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Although it is relatively easy to tell when a relationship ends, most people have a difficult time understanding when a relationship begins. Yet it is often the early stages of a relationship that are most critical. At the beginning of the relationship there is a heightened sensitivity to every interaction. Trust has not yet been established so there is an imaginary wall in place. To win this person over you will either have to go over that wall or convince them to take it down.
While this could be the description of the early stages of a friendship, it is not. This is the feeling your client has while he is looking for a lawyer. By the time he actually contacts you there is already a relationship developing. It began without your knowledge.
You can control how this relationship begins. You can also nurture that relationship along. And you can do this even before you meet the person who will, one day, work with you.
There are three tools that are so valuable and so underestimated that they have become a secret weapon for my clients. I have discussed them with you several times and made countless videos about them. But for some reason, most people fail to put them into practice.
I can’t speak to why someone may or may not want to do something. And I do not have the time or the space to re-present all the overwhelming case studies that prove my point. What I am going to do is list these three tools here, once again, specifically for you. Suffice it to say that these tools are, in some way, responsible for seventy percent of the new business most of my clients receive. That means they work.
Three tools that can skyrocket your new client acquisition:
A Blog
The word blog is short for weblog and it is simply a website that is updated regularly. I counsel my clients to start a blog and update it at least one time a week. Three times is better. You only need to write an article of about 300-500 words in length each time you update the blog.
Blogs provide great insight into how your mind works. Blogs can educate your clients. They can motivate them to take action and they can differentiate you from everyone else. They also are great for attracting traffic on the Internet.
A Weekly Email Update
Some people refer to this as an e-blast. Some people call it an e-newsletter. It is basically an email that contains excellent educational information.
Many attorneys think a weekly email is too frequent. This is crap. People who do not want to read what you are sending will unsubscribe. The others will either ignore the information or they will read it.
If one person reads your weekly email update you are ahead of the game. If nothing else, it keeps you present in the minds of people who can refer you new clients.
A Monthly Print Newsletter
Your newsletter is a combination of personal information and educational material. This is your opportunity to develop a relationship with your readers (past clients and prospective new clients). People are nosey. They want to know what is going on in your life. Feel free to tell them something interesting about you THE PERSON not you THE LAWYER.
The print newsletter is the single most valuable marketing tool you can employ in your law practice. It doesn’t matter if you practice in criminal defense or securities law. The newsletter works.
Most lawyers will continue to ignore this simple three media marketing plan. If you do, I hope you are competing with one of my clients. Right now someone is going to their mailbox to find an invitation to begin a relationship with a lawyer. It could be you, but it is not.