The Importance of Finding a Niche for Your Law Firm

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More and more people are becoming lawyers every day.  As a matter of fact, it is one of the most common careers paths for college students today.  What does this mean for your firm?  It means that, going forward, competition will continue to intensify.
 
If you are looking for a way to make your law firm stand out from the crowd, the answer may be that you need to create a niche for your firm.  Let’s face it, new law firms are springing up all the time.  If you don’t want your firm to get lost in the mix, you have to do something to stand out.
 
There are several benefits to niche marketing.

• Firms that develop a niche work more efficiently because it easier for them to keep up with changes in the law.
 
• Attorneys who have a niche market are often able to charge higher fees and are often in high demand.
 
• Firms who have a niche also have less competition.

Decide on what area of law you would like to focus.

Developing a niche is not about choosing more of one type of case.  To truly create a niche for your firm you need to have a laser like focus on one are of law.  Think about what areas of law bring in the most revenue for your firm, this may be where you should establish your niche.  Or think about what area of law most intrigues you.  Determine if there is a decent market for a niche law firm in that area.  If you think the answer is yes, then go for it.
 
When you decide on a niche, make sure that it is very specific.  If you don’t, then you may not be making enough of a change within your firm to truly be distinctive in the marketplace. 
For example, a small law firm in Chicago has created a niche in “digital trespassing” for consumers who feel that their rights have been violated by unwanted text messages and unwanted emails.  While this may be a risky niche to pursue, you at least get the idea about being very specific.

First learn and then promote.
 
Before launching into an ad campaign to tell the world that you have a new area of focus, you first need to make sure that you are equipped to handle legal cases in your new niche.  In other words, do your research.  Learn as much as you can about the area that you have chosen as your specialty.
Once you have decided on a niche and your have read up on it, you will need to promote it.  Think about how your marketing plan may need to change given the new direction of your firm.  Let your referral sources and past clients know about your new niche.  Update your website and printed materials to reflect your firm’s new direction.

Position yourself as an expert.

You now need people to start seeing you as the “go to” attorney for your niche.  A few ways to do that are to:

• Use email marketing to let potential clients and referral sources see your expertise.  Add a blog to your website that talks in detail about your niche area.  Write articles for the Internet about your niche.  There are several websites that accept articles, like http://www.ezinearticles.com.  You can include links to the articles on your website.
 
• Make yourself and your top attorneys available for speaking engagements.  Add the details and audio and/or clips of the event to your website.
• yourself available to the media for questions concerning your area of law.  Send out press releases to inform the media about your firm’s niche and to keep them abreast of changes in the law.  When they have a legal question that pertains to your legal focus, they will contact you and will most likely quote you in a news article.  This article can be posted to your website to further the idea that you are an expert in this field.

Now for the hard part, you will need to start turning away clients who don’t fit into your niche.  While this may feel like a gamble, it is the most effective way to build a niche practice.  There will always be clients who need you to do something outside of your niche.  But for every client you take outside of your niche, you may have been able to charge much more to a different client down the road whose case falls within your niche.  In addition, every client you take within in your niche deepens your experience and your expertise.
 
Niche marketing is a wonderful way to increase your firm’s earning potential. Remember that some states have laws that don’t allow attorneys to use the phrase “specialize” or “expert” without going through special certifications.  Don’t let that hinder you.  Most firms that have developed a niche just choose not to use those phrases to describe their firms.