I received a call this week from a young lawyer a couple of years out of a top tier law school. She left a message that she was thinking about starting a solo PI firm. She wanted to know who and what was out there to help her with that. The voicemail message stated that she didn’t know a lot about marketing, “…and obviously don’t want to do (it). I’d rather be doing the law firm stuff.“
When I spoke with her I was astonished to hear that she really thought that she could hire someone to do the marketing for her. And she was thinking that a website, for instance, would bring her all the clients she would need. She seemed deflated when I explained that personal services marketing requires personal involvement. Obviously, an example of someone who doesn’t get it. Not only does she dislike the idea of marketing, but hasn’t a clue as to how vital it is to any law firm’s survival.
[Aside: I blame law schools for that. As my long time readers know I have riled many times against our legal academic institutions that are more interested in the almighty buck and purism of the law, instead of preparing their financially strapped grads for the real world of law practice. (See below for just a few of my posts on the topic.)]
Okay, I couldn’t resist another rant.
It came to mind after reading John Cunningham’s article “Why Attorneys Hate Marketing and What You Can do About It,” thanks to Amy Campbell’s Web Log and the Legal Marketing Reader. So, if you are one of those who “hates” marketing or knows someone who does, I commend Cunningham’s article to you. He discusses “10 common attorney objections to marketing and sales,” and suggests ways to overcome them.
==========================
- Teaching the Business Side of Law In Law Schools – September 17th, 2005
- Do Law Schools Have a Duty to Prepare Solos for Survival? – June 7th, 2005
- Coaching Can Help Achieve What Law Schools Failed to Teach – May 15th, 2007
- Carnegie Report: Law Schools Receive Failing Grade – January 19th, 2007