyers in any size firm.

If you want a quick look at the table of contents…

Will small to mid-sized firms follow this trend? Not easily or any time soon, I’m sure.  But, when they do, I hope and PRAY they will hire a firm leader who has marketing and business development experience as one of his/her key assets. More on that in a moment.

An article entitled “Smaller Firms Should Seek Outside Help for Leadership Roles” by Wendy Tice-Wallner appeared on Law.com’s Small Firm Business. It made a case for hiring an outsider to run small firms as well. Although I’m not sure I followed her logic completely, the gist of her argument is that lawyers, as a general rule, are not trained in, and are usually poor at, leadership skills. Moreover, their personality traits are antithetical to those needed for the “reins of leadership;” that is, “’aggressive,’ ‘competitive,’ ‘domineering,’ ‘uncompromising,’ ‘risk-averse,’ and ‘individualistic’” vs. “collaborative, inclusive, intuitive and strategic.”

Further, why would you take an extremely successful lawyer at being a lawyer, and put him/her in charge of running the firm? Or worse, one without a book of business, just because he hasn’t got enough to do? It isn’t that either can’t turn into the best managing partner the world has ever seen, but one of Wendy’s points is that there is a tremendous learning curve that isn’t necessary. Rather, if you hire a “virtual managing partner” with law firm management experience from outside the firm, whether or not a lawyer, the firm will more likely find the skills needed to successfully lead the firm. And it’s cheaper.

Back to the point about marketing and developing business. As one of the more astute lawyers I have worked with put it many years ago to a group of new associates, “marketing is everything you do as a lawyer.” So, if your firm ever considers hiring a business savvy person from outside to run your law firm, make sure that their management/leadership skills contain a heavy dose of marketing experience.

Miriam Lawrence at Automatic Referrals has a recent post where she advises financial professionals on how to get referrals in what she calls an “ugly market.” As I read her post, I realized that it was good advice for lawyers as well – at any time.

Her suggestions:

• Proactively getting in front of your clients by emailing and calling them, sending letters, and “talking to them in as many ways as possible.” (I would add visiting them in their workspace, sending news articles, press clippings, etc.);
• Putting “client calls into your daily action plan”;
• Taking your “show on the road” (seeing visiting clients above); and
• Building other “measurable referral targets into your business plan,” and always being on the alert for clues to referral opportunities you run across.

All good advice. I would add another aspect relating to client referrals. Part of any business development effort needs to include keeping basic client relations enhancers at the forefront of your attorney-client relationships. That is,

• Returning phone calls promptly (if not sooner),
• Meeting deadlines,
• Avoiding any surprises,
• Meeting (or exceeding) client expectations, and
• et cetera. 

In other words, doing everything within your power to give clients a reason to give you more work and refer others to you and your law firm.

Robert’s “7 Costly Marketing Mistakes Every Service Business Must Avoid” include:

1. An inappropriate message - concentrating on what your firm does, rather than how a client will benefit from your firm’s services;
2. “Spray and Pray” marketing – failure to focus or require ROI from marketing efforts, and just hoping that they will produce satisfactory results;
3. Not emphasizing “Value” that your firm offers – get to know your clients business and what is important to them;
4. Selling vs. Educating – as we all know, no one likes to be sold, but rather they want to sell themselves. Thus, your time is better spent on educating clients and potential clients on issues, problems, solutions, et cetera that will lead them to hire you;
5. Not testing your marketing efforts to see what is working and what isn’t;
6. Lack of follow up (or, what I like to call not “enhancing the relationship”) – which can be accomplished by picking up the phone, visiting the client, developing a personal relationship, or sending information of any kind to stay in touch (newsletters, articles, press clippings, etc. etc.); and
7. Targeting the wrong or too broad an audience – firms should focus on those markets they most would like to represent, are best known within, and likely to already have a brand.

Not rocket science here, but certainly worth being reminded about.

• Why coaching works
• How it overcomes lawyers' reluctance to develop business
• How to select a coach
• What coaching process entails
• Why client visits and feedback programs work, and can lead to immediate business
• How selling really works

4.      “When should a law firm hire a dedicated marketing person?”

The day they open their law office. And the size of the firm doesn’t matter. Of course, it doesn’t have to be a full time, in-house person in every case. It could be an outsourced position or consultant. The important thing is that the firm be serious about getting professional marketing help.

As to when a law firm should hire an in-house staff person should be based on the firm’s needs and economics. Historically, there was a time when it seemed to be based on the size of the firm, and firms with less than 100 lawyers rarely had an in-house person. Now, there are firms with fewer than 30 lawyers that have a dedicated marketing person on staff. That decision should be based on when a staff position or positions make more economic sense than using outside help.

5.      “What are some of the latest (viable) trends you’re seeing in legal marketing?”

I’ve never been one to believe in the “marketing idea of the week/month/year” mentality. And “trends” often are just that, the latest fad. Having said that, I see blogging as a viable trend in obtaining legal work.  In essence, though, it is just a new vehicle for some of the more traditional means of developing business; that is, writing articles, making speeches, etc., all of which are ways of demonstrating one’s expertise and establishing credibility so clients will hire you.

3.      “Is there a rule of thumb about how much money a law firm should spend on marketing?”

No. I am not a believer in putting a dollar amount on how much a law firm should spend on marketing, merely because some firms throw out numbers like 1%, or 4% of gross revenues. It’s meaningless standing alone.

I would rather see firms approach budgeting on a zero-based system. That is, first determined what it is the firm wants to accomplish. Here’s where that planning stuff comes in again. Budgeting should only be done after the firm determines what they want to do, but how they’re going to do it. Only then should they put together a budget for their marketing and business development efforts.

There are certain basic necessities that a firm needs to spend dollars on, such as a website, promotional materials, and the like. But again, even that should be based on what it is they’re trying to accomplish in terms of goals and objectives for the law firm’s practice or practices.

1.       “What concrete suggestions do you have for law firms concerning their marketing?”

• Plan (set goals and measurable objectives for firm/practice, identify targets, and specify action items to reach those targets);
• Budget;
• Implement the plan, by:

• Visiting key clients (firms will find that it is the most effectively concrete thing they can do to obtain more work),
• Getting to know the client’s business,
• Writing (articles, book, blog, column) and speaking to target audiences,
• Making friends in the media,
• Getting involved in organizations relating to target audiences, and network,
• Seeking feedback on the firm,
• Treating the client like a human being and partner,
• Don’t surprise the client – about anything,
• Returning clients calls ASAP, if not sooner,
• Developing a personal relationship (not just a business one) with clients – or finding clients that the firm wants to develop personal relationships with,
• Entertaining clients and referral sources,
• Referring potential customers/clients to others,
• Offering advice at no charge, and
• Suggesting fixed fees, whenever possible.

2.      “What are some of the common mistakes to avoid in legal marketing?”

• Failure to plan,
• Failure to implement plan, and
• Failure to get a professional to help the firm do both (since lawyers are not trained in the areas of marketing and business development – certainly not in law school).

First you make a plan. Simple, not complicated. Something you can implement over the next few months. Like what, you may ask?

Well, since the best source of new business is from clients and referral sources, start there. Ask them. That means, plan to visit with your clients (off the clock) and those who have referred work, and talk with them about what problems they (or someone they know) are facing. 

Then, you implement. That is, you call clients and referral sources and request such a meeting to discuss their business or to learn more about their industry, etc. Oh yeah, and listen intently, while asking probing questions.  Very often, this leads to immediate work.

A coach can help you do both. For ideas on that aspect, check out:

• Personal Coaching Isn’t Just for Rookies
• Do You Have a Coach?
• Why You Should Hire a Coach

But, no more procrastinating! It’s time to get off your duff.

They are:

• Do it – it doesn’t matter, in his mind, whether it is a speech, article, starting a blog, etc.; the important thing is to “start creating it” and down the road, you’ll be happy you’ve “done it;”
• Do it now – the sooner you do, the longer your efforts will bear fruit;
• Do it alone – (I might take issue with Mark here. What he is saying is that you shouldn’t wait for others to come to help you, even within your firm. He is right, of course; but you don’t have to do it alone, you could get a coach to help); and
• Give it time – marketing, in fact, does take time, so don’t kid yourself or let yourself be discouraged. But, if you don’t do it now, you won’t give your practice a chance to grow to its full potential.

In summary, Mark suggests:

“…The only way to succeed is to try.

“And the time to try is now.

“Do it. Now. Alone. And give it time.”

I think I may just take his advice myself.

The topics submitted by each include:

• Give so you can receive (Sally Schmidt)
• Visit Clients (yours truly)
• Fix up your web site (Deborah McMurray)
• Don’t waste marketing dollars (Andy Havens)
• Focus on your own market (Susan Saltonstall Duncan)
• Spend 200 hours on marketing (Larry Bodine)
• Have a plan (John Remsen)
• Happy Birthday, client (Elizabeth Lampert)
• Meet face to face (Sylvia Coulter)
• Keep what works secret (Micah Buchdahl)

Some good advice there. Well, except for one maybe. To read what each of the above had to say, download the article here.

Enjoy and Happy Holidays. I’m planning to spend more time with my family over the holidays, and won't be back until January 2, 2008, so HAPPY NEW YEAR  as well.

And talking about networking, I thought I would call your attention to a post I did in December 2005 entitled “Ignore Your Friends At the ‘Business’ Holiday Party.”  The premise of that post was that you can get together with your friends anytime, so use business-related holiday parties as productive networking and business development opportunities that you can cultivate further in 2008. If interested in reading more of my thoughts on that subject, give that post a look.

Again, Happy Holiday(ing) Everyone!

“Sign The Damn Holiday Card!

“There was an interesting discussion yesterday on the The Law Marketing Listserv (free trial membership available) that was unanimous regarding the need to sign holiday cards and not just send out cards with the firm’s name on it. The fact that the subject even needs to be raised says volumes about how far some firms have yet to go to “get it” as to what lawyer marketing is all about.  It's personal and requires personal contact and actions……….

“Following my doctor’s advice I’m going to take a break now to let my blood pressure come down.……………….

“Okay, I am back.

“To put it simply, holiday cards to some lawyers are no more than a nuisance, an obligation, another form of advertising, or an annoyance during this busy time of year. When I was in-house, I actually had lawyers order cards and NEVER send them out – year after year. So, why did I continue to order cards for these people? Job security.

