10 EASY DO IT YOURSELF MARKETING TIPS FOR SMALL LAW FIRMS

Don’t you hate it when you’re at a party or soccer game or family gathering and people are always trying to talk you up so they can get some free legal advice out of you? Being a small law firm marketing company, you would think we feel the same way. Yet, here we are, completely immersed in the spirit of the season, handing out some free legal marketing advice on our blog. But that’s just the kind of people we are.

Here they are - ten things you can do yourself to improve your firm’s marketing. Each one a beautiful pearl just for you.

1.       Update your personal and/or firm profiles on attorney listing sites like FindLaw, Martindale, etc. For those sites, like Avvo, that include client reviews, ask a few clients to write nice things about you.

2.       Investigate the requirements and procedures for inclusion in Super Lawyers and Best Lawyers and follow through on getting nominating.

3.       Take control of your firm profile on business sites like Manta and yp.com. Google your firm name and see what comes up in the results, then go into the various listing sites and update your information.

4.       Give out promotional items – pens, key chains, messenger bags, etc. – with your firm name, phone number and website address.

5.       Update your website – both cosmetically and substantively.

6.       Set up a Linked In profile, or update your existing LinkedIn profile. Use LinkedIn’s contact features to invite new people to connect with you. Build your network!

7.       Join some relevant LinkedIn groups.

8.       Seek out local business, professional, civic, religious, business and other groups that may have potential clients in them. Make yourself available to speak to them on subjects within your area of expertise.

9.       Start a blog to discuss your area of expertise. Make sure your clients, referring attorneys, etc., all know about it.

10.   Give out calendars with your firm name, phone number, address and website. The kind that attach onto a computer monitor are the best; everyone looks at them every day.
 

Or you could just call us at (800) 747-0142. We’ll do all this and a lot more for you while you’re busy practicing law. (You knew there had to be at least a small commercial in there, right?)

Happy holidays to all.

OMEGA LEGAL MARKETING is a dedicated, specialty marketing company serving only small law firms and solo practitioners in the metro New York City area. Much more than just a web design firm, we put together affordable, comprehensive marketing programs that enable our clients to stand out from the crowd and grow their practices. You can find us at www.omegalegalmarketing.com

ATTORNEY RANKINGS, LISTINGS AND AWARDS – BE SMART AND BE CAREFUL

The recent publication of the 2013 Super Lawyers listings prompted us to think a little more about the various attorney ranking and rating lists that seem to proliferate.

By some accounts, there are more than 900 different attorney ranking lists out there today. Some of them are local and others are highly specialized, but most lawyers are familiar with the largest lists and rankings sites – Super Lawyers, Best Lawyers, Martindale-Hubbell, Avvo, Chambers & Partners and Legal 500. Of course, this doesn’t take in sites hosting firm reviews, like Yelp.

With so many of these sites out there, firms and individual attorneys need to determine the value of trying to be included. If so, then which listings are worth pursuing? And once the decision to pursue a listing or ranking is made, one needs to be careful about how the listing is utilized.

Make no mistake. These lists aren’t put together by altruistic non-profit organizations looking to provide a service to the public. They are operated by for-profit ventures for the purpose of making money for their owners. So beware of “opportunities” to pay for placement, banner ads, etc. These may be profit centers for the list operator, but is the expense a good use of your marketing dollars? Before participating in any ranking or listing, make sure the sponsor has a real methodology and established criteria for inclusion that are at least  arguably objective. Compare listings and do your homework – understand how they work, what kind of information they collect and remain involved in the process.

Be careful when choosing a ranking site. Try to pursue only those you feel will have some influence on your client base. A listing or ranking that may be impressive to an unsophisticated individual looking for a personal injury lawyer may not impress the general counsel of a public company. 

Determine in advance how much time you have to spend on the process and how much of your marketing budget you want to devote. It may not be worthwhile or efficient to pursue inclusion in both Super Lawyers and Best Lawyers, for example. Give some thought to what kind of return on investment you expect to get from highlighted or more prominent listings or firm advertisements. All of these "enhanced" advertising opportunities have costs associated with them.

And don’t forget that these listing are attorney advertising. As such, they are subject to all the attorney advertising rules of your state. Listings and rankings can make good content for press releases, e-mails, newsletters, announcements, etc., but be careful how you use them on your website or in your marketing materials. Don’t use a “best” attorney ranking in a manner that could be construed as misleading or deceptive. The basic ethical rules still apply.  Some of the lists have recommendations or guidelines regarding their use. If you’re in doubt, however, read the relevant state rules or guidelines, or request assistance from the state bar or court system.

