Effectively Manage Law Firm Business Development

Transcription

1 Effectively Manage Law Firm Business Development By establishing credibility, building your brand, and creating a buzz, your firm will effectively retain current clients and attract new prospects. By: Gina F. Rubel, Esq. President Furia Rubel Communications, Inc. Phone: Gina@furiarubelPR.com In today s legal market, most attorneys are fighting for the same piece of the client pie. Whether you are a solo personal injury practitioner or a partner at a multi-million dollar defense firm, client acquisition and retention is the key to success. This article touches on some long-standing techniques for developing your client portfolio without breaking the bank or crossing the line of the ABA Model Code of Professional Conduct. Know the Limits Being mindful of ethical considerations in legal marketing and public relations communications is important for every attorney. It is equally important for law school curriculums to teach students the dos and don ts for business marketing communications. Once you know the limits, then you can execute productive business development techniques without worry. The ABA Model Rules The ABA Model Rules of Professional Conduct are meant to serve as a guide to legal marketing communications. Each state s Bar has adopted either the ABA Model Rules or its own version oftentimes more restrictive. All reflect the attitude that lawyer advertising must be tasteful, honest, and objective, must not compare services with those of others unless the comparison is substantiated, and may not express superiority. Thus, never call yourself an expert!

2 Since each state s rules vary, you should become familiar with the rules that apply to you. A good source is the American Bar Association s Web site that tracks state rules, updates and changes. The site URL is Establish Credibility Much of today s business comes from direct referrals by other attorneys or clients. By positioning yourself as an expert (not calling yourself an expert ) in a particular area of the law, your peers and clients will identify you as an expert and refer you business. Here are some tactics you can use to establish yourself with both the legal and consumer markets. Write articles and white papers. Writing articles and white papers is a premier way to establish yourself and/or your firm as expert in a particular practice area without calling yourself an expert. Such documents should be sent to appropriate trade or consumer magazines and newspapers for publication. Once published, you should obtain permission to post the article or a link to it on your Web site. Then, purchase reprints to send to targeted clients, prospects and referring counsel. Speak at industry conferences / present continuing legal education. From the American Bar Association to state bar associations, industry conferences provide a forum for attorneys to showcase their expertise and establish themselves among their peers. Few attorneys are well versed in every area of the law. Attorneys often look to their colleagues for direction and education when presented with potential claims in practice areas they are unfamiliar with. By effectively presenting at conferences and teaching continuing legal education courses, you not only establish credibility among your peers, you open the door to many new sources of referrals. Author Op-Eds. Opinion Editorial (Op-Ed) articles contribute significantly to increasing visibility, name recognition and credibility. They are a costeffective and underutilized way to reach newspaper and Web site readership, especially when responding to topics that are controversial, legislatively motivated, or public policy-based. This will often lead to telephone queries by the readership with potential cases and clients. Create a series of tip sheets or newsletters for your target audience. Create newsletters or tip sheets that are relevant to your client base. Send the tip sheet to clients and prospects via mail, fax or (if your clients/prospects opt-in) to keep your law firm s name in their mind and to build name recognition. Make the newsletters or tip sheets available on your Web site and factor them into your Web site marketing. These communications position you as knowledgeable in your field of practice and will often generate calls from current and prospective clients.

3 Be an active member of industry associations and local organizations. Active membership and participation in your local bar association is extremely important. Members and leaders look for places to refer business. They know who is considered the best in the industry. Such participation builds credibility and name recognition in the legal industry. It is also important to participate in the activities of professional associations that share a like interest with your line of practice. For example, if your firm is handles criminal defense work, members of your firm should be actively involved with community rehabilitation programs. What better place to give something back to the community and to establish yourself as caring about the issues. Inevitably, you will be referred to a member of that community in need of counsel. Remember, word-of-mouth is a key factor to the success of many law firms. Build Your Brand Your firm name is a brand just like Coca-Cola, Ford, Microsoft, and Disney. Therefore, your firm name should send a message. Think to yourself for a moment if you have a client interested in pursuing a consumer class action (assuming your firm does not handle these matters), where would you refer the client? What firm is the first to pop into your mind? The firm that has branded itself as a consumer class action law firm of course with a name that is easy to recognize and remember. Your name is your brand. Effective firm naming is likely the single most important tactic to achieve effective corporate branding. From small boutique shops to century-old organizations, law firms across the country are changing their names to better brand their organizations and draw greater name recognition to their services. These shorter names are more memorable, catchy and distinctive and do not necessarily abandon the long-standing professional codes and traditions of using partners names. The company name, logo and tagline should all convey a consistent message. That message should then follow through with a uniform look and feel on your business cards, Web site, newsletters, marketing materials, etc. In whatever area of the law you practice, you want attorneys and consumers in your geographic area to say, I know a firm that can handle this matter. That s their specialty. Create a great Web site. In today s day and age, if a company does not have a Web site, they are considered small potatoes. A great Web site can give you the look and feel of a large company with contact information at the fingertips of millions of people. The size and budget of your law firm should determine the breadth and depth of your Web site. But regardless