“Of course, I know lawyers who truly get into the spirit of the seasons, and mean it when they send a card extending best wishes for the holidays. How can I tell? Because they will include a note and personally SIGN the card. Even if a person’s intention in sending cards is out of obligation, and purely for marketing purposes, at least do it right. Personally sign the card. Better still, include a brief note.

“Otherwise, the message(s) you are sending to the recipient may include one or more of the following:

• I’m too busy
• You aren’t important enough for me to personalize this card
• Our relationship isn’t that important either
• My secretary merely sent a card to everyone in my rolodex
• The firm ordered the cards, and I’m not sure who sent them out

“It would be better to not send a card at all. Best to stay under the radar in my humble opinion, rather than have a client or referral source, say “Wow, didn’t he/she put a lot of effort into sending this card.” Gosh, maybe those lawyers who never sent the cards out realized that after all.

“Don’t let your or your firm’s holiday card endeavor become a negative marketing effort. Remember, legal marketing is about getting personal.  So, if you are planning to send holiday cards, please just sign the darn card.”

Happy Holidays!!

So, I was interested to see that my friend Trey Ryder, in his latest newsletter, has an article “Positive Ways To Collect Money And Maintain Relationships.” (which I’ve excerpted with permission and you can download here) It’s a seven step process, that is best introduced at the beginning of a client relationship, and not necessarily during December Madness.

The steps:

1. Provide each new client with a schedule of fees and collection practices,
2. Offer a reduction if paid within specified timeframe,
3. Send a copy of invoice with your reminder note acknowledging that client may have not received original or it somehow was lost,
4. Make sure subsequent reminders are over the lawyer’s signature, and not a billing clerk,
5. Send reminders frequently (there is no rule that they can’t go out but every 30 days),
6. Invite clients to pay by credit card (a lot of firms offer that option now), and
7. Ask clients to call to arrange a payment schedule (it doesn’t have to be all or nothing, as client may be having cash flow problems).

Obviously, collections are important to the business side of any law firm. However, how you go about getting paid can have a significant impact on your lawyers' marketing efforts at maintaining long term relationships. Biglaw could learn a few lessons about avoiding the year end frenzy by adopting some of these steps.

Of course, there are firms that still do not prepare a formal marketing budget at all, so anything I say here would be a waste of time for those firms. Unfortunately, for some firms, budgeting is still done on the “Gee, can I take my client to lunch today on the firm?” basis. Planning ahead, ain’t part of the program.

For the others, (those not opposed to budgeting, but possibly have been procrastinating) there is some guidance from Michelle Golden of Golden Practices that may prove helpful in deciding as the new year approaches as to “What’s in a (your) Plan?”

I not only like her simple spreadsheet, I particularly like her focus and the priority order in which she lists her budget categories (with my usual editorial comments):

• Existing Clients – (clearly, this is the most critical area in which to budget dollars. As Michelle points out, this is the most important area to focus, but “usually, little is allocated in this area”);
• Influential People/Referral Sources - (likewise, very important, since the vast majority of new work comes from clients and referrals);
• New Business - (more long-term, so put less business development money in this category);
• Marketing Infrastructure -  (the “bottomless pit” indeed, and should only be financed to the extent it supports the categories above); and
• Research & Development - (in the sense that a firm needs to constantly assess its position in the market and that of its competitors – to be honest, I don’t see this as a high priority for many firms, so don’t get hung up here).

Take a look and see if there isn’t some helpful stuff for your budgeting process.

Thanks to Dan Hull for the lead to Michelle's post.

Questions to ask yourself:

• Am I in the right practice area for me?
• Am I in a “hot” or “cold” area of the law?
• What should I do to ensure I am right on both fronts – at least with my legal marketing focus for 2008?

Here’s something that may help you. My friend Bob Denney of Robert Denney Associates has issued his 19^th Annual Report on “What’s Hot and What’s Not in the Legal Profession”  this month. It makes sense to take a look and do some serious reflection on your practice, as well as where you want to take it.

Items from various categories that popped out from Bob’s report:

Hot Practices:

• Intellectual Property – USPTO has adopted new rules (enough said on that point, as in new regs, new work for lawyers)
• Immigration – firms separating it from Labor & Employment
• Corporate Investigations – “fastest growing area of White Collar Crime”
• Animal Law – cruelty to animals is a crime in 43 states

Getting Hot:

• Foreclosures
• Bankruptcy
• Insurance coverage – “due to global warming”

Cold Practices:

• Medical Malpractice
• Workers’ Compensation

Marketing and Business Development:

• Marketing budgets - increasing as a “percentage of firm revenues at both large and mid-size firms.” Running as high as 10% in UK; reiterating that large accounting firms in both countries “have been spending that much for years”
• Marketing department staffs – “increasing in size along with the budgets”

Other Trends & Issues:

• Rate Increases – “Major corporations are getting increasingly fed up with firms’ rate increases… This, along with poor service, is why many are replacing nearly two-thirds of their primary law firms” (not sure about the 2/3 figure, but I do know that The BTI Consulting Group survey of last spring, which I reported on here, reported that 54% of large corporations had shed a primary firm within the previous 18 months.)
• Mid-size firms – “Well-managed mid-size firms – and even some small ones ‘ are not only surviving, but are thriving by attracting clients faced with the high rates – and often poor services – of the large firms”
• Calls for killing the billable hour – (oh hum, how long have we been talking about this? Enter “billable hour” or “alternative fees” into the Search box to the right for more of my posts on the subject.)

There’s a lot of marketing and business development morsels in this report for individual lawyers in any size firm. Take a look at Bob’s four-page report; it should have some food for thought applicable to your firm, making it worth the read.

The Kit consists of:

• “The LegalBizDev Desk Reference™ - a 192-page guide to best practices, organized alphabetically to help lawyers find exactly the information they need, just when they need it. Whether you need to create an elevator speech, improve networking, qualify a prospect, plan a meeting, increase client satisfaction, or begin another business development task, this book provides checklists, samples, reports, and quick references to help each lawyer quickly identify the tactics that best fit their practice and their personality.
• “Legal Business Development: Basic Principles and Best Practices - a modular course that can be taken in short segments, on three audio CDs that can be played on a computer, CD player, or iPod. For a demo, go to the following web page.
• “Legal Business Development: A Step by Step Guide - a book that is already being used at large firms from Boston to Dubai to help lawyers decide how much time to devote to business development, to identify the most productive activities that can be accomplished within that time, and to assure follow-up.
• "A Quick Start card to help lawyers begin maximizing the benefits, as soon as they open the box."

And the best part of the deal is that it comes with a 100% satisfaction guarantee. If for any reason you return the Kit prior to March 1, 2008, you will get a full refund. Cost $995.

For more details on the Success Kit take a look at Jim’s post yesterday on his Legal Business Development blog.

What a GREAT holiday gift to yourself, or to your firm’s lawyers.

Last year I condensed those suggestions, and you can read my “Holiday Gift Ideas” post of last December for ideas for your gift giving. I won’t repeat many of the good suggestions that are contained in last year’s post; but a list of new and/or interesting ones and variations on those suggestions follows:

• Make a charitable donation to a client’s favorite charity; or donate a specific item, e.g., a goat ($75) to a poor family in Haiti or Malawi through World Vision; or a bedkit ($30 Canadian - a bedkit consists of a mat or mattress, pillow, sheet, blanket, mosquito net (if applicable), clothes outfit, towel and school supplies) through Sleeping Children Around the World; 
• Purchase a client’s product(s) to give to other clients (and let each know that);
• “Gift-of-the-Month” basket (fruit, nuts, wine, etc.) – a gift that keeps on giving throughout the year;
• Adopt a barrel of wine  ($695) – provides 8 cases of wine over 4 years – then you (or a client) get to keep the barrel with your name on it (you can even visit your barrel in the meantime - now there’s a “top” vacation idea for ya, if there ever was one) at Woodbury Vineyards in Western New York (you’ll have to call 716-679-9463 to order a brochure)
• Free consultation with a non-competing lawyer (who will offer a free consultation with you to his/her clients), or other professionals;
• Gift certificate for a hybrid golf club made to the client’s specs;
• Don’t require a December fee payment (hmmmmm…ouch) until the following month;
• Give a top client a copy of Harv Eker’s book “Secrets of the Millionaire Mind” AND his 3-day weekend seminar ($1275);
  
• Soap and spa products from a non-profit, The Enterprising Kitchen, which provides jobs and support services for women; and
• Finally, a couple of humorous gift sites specifically for lawyers - LawTunes and The Billable Hour.

Remember to look at last year’s post for other ideas.

Happy Shopping!

Not sure that by just sending a holiday card and a gift (to your top clients) will guarantee that you won’t lose a client in 2008, since there needs to be a whole lot more involved with your client relationships. But, remembering clients on special occasions can’t hurt; and, in fact, can help cement and even enhance an existing relationship. And don’t forget your referral sources.

Bob’s suggestions are quite simple:

• First, create a list of your top clients, top potential clients and key referral sources,
• Then, send each a holiday card:

• Sign the card – and not an “auto-pen” version either, (see my post of last December entitled “Sign the Damn Holiday Card!”) 
• Include a note relevant to the relationship – as least say something like “Jane – Hope you have a great holiday season – Joe”

As to gifts, it depends on your budget, of course, but you should certainly remember your top sources of your livelihood (clients and referral sources) in some manner. 

You don’t have to be told that this all takes time. It could take a day, or even more to extend the  appropriate holiday greetings for your various contacts. So what? As Bob mentions in his post, the Journal of Consumer Research concludes that what you do must “reflect the recipient’s perceived value of (the) relationship.”

Accordingly, if you value the relationships that produce your revenues, you shouldn’t give it a second thought as to whether you will make your remembrance of the holidays both personal and meaningful, as opposed to just going through the motions.

In an article “Down With Associate Pay! Seriously…” (free registration) published in yesterday’s New York Lawyer, that apparently also appeared in Corporate Counsel, Sager appeals to other general counsels to take action against the “appalling increase in starting salaries for first-year associates at big-city firms." He suggests:

• Restrict the use of associates
• Require minimum associate experience
• Use temporary legal staff
• Use more paralegals
• Use alternative fee arrangements (AFAs)

It is disappointing that he doesn’t include small or mid-sized firms as part of the solution, but heck send him a meaningful letter detailing what your firm can do to help DuPont at lower rates. Don’t send a brochure. Do an unsolicited proposal that shows you’ve done your homework, to wit: that demonstrates that you know your stuff about DuPont’s issues (e.g., research cases filed against the company)  and your approach to help solve them. Heck you may even get yourself added to their “preferred provider list.” 

