Miami Legal Business Development | Branding | Law Firm Coaching | Paula Black

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 As lawyers your stock in trade is the written word... in the eyes of the law. That is your training. However when it comes to marketing and business development it doesn't always come so easily. We have to view the information from the point of view of the audience. When I do it I close my eyes and imagine that I am Jane Smith or John Doe and try to imagine what questions they would have when they read this information. Sometime it's a big... HUH! 

Elevator Speech - Have you ever told an acquaintance what area of the law that you practice and they look at you like you are from another planet? Your elevator speech... in no more that 50 words (which is about 30 seconds) needs to RELATE to the life of the person you are talking to... answer the "what's in it for me" question.

Websites - Are there people that go to your website and STILL don't know what you do and didn't see the articles posted or the button that takes them to your blog? It's usually because we organized it by the information WE WANT them to know... not by the information THEY WANT to know. 

Clear communication is one of the most difficult challenges we humans have... just ask your significant other! Without it life is chaotic and business is impossible to develop.

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 Today someone asked me if my seminar was going to be on marketing or business development and I thought how odd to make the distinction. To me marketing IS business development. Yes, there may be those among you that would say marketing is running an ad or sending a newsletter and business development is giving speeches and good client relations. Well… that may be true however in reality they are one in the same. You tell me, are these marketing or business development? 

1. The art of building client relationships that build trust - do you follow up; are you truly accessible; ultimately are your clients so satisfied that they will refer you business?

2. Defining your niche - You can't be everything to all people; when a practice area is mentioned do your referral sources immediately think of you or are you a "jack-of-all-trades" so they never think of you?

3. Learning never ends - What skills do you want to invest in that will make you more attractive to potential clients and referral sources; such as; being a "certified expert"... that tells them that you are a "cut above" the rest.

4. How to use articles and speeches to build your credibility and visibility - it is not a one time activity it is a focused strategy that builds over time; become known for the knowledge and skills you have; articles and speeches SHOW your knowledge and skills in a way that no ad could ever do.

“A rose by any other name…”

These are business development skills that create a solid foundation for a lawyer's practice. In this new economy every lawyer is faced with the responsibility to bring in new clients and growing the ones they have... these are no longer "optional" skills… no matter what you call it!

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Taking risks is always an integral part of achieving great success. Whether it’s narrowing your client base or simply re-branding your firm, doing something new can often be a little scary. One of the things I’ve found to cause the most anxiety in my attorneys when it comes to marketing and business development risks is their entrance into the world of blogging and social media. Putting your ideas, opinions and thoughts out into the world can be an intimidating task, but one that can help you reap incredible rewards. While reading through my usual blog lists I came across a great piece on why the fear of social media can often prevent attorneys from moving forward in their marketing and business development strategy. But first, think about this…

Question of the week: Do you take risks with your marketing and business development?

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I’m on vacation… and sitting in an airport reading Fast Company... The Invincible Apple: 10 Lessons From the Coolest Company Anywhere. I have to admit that being in the creative field makes me prone to be a bit of a disciple of Steve Jobs. The reporter Farhad Manjoo writes:

Lesson # 6 - Everything Is Marketing... and he goes on to quote Martin Lindstrom…"Apple's brand is so powerful that for some people it's like a true religion.”

Just imagine for a moment that you had the ability to create that kind of loyalty with just 10 of YOUR clients. That would be pretty powerful wouldn't it? It’s not out of the realm of possibility. In fact you may have one or two right now. Clients that love and respect everything you do… from your legal work to your billing as well as your availability and how your staff interacts with them. Yes… even your bills… EVERYTHING is marketing. Everything we say and do. Everything we produce and distribute. Everything!

 The lesson we can take away from Apple’s competitive edge… it’s all the details that make up the total package. From the sound when you turn on the computer to it’s unique capabilities… not to mentions the cool factor. What is YOUR total package?  How are your clients greeted the moment someone picks up the phone? What are your unique capabilities? And maybe you don’t have a cool factor; however you may have a prestige factor… can your clients brag that YOU are their lawyer? They should! Don't you think?

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Last week we took a look at five important marketing materials. This week I want to discuss one in depth. Your website. These days nearly everyone has a website. Unfortunately, not everyone has a truly business development-driven website. Forget for a moment the possibilities of technology...we challenge firms to use their on-line presence as more than just a showplace and focus on the words, the message and the BRANDING that can stimulate business development. Sure, visitors may be impressed with your tech-savvy but what makes them stay and read is good, clear, interesting content that reinforces your points of differentiation.

Question of the week: Does your website content truly reflect your brand?