In this regard, Elizabeth Clark Tarbert, Ethics Counsel of The Florida Bar, has compiled a good list of pointers for avoiding ethical problems when using ratings or awards:

1. Check out the organization giving the rating/award to make sure it is a bona fide organization with legitimate selection criteria

2. Use the actual name of the award/rating in advertisements

3. Use the actual name of the organization giving the award/rating in ads

4. Give the year the award/rating was given in the advertisement

5. Distinguish in the ad whether the award/rating was given to the firm or an individual lawyer in the firm

6. If the rating is not current, don’t use it

7. Don’t publicize awards that use “specialist” “expert” “certified” or other variations of these terms unless the organization is accredited by your bar association

8. Be careful how you characterize the award – do not call it “prestigious” or “distinguished” e.g.

9. Check with your state bar to see if the bar has a rule, opinion, case, or guidelines on use of awards/ratings in advertisements

10. Check with your state bar to see if you are required to file advertisements that include the award

           

(Reprinted with permission of The Florida Bar)

If used wisely, ratings, listings and/or awards can be good marketing tools. Remember, though, they are just tools. It’s okay to make them part of your marketing, but don’t rely solely on them to be your marketing.

OMEGA LEGAL MARKETING is a dedicated, specialty marketing company serving only small law firms and solo practitioners in the metro New York City area. Much more than just a web design firm, we put together affordable, comprehensive marketing programs that enable our clients to stand out from the crowd and grow their practices. You can find us at www.omegalegalmarketing.com

BIG FIRMS ARE FINALLY BEGINNING TO RECOGNIZE THE IMPORTANCE OF SOCIAL MEDIA – SHOULDN’T YOU?

Back in May, we put out a blog post about the importance of a social media program to small law firms. We extolled the virtues of engaging in blogging and on LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter and Google +, as well as the benefits of e mail newsletters, and explained why a robust social media program is a great, low cost marketing investment for small law firms.

We recently came across a 2012 white paper published by Managing Partner Forum that discusses the results of a survey on social media among law firms. The survey was conducted by the research firm ALM Media Intelligence during late 2011 through January 2012. ALM surveyed 179 attorneys and law firm marketing officers to gather information about firms’ use of, and attitudes about, social media marketing. 

The results are illuminating and provide some excellent insights into the marketing practices and strategies of large law firms. Nearly 85% of the respondents were from firms with more than 75 attorneys, with more than half the respondents from firms with more than 500 attorneys. 

Among the more salient findings uncovered by the survey were the following:

• Nearly 90% of respondents said that they believe that the integration of social media into their firms’ marketing, business development and recruiting efforts is important.
• Almost 85% of the responding firms said their lawyers are active on social media sites such as LinkedIn, Facebook and Twitter.
• Approximately 70% of the responding firms maintain one or more blogs.
• Nearly 50% of respondents reported that blogging and social networking initiatives had helped produce leads for new matters or clients.
• Approximately 40% said their blogging and/or social media activities had helped them land new work.
• Over 40% of those surveyed said that blogs and social media networks helped to increase the number of calls their firms receive from reporters in traditional and new media. Roughly the same number said their presence in the blogosphere and on social media networks had also increased the number of speaking invitations their lawyers receive.
• More than 50% of the responding firms said they plan to increase their budgets for social media marketing.

These are just the highlights; the report is packed with all kinds of interesting information. For example, over a third of the surveyed firms which do not use social media said they believe they need to do so, but had not yet determined how best to approach it.

The report revealed that while participation among larger firms in social media is robust, the amounts that those firms are spending on social media marketing are quite small. Over 90% of the firms have a firm page on LinkedIn. More than 70% have a firm Twitter feed and over 60% have a firm Facebook page. Yet, 28% of the surveyed firms allocate less than 1% of their marketing budget to social media and 23% allocate only 1-5% of their marketing budgets. However, many of these firms reported that they intend to increase their social media spending for things like attorney training.