If it doesn’t work with DuPont, try other Fortune 1000 companies that you know could use your niche experience. I expect there is a lot of other large corporations out there that are just as upset over the associate salary increases and bonuses issues.  IMHO BigLaw will continue to ignore in-house counsel when it comes to associate pay.

Again, the situation presents business development opportunities for small to mid-size law firms. What have you got to lose?

Why, you say? 

We know that corporate America is sensitive to legal costs, and general counsels are increasingly coming under pressure to lower their legal bills. First, we have salaries for some first years raised to $160,000. Then, we hear about the billable hour rate for some lawyers topping $1,000 per hour. Now, we have several firms that have announced (not one but two) bonuses for associates as the year comes to a close. Apparently, they are making just scads of money. Ya think?

Recently, Cravath, Swaine & Moore announced “two bonuses totaling $45,000 for first years, and going up to $110,000 for senior associates,” (emphasis mine) according to a New York Lawyer article. (free registration required). This was after Clifford Chance announced a “one-time bonus (we’ll see about that) of $10,000 to $50,000 and a year-end bonus of $30,000 to $65,000,” according to the same article. Others following suit include Shearman & Sterling, Fried Frank, Cleary Gottlieb, and Simpson Thacher. That certainly isn’t the end of it, as others are sure to jump on board.

That is precisely why this latest example of BigLaw excess won’t sit well with many general counsel. And, it certainly won’t help the latter’s position with his/her CEO and their board. Further, we know that 38% of in-house counsel think law firms make too much money, and some 58%  are “outraged” over the latest increase in first year salaries, according to a Altman Weil survey. It’s as if law firms at this level are oblivious to what their clients think, and are more concerned about a competitor outdoing them when it comes to paying associates.

Therein lays the opening for smaller firms that get their marketing and business development act together. It is an absolute certainty, if we believe what in-house counsels are telling us, that opportunities abound for smart, qualified, and less expensive law firms to pick up more of large corporations’ work.

Since referrals (also called word-of-mouth marketing) are so valuable, you don’t want to sit around just waiting and hoping that referrals will occur. Rather, have a system in place that will increase the chances that they will actually happen.

John Jantsch of Duct Tape Marketing fame has a 7 step process for the “ultimate referral marketing system” in his recent newsletter. Not all the steps fit exactly for lawyers, but there’s enough that does apply and is worth sharing:

Step 1: Develop a list of likely referral sources from people you know;

Step 2: Identify your best referral types (actually I’d do this first);

Step 3: Develop a value-added message (or elevator pitch) for referral sources;

Step 4: Design an education system for letting sources know what makes a good referral, what the advantages are for them in helping a client or friend, and how you will help those referred;

Step 5: Offer something in return (here’s where it gets a bit iffy for lawyers ethically – better to simply start referring potential clients/customers to them first and letting them know about it);

Step 6: Create a process for turning referrals into clients, if they don’t become one immediately; and

Step 7: Have a follow up strategy, both for those referrals not yet clients, and for referral sources to thank them (and send a gift), as well as keeping them informed and motivated.

Don’t sit back and wait for referrals, be proactive to develop business sooner rather than later.

Christina Laun has a post yesterday on Bootstrapper blog that advises on what to look for and how to fire bad clients. Although her article is not written for lawyers specifically, her points are still applicable in the legal world. So, if you have clients that make you unhappy, consider showing them the door. Here are the characteristics to look for:

• The Complainer (doesn’t matter if you produce quality work cheaper and quicker than anticipated, they won’t be happy);
• The Something for Nothing (will expand on the representation and still expect you to come in on the original estimate);
• The Time Waster (doesn’t value your time, but doesn’t want to pay for it);
• The Aggressor (those with a short fuse, and can be abusive in the relationship, which can make it more difficult to get rid of them);
• The Know-it-All (questions your every move, and acts like they know as much as you when it comes to your area of practice)
• The Boundary Crosser (takes advantage of special access, and intrudes on your personal time when there is no urgent reason to do so).

So, how do you shed your practice of these fine folks. Laun suggests the following steps:

• Do it in writing (of course);
• Make sure you get paid first (not sure this is worth it in all cases);
• Fulfill any contractual obligations (or reach a mutual understanding as to terminating your engagement early);
• Do it in as friendly, non hostile manner as possible (again, of course);
• Recommend someone else (at least a couple of others) to replace you; and
• If all else fails, raise your rates significantly (that should do it).

Ilise relates a story that came straight home to roost. It’s about Jack, a person who doesn’t like to eat alone, so often he will sit at the bar in a restaurant in the hopes of having someone to talk with. Only Jack admits that if he doesn’t start talking right away, “that tiny window of opportunity” is lost. Whether it’s a shyness thing, awkwardness sets in; and he finds it difficult to start a conversation after time passes. Boy, can I relate to that. I’m no shrinking violet, I’ll let you know, but darned if that hasn’t happened to me.

Ilase suggests a couple of ideas on getting started:

• “Simply say, ‘How are you today?’
• “Comment on something you see. If they're reading, ask about the reading material. If they're eating, ask about the food.
• “Offer to share something you have, whether it's food (I always carry good dark chocolate just for this purpose) or a newspaper. “

And to keep in mind that:

1. “The content of your opening line is irrelevant. It simply serves the purpose of saying "I am available to talk if you are." A simple acknowledgment and "Hello" can do the trick. It's like sticking a wedge in the door so it won't close.
2. “The other person may be self-conscious too. So be sensitive to their openness and proceed accordingly. He or she may appreciate your effort or may not be in the mood to talk. If the response you get is a perfunctory one, don't push. But you should absolutely not take it as a personal rejection. It has nothing to do with you.”

So, whether you are in a bar, on a plane, or in any networking situation, jump right in and test the waters. If the person isn’t the chatty type, you’ll know that soon enough, but at least you won’t blame yourself for a missed opportunity to network with a potential client or referral source.

Thanks to Kevin O’Keefe at Real Lawyers Have Blogs for his post of last Thursday about The Lawyers Guide to Marketing on the Internet, Third Edition by Greg Siskind, Deborah McMurray and Rick Klau. The guide does more than justice to the topic. It should be considered the bible on the subject. I too know the authors, and totally endorse Kevin’s comments as to each.

The ABA describes the book this way:

“From blogging and podcasting to e-mail blasts and search engine optimization, you'll discover everything you need to know -- in layperson's terms -- to make an immediate impact to your firm's bottom line. You'll discover how to keep top of mind within your target audience by using your site the best way possible. You'll learn:

• How to increase your firm's visibility through the latest technology, including Web Logs, podcasts, Web seminars and virtual meetings
• How to develop effective promotional, informational and interactive content
• The importance of an attractive, well-branded site and "Web site irritations" to avoid
• Tips and tricks of doing e-mail marketing the right way
• Why you need a blog
• Definition of technical terms for quick reference

“But it's not all technical "bells and whistles." Written together by a trio that includes a lawyer, a marketing consultant, and a technologist, this comprehensive resource gives a balanced approach that covers everything a lawyer needs to know about marketing online today in simple, easy-to-understand language. From learning how to choose a Web consultant to advertising to measuring results, The Lawyer's Guide to Marketing on the Internet touches on all that matters most.

“Topics include:

• Developing an Internet marketing plan that supports business development
• Budget-friendly ways to market your firm online
• How your site's image communicates with prospects, clients, colleagues, the media and opposing counsel
• Advertising and search engine optimization
• Measuring results
• Marketing tips to help younger firms grow
• The ethics of client development through technology”

The book is a must buy for those serious about developing business utilizing the Internet, and is available here for a cost of $84.95 (there is a $10 discount for Law Practice Management Section members).

In an earlier post “Dressing Professionally is Smart Marketing,” I reported on John Remsen's July readers’ survey of 233 law firm professionals regarding lawyers casual attire at work these days.

John’s second article in his two-part series on dress codes reports on the responses of managing partners and firm leaders. The reaction of these lawyers (based on 164 survey participants) was:

• 54% “oppose more casual dress codes for lawyers,” and
• 70% “believe that casual dress has a negative influence on clients’ perceptions of the quality and value of a lawyer’s legal expertise.”

The latter may be a stretch as it relates to the majority of clients' reaction, but I totally agree with the overall premise. Casual dress for lawyers is generally a BAD idea. There are firms and managing partners that favor the casual approach. Read their comments in John’s article.

It is clear that good people can disagree on this topic. However, I come down on the side of more formality when it comes to professionals.  Certainly, if a client specifically requests less formality, then that’s it. But, when it comes to developing business, I concur with several of the comments made:

• “… clients are looking for someone who looks like a professional.”
• “… the impression you make with your co-workers, the lunch crowd and the people you see on your way to and from work every day is important, too.”
• “the real test is what do those attorneys who are most successful and admired wear?”

Call me old fashion, but I’ve never heard a law firm client complain about their lawyers looking “too nice.” It’s all about image and trust. Dressing for work like you do for the weekend doesn’t help either, IMHO.

Start with identifying a niche industry you would like to get more work from. Then, think about other non-competing businesses that serve that industry. Finally, recruit one person from each of those other providers to join your group, and meet regularly to network. For example, say you are interested in developing more commercial real estate business. Members of your group might include a banker, CPA, insurance agent, real estate agent, developer, contractor, etc. Don’t have too large a group, and only one person from each segment of the industry. Now, you have your personal business development group.

Nancy Martinez, a marketer with Selbert Perkins Design, had a very informative article on personal networks on RainToday.com last week.

She suggests an initial meeting that will lay out what is expected of each member in terms of their contribution to monthly meetings; and the priorities for the group in terms of “business leads, marketing advice, industry information, informative articles, and even, personal lessons learned.” I agree with Nancy, that there is strength in numbers, and each member may already have great contacts that may benefit other members.

Take a look at her article. It's definitely worth a read.

There is nothing new about lawyers representing small businesses on a retainer basis. It is a good deal for business owners and for lawyers. Businesses get a certain amount of their lawyer’s time involving specified services, and the attorney receives a steady income that s/he can count on.

