Miami Legal Business Development | Branding | Lawyer Coaching | Paula Black

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What makes YOU different from the thousands of lawyers that DO what you do?

As I discussed earlier this week... knowing what business you are REALLY in is the place to start. After you have done that ask yourself these questions...

1. What am I REALLY good at?
2. What do clients comment on most often?
3. Can others claim this? If so... have they?
4. What do I LOVE doing?
5. Is there a demand for this? If so... will they pay for it?

When you make your lists, ask someone close to you to help you brainstorm, because we don't often see our strengths as the outside world sees them. 

Why should you spend time doing this? Because it's your points of differentiation that you need to leverage when you are developing business. These points should be what you talk about, and knowing them will help you figure out what to write about. Not to mention that working from your strength and uniqueness is easier since it helps you standout from the crowd.

Black Pearl: Want to have fun? Get the book "Strength Finders 2.0" by Tom Rath. It has a special password to allow you to take a test that will give you your 5 TOP strengths. It will blow you away. Mine were so accurate that a friend asked if my photo was next to the definition. It is a great tool to help you gain clarity on your strengths.

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Let's look around...  What business are these companies in?

Revlon... Cosmetics?

Nike... Shoes and sports apparel?

Apple... Computers and accessories?

Sure those are their deliverables... but that is not the business they are in!

Revlon is in the "make me feel beautiful" business!

Nike is in the "I can win" business!

Apple is in the "You can't imagine how much you are going to need this and LOVE this... not to mention that you will be COOL if you have it" business!

As lawyers what business do you think YOU are in? The practice of law? Absolutely NOT! There are probably as many answers to this question as there are lawyers... 1,084,504 (according to the ABA a few years ago) in this country.

Think about it.... 

• Are you in the business of putting families back together again?
• Are you in the business of helping business owners sleep at night?
• Are you in the business of people realizing their dreams?
• Are you in the business of making sure the little guy gets justice?

Do any of these resonate with you? Not a single one mentioned the law! Just as Revlon, Nike and Apple produce a deliverable so do you... legal documents, a trial, counsel, etc. But the business you are in is much deeper than your deliverable. 

Why should you think about it? Because if you can get to the core of what business you are in you will have the insight to do it at a whole new level...

• You will be able to find your points of differentiation.
• You will be able to speak more directly to your target market.

And I believe you will be able to get back in-touch with why you actually decided to become a lawyer in the first place. And your life's work will have more meaning and a higher degree of satisfaction. Hence, your business development activities take on a whole new meaning.

If the law is just a job to you... disregard everything you have read. But if it is not... give these questions some deep thought and focus on the business YOU are in! Have fun... and if you would like to comment or have questions I would love to hear from you.

 Black Pearl: Were Jerry Garcia and The Grateful Dead in the same business as Elton John? Seth Godin has an interesting tidbit.

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You have a conversation about someone... what are you likely to do? Google... find out more about the person. So when someone hears YOUR name and Googles you what will they find? 

• Your website bio? Is it up to date and does it speak to the type of work you are interested in doing?
• A few directories with your phone number and address? Big deal... so what if they can find your office!

Are you proud of what they will find? Perhaps not.

Be the driver of your Internet identity. What are you an expert in? What is your opinion? What is your advice? This is NOT YOUR BIO... it is what is inside your head! That my friend is what will be powerful for people to find on the internet. This will provide credibility and reinforce what someone has said about you. That YOU are a lawyer worth talking to!

Articles and blogs are the answer. Every single day you put it off... you are that much further behind. Just get going!

Black Pearl: Kevin O'keefe "explores the question whether or not the Internet is an accelerator of a lawyers word of mouth". Take a look.

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The Internet... There are positives and negatives. There are do's and don't. One thing for sure is EVERYTHING you put on the Internet is public and will be there FOREVER.

What should govern our decisions? It's simple... common sense and the principles our mothers taught us... 

• Never put in writing what you wouldn't want the entire world to know. When MY mother taught me that, she certainly didn't really mean the entire world... today we do mean the ENTIRE world!
• Be respectful and don't annoy people. Just because we can say something doesn't mean we should.
• Ask yourself... Would I say this in person? Whether it's in an email, blog, or on Facebook or Twitter! Wait until you see this YouTube video... it will put it all into perspective. Enjoy! If you don't LOL there is no hope for you!

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The idea behind business development is finding a way to standing out from the rest. Today with the Internet there are many ways to do that. But just as the Internet has become the most powerful tool of this century... email has become an avalanche that we need to deal with on a daily basis.

• If you want to send a heartfelt message, DO NOT send an email. Send a handwritten note! Today I came across a blog post from Gerry Riskin who points out that people SAVE treasured handwritten notes. I bet that right now you could put your hands on a handwritten note YOU have received. Need I say more?
• If you want to build more meaningful relationships... pick up the phone! Have a conversation. An exchange that gives both of you more insight into one another.

Yes, it's easier and faster to shoot off an email. But is speed always what is needed? I don't think so. Building deep relationships... being top of mind... and connecting to our humanity is often more important.

Black Pearl: How do we get our email under control? Read The Hamster Revolution. It will give you a system to deal with the avalanche... better yet go on-line and take the course. Learn strategies that can save you 15... yes... 15 days a year. What could you do with an additional 15 day a year?