One particularly interesting aspect of the survey was the reasons given for engaging in social media. In order of importance, these were

1. establishing attorneys as thought leaders in key practice areas;
2. raising the firm’s public profile and strengthening its brand;
3. monitoring what is being said about your firm;
4.  providing intelligence on competitor firms and clients;
5.  recruiting new associates and lateral partners;
6. maintaining contact with former lawyers;
7. producing leads; and
8. (generating new clients and matters.

The survey clearly reflects the recognition by big law of the value an active social media presence. A number of respondents commented on how social media platforms are an extremely cost effective way to increase visibility and recognition. For minimal dollar investment, a firm can reach large numbers of current and potential clients and referring sources. Many firms say they have phased out printed newsletters and other mailed marketing materials in favor of on-line initiatives, which are much less expensive and have the ability to reach a larger audience more often and more effectively.

Although many small firms and solo practitioners have been slow to recognize the value of an active social media program, the direction being taken by big law should be instructive. We’ve always been big advocates of active social media marketing programs for small firms. Of course, we understand that small firms lack the marketing manpower of their larger brethren, so we’ve put together a low cost, multifaceted social media package as a key component of our offering. Linked to your firm’s website, it will improve search engine results and provide all of the benefits that large firms seek to achieve – establishing you as a leader in your field, providing visibility, improving your public profile and promoting your brand. You can contact us any time to find out more.

You can read the full survey by clicking on the following link:

http://www.managingpartnerforum.org/tasks/sites/mpf/assets/image/MPF%20-%20WHITE%20PAPER%20-%20Fans,%20Followers%20&%20Connections%20-%20ALM%20-%206-12-12.pdf20ALM%20-%206-12-12.pdf

The Omega Legal Marketing Blog is a service of Omega Legal Marketing, a dedicated law firm marketing company specializing in creating custom designed marketing programs for small law firms and solo practitioners. You can learn more about us at http://omegalegalmarketing.com; you can contact us at admin@omegalegalmarketing.com.

© 2013 Omega Legal Marketing
http://omegalegalmarketing.com

CLIENT SATISFACTION SURVEYS FOR SMALL LAW FIRMS

I’m surprised by how few small firms and solo practitioners attempt to solicit any kind of concrete feedback from their clients. Every consumer products company worth its salt is constantly figuring out new ways to provide incentives to their customers to provide feedback and information. Scores of B2B companies have been doing the same for years, and many large firms regularly follow suit.

Why Do It?

There is a lot of value of sending out a client satisfaction survey. The establishment of a written survey evidences a formalized process that reflects that your firm is organized, well run, and forward looking. In many cases, clients will be flattered, or at least impressed, that you took the time to find out what they think. And it you structure your survey properly, it will provide you with invaluable information about your current performance, areas of improvement and potential growth opportunities. 

What Should It Include?

Every firm will need to tailor its survey to its practice, but there are a few universal areas you will want to cover:

Initial Engagement:    Why did the client initially choose your law firm? Were those expectations met or exceeded? Were there other strengths that the client discovered after retaining your firm?

Competency:             How satisfied is the client with the quality of your legal work?

Responsiveness:       How quickly and thoroughly are clients’ calls and e mails returned? How good is your follow up during ongoing matters?

Communication:         How well is the client kept informed of developments?

Billing:                          How much value do clients believe they are receiving for the fees they are paying? How easy to understand are invoices?

Suggestions:              Giving clients the opportunity to offer constructive criticism and suggestions for improvement will give you a great insight into what your clients think about you. Open ended questions, like “name two ways in which we could serve you better” or “what  would you do differently if you were running our firm?” are examples of what to look for.

Referrals and Recommendations   In many ways, these are the acid test of a firm’s success. Find out why clients would or would not recommend you to others.

A Few Last Tips

Try to keep your survey relatively short and thank clients in advance for taking the time to help you help them. Remember, your clients are just as busy as you are. Spend some time to figure out the questions to which you really want answers, and then construct your survey accordingly. Once you have a draft, take the survey yourself, and have others in your office do so. In this way, you will be able to judge whether a client will take the time to fill it out for you.

As far as actually putting the survey together, there are some very good DIY platforms out there. We like Survey Monkey, which has good drafting and analytical tools. There are other sites and software, like QuickSurveys.com and QuestionPro.com, which may work for you. One thing you don’t want to do is waste the opportunity by putting together a survey that isn’t going to give you meaningful information. This isn’t an ad, but we would be happy to put together a proposal for any firm looking to create a thorough, affordable client survey. You can also Google client and customer survey design firms.