The problem comes in convincing clients that it is a favorable deal for them, and worth their doing. That “is the challenge” according to solo David Feldman in Connecticut, who has 10 retainer clients that pay him $1500 per month for legal advice. What caught my eye is how he markets his practice. First, he calls it “preventive law;” and then sells it by focusing his pitch on telling horror stories about business that could have prevented costly legal troubles, if only they had run their business decisions by a lawyer in advance. And as part of the deal, he gives his retainer clients a 25% discount on his hourly rate, should litigation raise its ugly head.

Read more about Feldman’s preventive law practice and how he helps small businesses which appears in today's Small Firm Business.

Better that clients run their business looking forward, rather than look back at what they could have prevented had they sought legal help up front. Your challenge is to convince them of that.

But networking is not just about socializing with people you don’t know. In fact, networking can be enjoyable if one looks at it in a different light. Paramjit Mahli of Sun Communications Group referred me to her article on networking misconceptions, which appeared in the New Jersey Law Journal this month. Here is part of her take on what networking isn’t:

• Transactional (rather it is relational, as in relationship building),
• Hit-and-miss (not if it is strategically focused), and
• Short term in developing (it takes time and effort).

So, you may ask, accepting the above, where is this “different” way of looking at networking I mentioned?

• Review your “rolodex” for names of people you haven’t contacted in awhile,
• Take them to lunch and ask what you can do for them,
• Listen more than 50% of the time,and pick up on names of people they could introduce you to,
• Join their organizations and become active (especially if its members are desirable sources of new business),
• Attend events and conferences with them.

You may find that networking is better than a trip to the dentist after all.

John Jantsch at Duct Tape Marketing helped me out with a recent post in which he says that he sometimes refreshes his creative soul with a walk in the park. Other people come up with some brilliant ideas in the shower. What works for you may be entirely different.

Here is a suggestion to get your business development efforts back on track. Put some marketing terms, such as “networking,” “client relations,” “listening,” “client service,” or “public speaking,” etc., etc.  into the Search box on this blog. Read a few of the resulting posts, and then take a “walk in the park,” or whatever. This just may get you unstuck, and motivated with a fresh approach and commitment to your legal marketing efforts.

It’s baffling actually. I remember hearing many years ago about a firm in New York that had received 10 referrals from (obviously) a fan, and the firm admitted that it had NEVER EVEN thanked the person.

Why? Well, probably the lawyer is so happy to get the new work, the he or she jumps right into serving that new client. That’s a good thing. However, if they forget to thank the source of the new business, that’s a bad thing. 

As my friend Thom Singer at Some Assembly Required tells us in a post he calls “Express Your Appreciation” many lawyers “[w]hile they had great intentions to say ‘thank you’ to the person who made the referral, once some time passes the immediacy to properly express gratitude begins to dwindle.”

Please, don’t let time get away from you when you get a referral. Send a handwritten note the VERY same day. Might just lead to more referrals. The alternative doesn't bode well for the future of your practice.

The previous three posts addressed: 

• The Law of Perception
• The Law of Leadership
• The Law of the Category

Today we conclude with the Law of the Mind. Basically, it doesn’t matter if you are the leader or first in a category, if you are not first in the mind of your prospects it doesn’t matter if you were “first in the marketplace.”

The first mainframe computer to hit the market was UNIVAC built by Remington Rand. However, the perception is that IBM was the leader in that category. Also, Trey points out that three other actors played Perry Mason before Raymond Burr, but, I believe, it is recognized that Burr owns the category. 

I alluded to this point in my last post. That is, you can’t just be first in your niche area, you have to actively market that fact so you will be recognized as the leader in the mind of potential clients.
You may or may not be the “best” lawyer in your field, but you sure can be the most successful, if you actively apply the four laws of successful lawyer marketing.

Thanks again to Trey Ryder for sharing these four laws based on Positioning: The Battle For Your Mind by Al Ries and Jack Strout.

The Law of Category is pretty simple, and is related to the Law of Leadership. Today's question is: who was the third person to fly the Atlantic solo? Amelia Earhart. You may not remember she was third, but you remember her name. So, how come you remember her, but not the second person to fly solo across the Atlantic Ocean? Because she was the first in her category – that is, the first woman to do so.

Other examples include Charles Schwab, the first to open a discount brokerage; and Trey’s estate planning lawyer who didn’t target wealthy clients, but the first to target average consumers in the Phoenix market who could also benefit from living trusts.

As Trey states: “If you can’t be first in your existing category, create a new category in which you can be first.” Don’t wait or you may end up being second like Bert Hinkler.

Also remember. You can’t just be first, you have to actively market your category so your potential clients recognize your name and that you were first.

Today we discuss the Law of Leadership. It’s simple premise: “It is better to be first than it is to be better.”

Charles Lindbergh is a perfect example. Do you remember who was the second pilot to fly the Atlantic solo? Well, it was Bert Hinkler. Who, you ask? Exactly, me too; and that is the point. Turns out according to Trey, Hinkler “flew faster and used less fuel than Lindberg. Plus, he was a better pilot.”  None of that mattered, did it?

Here is a simple exercise: who is first (substitute “leader”) in rental cars, computers and soft drinks? Of course – Hertz, IBM (although some may argue Dell), and Coca-Cola.

Trey gives a couple of examples of leading companies who were first (and are still in first place)  vs. second for a couple of products currently:

He also tells us about a lawyer in Phoenix who was first in that market to promote “living trusts to middle-income consumers,” and how it paid off for him. For details click on Continue Reading below.

So, what can you offer that will make you the leader, and put you out there first ahead of the pack?

Thanks to my friend Trey Ryder, who shares with us in his latest newsletter his views on four marketing laws based on Al Ries and Jack Trout’s Positioning: The Battle For Your Mind. I, in turn, will briefly recap the four laws over the next week.

The first is the Law of Perception. As Trey tells us, those lawyers who think (and act) on the assumption that they beat out the competition in the business development game based on the quality of their services, are making “a costly mistake.” Rather, “[M]arketing is not a battle of services, it is a battle of perceptions.” And that concept, we are reminded, is called “positioning.”

So, the next questions are: “How did this perception evolve?” and “What can you do about it?”

The answer to the latter question also answers the former. By creating visibility and credibility through the implementation of business development strategies, such as: 

• Making speeches
• Writing articles
• Creating publicity about you and your practice
• Giving interviews and press releases to the media
• Being active in organizations in your marketplace (business/civic/cultural)
• Networking

…and doing as many of the above as you can as often as you can. You cannot be perceived as the “best” if you aren’t visible and active.

Next: The Law of Leadership

Your firm’s budget should be based on what it is trying to accomplish in terms of its marketing goals. If you don’t plan before you decide to throw dollars at business development, you are wasting your money. As Michelle Golden at Michelle Golden at Golden Practices reminds us “Marketing budgets should be based on marketing plans.” In my view, planning is critically important for any firm before deciding how much money is available for marketing.

And I propose that the plan be focused mainly on existing clients and proven referral sources.

What do you and your law firm do when it comes to your marketing budget?

During the holiday season, you may find yourself more often among friends and family, and not give much thought to networking opportunities that involve strangers. Nevertheless, whether during the holidays or afterwards, tips on how to overcome any shyness might prove helpful.

Allison Shields at Legal Ease Blog has some excellent suggestions on overcoming shyness  in a networking environment that I want to share:

• Arrive early – (there will be fewer strangers. The situation will be less intimidating, and it'll be easier to strike up a conversation with other “earlybirds"),
• Seek out the host/person in charge – (so you can introduce yourself, explain that you are a first-timer, and ask she/he to introduce you to others),
• Bring a friend along – (that way you can introduce each other to others. But be very careful, as Allison warns us, not to spend all your time talking with your friend, or you will defeat the purpose for attending the event),
• Look for other shy people – (they’re easy to spot. They look like you feel, and are usually standing alone. Besides it’s easier than breaking into a group already engrossed in a conversation), and
• Head for the bar/food table – (my favorite. It provides opportunity to talk one-on-one with the person in front or behind you in either line)

Allison also has ten tips on holiday networking generally that are well worth a read. Thanks to Michelle Golden at Golden Practices for steering me to Allison’s posts, and to Guy Kawaski’s “The Art of Schmoozing.”  

Good stuff all around.

Note: This is an encore post on networking first published on December 11, 2006. Since I will be on a working vacation over the next week with limited access to the Internet, I will be doing encores of previous posts on networking. For those who missed them the first time around, I hope you find them helpful.

Bruce is right of course.  But….wait a minute.  Networking for these “other” reasons also can lead to new business.

So, is networking important beyond the need to market your legal practice?  Yes of course…..but then again, even that can be good lawyer marketing.  I am not saying that you have to marry your law practice with your personal life all the time.  But some of the best legal marketers I know are those that enjoy both practicing law and a personal life.  Yet, maybe they seem to be natural rainmakers, because so many of those personal interests lead to clients and referral sources for their legal business after all.

Maybe it’s just a “double passion” thing.  And maybe that is just smart legal marketing also.

Maybe I’ll just mosey over to the gym and network away some unneeded…..whatever.

Note: This is an encore post on networking first published on May 5, 2006. Since I will be on a working vacation over the next week with limited access to the Internet, I will be doing encores of previous posts on networking. For those who missed them the first time around, I hope you find them helpful.

• It’s a Two-way Street (the more you give the more you’ll get in return. If you take the focus off yourself, and try to be helpful in understanding and addressing the other person’s wants and needs, a trust and friendship will develop; and that will result in your gain in the long run),
• Broaden Your Horizons (work at getting out of your comfort zone, and look for other people and organizations to diversify your networking reach. Obviously, they should have some relational connection – such as a trade group – to the types of clients and referral sources that can ultimately benefit your law firm)
• It Takes Time (like the farming analogy, relationships take time to develop and require the proper care and feeding in order to gain a bountiful harvest).

We all know that networking, and the resulting referrals, play a very important role in legal marketing. Occasionally, it’s a good idea to remind ourselves on the basic principles associated with this tool.

Note: This is an encore post on networking first published on August 23, 2006. Since I will be on a working vacation over the next week with limited access to the Internet, I will be doing encores of previous posts on networking. For those who missed them the first time around, I hope you find them helpful.