4 of the budget, your Web site should convey your corporate brand and tell viewers who you are, how you can be contacted, and that you specialize in a particular area of the law. It is equally important to employ an expert in Web site marketing (search engine optimization). If your Web site is not listed in search engine databases, you will likely never be found on the World Wide Web. Just like a book has to be in the library to be in the index, your Web site must be registered properly to be located when searching the Internet. Identify on and off-line business listing opportunities. Update your company s business listings yearly. Make sure you are listed in your local directory of lawyers, the White Pages and others. In addition, many on-line listings are free and the more places your firm is listed, the more hits you will get on your Web site. Be cautious when paying for listing your business on Web sites that guarantee hits. Ask for trend reports, references from other firms listed on the Web site, Web site marketing tactics, return on investment (ROI) analysis, etc. It is important for the listing Web site to get hits but it is equally important for those hits to translate into targeted and appropriate traffic for your firm s Web site. Advertise in the Yellow Pages. According to the Yellow Pages Publishers Association s estimates for 2000, lawyer-advertising expenditures in domestic printed Yellow Pages were estimated at $809 million. The attorneys category is the highest revenue category for Yellow Page directory publishers. But to be successful, a firm s Yellow Page ad must be well thought out, command attention, convey a single focus, be eye-captivating, differentiate itself, look professional and address the need of the audience. Remember, if someone is searching for a lawyer in the Yellow Pages, he already needs an attorney. It s much different than trying to advertise something a consumer might want but is not particularly in the market to buy. An excellent guide to creating winning Yellow Page ads is, Effective Yellow Pages Advertising for Lawyers, by Kerry Randall, published by the Law Practice Management Section of the American Bar Association. Create a Buzz To create a buzz means to keep your firm name in the media positively and consistently. The more consumers and industry peers hear your name, the more likely they will remember you when searching for counsel or referring cases. Creating a buzz requires constant attention to what is happening in your law firm. Often, attorneys are so focused on client acquisition, retention, and satisfaction

5 that they forget to tell the world what s happening internally. Today, many large firms across the country employ a chief marketing officer or a director of corporate communications. Small firms tend to outsource their communications programs. Nonetheless, small and large firms hire these individuals to focus solely on telling the world what is happening at the firm via strategically planned marketing and communications programs. Here are some tactics used to create a buzz. Announce new business wins. Oftentimes, local newspapers, business journals and industry publications print articles about new business wins. It is as simple as sending a press release to the target audience. This should especially be used in the case of class actions, public interest cases, union representation, large corporation representation, etc. Make it part of your practice to get the permission of the client first. Often the client will request anonymity but many will permit your firm to announce representation. Announce substantial verdicts, non-confidential settlements and precedent setting cases. There are many local, regional, national and trade publications that report substantial verdicts, non-confidential settlements and precedent setting cases. The area of practice should determine if a verdict or settlement is substantial. In addition, if a case has helped to establish precedent, let the legal world know. This not only creates a buzz about your firm, it also establishes your credibility among your peers. Some national publications/publishers that you should target are National Law Journal, Lawyers Weekly USA, Mealeys Publications and American Lawyer (American Lawyer Media), among others. Announce new hires, promotions, appointments and successful election outcomes. Local newspapers, business journals and industry publications will print stories about new hires, promotions, appointments and successful election outcomes. When writing the press release, focus on something exciting about the person (awards, accomplishments, civic involvement, etc.). Send the press release via mail with a 5 x 7 black and white photo or via with the photo attached. (Be sure that the editor will accept photo attachments first.) This type of press release keeps your company name in the media and has the added benefit of creating good will among your employees. Sponsor events and programs. No matter what your law firm practice area or interest, sponsorship opportunities abound. From sporting events to ethnic festivals, bar foundation functions to nonprofit needs, sponsorships generate quality direct exposure with your target audience. Your firm should pursue sponsorship opportunities as a marketing expenditure. Look at opportunities presented to the firm and create

6 potential sponsorships on your own. For example, if there is a local nonprofit organization whose membership and audience are the type of clients that you want to reach, offer to sponsor an educational page on their Web site or an educational brochure. Be sure to include non-biased, educational messages in the content with your firm s name and contact information should the reader have questions. Sponsorships can be extremely rewarding to your firm. They need to be strategically planned and creatively executed to be successful. Taking Your Piece of the Pie There are many tactics you can employ to create credibility for yourself as a legal practitioner and for your law firm in general. Be creative and think about how you can effectively reach your target audience without spending exorbitant amounts of money on broadcast advertising. Think about where your customers eat, what they read, how they process information, and where they go for advice or help. Once you can answer these questions, execute tactics designed to increase awareness, build your brand, create an ongoing buzz, and position your leadership as experts in your industry. Test new ways to reach your target audience without being offensive or violating the Model Rules of professional conduct that apply to you. But always remember, by consistently and effectively executing the tactics outlined here, you can increase your bottom line for years to come. Author Biography: Founder and president of Furia Rubel Communications, Inc. ( Gina Furia Rubel, Esq., is a Philadelphia lawyer with more than a decade of integrated communications experience in the legal industry. After practicing law for several years, Gina focused on her passion for proactive, integrated communication for the legal, healthcare, and nonprofit industries. Gina has developed and executed integrated strategic communications plans for large and small firms; supervised crisis communications, risk management and media relations for internationally publicized death penalty trials, planned events for major corporate, nonprofit, and philanthropic gatherings; and implemented programs that include corporate branding, publicity, special events, Web site development, and association relations. Gina is an active member of the Philadelphia Bar Association, the Justinian Society, the Philadelphia Public Relations Association, the Public Relations Society of America, justcommunity, Inc., and the American Heart Association, among others. She served on a Supreme Court of Pennsylvania Disciplinary Board Hearing Committee for six years, acting as the chairperson for three years. She has published articles in Lawyers Weekly USA, The Legal Intelligencer, Philadelphia Lawyers Magazine and MediaMap.com and is a frequent lecturer at

7 area universities and high schools. She is a 1991 graduate of Drexel University and a 1994 graduate of Widener University School of Law. Her current clients include Sheller Ludwig & Badey, Anapol Schwartz, DeMarco & DeMarco, Furia & Turner, and Kenneth Kitay & Associates, among others.