The Omega Legal Marketing Blog is a service of Omega Legal Marketing, a dedicated law firm marketing company specializing in creating custom designed comprehensive marketing programs for small law firms and solo practitioners. You can learn more about us at http://omegalegalmarketing.com; you can contact us at admin@omegalegalmarketing.com.

© 2013 Omega Legal Marketing
http://omegalegalmarketing.com

SOCIAL MEDIA FOR SMALL LAW FIRMS – WHY YOU SHOULD BE DOING IT

For many small law firms, just launching a website was a big move. Many attorneys are still not entirely comfortable with the concept of law firm marketing; and the idea of doing so on line – for many an intimidating territory– can be a daunting prospect.

Big law firms, on the other hand, have widely recognized the importance of marketing and have recognized the opportunities that technology offers. It’s time for small law firms and solo practitioners to embrace what large firms have know for a while – in an increasingly competitive legal marketplace, smart marketing is critical. The need to stand out from the crowd has never been stronger.

Studies report that nearly 20% of all time spent on line is now being spent on social media sites, and the percentage is growing. You built your website, but why do you need to get involved with Facebook, Twitter and other social media sites? The answer is simple – because they can help you to market and grow your practice. Here’s how:

Improve your website’s search engine results – Having social media sites that are linked to your website, and to which your website links, will help your search engine results. Not only will these sites drive traffic to your website, but the ability to put out specific pieces of content on individual topics will help you reach more needs-driven potential clients.

      Social media is an excellent networking tool – Phone calls, lunches and other one on one interactions are always going to be important, but the ability to reach out to dozens or hundreds of people at once is amazingly powerful. Used wisely and judiciously, posts to a firm LinkedIn site or an e-newsletter can enable you to provide news and updates to many people at once.

Maintain ongoing relationships with former and current clients – If your practice is case-oriented, keeping in touch with former clients, who are one of your best referral sources, is critical. There is no better way to do so efficiently and cost effectively than via social media. The same goes for current clients or clients with which you maintain long-term business relationships. 

      Maintain visibility – Out of sight, out of mind. Regularly posting content on social media sites gives you the ability to stay on the radar of potential referring sources – other attorneys, former clients, accountants, brokers, et al. 

Establish or embellish your credentials – Well written blog posts are a good way to impress prospective clients, as well as other attorneys, with your knowledge of a particular subject. Social media posts trumpeting recent or upcoming speaking engagements, publications or volunteer engagements are all good ways to establish or enhance your bona fides as an expert in your field of practice.

      Brand building – A lot is written today about branding – creating an image and identifiable presence for your firm. Being active on social media sites helps to establish your firm’s identity and stature.

As you can see, there are a number of compelling reasons to be actively engaged on social media, but which social media sites are right for you? For most of our small law firm clients, we find that there are six platforms that, taken together, make up an effective social media program:

      LinkedIn – You may already have an individual profile on LinkedIn, but unless you are a solo practitioner, you also need a firm LinkedIn page, where you can describe your firm and your practice and post updates of interest to those in your network.

      A blog site – Having a blog site is one of the best things you can do. Putting out regular (monthly) content on subjects within your area of expertise is an important part of establishing brand identity, visibility and credibility. If your firm concentrates in more than one practice area, you should have separate blog sites for each.

Facebook – A firm Facebook page, separate from your individual page, is an important tool for conveying what your practice is about and how you can help prospective clients. There are now more than 1.1 billion Facebook users. Some of them are potential clients.

Google+ - We originally weren’t big fans of this Facebook wannabe site, but we’ve come around. Although it replicates a lot of what Facebook does, it’s owned by Google, so having a presence here can only help your search results.

Twitter – Being able to quickly put out news and updates, or to comment on topics of interest, cannot be overemphasized, particularly when there is a potential audience of 500 million users.

           Firm newsletters – The availability of attractive, easy to use mass e mail programs (like Constant Contact and their less expensive competitors) provides an excellent mechanism for directly reaching out to everyone within your network. Subscription forms placed on your website and social media sites will also help you to expand that network.

There is no end to the number of social media sites out there. According to the social media tracking blog Digital Marketing Ramblings there are over 200 active social media and related sites in operation. While it is important to put together a program that has breadth and depth, you don’t want to over-saturate. Although you could put your firm on dozens of different social media sites, sticking to a core group of 5-8 platforms is going to be most effective for most firms. 