To help you overcome your reluctance, take a few moments to read the article on quick and low cost marketing strategies by consultant Terrie Wheeler of MarketYourLawPractice.com in this month’s Law Practice Today. She offers a number of suggestions that you can accomplish in a short period of time, and if you do something each day, your efforts will start paying dividends. Some of Terrie’s suggestions include:

1.  Keeping and Enhancing Client Relationships

• Call clients or referral sources to touch base
• Seek feedback after a matter is concluded
• Schedule a meeting to catch up
• Introduce client to potential customers

2.  Developing New Clients and Business

• Determine what your best clients have in common
• Focus on attracting more of the same
• Compile list of top referral sources and invite them to lunch
• Identify trade groups your clients belong to (and join)
• Assess what has been successful in obtaining clients in the past

3.  Increase Your Visibility

• Consider serving on a community board
  
• Write an article relating to your expertise and get it published
• Look into increasing your profile in the community
• Identify target audiences and offer to give a presentation

4.  Improve Your Communications

• Send information (articles, press items, etc.) of interest to clients and contacts
• Update your bio and circulate it
• Notify clients of changes in law that will impact them
• Update your web site

Most of these action items are not difficult or time consuming.  Hopefully, they will encourage the procrastinators out there to get started on some simple business development activities. 

Accordingly, since lawyers are in the consulting business (see an earlier post), the article on RainToday.com by Ruth Winett of Winett Associates which advised consultants on ten important things to know in starting a professional services business applies equally to law firms:

1. Learn the business side of law – ask other lawyers, and read the myriad of books and articles available on the subject;
2. Develop a business/personal development plan, and implement it;
3. Focus on a niche, as you can’t be a generalist in today’s complex legal world;
4. Build your brand – what sets you apart from everyone else. Believe it and convey it in all your messages;
5. Create your message, and utilize as many tools as possible to communicate it and be visible;
6. Develop and implement a marketing plan that involves working with your contacts and referral sources;
7. Join professional/trade associations that your ideal clients are involved in;
8. Invest in technology;
9. Develop a strong support team and a coach (whether internally or externally); and
10. Make sure your economic goals are realistic and attainable.

Whether you are a solo or an owner (or hope to be) in a larger firm, these tips can help you focus on the business aspects of professional services.

• Too much information at one time;
• Too much information inundating people’s lives, period;
• Too much email to read; and
• Too much work to do, leaving too little time to read.

Marketing Solution: Turn your newsletter into a blog.

Advantages:

• Shorter;
• Takes up less reader time;
• More focused on single subject (reader can quickly determine if interested);
• Can be done more frequently (and should); …

And according to Kevin O’Keefe of LexBlog (who created and hosts this blog), it allows:

• Cost savings  - because of time saved, and reduced production expense;
• Less content  - makes it easier for lawyers to create;
• Content distributed sooner vs. monthly or quarterly;
• Saves marketing staff time – lawyers can post directly to the blog;
• Broader audience – since search engines will find content that can be read around the world;
• Content distributed by RSS and email (readers can choose which);
• Readers can obtain RSS distribution on subjects they want using keywords and key phrases via Google Blog Search and Technorati;
• Potential media exposure – since reporters use key words to track blog topics as mentioned above; and
• Blog’s content is fully searchable – beats trying to locate an older article somewhere on your credenza.

If you or your firm uses newsletters as a business development tool, you might find that a blog is more powerful, cheaper, quicker and more efficient than a newsletter.  Read more in Kevin's post on "Converting a newsletter into a blog"

How does your firm look? John Remsen in this monthly e-newsletter has an article entitled “Enough is Enough: Lawyers Should Look Like Lawers!” I couldn’t agree with John more.

First, he tells us about his reader survey. Of the 233 respondents, only 23% reported always wearing a suit; and 71% stated that the trend over the past five years has been toward more casual dress. It is true that image matters. How you dress REALLY does matter – among colleagues, clients, referral sources AND prospective clients. I agree with John that the “vast majority of clients want lawyers who look like lawyers – crisp, polished, authoritative and professional.”

Second, he has comments from several professional marketers which are interesting and quite telling; and offers 10 practical tips for lawyers and other professionals that are definitely worth reading. Finally, John refers to 3 books he recommends in addition to John Molloy’s Dress for Success series, including one specifically for women.

Even if the world around you has become more casual in its appearance, you will definitely appear more professional if you dress professionally. And that’s good for developing business.

So, what are these bad habits? And my take on how they can relate to business development:

• Failing to show up (for networking events or for working out at the gym);
• Procrastinating half the day away (rather than picking up the phone and calling a referral source for a lunch date);
• Spending your time on unimportant things (need to work on marketing management skills);
• Thinking too much (“Paralysis by analysis” when trying to determine what are the best business development tools)
• Maintaining a negative attitude or side to things (destroys any motivation to undertake business development);
• Keeping your mind closed to new ideas (won’t find personal or professional growth that way, nor new clients or matters); and
• Taking in too much information (failure to be selective can cause overload and hinder clear thinking when it comes to marketing activity).

These ineffective behaviors can affect us in all aspects of our lives. But our livelihood depends on our efforts to overcome them as it relates to our professional business development.

Thanks to Bruce Allen at the Marketing Catalyst for the reference to Henrik’s post.

Learning that the practice of law is not just about statutes and case law, and the other technical aspects of the legal system, is usually relegated to self-education and the toils of time. Particularly in the case of new associates, they are expected to become proficient in the practice of law, with little regard for either the business side of law or their personal career aspirations.

Thanks to Rachelle Canter of RJC Associates for some excellent insights on the latter. Although her article “First Steps” (free registration required) that appeared in The National Law Journal and on New York Lawyer is focused on new lawyers, I know many who have been practicing law for a number of years that could benefit from her pointers. She advises associates (and I would include junior partners, since there is no such thing as “tenure” any longer) to:

• Be responsible for building your own career (don’t depend on a mentor, supervisor, or anyone else);
• Identify what career satisfaction means to you (decide what you most enjoy doing, and work towards that);
• Develop a career plan (it doesn’t have to be more than a simple statement of what you want to do, and where you want to go with your career);
• Build your own brand (what you want others to think, when they think of you – e.g., hard worker, always meets deadlines, volunteers to help out, etc. etc.);
• Keep track of your accomplishments (start a “career journal” from day one, and maintain it weekly or monthly by writing down the good things you have done);
• Build tons of relationships (“with partners, associates, staff, mentors (remember it's a two-way street), recruiters,” and maintain them, including with classmates);
• Communicate professionally (includes seeking clarification from a supervisor and asking how and how often he/she wants you to communicate, remembering also that your communications should be succinct); and
• Schedule a few minutes weekly to focus on your goals and brand.

I know I haven’t done justice to Rachelle’s article, so I strongly encourage those interested in bringing a focus to their career, whether you are a new associate or not, to read the whole article.

This is the position of Mike Dillon, the blogging general counsel of Sun Microsystems, Inc., over at The Legal Thing where he tells us “Context is Everything.”  Basically, he reinforces the idea that if the risks are great enough, clients will pay that and more.

When many general counsel are upset (actually, 58% are “outraged” according to a recent Altman Weil survey) over the recent increase to $160,000 in first years' salaries at some firms, it is no surprise to many that billable rates will have to increase. In fact, Simpson Thatcher, the first firm to raise first year salaries to that level, is the first to go to a grand per hour, according to the New York Lawyer (free registration required).  Not all rates will be raised to $1,000 per hour, of course, for all partners even at Simpson. Moreover, as Mike puts it: “The reality is that most companies will rarely, if ever, require these types of legal services.”

But, be assured that rates will go up in many more large firms. And therein lies the opportunity for smaller firms that don’t have the overhead that requires those kinds of fees. As mentioned before, lawyers in smaller firms with the appropriate expertise can compete with their counterparts in larger firms.

Further, with business development avenues now more readily available to smaller firms, thanks to the Internet, the chances of their talents being discovered by larger companies and competing with Biglaw becomes a whole lot easier.

Well, welcome to the new age (or acceptance of an ignored reality). Clients are not offended by lawyers asking for work. For one thing, it portrays humility (Oops, I may be getting into dangerous territory here). Clients really do like to know that their lawyer is a little hungry (not starving mind you). (Okay, now I’m in deep trouble). 

There is still a mystique about lawyers, and some clients REALLY are reluctant to ask their lawyer to handle a matter. Why?:

• Lawyers tell the world how busy they are (a client doesn't want to add to the lawyer’s “burden”),
• Some are aloof and unapproachable (what may actually be shyness may come across as arrogance), and
• Other clients may be intimidated by their lawyer.

So, if you are a lawyer not afraid to ask for work, there are ways you can approach the subject with clients or prospects, such as:

• Can I send you an outline of how I might be able to help you on that problem you just mentioned, or
• I’m sure your current law firm is very good; but sometimes they will have a conflict on a matter, and our firm would be happy to assist you if that occurs, or
• You know, I’d be happy to send you my approach to how I/we would handle that matter for you, or
• If you don't hire me I will have to break a few knuckles (okay, maybe that one's not a good idea).

The point is that there ways that lawyers can ask for work in a professional manner that doesn't involve groveling. It is part of the closing process that comes with business development.

Thanks to my friend Stacy Clark I have learned about Lexology which is another site where lawyers can submit articles that are available to everyone, and, again, where a lawyer can demonstrate her/his expertise in specific areas of the law. 

Anyone can sign up to receive a daily email from Lexology covering any (or all) of the 37 areas of law selected in the U.S., UK, EU and Canada. One can also search by keywords to narrow the focus. Tons of law firms have contributed already, and many of those contributing to Legal OnRamp are also participating on Lexology.

Since Legal OnRamp won’t be officially launched until later this year, I can’t say for sure, but it looks like that site may have more value than one with only articles. We’ll have to wait and see.

Both present business development opportunities for lawyers.

Of course, I believe the more narrow the focus of whatever is submitted, the more likely it will come up in an issue-specific search. General articles won’t cut it in my estimation, and are unlikely to be read, except by someone seeking more general information in a legal area. General counsel on the other hand, will more likely be quite specific about what advice/information they are seeking from such sources.

I don’t know if the Philadelphia-based firm  is responding in any way to the decision to eliminate the billable hour requirement for first years by Ford & Harrison. But, I know that Fox Rothschild is sending some powerful legal marketing messages within the industry. Messages include:

• We’re not going to increase the cost to clients to train our rookies (think client retention),
• Tells rookies that their life balance is important, and if we increase your salary, you’re going to have to work a whole HECK of a lot harder (associate recruiting for not being a sweat shop),
• To GCs:  we know that 58% of you are outraged (see Altman Weil survey) over the recent increase to $160,000 for starting salaries for some of those rookies (client retention and business development opportunities), and
• Tells senior associates that their salaries may improve (associate retention).

Some powerful messages there, I’d say.