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When we look at our marketing and business development activities, we look at what we did and the results. But, we seldom look at what we were NOT able to do because we were doing that activity. That my friend is an opportunity cost. Let me explain...

• I have a client that has been involved in his practice area section of the bar, exclusively. He has learned a lot, and has gotten a couple of cases from others that have conflicted out of a case. So what is his opportunity cost? By only spending time with his practice section he has missed out on networking with lawyers who DON'T practice in his area and have the potential to send more cases.
• Another client who is a criminal defense lawyer is on the rotation wheel to receive court appointed cases. She signed up to have a steady flow of cases. The hourly rate for these cases is $175 per hour; her regular rate is $300. What has happened is she is spending so much time on the court appointed cases that she has little time to develop her own referral sources. This one is a BIG opportunity cost.

Now, I don't recommend going "cold turkey"! What is needed here is balance... balance that will take effort and discipline to achieve...

• Balance your bar activities with the goals of education and business development. EVERY event you attend plan an expected out come... such as meet one or two new people who do not practice in your area, etc. 
• With court appointed cases you can't pick and choose which cases you will take but maybe you can take a leave of absence from the program. And use the time wisely. Get out there and build your relationships. For fastest results ONLY work on established relationships that you have neglected, later on you can forge new ones. Then... ask yourself if you REALLY need those court appointed cases or are they just a crutch you have become dependent on because you haven't built your own referral sources.

What opportunity cost are you not seeing? 

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When it comes to business development what comes first credibility or visibility?  It's a bit like...what comes first... the chicken or the egg? 

I was coaching a client who has been consistent with her blogging and has been seeing potential clients for consultations. In the past six weeks she's seen six prospects that can be directly attributed to the blog; she landed two of them, was honest with another and told him that he doesn't really have a case YET (when other lawyers told him they would start working on the matter), spoke with two others that are raising the money and found that the last one was geographically undesirable. She has also been asked to be part of a panel discussion for an ABA meeting. I would say those are great results in record time!

She was a bit skeptical when I suggested she write a blog but now she has seen the power it can have. She was easy to find because her blog is very specialized... hence it comes up on Google searches. The potential clients have had the opportunity to understand her expertise because they have read her blog. What her blog has done for her is two fold... she gets credibility and visibility all in one.

We talked about what has contributed to her success...

• She had faith that my advice was sound... even if it was out of her comfort zone.
• She found a niche and loves it... you have to like the work.
• She loves writing; so she posts twice a week... you have to blog consistently.
• She said yes when asked to speak... take advantage of every opportunity.

Landing the prospect takes focus...

• She is extremely prepared when the potential clients come in for the consultation... a consultation is REALLY marketing at your best.

How can you connect with the prospect in a way that you establish TRUST? Everything you do should be in the interest of the client even if that means there isn't work for you at this time. When you do the right thing they will tell their friends and colleagues what a trust worthy lawyer you are... THAT my friend is credibility and is worth more in the future than a case you create today.

Black Pearl: Relationships Are Everything! Is a book by my colleague Mark Maraia, it's a great read that is full of pearls of wisdom. And YES... relationships ARE everything!

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I have several clients that seem to know everyone in town. They are leaders in their social circles, their religious circles... the list goes on and on. But they never seem to get work from those people. 

They are all great lawyers with years of experience and solid expertise in their fields. They see lawyers with less experience and expertise get the work. 

Why do you think that is so? They don't ask for the work! They don't want to appear PUSHY! Well, you will never get what you don't ask for... the answer is ALWAYS no to a question never asked.

People with great relationship skill don't necessarily make good business developers for the simple reason that they seldom ask others for business. The ASK shouldn't be pushy, it just has to be clear. Be absolutely clear about what you are asking for and be specific. If you want more foreclosure work say so...  

"I'm building my foreclosure practice, if you know of someone who is being foreclosed on please give them my name... I would be happy to help them."

The referral source will connect your name with foreclosures. That is what is called "being top of mind"... highly desirable when you are trying to develop business.

Black Pearl: The Miami Herald ran an article by Manny Garcia-Tunon titled "Don't be afraid to ask for the order". It's a story about the author's ability to make friends vs. sales. You may see a little of yourself in his story. Enjoy!

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On Tuesday I talked about the impact storytelling can have on your business development efforts.  I ran across a great article by Edward Hope:  Public Speaking - The Art of Storytelling. He touches on the eight elements that make a compelling story, which are all very important... but there are four not to be missed...

1. The story must be INTERESTING. Hope points out that an interesting story can overcome a lot in its delivery - however, nothing can save a dull story.  An interesting story will have conflict, drama and suspense... and let's not forget... the HERO. Hopefully that is YOU and your firm.

2. The story must have DRAMA. Delivering with passion and expression is critical. Your tone and body language are tools in delivering a memorable story that will illustrate how you help your clients. 

3. The story must be the RIGHT SIZE. Yes, the length of your story can make or break it. Have stories that are appropriate for a quick 1-minute delivery and others suitable for a 5-minute delivery. And know which to use when. 

4. The story must be RELEVANT. When you focus on how you help your client instead of the law you are more likely to be relevant. I would also add that being relevant to the conversation is equally important. A story that seems to come out of left field will have your listener rolling their eyes and remembering you for the wrong reason.

Business development storytelling can be appropriate in so many areas of your life... in everyday conversation with people you know and care about. They will learn how you help your clients in a very soft but memorable way and will then have the confidence to hire you and recommend you to others.