Depending on the nature of your practice and the extent of your marketing ambitions, however, there are two others worth considering:
 

 You Tube – Google owns You Tube and puts a search engine premium on video content. If you have more than a handful of videos, setting up a firm You Tube channel makes sense.

Pinterest – This site is like an electronic public bulletin board, where you “pin” up things of interest to you or your potential clients.

Of course, what you put on social media is critically important. But if you’re serious about growing your firm and building your practice, you need to have a social media strategy as part of your overall marketing plan.

The Omega Legal Marketing Blog is a service of Omega Legal Marketing, a dedicated law firm marketing company specializing in creating custom designed, comprehensive marketing programs for small law firms and solo practitioners. You can learn more about us at http://omegalegalmarketing.com; you can contact us at admin@omegalegalmarketing.com.

© 2013 Omega Legal Marketing
http://omegalegalmarketing.com

TIPS FOR BUILDING A GOOD LINKED IN PROFILE

We’re big fans of LinkedIn, which we think it is an amazingly powerful networking tool. Unlike social media sites like Facebook and Twitter, LinkedIn is designed exclusively for business. Its concept is excellent – you have a network of people you know, but each of those people has their own network of people, many of whom you don’t know but who can be helpful to you. LinkedIn provides a platform for identifying and reaching those people. And it allows you to do so easily, on line, without having to make an endless series of phone calls. Brilliant!

To get a lot out of LinkedIn, you don’t need to spend hours setting it up or using it on an ongoing basis, but you do have to devote some time to it, and you need to do it right. If you set up a strong profile, manage your settings and set a regular schedule for yourself to check and post to LinkedIn, it can be an extremely worthwhile investment of a minimum amount of time. And remember, it costs you nothing except time, probably less than an hour a month.

This is intended to be the first of several posts designed to help you capitalize from using LinkedIn. We’ll start at the beginning – creating a good profile.

The profile is critical. It is what people who are looking to connect with you will see and it is what people with whom you are trying to connect will view to assess you. Think of it as a resume or CV, but just pasting in your resume info isn’t going to get the job done. The LinkedIn profile offers you the opportunity to create a great first impression and broadcast your strengths.

But remember, the idea isn’t to load up your profile with filler. To the contrary, it is designed to allow you to convey important and relevant information (and only important and relevant information) to someone who may be able to help you professionally. You want your profile to have enough substance to impress, but not to be unduly long.

Here are some tips for putting together a strong LinkedIn profile.

Make sure to include a photo. When I see a profile without a photo, I see someone who is not serious about this. If you’re not serious about yourself, why would anyone else take you seriously? Moreover, your photo can give the viewer a sense of who you are – if they are looking for someone with experience, or someone with youthful energy, a photo conveys this without even having to look at any text.

And use a professional looking photo. It doesn’t have to be taken by a professional photographer (most aren’t), but it should be a dignified head shot, not a vacation photo with you in shorts and sunglasses holding a drink.

Make sure to include the header information – current title, current company, geographic location and industry. If you are a sole practitioner, using a title like “Owner” or “Principal” is fine and preferred over just “Attorney”. If you are a partner in a small firm, use “Partner” or “Owner.”

Complete the contact information section. Make it easy for someone to get in touch with you or save your contact information. Put in the information for the way in which you prefer to be contacted, which should normally be your business phone number, business e mail address, business mailing address. LinkedIn only allows you room for one phone number, so if you preferred to be called on your cell phone, use that one instead of your office number. You can add additional contact information elsewhere in the profile.

Include a concise Background summary. This is your 30 second elevator pitch – a short, concise synopsis of who you, what you do and your major strength. Something like “New York City litigation attorney with 15 years of experience. Concentrating on whistle blower claims, I’ve recovered over $800 billion for my clients.” And don’t use “specialist” or “specializing in” and the like unless you’ve been certified by the US Patent and Trademark Office, a recognized trial certifying organization or something similar; you’ll run afoul of the New York ethics rules. It is permissible, however, to use expressions like “concentrating in” or “practice limited to.” 

If you are certified as a specialist in some area, there is a separate section where you can include the particulars. Being AV rated on Martindale or getting a 10 on Avvo doesn’t qualify. Everyone knows these are specious; their only purpose is to get you to use their sites and to impress uninformed clients.