I was reminded of this physical reality when I saw the article by Anne Parys’ article “Turning a Battleship: Embracing Marketing at Your Firm” in this month’s Law Practice Today. As she points out, if marketing isn’t already a part of your firm’s culture, it may take “considerable effort and time” to make it so. But, making it so is a must. The alternative isn’t viable.

Anne’s straight forward advice includes:

• Understanding that a cultural change will take time (and include other issues than just marketing),
• Don’t try to change all at once (break it up into smaller steps),
• Start with those already (or almost) on board,
• Recognizing that there will be missteps, and
• Don’t give up the ship (remember that it will take time).

It reminds me of the tale about a captain of a large aircraft carrier who spotted a light at sea on a steady bearing and decreasing range (for you landlubbers, that’s collision city). Since his ship was the guerrilla, he advised the other party that he had best change course. After several such warnings, the captain advised again that he was an aircraft carrier on a steady course and unless the other changed course, he/she would suffer the consequences. Whereupon the other advised that he was the keeper of a lighthouse, “so captain, it’s your call.”

Don’t let your law firm find itself on the rocks. 

For the one or two still with me, it really is just a variation on a blog, where lawyers freely demonstrate their expertise on various subjects within their area of expertise. Legal OnRamp is another way to impress corporate counsel on your capabilities for when they need to hire a lawyer/law firm for that issue. It won’t be formally announced until later this year, but firms can start contributing now.

I may not have looked hard at this idea, if it weren’t for the article “New Routes Into The Corporate Door” by Terry Carter in this month’s ABA Journal online; and the person, Cisco Systems general counsel Mark Chandler, who came up with Legal OnRamp. No lightweight there. Also, I was impressed with the law firms, such as Baker & McKenzie, DLA Piper, Eversheds (U.K), Linklaters (U.K), Morgan, Lewis & Bockius, Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliff, to name a few which have already signed up. You can see who else is on board here.

So, what can you as an individual lawyer or law firm do? First, read the ABA article, and another in InsideCounsel to learn more about the program. If interested, think about your niche areas that could be part of this program. Then go to the Legal On Ramp site and see how you can join their team, and use this tool in your business development efforts.

You could get ahead of the curve on this one.

If I didn't believe in blogs, I wouldn't give this concept the greatest of chances.  But I do, and I do.

That’s the advice from Michelle Golden at Golden Practices in the form of one of her “5-Minute Marketing” tips. What I particularly liked was her suggestion that you take the time to write your number on your card before handing it to the person. I like the idea of writing it right on the front of your card, rather than the back, but either will do. But, take your time and this “extra” effort on your part will make the person feel special indeed.

Michelle also shares some Asian customs when it comes to handling business cards that you may find helpful, if you have dealings with folks from that part of the world. Take a look.

What particularly caught my eye was one of the sections on Soloformania called “ClientKeeper Software,” which really is a number of practice aids developed by The Missouri Bar in cooperation with The Bar Plan Mutual Insurance Company. As the Bar site states, “They (the aids) are designed to assist attorneys in improving client relations and minimizing (the) likelihood of claims for legal malpractice.” 

Avoiding malpractice is a good thing. Also, any lawyer's practice can benefit as a result of improved client relations, which is what successful, long-term business development is all about.

Note: The practice aids can be downloaded in either MS Word or WordPerfect format, and results in 27 files (can’t explain why they just didn’t combine them into one file, since some consist of only one page). Suggest you first look at the “a-cont” file which is the table of contents to see which files you might be interested in.

As a follow up to my post on listening on Monday, I remembered that I had done another post about listening last year, and thought it might be useful to run it again in case you missed it. So, in addition to the the International Listening Association that Jim Hassett told us about, here is my encore presentation with other resources.

What Did You Say? How Are Your Listening Skills?

Listening is a critical skill needed for effective legal marketing, not to mention for meaningful communications for any reason with anyone you encounter in life. But as to law firm marketing, it is vital to understand the wants and needs of clients and prospective clients, if one hopes to provide effective legal counsel. One can’t do that well without listening well.

Not being one of the world’s great listeners, and too often asking others “what did you say?”, I recently dug out of my garage (literally) a four cassette tape set on “Listening Powerfully” by Brian Battles (click here for the only place I could currently find the tapes) that I hadn’t listened to in years. Using a free trial version of Media Digitizer by Digitope, I converted the tapes to both CDs and to my iPod, and have been listening while driving around the last couple of days. It is well worth getting the set.

And thanks to a Monday post on the importance of listening by Patrick Lamb at In Search of Perfect Client Service, I have discovered a blog (part of Hill & Knowlton’s professional blogging community) called Client Service Insights, and a post by Leo Bottary on the issue of listening.

Leo’s advice on “arguably the most valuable skill you can develop”:

• Concentrate on listening,
• Don’t be thinking about what you will say next ….or being doing later,
• REALLY listen to what the other person is saying, and
• It is a skill that needs to be worked on and improved upon ceaselessly.

Further, he lists and links to several resources for developing listening skills. Take a look.

My colleague Jim Hassett at Legal Business Development is definitely better than I in this area. In his book Legal Business Development: A Step by Step Guide he talks about the subject in a way that is easy to grasp, in my humble opinion. His advice is that we should listen 50%-80% of the time. In quoting from Stephen Covey’s great book The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People, Jim points out:

“If I were to summarize the single most important principle in the field of interpersonal relationships, listening is the key.”

He goes on to tell us about the International Listening Association which provides additional resources. Finally, Jim provides five steps to get you started:

1. Establish genuine interest by asking questions that you care about;
2. Take notes. (It sends the message that what the person is saying is important. Of course, avoid doing so if any info is confidential);
3. Respond to the speakers nonverbal cues, and monitor your own (make good eye contact and smile, but avoid frowning);
4. Keep people talking by paraphrasing, summarizing and restating what you hear (people will think you are smart when you agree with them and don’t argue); and
5. Prepare good questions in advance.

Any conversation your having may be the perfect opportunity to work on your listening skills. I know I am going to try harder.

I haven’t had a chance to read his book cover to cover, but I have perused it and realize it is one I want to spend more time with. In the meantime, here is the table of contents to whet your appetite (with a comment or two to explain):

• People do business with people they know (and like, so get to know more people);
• The act of networking: Networking is not an act (be genuine and prepared for a long haul);
• The Blueprint: Architecting your plan (like constructing a house, building relationships requires thoughtful planning in order to land those ideal clients);
• The Nuts and Bolts: Building Relationships (consider it like dating, utilize the golden rule, give first, go where the action is, and follow up);
• Social Networking (consider sites like MySpace, LinkedIn, etc., but not as a substitute for face-to-face networking);
• Your Toolbox: Tricks of the Trade (always remember basic etiquette, mere visibility isn’t credibility, develop your speaking skills, and always show respect);
• Build a Better Mousetrap: Be Creative (think of memorable ways to keep in touch);
• Your Punch List: Reasons to Keep in Touch (not only to build relationships, but to maintain them);
• The Scaffolding Supporting Your Network: Mentors & Peer Groups;
• Perfecting Your Craft: Never Stop Learning (about networking from books, blogs, articles, etc.); and
• The Finishing Touches: Turning Your Network into Real Business (by building a real network, sharing it within your organization, and not burning any bridges).

Networking is REALLY important as a business development tool. I know you know that, but we all need to be reminded occasionally to never stop networking.

Good stuff! You may want to consider picking up a copy. It’s only $21.95 on Amazon (no royalties to me unfortunately). You can even listen to the Introduction here. 

The summer is that time of year when most folks, even clients, take some time away from the grind.  So, it's not a bad time to plan some marketing efforts to undertake, either now or when everyone gets back into the swing of things after Labor Day.

Allison Shields over at Legal Ease has a few suggestions (in addition to collecting your account receivables and firing some problem clients - a subject I've talked about on occasion here and here).  She offers the following marketing tips to consider during the summer (with my own twist of course):

• Touch base with former clients to reconnect and possibly pick up some business,
• Update clients on the status of matters, helping to ease their emotional concerns,
• Think of something special to do for your clients to build on the relationship,
• Touch base with referral sources for the same reason,
• Assess your marketing activities to determine what is working and what isn't, and
• Oh Yeah, don't forget to take that real vacation yourself to recharge your batteries.

As a result, you should be in great shape to undertake a fresh approach to your business development efforts come fall.

The eBook contains 77 bloggers’ favorite posts covering a broad spectrum of topics that should be of interest to nearly every lawyer.  My colleague Jim Hassett over at  Legal Business Development lists seven great reasons (well, maybe except for Reason 5) that you should get your own copy.

Enough said.  Don't miss out on a lot of good information.  Download a copy here.

Trey Ryder’s current “Law Marketing Alert” (free sign-up here) has a feature article by Signe Dayhoff who tells us (part of which I agree with) that when you join any organization you should go the extra mile, and as a result build goodwill that will produce results down the road. Dayhoff goes on to say that volunteering your time should be:

“…without any ulterior motive (huh?). This means you are helping because you want to share, not because you desire a quid pro quo for it (hmmm). This whole-hearted altruism engenders a sense of trust and gratitude in those with whom you network (true, but…). This makes networking a solid basis for your referral-based network.”

I don’t disagree exactly, but back to the real world. I too believe you have to be genuinely interested in helping others, and not acting totally out of self-interest.  But that doesn’t mean that you can’t have “any” self interest, or not have some hope of a business development return sooner rather than later.

Maybe it's semantics or a question of timing.

In any event, it does make complete sense to build trust and goodwill before expecting a return on your invested time in a networking organization.

So, what’s the point? Let’s be realistic, the hourly rate is not going away very soon (although all indications are that it is dying a slow death). But the point is that one does not have to spend every waking hour (not spent on billing) developing business. Okay, but how much should I spend, you ask? Well, as little as one to two hours per week, if you have SMART (Specific, Measureable, Achievable, Relevant and Timed) goals and your activities are focused on existing clients (which of course are the best sources of new business).

That’s what we learn from my colleague Jim Hassett at LegalBizDev. In his excellent book Legal Business Development: A Step by Step Guide he also suggests as a minimum as little as:

• 1 hour per week – “build(ing) stronger relationships with (your) best clients and referral sources.”
• 3 hours per week – working on trying to land new clients, and
• 1 hour per week – increasing your visibility with prospects and new referral sources.

We both would suggest you spend more, as much as you can afford in fact; but it doesn’t have to be overly burdensome. Nor do you have to do all of the above, but rather pick what is “smart” for you and commit to it.

It won’t be long before you will start seeing improvement in your business development.

But I must admit I had never thought that a church would provide another example of why it might be a good idea, and also provide the client options that create a win-win. Matt Homann at the (non)billable hour tells the story about a church that invited parishioners who didn’t share that faith community’s vision to leave AND handed out brochures for ten churches where they may find a better fit. Apparently, it wasn’t a case of "don’t let the door hit you in the backside on your way out," but a real effort to help find a home that was more suitable for them.

I can see a parallel with situations where a law firm and a client do not see eye-to-eye on the lawyers approach and vision on resolving matters; but, rather than just cut ties, the law firm could provide the client viable alternatives that might actually be better for the client in the long run. 

A much better approach. 

Thanks to Dan Hull  for the tip about Matt’s post.

I wasn’t thinking about marketing guru (I hate that word but it applies in this case) Seth Godin at the time, but I had downloaded one of his free ebooks awhile back about blogging, and while getting a tire repaired this week (the tale of the distain expressed by my condo association at the suggestion that the roofer should pay for the spike firmly lodged in it will have to await another day), I finally got around to reading “Who’s THERE? Seth Godin’s Incomplete Guide to Blogs and the New Web.”  It’s terrific.

Towards the end (p. 35) he offers up “A small bonus.”  A must read about how small is better. And it’s only four short pages. Take a look.

Small firms may eventually have a distinct advantage over larger firms because of their smallness – and a lot of help from the Internet and blogosphere.

Some firms apparently don’t even put associate bios up on the site for fear that headhunters will scoop them up. Since recruiters have many sources to call upon to get their names, why would a firm want to send a communication like “you aren’t really important enough to be up on our (usually static and boring) web site in the first place.” What kind of a terrible message does that send to such valuable internal assets?

I have talked before about making your staff part of the marketing team, but what got me thinking about it today was a discussion that has been going on for the last couple of days over on the Legal Marketing Association’s listserv. Some of the comments included:

• One 50-lawyer California puts everyone on web site – bios for all lawyers and senior staff, and pictures of everyone who works for the firm under their job category;
• A marketer from a smaller firm stated: “I like the sites that feature ‘Our People’ – that’s your human capital…Clients do like to ‘see’ your people;”
• And from my good friend Ross Fishman who works with a lot of law firm associates: “Although I did not ask them specifically about this biography issue, it is my clear inference from the conversations that this disparate treatment would be viewed VERY negatively;” and
• Another recounted her earlier experience in (non-legal) sales where a boss told her that if she ever got a better offer than what the company “can do for you, and the situation is better as well” he wouldn’t blame her for taking it.

If your firm is doing all the right internal marketing things to make it the best possible place to work, you won’t have to worry about such things. In any event, they'll talk care of themselves, but I can guarantee that your turnover will go way down.  And that is a cost savings that will go straight to the bottom line.

A brief article in this month’s Law Practice Today discusses this very point and more. According to Bob Weiss, a survey by the Legal Services and Sales Organization pointed out that rainmakers:

• Average approximately $500,000 more in originations than the “less successful” group (not sure how they were defined);
• While both groups belonged to organizations (bar related, community, trade groups, etc.), the “rainmakers were far more likely to take leadership roles;”
• Were twice as likely to have a “propensity for public speaking” (over writing) vs. the others; and
• Are “more likely to network and ask clients and referral sources for introductions to others.”

Not everyone is a natural rainmaker, and it isn’t necessary to exhibit all the traits mentioned in order to be successful. A less outgoing person can also succeed in developing business through active participation in organizations. It’s just a matter of degree.

Professional happiness is not an over abundant attribute among practitioners in the legal industry. What a shame. Further, it isn’t anything new. 

As I have reported before David Maister in his book True Professionalism shares the results of his informal surveys of lawyers in many law firms about their attitudes toward the work they do and the clients they do it for. He consistently found that a majority merely tolerate or truly dislike both the work they do and the clients they do it for.  

What a double shame?

And according to The Times (of London) Online in a story earlier this month, 25% of lawyers “want to leave the profession because of stress and long hours.” My guess is that a lot of the stress is related to unhappiness in what they are doing, and most likely the clients they work for. If you enjoy what you are doing in life the less stress comes into play.

The solution? Short of leaving the profession (which may be the right move for some) is to focus your legal marketing and business development efforts toward landing clients you would like working for, and practicing the kind of law you enjoy doing. Granted it may require a change of direction, but that is not a bad thing. Life is truly too short to be doing things for clients you don’t like.

According to Kevin Levi at Small Business Branding there’s a better way to develop and leverage press releases.  He even provides sites that you can send your releases to at no charge.

But first he gives advice on putting out effective releases:

• Keep it short (since most media won’t read beyond the first paragraph anyway);
• Cover the key points of the release in the first paragraph (and make sure you include meaningful numbers relating to jobs, growth, dollars, etc.);
• Expand the importance of the message in the second paragraph;
• Quotes should add to the story and say more than the managing partner is “delighted to be breathing, etc.”; and
  
• Include general info about the firm at the end, and of course contact info is important.

The free sites include:

• PR.com
• Free-Press-Release.com
• 24-7pressrelease.com
• PRlog.org
• PRFree.com

Think what is happening around your firm that may be worthy of a press release. Then craft a succinct but effective one, and send it to all the sites above and more.

Some of the findings:

• Legal departments planning to fire “one of their firms” in 2007 – 33% (34% last year);
• Most law firms pad their bills – 39% of in-house counsel would agree (a decrease from 42% last year); and 10% of law firms agree (an increase from last year’s 6% - Hmm);
• Has law firm service improved over the last 5 years? – 35% say no, 29% yes;
• Law firms are “seeking ways to reduce costs” – 70% disagree (24% of law firms would also disagree);
• Over one-third (38%) think law firms make too much money (down from 43% last year);
• Overall performance (by outside firms) continues to decline (an “A” grade by only two percentage points, but any decrease isn’t good news).

As I have pointed on other occasions, in-house counsels’ unhappiness creates opportunities for small to mid-size law firms to penetrate the world of large companies. Here’s four earlier posts:

• Mid-sized and Small Firms Can Compete With BigLaw

• More on Why Small Firms Can Compete 

• Small Firms Can and Do Represent Fortune 250 Companies
  

• Competing With Larger Law Firms 

The bottom line for small to mid-sized firms is this: a well-planned, focused marketing approach could put them in a position to penetrate the marketplace of large corporations and take work from BigLaw.

So, you can imagine my chagrin when I ran across a older post by Sara Holtz at Women Rainmakers bLawg that she titles “Instead of Golf: Ten Ways to Build Relationships” which referred to her article by the same name that appeared in the Tennessee Bar Association’s "The Complete Lawyer."

Well, it turns out that Sara doesn’t have anything against golf (thank goodness) but was only pointing out that a lot of women don’t golf, and so she wanted to emphasize other great ways to build relationships. Her ten include:

• Create A Networking Group (with other professionals),
• Be A Resource (to clients or potential clients – and referral sources – for business and personal problems),
• Get Personal (and recognize milestones/news/etc. with a handwritten note or personal gift),
• Provide A Clipping Service (as in sending a news clipping about the person or business with a note),
• Enlist Their Help (on a panel, “reverse” seminar, feedback on an article you’re drafting, etc., since people “like to feel needed”),
• Coordinate Plans (if you and prospect will be attending same event),
• Do Some Personal PR (send info about what you have accomplished or an article pointing out how, and how it might help their business – to avoid it sounding too self-serving),
• Be An Information Broker (similar one to above, but emphasizing info they may not have seen),
• Volunteer (with an emphasis on demonstrating your skills as a lawyer), and
• Keep In Touch (so as to avoid being out of sight, out of mind).

Oh yeah, don’t forget my number 11: Entertain them at golf -- or some other venue.

• Plan your strategy, and for audience
• It's a long term process, so be patient
• Measure intake as to how clients came to firm, and ask if they went to your web site to check out firm

Web Sites:

• Must have one
• Content is still “king,” change often
• Get domain name that is short, focused and reflects your name/practice (initials as in xyzlaw.com not memorable)
• Avoid flash (search engines can’t read, too slow to load)

Search Engine Optimization:

• Forget metatags, search engines don’t use them anymore
• Rather, focus on domain name, title of site and headers, rich and new content, keywords
• Caveat emptor when it comes to SEO consultants (too many “snake oil salesmen” out there)

Design:

• Hire a professional – prices vary, but $2,000-$5000 is a good range
• Design for your audience
• Full contact info on home page
• Change content frequently

Podcasts:

• Nothing but “Internet radio”
• Ensure new content often

Electronic Networking:

• Listservs are good; e.g., solosez (for solos and doesn’t require ABA membership)
• Have electronic version of 15-20 second elevator speech to send upon request
• Remember clients’, friends’ special occasions

E-mails –

• Avoid spam (if no business relationship, bad idea)
• Never send e-mail when angry
• Always include signature and contact information
• Self promotion (even at bottom or in signature) is bad idea

Electronic Ads –

• Banner ads are “worthless”
• Many directories are not worth money, even big name directories “haven’t really paid off”
• Make sure you cap dollar levels for Google ads ($ can get away from you)

There is more, so give it a listen. 

In my experience there are a couple of things that seem to run true in the Name Dept:

• No matter how long the name, people on the street (and other lawyers) only refer to the firm by the first name or at most the first two,
• Only in the case of firms that have a name like Smith, Jones, Ego, Ego, Ego & Ego, P.A. does even the receptionist answer the telephone with more than Smith Jones.
• The smaller the firm the longer the name it seems, for example:

• Ziffren, Brittenham, Branca, Fischer, Gilbert-Lurie, Stiffelman, & Cook, LLP (18 partners/3 associates/1 of counsel)
• Krupnick Campbell Malone Buser Slama Hancock Liberman and McKee (15 partners/3 associates)

And then you have:

• Skadden (1900-plus lawyers)(although their web site says “Skadden,” in fairness their legal name is still Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP),
• Dechert LLP (1000-plus)
• Venable LLP (520-plus)
• Etc.

What brought the issue to mind was an article on New York Lawyer.com (free registration required) last Friday that reported that Mayer Brown Rowe & Maw is shortening its name to Mayer Brown. Although the article indicates that this is a new trend, in fact it has been going on for many years.