Complete the Experience section, but keep it short and concise. Fill in all your previous jobs, listing the firms and the job titles. Make sure the dates match up. Keep the descriptions to one paragraph that summarizes what you did there and how great you did it.

Make sure to include your educational information, but keep it relevant. Just the basics here – law school, undergraduate and any other graduate degree. If you graduated with honors, include that. If you were on Law Review, include that. If you have been practicing less than 7-8 years, you can include your law review article or other awards and accomplishments, but no one cares if you did an independent study in college on the health of hygiene in Botswana, even if you got an A+.

Include publications in your field, but only if they enhance your credentials. LinkedIn has a section, called “Publications,” where you can include any articles you’ve written. If you’re 20 years out of law school and a matrimonial attorney, your law school article for the Journal of Historical Jurisprudence on whether Plessy v. Ferguson was properly decided probably shouldn’t be included. On the other hand, if you’ve published something fairly recent in your field in a journal or for a CLE, put that in there.

It’s OK to include speaking engagements and other professional activities. Use either the “Projects” section or the “Honors and Awards” section for these. Again, make sure you include them only if they are germane. If you were a presenter at a CLE seminar, include the particulars. If you spoke at your kid’s career day, better to move along.

Be careful about listing areas of expertise and soliciting recommendations.  LinkedIn encourages you to list your areas of expertise, which it calls “Specialties.” Including a few important areas in which you concentrate, like “mesothelioma litigation,” “ERISA compliance” or “Section 501(c)(3) practice”, is fine. Again, keep the list limited and concise; just include those areas in which you really do concentrate and have a degree of real expertise.

Last year, LinkedIn introduced a feature that allows any of your first level connections to “endorse” you for the areas of expertise you have listed. This is similar to including a recommendation, expect that you have to request the recommendation and you can’t stop anyone from endorsing you. We skeptical about both; we just don’t see any value in having a laundry list of people “confirm” that you are good at drafting proxy statements or deposing expert witnesses. Rather, these types of features come across to us as something concocted by LinkedIn to get people to spend more time on the site, where they will be exposed to LinkedIn’s advertising and promotions.

Avoid the Additional Info section. No one really cares if you like to skydive or go spelunking. No one is going to send you a birthday card, so don’t bother including your birthday. The “Advice for Contacting” subsection is another waste of time. If you already have your contact information at the top of the profile, that will do it.

Join some groups. There are thousands of groups on LinkedIn. Pick a few that are relevant to your practice; they can be a good source of information and a way to expand your network. There are many law-related groups. Find one or two in your area of concentration. Join your law school alumni group. In the beginning, there’s no downside to over-joining; you can always disconnect from a group.

Just be careful whenever you join a group. Make sure you read the notification settings closely or you will be getting e mails every day from every group. Updates once a week from a group are fine. And whenever you go onto LinkedIn, you can always check in on your groups by yourself.

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Once you’ve completed your profile, you’re ready to start using LinkedIn. Next time, we’ll talk about connecting with others and building your LinkedIn network.

The Omega Legal Marketing Blog is a service of Omega Legal Marketing, a dedicated law firm marketing company specializing in creating custom designed, comprehensive marketing programs for small law firms and solo practitioners. You can learn more about us at http://omegallegalmarketing.com; you can contact us at admin@omegalegalmarketing.com.

MAKE TIME FOR BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT

Does This Sound Familiar?

You’re a solo practitioner or partner in a small law firm that has been fortunate enough to develop a solid base of billable business. In an economy that is still soft and increasingly competitive, you’re working 60-70 hours per week just to maintain the same revenue and income levels you had five years ago. You can’t afford to hire an associate (or another associate) and you don’t trust temp or per diem attorneys. You have to dedicate several hours every week and every month to administrative matters – payroll, accounts payable, billing, taxes, etc.

You try to spend as much time as you can with existing clients, referring attorneys and other sources of business. You make a few phone calls when you can; perhaps you can manage an occasional lunch or dinner when you aren’t swamped preparing documents or getting ready for a trial. But you don't really have the time and you're always falling behind.

Somewhere in there you squeeze out a little time to spend with your spouse and kids. You're always tired - physically and emotionally. On those rare occasions when you do get away on vacation, you can’t relax because you need to be in constant contact with the office.