Moreover, my intention is certainly not to be critical of firms with long names. My only point is that from a legal marketing and business development standpoint, it is more important to have a memorable, short name that clients (and certainly prospects and referrals sources) can say without embarrassing themselves when asked. I actually spoke to a client of a law firm with a long name who told me the name of his lawyer, but COULDN’T for the life of him remember the name of law firm he was with. No joke.

It is a difficult issue I know, particularly when a named partner is still alive and coming to the office regularly. That was the situation in two of my firms when I was in-house (one went from 6 to two names, the other from four to two). For marketing purposes, it just made sense. That isn’t to say it will be an easy transition to a shorter name, but in my opinion it is something your firm should consider seriously, if it hasn’t shortened it already.

• 13% said it will change policies relating to using first and second year associates, while 60% said they will decide on a case-by-case basis;
• 100% said they were not contacted (now, there’s a shocker I’ll tell ya);
• 84% thought they should have been contacted (hmm, does “don’t hold your breath” come to mind?); and
• 58% said the increase in salaries is “outrageous.” (okee dokee)
  

While the results of the survey are predictable, it does point to another reason why small and mid-size firms will pick up more work that traditionally went to larger firms. Smaller firms clearly don’t pay the high salaries in question, thus have lower costs and rates. It’s just another reason that small firms can compete, if they'll undertake effective business development strategies.

Go get ‘em David!

P.S. If you would like a copy of my talk, you can purchase it on a CD from the NCC for $99 (not a penny of which goes to yours truly) by calling 800-859-8676.

According to long time author, blogger and consultant, Bruce Marcus there are several reasons that statements like that are problematic:

• The evidence of such claims is intangible
• Their “outrageous and self-serving,” and
• Violate the canons of ethics in most, if not all, states.

In an his article on the myths of differentiation within professional services firms that appears at RainToday.com, Bruce contends that although differentiation is problematic, firms can project their “firm’s distinctive qualities” by positioning and demonstrating those traits. He states:

“Valid positioning begins with a perception of what the firm's marketplace sees as a major problem, need, or opportunity, and then crafting messages that demonstrate your firm's ability to respond to that need – to bring to bear the expertise and experience appropriate to serving that market.”

He is talking in classical marketing terms, and is correct. The only problem is that I think there is a much simpler way to differentiate your firm. Position yourself to do the things other firms don’t (and clients want), and demonstrate those traits in all the firm’s dealings with all clients. And, per chance you may ask, what are those differences?:

• Treat clients with respect,
• Return phone calls within an hour (or have someone do so on your behalf),
• Give clients an accurate idea of what the matter entails, the process involved and the costs,
• Know the clients business (inside and out), 
• Be responsive to client requests (for anything),
• Meet all deadlines,
• Don’t over promise and under deliver,
• Seek client feedback,
• Don’t surprise the client (about anything),
• Communicate constantly,
  
• Keep client informed as to their matter, and
  
• And so on….and so on.

These are service issues that consistently give clients headaches and lead to grievances (and the firing of law firms), because too few firms provide this type of service. So, you can differentiate your firm by providing the service that other firms don’t.  Don’t just talk about doing it, but demonstrate it and word of mouth will take care of the rest.

Tom Collins at morepartnerincome.com has another post on voicemail where he raises the issue whether the device is a friend or foe. Since communications are so critically important for good attorney-client relations, Tom offers several good suggestions on how to ensure that the use of the system doesn’t have adverse consequences.

• If you give out your direct number, don’t hide behind it so callers always end up in voicemail, and begin thinking that you’re avoiding them (good idea to give the opportunity to bail out to a human);
• Have receptionist offer the opportunity to leave a traditional message or go into voicemail; and
• As to your outgoing message, make sure to:

1. State your name clearly (so they know they have reached the right person),
   
2. Update message often (if not daily),
3. Indicate whether you are checking for messages, or when you will be back,
4. Encourage caller to leave a detailed message (so they won’t fear being cut off prematurely), and
5. Give indication when calls will be returned – late afternoon, the next day, within 4 hours, etc.

Voicemail can certainly be a friend, if it is used to enhance communications rather than frustrate them.

The idea is that you “team up” to introduce each other (whether another lawyer, other professional, referral source, client, friend, whomever) to people you don’t know. My friend Miriam Lawrence at Automatic Referrals has a post about getting a “networking buddy.” It's a good read, as she refers to advice she picked up from professional speaker and coach Patricia Fripp.

The scenario goes something like this:

• Your teammate is talking with someone and you walk up (or vice versa);
• He/she immediately turns and asks the person whether they know you, and proceeds to give you an introduction that highlights your many legal talents, as well as what a terrific person you are, etc. etc. (presumably there is a lot of truth in all this);
• Keeping in mind that one of your goals is to meet as many potential clients or referral sources as you can, one or both of you should move on to other people after a respectable period of time, and after asking for a business card so you can follow up later;
  
• Take turns repeating the process as many times as you can during the event.

If you look at it as a game rather than drudgery, networking can actually be fun. Remember, it is easier for someone else to sing your praises than for you to do so yourself.

Now… stand by… here is my far out hypothesis that actually may not be that far out. Could college students and grads be hearing stories from friends, relatives, alums, who are or know lawyers that make up more than 40% of law school graduates who go solo (or the 80% according to former ABA President Michael Greco who practice as solos or in small firms)? And those stories could include tales about how the vast majority of lawyers are not starting out with (or even making anywhere near) salaries in the $150,000 range. Even with years of experience under their belts, most are not making anything close to that. You can count on it.

I have been a long time critic of law schools for not developing as part of their curriculum the skills lawyers will need to practice law in the real world. Where else are they suppose to learn them? Of course they could have majored in professional services marketing in college or business school before going to law school – RIGHT!!

Before noting why law firms themselves should be concerned about this lack of law school “real world” training, let me refer you to several other posts that you (and I hope, I hope a member of the faculty - god forbid a dean) might find interesting on the subject:

• Do Law Schools Have a Duty to Prepare Solos for Survival?
• Carnegie Report: Law Schools Receive Failing Grade
• Teaching the Business Side of Law In Law Schools
• Coaching Can Help Achieve What Law Schools Failed To Teach

The bigger question may be: why should law firms or practicing lawyers care? Well, it might just ease the cost and time needed to train associates and junior partners in business development skills which will be needed for the long term viability of most law firms. The issue is even more critical in smaller firms and with solos, since these lawyers will need to develop rainmaking skills and contribute to developing business much earlier than those in larger firms.

Rather, the client wants to know what the likely outcome will be and how soon. They do not want a dissertation on how you have spent all those billable hours they are going to have to pay for. Their thinking big picture, bottom line… i.e., how close you are to a satisfactory conclusion or at least to the next significant step in the process. And you need to be prepared to do so in a succinct fashion. As Joey tells us, Powell’s “tight and simple answer inspired confidence.”

Why is that important to business development? Well, we know that most legal work comes from existing clients (either in the form of additional work or referrals to others), so keeping clients happy is a critical legal marketing tool. Accordingly, it is a good idea to have a well thought out answer to the question about how things are going at the ready, but keep it simple in order to enhance the client’s confidence in you, and in their decision to having selected you in the first place.

In this month’s Law Practice Today there is an article by Bob Weiss that points out how you can help your legal marketing efforts by partnering with in-house lawyers on your pro bono efforts. Think about it.  It is a good way to show your character, your talents and, most importantly from a business development angle, build relationships and trust that can lead to business with a company you would like to do legal work for.

So, next time you undertake a pro bono project, give some thought to inviting an in-house attorney to work on the assignment with you.

The announcement a few months back by Mayer Brown that it was demoting or releasing 10% (or 45) of its partners received a fair amount of press. I even blogged about it here back in March. I’m beginning to think, due to the sheer numbers, that there is something in the water in Chicago.

As I mentioned on Monday, my laptop is having "issues; in fact, it had an adverse reaction to water itself (sorry, but the details will not be forthcoming), and I lost everything. That’s why I have been looking at my archives. Lo and behold, I ran across a post I called “Rainmakers Don’t Get Fired” which I did in January 2005.  It discussed the EEOC's filing of an age discrimination suit against Sidley Austin on behalf of 31 former partners. In February of 2006, the 7^th  Circuit Court of Appeals held that the EEOC could seek monetary damages against the firm. The case is apparently ongoing, unless I’ve missed something. 

The point of both of my posts, however, relates to business development. Partners (or associates for that matter) DO NOT get fired or demoted for developing business. It is the failure to bring in the bacon that is the major reason senior attorneys find themselves in such a predicament. Their rates are too high to be attractive to rainmakers, who can get younger, bright lawyers to do their work at much lower rates.

So, the lesson is simple. Make rain or you too may end up hanging out to dry.

Still with me? Nobody said religion is easy.

The point is that all six tips that Morgan learned from Pastor Noble are relevant to public speaking by lawyers as part of their business development efforts. The 6 tips:

1.      Prepare your message weeks in advance (it will give time for your thoughts to develop and take root or, as Pastor Noble would contend, give the Holy Spirit more time to help),

2.      Speak the truth (and what you are passionate about, as you will be more convincing and effective),

3.      Keep it simple (the more you cover, the less your “audience will retain”),

4.      Sweat the outline not the manuscript,

5.      Tell stories (Noble is right in saying “People will tune out unless you engage their emotions”), and

6.      Invite others into the process (it is a good idea to include others who may help in clarifying your message … and even make suggestions on your delivery).

Amen.

The point relating to legal marketing? Simple. Small firms and solos have hope of seriously competing with larger law firms thanks to the Internet. That is the message conveyed by Mike Dillon, general counsel at Sun Microsystems on his blog, The Legal Thing in a post he calls “The Way of the Mastodon.”

A big thanks to Patrick Lamb at In Search of Perfect Client Service for his great post summarizing Dillon’s main points. Here’s my take:

• Traditionally (read: in those ancient days prior to the Internet), companies in need of a specialized lawyer would turn to their regular law firm, leaving it to them to find that specialist;
• Law firms got larger as the law became more complex, and they needed to hire more lawyers to meet those specialized needs (read: increasing costs, and requiring higher and higher hourly rates to pay for these additional “costs”);
• Along comes the “ole” World Wide Web, and now companies can find really smart, qualified, specialized lawyers in small firms who are just as good and are much more cost effective. How do they know that they are really smart and qualified? Simple, GCs are reading their blogs;
• Big, expensive law firms will be challenged to stay relevant or go the way of the Mastodon.