Amid all of this, when do you have time for business development? The chances are you probably don’t. And that could end up being tragic. A law firm that lacks a strategic plan for growing its practice, does not invest in its own growth and does not spend adequate time each and every month on developing its business is in jeopardy of eventually finding itself struggling or failing.

Develop a Strategic Business Plan 

The failure to plan is a plan for failure. Every small business has a strategic plan. A small law firm is no different. You’ve probably put together a financial plan so you can retire comfortably, pay for college, etc. Do you also have a business plan for how you’re going to generate the income to fund that plan?

You need to step back on a regular basis to reflect on where you want to go and how you are doing toward realizing that goal. Formulate a growth plan that articulates your long-term goals and the steps you need to take to achieve those goals. It doesn’t have to be long or complicated, but it needs to be detailed enough to serve as a constant reminder of where you want to go and how you plan to get there. Make sure it’s optimistic but realistic. 

Quantify your objectives in terms of revenue, billable hours, number of cases, etc. Establish time markers – where you want to be in one year, five years, ten years. Write it down. Keep it in your desk drawer or on your computer or smart phone. Look at it periodically to remind yourself of your professional objectives and to gauge whether you are still on track. If necessary, adjust it as circumstances dictate over the years.

Get Organized

The key to being effective and efficient is organization and good time management. If you’re a litigator, you probably use a case management program, but you probably don’t use anything to help you organize your schedule and time allocation. Take a look at contact management programs, like ACT or Onconact. They are amazingly powerful and can help you not only to manage your schedule, but to set up reminders and ticklers, and keep track of business leads.

Set a Budget

In an article a few years ago, the ABA’s Law Practice Management Section advised:

Solo practitioners and small firms probably should spend up to 5% of revenues in marketing, advertising, business development, and promotion to achieve a profile and brand-name recognition to influence clients. Advertisements can be either “image-oriented” for name recognition or “direct response.” The practice you are seeking to develop will determine which type of advertising should be used. Generally speaking, business services are not sold effectively by direct response advertising, whereas some personal services such as personal injury plaintiff representation, bankruptcy, domestic relations are.

[http://apps.americanbar.org/lpm/lpt/articles/fin02041.html]

Interestingly, the ABA article recommends that small firms and solos should be allocating approximately 5% of revenue to their marketing budgets. This is consistent with what large firms are spending, even though their marketing efforts are mainly focused on client maintenance and firm imaging. Do you have a marketing budget?  If you do, are you using it effectively?

Invest in Your Firm and Yourself

You’ve invested in phone systems, computers, software, offices and personnel in order to establish an image of professionalism and success, and to grow your practice. Have you invested in marketing yourself and your firm? You’ve probably built a website, but do you use it as a real business development tool? When was the last time you updated it or had a professional review its content, structure and web traffic results? (In this regard, you may want to take a look at our 2/16/2013 post.)

You may have a LinkedIn profile, but do you utilize it to develop your network and potential referral sources? Nearly every major corporate business in America has realized the importance of using Facebook, Twitter and other social media platforms to build relationships with existing customers and grow their customer bases. Have you? Every large law firm has professionally designed promotional literature; many maintain communication with their clients by utilizing periodic newsletters, either by mail or e mail. What are you doing?

Make Time for Business Development

You set aside time on a regular basis to manage your practice and attend to its administrative needs. You do billing, payroll and accounts payable regularly. You make time to keep up on developments in your area of practice and get in your CLE credits. Are you also allocating time on a regular basis to maintaining and expanding your client base? Do you reach out more than infrequently to attorneys, business associates and other potential referring sources, or do you just call them when things slow down?

There is much you can and should be doing, both on the web and through traditional outlets, to market and grow your practice. You don't need to spend a lot of money, but you do need to make a meaningful commitment to business development and allocate time and dollars to marketing.
 
We realize that actually finding the time for marketing and business development is easier said than done. Do it yourself solutions can work, but like so many things, trying to get by on the cheap is usually self defeating. Having a fresh set of eyes looking at your practice, business model, goals, challenges and opportunities can be very beneficial. 

Whether you decide to go it alone or bring in professional help, however, you need to be committed to business development and engaged in the execution of your plan.

OMEGA LEGAL MARKETING is a dedicated, specialty marketing company serving only small law firms and solo practitioners in the metro New York City area. Much more than just a web design firm, we put together affordable, comprehensive marketing programs that enable our clients to stand out from the crowd and grow their practices. You can find us at www.omegalegalmarketing.com